NEW YORK, 15 November 2003 — Erig Gagne took the National League Cy Young Award the same way he finishes games, in commanding fashion.
The Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander was the runaway winner on Thursday, becoming the first closer in 14 years to claim the top pitching honor in the NL.
Gagne collected 28 of the 32 first-place votes and 146 points. Jason Schmidt of the San Francisco Giants was second with 73 points, with Mark Prior of the Chicago Cubs third with 60. Each received two first-place votes.
It was a near-perfect season for Gagne, who was an unprecedented 55-for-55 in save opportunities in just his second year as closer. He was 2-3 with a 1.20 ERA in 77 appearances, striking out 137 and walking only 20 in 82 1 3 innings.
“It was great this year,” said Gagne, who began his major league career as a starter. “I didn’t try to be more, didn’t try to be better, I just tried to be myself.”
The 27-year-old Canadian also was at his best when it mattered most. With the Dodgers on the fringe of the wild card race, Gagne was 1-0 with 24 saves and a 0.24 ERA after the All-Star break. He was unscored upon in Sept. 13 innings.
A native of Quebec, Gagne hopes the recognition he has received will lead to him beginning a baseball academy in the Montreal area. He said his fellow Canadians are going “crazy” from his success.
“I like it because people realize that you’re doing good,” he said. “They really appreciate that and I really appreciate that.”
Gagne, recognized by his unmistakable chin hair, did allow the decisive homer to Texas’ Hank Blalock in the All-Star Game.
The last NL closer to win the award was San Diego Padres left-hander Mark Davis in 1989. The others were Steve Bedrosian of the Philadelphia Phillies in 1987, Bruce Sutter of the Cubs in 1979 and Mike Marshall of the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1974.
Gagne is the first Dodger to claim the award since Orel Hershiser in 1988.
Schmidt was 17-5 with an NL-leading 2.34 ERA in 29 starts. He tied for the major league lead with three shutouts and struck out 208 in 207 2 3 innings — a good portion of which came with an elbow injury that bothered him most of the second half.
Prior won 18 games, posted a 2.43 ERA and was phenomenal down the stretch as the Cubs earned the NL Central Division crown, but he didn’t have a problem with Gagne winning the award.
Ortiz, a right-hander with the Atlanta Braves, was the only other pitcher to receive votes, finishing fourth with nine points. He was 21-7 with a 3.81 ERA.
Braves closer John Smoltz was neck-and-neck with Gagne before an injury sidelined him in August. Despite resting nearly all of September, he finished 0-2 with a 1.12 ERA in 62 games and converted all but four of his 49 save opportunities. Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks won each of the previous four NL Cy Young Awards.
