Why Phillies' Cristopher Sanchez is NL Cy Young frontrunner for ESPN over Jacob Misiorowski

The Philadelphia Phillies and the Milwaukee Brewers might not be in the same division, but there is a major rivalry going on between the two teams this season.

Cristopher Sanchez vs. Jacob Misiorowski for the NL Cy Young award is the best award race in baseball this year, and it might be one of the best Cy Young races ever in MLB history. Both are deserving of the award, but only one can win.

Bradford Doolittle of ESPN shared that Sanchez is the frontrunner for the Cy Young over Misiorowski, just barely, according to ESPN. The reason why (for Doolittle) is simple: Sanchez's bWAR is proving to be a big help in this Cy Young conversation.

Why Cristopher Sanchez is NL Cy Young frontrunner over Jacob Misiorowski

"Misiorowski briefly nudged ahead of Sanchez in AXE before a pedestrian (for him) outing that was followed by a Sanchez gem," Doolittle writes. "The difference here remains Sanchez's NL-best 5.8 pitching bWAR, a figure that is 4.3 at FanGraphs."

So far in 2026, Sanchez has been one of the best pitchers in baseball, and likely the best left-handed pitcher, with Misiorowski and AL Cy Young frontrunner Cam Schlittler both right-handers.

Sanchez has a 2.00 ERA with a 10-3 record and 5.8 bWAR on the season, while Misiorowski has a 1.47 ERA with a 9-4 record and 4.2 bWAR.

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Misiorowski has 156 strikeouts and a 288 ERA+, both ahead of Sanchez at 136 strikeouts and a 224 ERA+. But Sanchez has pitched 117 innings in 18 starts compared to Misiorowski at 104 in 17 starts.

This is a tight race, but since Sanchez has been on the mound for longer, and given the Phillies two starts' worth of extra work this season, his value to the Phillies has been a lot greater than Misiorowski's value to the Brewers.

The massive difference in bWAR, 5.8 for Sanchez to 4.2 for Misiorowski, is a sign of how differently the two are valued.

But, for now, ESPN has Sanchez as the NL Cy Young frontrunner, despite the media and the fans likely putting Misiorowski ahead of the Phillies ace. Regardless, this race has been fantastic so far, and hopefully will stay this way as the season moves along.

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