The baseball world is in awe of what Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase has been able to achieve.
He has 39 saves this year to lead the American League, and his season ERA is an insane 0.58 in 62.1 innings pitched.
We are not talking about 10 or 20 frames: this is a full-season workload for a reliever already.
Not only that, but Clase also managed to tie Cody Allen at the top of the Guardians’ all-time saves list on Wednesday with 149.
The guy is just 26 years old, and nobody in franchise history has more saves than him.
That’s impressive.
MLB Network wonders if he should be in the Cy Young conversation given his long list of achievements and the season he has had.
To make his case, they posted a graphic with some of his numbers.
Spoiler alert: they are amazing.
Should Emmanuel Clase be in the AL Cy Young conversation? 👀 pic.twitter.com/PayRGAfRrf
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) August 29, 2024
If voters are fair, the answer is yes: Clase should, at the very least, get some Cy Young award votes.
No starter in the American League has been as dominant relative to his peers than Clase has been if we compare him to other relievers.
Sure, starters are more valuable and that makes the Guardians star unlikely to win.
But he should at least be considered.
It’s only fair.
His 0.67 WHIP is almost as impressive as his 0.58 ERA.
He has conceded only four earned runs in the whole season to this point.
He is as close to perfection as baseball has when it comes to a late-inning reliever.
Clase definitely deserves his flowers.
NEXT: Guardians Closer Enters The Franchise History Books With 149th Save
