Big Ed Walsh had his first monster season for the White Sox. A master
of the spitball, Walsh was capable of throwing large numbers of innings, and
the White Sox relied on him heavily. This year, he threw almost a third of
their innings. Walsh was both the hardest working pitcher in the league and
the most versatile, and he also led the league in ERA. Though he didn't have
as much luck as his teammate, Doc White, Walsh seems like the natural choice
for this year's Cy Young Award.
There isn't much to distinguish among the other pitchers.
Addie Joss was one of the best hurlers of the era; this year, he set career
highs in wins and innings pitched, and his ERA was among the best. Joss is
my choice for runner-up. Next, we can consider two Tiger pitchers, Wild Bill
Donovan and Ed Killian. Donovan earned his nickname early in his career with
his wildness. But now he had been in the league for a decade, and had developed
some decent control. Donovan had a long career, and was a decent pitcher; he
won 186 games in total.
Ed Killian had a short career, and a very
inconsistent one, usually following up a good year with a lousy one, then
another good one. This was his best season, and I'm choosing "Twilight Ed"
for the fourth spot. Other pitchers to be considered include Cy Young himself,
who turned 40 this year. Young pitched very well, and won 21 games for a
wretched Boston team that couldn't score runs.
