The New York Yankees cruised to the World Series this year, winning 114 games during the season, and handily defeating all newcomers in the playoffs. They had a great pitching staff, and a diverse one as well. It included veteran power pitcher David Cone; lefty David "Boomer" Wells, who had a dream season; lefty Andy Pettitte; Cuban defector Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez; and star closer Mariano Rivera.
         All of these pitchers were terrific, but none were the best in the league. That distinction went to Roger Clemens of Toronto, who won his fifth Cy Young Award. Ironically, the Yankees, never satisfied with being merely the best, would acquire Clemens in the off-season (in exchange for Wells). As a member of the Yankees in 1999, the Rocket would finally win the World Series.

         I think the top three choices are fairly obvious: Clemens, Pedro Martinez, and Wells. The Rocket had a rough start to the season, and in June had a 5-6 record. From there, he stopped losing, winning his last 15 decisions (one short of the AL record). This was his second straight Cy Young, and also his second straight pitching Triple Crown. It was also the Rocket's sixth ERA title, moving him into second place behind Lefty Grove, who won nine. His two great seasons in Toronto moved Clemens from merely a great pitcher to one of the greatest; he is still pitching at this writing, and still has a shot at 300 wins.
        When Clemens left Boston, the Red Sox needed a power right-hander to replace him. And who better than Pedro Martinez? Pedro's first season in the AL was sandwiched in between Cy Young seasons in 1997 and 1999, and may pale in comparison. But it was still a great year, only a notch or two behind Clemens.
        As mentioned before, David Wells had a dream season. The burly left-hander was a crowd favourite at Yankee Stadium, and himself was a big Yankees fan, wearing number 33 in honour of another burly Yankee, Babe Ruth. Wells threw a perfect game early in the year; over the course of the season he was almost unbeatable, and was dynamite in the playoffs as well. The glory didn't last long, though; next spring training, Wells was dealt to Toronto in exchange for Clemens.
        Behind the big three, I have a choice between David Cone or a relief pitcher. Tom Gordon, whose career had been drifting aimlessly for a decade, had a great year as a closer, blowing only one save. Rivera and Mike Jackson had outstanding years as well. But I will stick with Cone; a couple of years after his career was almost ended by an aneurism in his arm, Cone made a strong comeback with his second 20-win season (the other was in 1988). He was not as durable as some of the other pitchers, but was outstanding; in 1999 he continued to pitch well, and even threw a perfect game.