Jacob Misiorowski, who grew up throwing in Grain Valley before becoming one of baseball's hardest throwers, was named the unanimous winner of the National League Cy Young Award on Wednesday, Nov. 11. The 24-year-old Brewers right-hander received all 30 first-place votes from the Baseball Writers' Association of America, capping a season in which he posted a 16-5 record, a 1.80 ERA and 252 strikeouts across 30 starts.
The honor, as reported by KCTV5, came just two weeks after Misiorowski stood on the mound as the winning pitcher in Game 5 of the World Series, the game that clinched the Brewers' first championship in franchise history. According to the BBWAA, Misiorowski swept the voting outright, and the organization notes that the ballots were cast before the postseason even began — meaning his regular-season dominance alone was enough to earn every single first-place vote.
The Athletic reported that Misiorowski's numbers led all of baseball: the lowest ERA (1.80) and the most strikeouts (252) of any starter, according to The Athletic. The same report notes he fired a record 1,115 pitches of 100 mph or faster during the regular season, an eye-popping figure for a pitcher who stands 6-foot-7 and has become known for velocity that few others in the sport can match.
A Season for the Record Books
Brew Crew Ball's review of the season found that Misiorowski became the eighth pitcher since 1913 to finish with an ERA of 1.80 or lower while also striking out at least 250 batters. The outlet also points out that he was just the fourth pitcher since 1950 to lead all of baseball in strikeouts, ERA and opponent batting average in the same season, a distinction Brew Crew Ball frames as a signature of just how dominant his year was.
One stretch stood out even among a historic season. Across six starts in May, the outlet reported, Misiorowski threw 38⅓ innings and allowed just one run, striking out 57 batters while walking only six — a run of starts that helped set the tone for everything that followed.
Roots in Grain Valley
Long before the strikeouts piled up, Misiorowski was a kid in Grain Valley, Missouri, a town about 20 miles east of Kansas City where he attended Grain Valley High School. He has said the town still feels like home. “This is where my friends and family are,” he told The Kansas City Star, describing the love he still feels from the community even as his career has taken off on a national stage.
Joining Rare Company
Misiorowski's unanimous selection marked the 17th time an NL pitcher has won the Cy Young unanimously, and the second year in a row it's happened, following Pirates ace Paul Skenes a year earlier, per the BBWAA. He also became just the second Brewers pitcher to win the award in the National League, joining 2021 winner Corbin Burnes, and the fourth Brewers pitcher to win a Cy Young overall, following Rollie Fingers in 1981, Pete Vuckovich in 1982 and Burnes, according to Yahoo Sports.
This was also just the third time both league Cy Young winners were unanimous in the same season, joining 2022 — when Justin Verlander and Sandy Alcantara swept their respective votes — and 1968, when Denny McLain and Bob Gibson did the same, the BBWAA noted. Cristopher Sanchez finished as the NL runner-up for the second consecutive year, the organization added.
