Hall of Fame pitcher Jack Morris joked before introducing Max Scherzer as the Baseball Writers’ Association of America’s 2017 NL Cy Young winner, that since Washington’s ace already had two Cy Youngs and he, Morris, never won one himself, he was going to keep this one.
“I said, ‘Max you’ve got two of these already, I never got one, so I thought I’d just keep it,” Morris said.
Scherzer received his award, however.
“This is humbling. I really can’t [thank] the writers [enough] for selecting me again for the third time,” Scherzer said.
“Coming to this dinner is honestly one of the coolest things you can possibly do as a player,” he added.
“When you get to interact with all of the different guys that are here across the table, MVPs, Cy Youngs, different guys, the history of the game, it connects the game from the old to the young in such a unique way that it does not matter who you are, where you are, you cannot wait to get here, and again, I can’t thank you enough for selecting me again to represent you.”
As Morris mentioned, this latest award was the third Cy Young of Scherzer’s career, and second straight in the NL, which puts him on another short list in baseball history.
He’s one of just ten pitchers who’ve won three or more Cy Youngs, joining the likes of Sandy Koufax (3), Jim Palmer (3), Tom Seaver (3), Clayton Kershaw (3), Pedro Martinez (3), Steve Carlton (4), Greg Maddux (4), Randy Johnson (5), and Roger Clemens (7).
Earlier this winter, Scherzer told reporters that while he appreciated the history of the game, and the company he’s joined with three Cy Youngs, individual awards are not his ultimate goal.
“Obviously when you start getting multiple Cy Youngs, I understand that, but that’s not what motivates me to go out there and continue to pitch,” Scherzer explained.
“Trying to win a World Series is what this is all about, and trying to get better in 2018.
“So, it’s nice, don’t get me wrong, I hear it, but it’s just not what’s on my radar of what I want to try to accomplish in 2018.”
Check out Scherzer at the BBWAA Awards Dinner HERE.