Chris Sale was one of the ace left-handers Tarik Skubal idolized as a teenager. Now the two will be linked forever after winning their first Cy Young Awards on Wednesday.
Skubal was a unanimous pick for the American League honor following a brilliant season with the Detroit Tigers. Sale’s selection in the National League capped an incredible comeback with the Atlanta Braves after the 35-year-old had been derailed by injuries since helping Boston win the 2018 World Series.
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FILE - Detroit Tigers' Tarik Skubal pitches during a baseball game, Oct. 7, 2024, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Phil Long, File)
FILE - Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale throws in the first inning of a baseball game, Aug. 23, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen, File)
FILE - Pittsburgh Pirates' Paul Skenes resets on the mound before delivering a pitch during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Sept. 22, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar, File)
FILE - From left are baseball players, Cleveland Guardians' Emmanuel Clase, Kansas City Royals' Seth Lugo and Detroit Tigers' Tarik Skubal, in 2024. (AP Photo/File)
FILE - From left are baseball players, Atlanta Braves' Chris Sale, Pittsburgh Pirates' Paul Skenes and Philadelphia Phillies' Zack Wheeler. (AP Photo/File)
“It means a lot. It’s a special night,” Sale said. “I just can’t express how thankful I am for everybody that stuck by me. It would have been easy to jump ship and write me off.”
Skubal and Sale shared the MLB lead with 18 wins this season and dominated their respective leagues.
Sale went 18-3 and topped the NL with 225 strikeouts, while his 2.38 ERA in 29 starts was the best among all major league qualifiers. It was his first season in the National League during a big league career that began in 2010 with the Chicago White Sox.
Skubal, who turned 28 on Wednesday, was 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and a big league-best 228 strikeouts in 31 starts. The left-hander got all 30 first-place votes in AL balloting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America that was completed before the playoffs.
Sale received 26 firsts, with NL runner-up Zack Wheeler from Philadelphia getting the other four.
“If you look at his career, it’s no surprise that he’s winning this award,” Skubal said about Sale. “To be able to share this award and win it the same year, and win the same triple crown award in the AL and NL, that’s something that’s really special to me, and it’s awesome. I’ll be able to live with that the rest of my life.”
Pittsburgh Pirates righty Paul Skenes finished third, two days after being selected NL Rookie of the Year. Kansas City starter Seth Lugo was the AL runner-up, with Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase (47 saves) coming in third.
It was the first time since 2011 that someone won the pitching triple crown in both leagues. There have been 25 occasions when a pitcher led his league in wins, strikeouts and ERA among qualifiers — and a Cy Young Award followed all 16 times it's happened since the prize was first presented in 1956.
Sale didn’t have any major injury issues in his Braves debut until he was scratched because of back spasms from their final regular-season game, which they needed to win to make the playoffs. He was then left off the roster for their Wild Card Series loss to San Diego.
Atlanta acquired Sale in a trade last December after he made only 31 starts for the Red Sox from 2021-23. He missed the 2020 season and most of 2021 after Tommy John surgery. He made only two starts in 2022 after he fractured a rib and then broke his left pinkie. He broke his right wrist riding a bicycle in August 2023, ending his final season with Boston.
Sale was named the NL Comeback Player of the Year last week at Major League Baseball’s All-MLB Awards Show.
“Talk about motivation, right? To be able to show my sons hard work, dedication and not giving up. My wife had my back the whole time. I’m sure I was a real peach at times during some of those injuries,” he said. “And just with my parents, my family, I was talking to my dad the other day about this and whether it did or didn’t happen, he was proud of me.”
It was the third time Sale finished among the top three in Cy Young Award voting. He was the AL runner-up in 2017 after his first season with Boston behind Corey Kluber, who was also the Cy Young Award winner in 2014 when Sale finished third with the White Sox.
Sale won the eighth Cy Young Award for the Braves organization. Most of those came in the 1990s, when Greg Maddux won three in a row with Atlanta from 1993-95 — after being the 1992 winner with the Chicago Cubs. Tom Glavine won twice (1991 and 1998), and John Smoltz was the 1996 winner. Warren Spahn was the first in 1957 when the Braves played in Milwaukee.
Detroit now has six Cy Young Awards. Denny McLain won back-to-back in 1968 and 1969, and reliever Willie Hernández was the 1984 winner. Justin Verlander’s Cy Young Award with the Tigers came two years before Max Scherzer won in 2013.
Skubal had Tommy John surgery at Seattle University before the Tigers drafted him in the ninth round in 2018. His made his big league debut in 2020, and this season went at least six innings in 25 of his 31 outings. He was 6-0 in his first nine starts and finished the season the same way — 6-0 in his last nine starts while the Tigers made their surprising push to the playoffs.
He made his postseason debut with 17 consecutive scoreless innings before a five-run fifth that included a grand slam by Cleveland’s Lane Thomas in the deciding Game 5 of their AL Division Series. That 7-3 loss ended the Tigers’ season.
“I was able to kind of get over it relatively quickly just because I was so proud of our team and what we were able to accomplish,” Skubal said. “And if I’m going to be the one to fail, I love that, because, you know, it’s only going to set our team up to have success in the future.”
Based on where they placed in balloting, Clase earned a $150,000 bonus, Sale and Lugo $100,000 each and Wheeler $50,000.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
FILE - Detroit Tigers' Tarik Skubal pitches during a baseball game, Oct. 7, 2024, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Phil Long, File)
FILE - Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale throws in the first inning of a baseball game, Aug. 23, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen, File)
FILE - Pittsburgh Pirates' Paul Skenes resets on the mound before delivering a pitch during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Sept. 22, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar, File)
FILE - From left are baseball players, Cleveland Guardians' Emmanuel Clase, Kansas City Royals' Seth Lugo and Detroit Tigers' Tarik Skubal, in 2024. (AP Photo/File)
FILE - From left are baseball players, Atlanta Braves' Chris Sale, Pittsburgh Pirates' Paul Skenes and Philadelphia Phillies' Zack Wheeler. (AP Photo/File)
LAS VEGAS (AP) — There’s never been a faster, more jaw-dropping 180-degree turn than the one Max Verstappen took a year ago at the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix.
The Dutchman hated the event even before he arrived — local residents were also outraged, but for different reasons — and argued the showcase event of Liberty Media's F1 portfolio had become a spectacle instead of a sporting event.
The enormous, illuminated Sphere on the Strip rotated driver images, prices for anything from tickets to hotel rooms were very expensive and Liberty is believed to have spent close to a $1 billion to promote its first Formula 1 event. (Much of that money was spent on one-time costs like land acquisition, a permanent pits building and road repaving).
Verstappen, closing in on his third consecutive championship last November, was in a sour mood even before the opening ceremony. LED lighting, an expansive drone show and musical acts, all in front of an estimated 30,000 spectators until finally drivers were elevated from inside elaborate boxes/stages to be introduced in their firesuits. There were plenty of bumps from there, including a valve cover that popped off a manhole during the first practice and nearly destroyed Carlos Sainz’s car.
But by the time Verstappen crossed the finish line for his 18th win of the season, he was singing “Viva! Las Vegas!” on his radio. And his grin was enormous as he watched the massive fireworks display over the Strip.
“I get it,” Verstappen said late Wednesday night of the event. “I don't want to be negative, but I get it. I mean, I understand why we are here, business-wise and racing-related wise.”
Just like that, a race that seemed on a crash course for failure was stamped as one of the best of the 2023 season.
The encore has arrived, with the first practice for the Las Vegas Grand Prix scheduled for Thursday night. So much has changed and that actually started a year ago following a race considered one of the most competitive and compelling of the season.
An economic impact report released months after the 2023 race showed it generated a net economic impact of $1.5 billion which, according to analysts, made it the most lucrative event in Las Vegas history.
Attendees spent 3.6 times more than the average visitor, generating $884 million in economic impact, and the race generated $77 million in tax revenue, also the most in city history. More than the Super Bowl, held in Las Vegas just over two months later.
Race organizers supported around 2,200 jobs for the construction of the course and permanent pit paddock, but even without that this time around the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is still expecting at least $250 million in revenue this year.
Local businesses complained they lost millions of dollars last year because of nonstop construction that disrupted customer access but there has been very little criticism this time around. Renee Wilm, the CEO of the LVGP and a longtime Liberty Media employee, admitted that promoters had not adequately communicated with the local community about potential headaches.
“The tone has changed dramatically,” Wilm told The Associated Press, calling new communications director Lori Nelson-Kraft “a force of nature" who has built relationships throughout the city.
Wilm added community events that hosted foster children, backpack and sneaker giveaways, parties on Grand Prix Plaza that included DJs and activities — all an effort to "really give back to the community that has helped us significantly to be more welcomed this year.”
Well, the drivers don't have to sit through an elaborate opening ceremony and then pop out of boxes. Wilm said instead they will be the guests at a private dinner inside the paddock Wednesday night.
There's also a free off-site fan zone this year for those who do not attend, as well as an additional 10,000 general admission tickets in three new fan zones, some with access to unassigned, bleacher-style grandstand seating. There are more single-day event tickets rather than the overwhelming amount of three-day packages — and all the valve covers have been properly secured to avoid a repeat of the Ferrari fiasco that pushed a practice to run until 4 a.m.
Wilm said the changes were to address spectators who wanted to experience the event but not at the price scale charged in year one, when Las Vegas was the most expensive grand prix on the F1 calendar. Single-day general admission tickets start at $99.
The Ferrari Challenge has been added as a support event so fans can now see more than just the F1 show. On the T-Mobile and Heineken Silver stages, global stars Ludacris, Alesso, OneRepublic, Snakehips and Vandelux are set to perform.
LVGP has committed $1 million in cash to local nonprofit organizations and $1 million in event tickets to honor residents identified as key community contributors, including local education staff, Make-A-Wish patients and others. Promoters have also added community watch parties, the F1 fan experience and “Graduates on the Grid,” which will allow UNLV engineering students to tour Grand Prix Plaza and meet with F1 teams.
While the soaring costs of the inaugural race surpassed Liberty estimates — much of it in one-time infrastructure costs — the paddock and garages will still be transformed into Las Vegas’ trendiest restaurants. Access to the Paddock Club Rooftop offers 360-degree views of the circuit and an ice skating rink has been added.
ESPN has added a “Putt Stop” to the paddock so that anyone inside — including fans and drivers — can play miniature golf. The Evian Club Hydration is a new pop-up bar, as is the MGM Rewards Paddock Bar. There's a sushi bar and a Heineken Bar, as well.
Yes, the race will still begin at 10 p.m. local because that's when big events in Las Vegas typically begin. But adjustments have been made to the practice schedule so that sessions are no longer beginning at midnight. That also allows spectators to return to their hotels in time to see top musical acts playing late-night shows.
It's unclear if Verstappen has gained any appreciation for the event, but the Red Bull star still heads into Saturday night's race with the lead in the driver standings as he closes in on a fourth consecutive title. Coming off a brilliant drive to victory two weeks ago in Brazil, Verstappen now has a 62-point lead over McLaren's Lando Norris with three races remaining.
There are only 86 points up for grabs over the remaining three races of the season. If Norris can't outscore Verstappen by at least three points in Las Vegas, Verstappen will be the champion.
Norris can still win, assuming he is flawless down the stretch and outperforms Verstappen in the final three races. The maximum dent he could put into Verstappen's lead is 26 points in Las Vegas, which would leave him 36 points behind headed to Qatar and the finale in Abu Dhabi.
Wilm said the prospect of a champion being crowned in Las Vegas has caused an uptick in ticket sales.
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
FILE - Red Bull driver Max Verstappen, of the Netherlands, celebrates on the podium after winning the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix auto race, Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)
FILE - AlphaTauri driver Daniel Ricciardo, of Australia, leaves the garage during the final practice session for the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix auto race, Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)
FILE - McLaren driver Oscar Piastri, of Australia, drives during the final practice session for the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix auto race, Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)
