- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,193,655
- Reaction score
- 59
Drew Rasmussen is making a serious push to be the American League's top pitcher.
With the halfway point of the 2026 season approaching, the Tampa Bay Rays right-hander has firmly inserted himself into the AL Cy Young conversation. Recently, MLB.com's released their latest Cy Young poll and ranked Rasmussen third in the American League behind only Yankees ace Cam Schlittler and Blue Jays right-hander Dylan Cease.
And based on how Rasmussen has pitched lately, it's hard to argue against him climbing even higher.
The Rays ace has been nearly untouchable over his last three starts, allowing just one earned run across 21 innings while striking out 29 batters. Rasmussen has issued only one walk during that stretch while giving up just nine hits, showcasing the elite command that has become his calling card this season.
So far this year, Rasmussen owns a 2.62 ERA and an impressive 0.88 WHIP over 86 innings, continuing what has quietly become one of the best seasons by any starting pitcher in baseball.
Since 2021, Rasmussen has owned the second-lowest ERA among starting pitchers with at least 500 innings pitched, trailing only Shohei Ohtani. This season may be the best version of Rasmussen yet, as he's working deeper into games while posting both the highest strikeout rate and lowest walk rate of his career as a starter.
Just two weeks ago, Rasmussen delivered perhaps the best outings of his career, striking out a career-high 13 Boston Red Sox hitters across seven shutout innings. It's just another reminder that when he's healthy, few pitchers in baseball can match his ceiling.
There is still plenty of baseball left to play, but Rasmussen has done everything necessary to establish himself as one of the favorites in the American League Cy Young race. If he continues pitching at this level throughout the second half, don't be surprised if the Rays ace is holding more than just All-Star honors by season's end.
With a rough start to the month of June, the Rays are on a bounce back and are tied again with the New York Yankees for the top of the American League East. If the pitching staff led by Rasmussen can continue their dominance, Tampa Bay will surely do what is needed at the MLB trade deadline to ensure they have everything it takes to make a deep run inside the postseason and hopefully lead their newfound ace and the franchise to their first ever World Series title.
He will get another chance on Sunday to continue to build up his resume for the All-Star game as well as end of season awards when he gets the start in the series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Continue reading...
With the halfway point of the 2026 season approaching, the Tampa Bay Rays right-hander has firmly inserted himself into the AL Cy Young conversation. Recently, MLB.com's released their latest Cy Young poll and ranked Rasmussen third in the American League behind only Yankees ace Cam Schlittler and Blue Jays right-hander Dylan Cease.
And based on how Rasmussen has pitched lately, it's hard to argue against him climbing even higher.
The Rays ace has been nearly untouchable over his last three starts, allowing just one earned run across 21 innings while striking out 29 batters. Rasmussen has issued only one walk during that stretch while giving up just nine hits, showcasing the elite command that has become his calling card this season.
So far this year, Rasmussen owns a 2.62 ERA and an impressive 0.88 WHIP over 86 innings, continuing what has quietly become one of the best seasons by any starting pitcher in baseball.
Since 2021, Rasmussen has owned the second-lowest ERA among starting pitchers with at least 500 innings pitched, trailing only Shohei Ohtani. This season may be the best version of Rasmussen yet, as he's working deeper into games while posting both the highest strikeout rate and lowest walk rate of his career as a starter.
Just two weeks ago, Rasmussen delivered perhaps the best outings of his career, striking out a career-high 13 Boston Red Sox hitters across seven shutout innings. It's just another reminder that when he's healthy, few pitchers in baseball can match his ceiling.
There is still plenty of baseball left to play, but Rasmussen has done everything necessary to establish himself as one of the favorites in the American League Cy Young race. If he continues pitching at this level throughout the second half, don't be surprised if the Rays ace is holding more than just All-Star honors by season's end.
With a rough start to the month of June, the Rays are on a bounce back and are tied again with the New York Yankees for the top of the American League East. If the pitching staff led by Rasmussen can continue their dominance, Tampa Bay will surely do what is needed at the MLB trade deadline to ensure they have everything it takes to make a deep run inside the postseason and hopefully lead their newfound ace and the franchise to their first ever World Series title.
He will get another chance on Sunday to continue to build up his resume for the All-Star game as well as end of season awards when he gets the start in the series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Continue reading...
