Pitchers to win Cy in 1st year with a new club

In February 1972, the Phillies acquired a 27-year-old left-hander from the Cardinals in a one-for-one swap of pitchers. The move worked out rather well for Philly, to put it mildly.

Steve Carlton would win the first of his four NL Cy Young Awards in 1972, charting a path that led to Cooperstown. But Lefty is not the only pitcher to make that sort of impression in his first season with a new club -- or even the only one to do so for the Phillies.

In fact, there have been 15 instances of a pitcher winning Cy Young honors in his first year after changing teams, either via free agency or trade, a feat accomplished by 13 pitchers. Here is a look at that list, in reverse chronological order.

? All-time Cy Young Award winners

2024: Chris Sale, Braves
Acquired in trade with Boston

Sale was coming off four injury-plagued seasons when the Red Sox traded him to the Braves, making a combined 31 starts over that period. But when he arrived in Atlanta, the lanky left-hander put together a resurgent campaign to win his first career Cy Young Award after seven consecutive top-six finishes (2012-18) in Cy Young Award voting during his career.

In his age-35 season, Sale was named an All-Star for the first time since 2018, finished tied for the MLB lead in wins (18) and led the Majors in ERA (2.38), ERA+ (174), FIP (2.09), home runs per nine innings (0.46) and strikeouts per nine innings (11.4). He also led the NL with 225 strikeouts.

By leading the NL in wins, ERA and strikeouts, Sale became the first NL pitcher to win the Triple Crown since Clayton Kershaw in 2011. He also won his first career Gold Glove Award for his defensive exploits.

2010: Roy Halladay, Phillies
Acquired in trade with Toronto

Halladay already had an AL Cy Young Award under his belt when he was traded to the Phillies, having won in 2003 in Toronto. His debut season in Philadelphia was one for the ages -- the righty threw a Major League-leading nine complete games, including four shutouts; led the Majors with 250 2/3 innings; and did it all to the tune of a 2.44 ERA. He won the NL award unanimously, joining the ranks of multi-time Cy Young Award winners and becoming the first Phillies pitcher to win one since Steve Bedrosian in 1987.

With another stellar performance the following season, Halladay finished second for NL Cy Young honors, receiving four of 32 first-place votes for the award behind winner Clayton Kershaw, who received 27.

2004: Roger Clemens, Astros
Signed as free agent

Clemens was on the Yankees from 1999-2003, winning a Cy Young Award in 2001 to add to his hardware from 1986, '87, '91, '97 and '98. For the 2004 season, the Texan signed with the Astros. In a year when he turned 42 years old, Clemens struck out 218 batters, had a 2.98 ERA and won 18 games. He handily won the NL Cy Young, the seventh of his career, over second-place finisher Randy Johnson.

Clemens actually improved his stats in a handful of categories the following season, posting a Major League-leading 1.87 ERA and a lower WHIP. He finished third in Cy Young voting that year, behind Chris Carpenter and Dontrelle Willis.

1999: Randy Johnson, D-backs
Signed as free agent

The winter after a midseason trade sent the Big Unit from Seattle to Houston in 1998, Johnson signed with the D-backs, who were about to begin the second season in franchise history. Johnson had already won one Cy Young Award, in 1995 with the Mariners, but his first four years in Arizona were when he reached legend status. In 1999, Johnson led the Majors with 271 2/3 innings, 12 complete games and a whopping 364 strikeouts. He won Cy Young honors over second-place finisher Mike Hampton, securing the first Cy Young Award in D-backs history. Johnson went on to become the second pitcher to win more than two consecutive Cy Youngs, starting a streak of four in a row.

1997: Roger Clemens, Blue Jays
Signed as free agent

Clemens is one of the two pitchers to do this twice. After beginning his career in Boston, where he won three Cy Youngs and an MVP Award across 13 years, Clemens signed with the Blue Jays for the 1997 season. Pitching in the familiar AL East, he led the AL with a 2.05 ERA, 292 strikeouts and nine complete games, and paced the Majors with 264 innings. He won easily over Johnson, marking the second straight year that a Blue Jays pitcher had won the award, after Pat Hentgen in '96. Clemens won the award in 1998, too, then was traded to the Yankees before the '99 season.

1993: Greg Maddux, Braves
Signed as free agent

Maddux is the only pitcher to win a Cy Young Award in consecutive seasons for two different teams. Maddux won in 1992, his final year with the Cubs, then joined the Braves in free agency and continued his award-winning ways. In '93, Maddux had a 2.36 ERA in 267 innings, leading the Majors in both of those categories. He went on to win it the following two years as well, marking the first streak of three or more consecutive Cy Young Awards.

1984: Rick Sutcliffe, Cubs
Acquired in trade with Cleveland

Sutcliffe holds a unique place in Cy Young Award history: He’s the only pitcher to win the award for a year in which he was traded midseason. Sutcliffe's stint with the Cubs didn’t even begin until his 16th start of the 1984 season. After posting a 5.15 ERA in 94 1/3 innings with Cleveland, Sutcliffe was part of a seven-player deal that would turn his season around. In his 20 starts with the Cubs, he posted a 2.69 ERA and a 26% strikeout rate. Sutcliffe won the NL Cy Young Award unanimously, ahead of runner-up Dwight Gooden.

1984: Willie Hernandez, Tigers
Acquired in trade with Philadelphia

Hernandez was traded from the Phillies to the Tigers on March 24, shortly before the regular season began. He appeared in 80 games as a reliever for Detroit, posting a 1.92 ERA and racking up 32 saves as the team won 104 games to lead the Majors by a large margin. He won Cy Young honors over fellow reliever Dan Quisenberry, and won the MVP Award over Kent Hrbek, too.

1981: Rollie Fingers, Brewers
Acquired in trade with St. Louis

Fingers was traded twice in a five-day span in December 1980, going first from the Padres to Cardinals, who then flipped him to the Brewers. After receiving Cy Young votes in three prior seasons of his career and MVP votes in five, Fingers won both in '81. He had a 1.04 ERA in 47 appearances, including an MLB-leading 28 saves. He won the AL Cy Young over Steve McCatty and edged out Rickey Henderson by 11 vote points, 319-308, for MVP.

1978: Gaylord Perry, Padres
Acquired in trade with Texas

After 2 1/2 seasons with the Rangers, Perry was dealt ahead of the 1978 season to San Diego, where he thrived as a 39-year-old. With a 2.73 ERA and 21 wins, Perry won the NL Cy Young Award easily, netting all but two of the 24 first-place votes for the honor, ahead of the Dodgers’ Burt Hooton. He went on to pitch five more seasons after 1978 to wrap up his Hall of Fame career. Perry had won one prior Cy Young Award, in 1972 -- more on that one below.

1974: Mike Marshall, Dodgers
Acquired in trade with Montreal

Marshall had received votes for both the Cy Young and MVP Awards in his final two years in Montreal, 1972 and '73, before the team sent him to the Dodgers in a trade for Willie Davis. In his first year in Los Angeles, Marshall made an MLB-high 106 appearances, finishing 83 games and racking up 21 saves with a 2.42 ERA. He won the Cy Young Award easily, cruising past runner-up and teammate Andy Messersmith. Marshall received Cy Young votes again late in his career, in both 1978 and '79 with the Twins.

1972: Steve Carlton, Phillies
Acquired in trade with St. Louis

Carlton began his career with seven seasons pitching for the Cardinals. He made three All-Star teams but never received a single Cy Young vote in that span. Before the 1972 season, St. Louis sent him to Philadelphia for Rick Wise, and Carlton introduced himself to the city with an all-time great season. In 41 starts, Carlton led the Majors with 30 complete games and paced the NL with 346 1/3 innings and a 1.97 ERA. He won the Cy Young Award unanimously ahead of Steve Blass. Carlton went on to win another three Cy Young Awards in Philly en route to earning a plaque in Cooperstown.

1972: Gaylord Perry, Cleveland
Acquired in trade with San Francisco

Perry’s first time winning the award in his first season with a club followed an offseason trade involving Sam McDowell. Perry arrived in Cleveland for his 11th season and put together his best year to date, by many metrics. In 342 2/3 innings, he had a 1.92 ERA and led the AL with 24 wins and 29 complete games. Perry won the AL Cy Young over Wilbur Wood and placed sixth in the AL MVP vote. The right-hander went on to win his second Cy Young Award in similar fashion, as noted above, and ended up in Cooperstown.

1969: Mike Cuellar, Orioles
Acquired in trade with Houston

After four years with the Astros, Cuellar was dealt before the 1969 season to Baltimore, where he was part of a storied rotation. In his debut year in Baltimore, Cuellar posted a 2.38 ERA and 18 complete games in 39 starts. He tied Denny McLain for AL Cy Young honors, with the two receiving the same vote points total. Cuellar received Cy Young votes twice more in his career, in 1970 and '74.

1967: Mike McCormick, Giants
Acquired in trade with Washington

McCormick had been on the Giants before, debuting with the club in 1956 and playing for them through '62, when he was traded to the Orioles. The O’s traded him after two seasons to the Senators, who then dealt the left-hander to San Francisco after another two years. McCormick makes the list for winning the award in his first year after changing teams, even if it wasn’t a brand-new team for him. In 1967, the first year with separate Cy Young Awards for each league, McCormick had a 2.85 ERA and Major League-best 22 wins, winning the NL Cy Young over Jim Bunning and Fergie Jenkins.