Once again, the Atlanta Braves were upset in the playoffs. Led by their great pitching staff, the Braves deposed of the upstart Chicago Cubs in the divisional playoffs, then faced the surprising Padres for the League Championship. The Padres had defeated the Astros, largely on the strength of their aces, Kevin Brown and Trevor Hoffman. Against the Braves, the Padres pitching once again prevailed, and they won the pennant. Both Brown and Hoffman had great seasons, and were considered favourite for the Cy Young- but it was a Braves pitcher who won the award.

         Tom Glavine won the award in a close vote, finishing ahead of Brown and Hoffman. It was the second Cy Young of Glavine's career, the first coming in 1991. A pretty good case could be made for Brown, though; more innings, a lower ERA, more strikeouts, fewer walks. Glavine's only advantage is two wins. Then throw into the mix Hoffman's season, which surely has to rank among the best ever by a reliever.
        But I'm not going to choose any of those guys for the award. Imagine a pitcher who wins 18 games, leads the league in ERA, shutouts, and fewest baserunners allowed, and leads his team to the best record in the league- and yet is considered to have had an off year by his own standards? That's the dilemna of Greg Maddux, who was once again the best pitcher in the National League, but didn't get much credit for it because everyone has gotten used to so much more. Maddux had a 2.22 ERA- in a year in which home runs were being hit at a record pace. Sure, Glavine had two more wins... but do you really think he was better than Maddux? Of course not.
        Maddux, in my mind, deserves the award, followed by Brown and Glavine. Hoffman would be my fourth choice; comparing starters to closers is always difficult, and many people think that Hoffman was the best of this bunch. I would prefer to have a great starting pitcher who piles up innings, but I can't prove that Hoffman didn't deserve the award. Normally, I only give the Cy Young to a reliever in years when there isn't a strong starting candidate; in this case, I think Maddux, Brown, and Glavine all had superior seasons.
        A couple of other interesting years in the NL in 1998. Randy Johnson, one of baseball's best pitchers, had a rotten start to the year in Seattle. He was dealt to Houston during the stretch drive, and was once again his dominating self, losing only one game. The only knock against the Big Unit is that he didn't throw as many innings as the other big guys. We could, and perhaps should, include the numbers he had with Seattle, which would bring his total to 19 wins. But the truth is, Johnson did not pitch well in Seattle, and his overall numbers are still not as good as the other top pitchers.
        The Cubs were the surprise winners of the wild-card, and had two big stories on their team. One was Sammy Sosa, who hit 66 home runs. The other was a sensational 20-year-old kid named Kerry Wood, a hard thrower with a devastating curveball. Early in the season, Wood struck out 20 batters in a game, matching Roger Clemens' record. Wood went on to have a terrific season, winning the Rookie Of The Year Award, and setting a new record with 12.6 strikeouts per game. Unfortunately, Wood required reconstructive surgery on his arm after the season; at this writing, we are still waiting to see if he comes back.