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Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts made some early predictions for the 2026 NL Cy Young award, revealing he thinks starters Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto will compete for the award next season.
“I think so,” Roberts said when asked if Ohtani could win his first Cy Young. “I think this year, he pitched better than I expected, given [he was] coming off surgery. And this offseason, he’s going to have a regular offseason. I think he absolutely could win a Cy Young, but I think Yamamoto is going to have something to say about it too.”
Ohtani made his return to pitching in 2025 after recovering from Tommy John surgery, and picked up where he left off on the mound. He made 14 starts for the Dodgers this season, throwing 47 innings. Throughout his outings, he kept a 2.87 ERA, the second-best season total of his career, and struck out 62 batters this season.
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Prior to 2025, Ohtani hadn’t made a pitching appearance since 2023 with the Angels. He started 23 games that season, posting a 3.14 ERA through 132 innings.
Yamamoto is also coming off of an electric season with the Dodgers, placing third in the vote for NL Cy Young in 2025. He took a step up from an already solid rookie season in 2024, posting a 2.49 ERA in 30 starts this season. He led MLB in hits allowed per nine innings with a mark of 5.9, and eclipsed 200 strikeouts for the first time in his career.
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On top of his stellar regular season performances, Yamamoto put together one of the best postseason pitching performances in recent memory, making six appearances — three of which came into the World Series — while allowing just six earned runs through 37.1 innings pitched.
If the duo can continue to dominate MLB next season, there’s no reason why one of the two shouldn’t be able to win their first Cy Young award.
Photo Credit: Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images
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