Giants ace Kevin Gausman picked up a piece of imaginary hardware that will look great in his trophy case.
Los Angeles Dodgers starter Trevor Bauer posted a short video to Twitter on Friday and awarded Gausman with the 2021 NL "Mickey Mouse Cy Young."
Bauer won the 2020 NL Cy Young award for the Cincinnati Reds during the pandemic-shortened 60-game season, but he doesn't believe the honor should count since they didn't play a full season.
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So, with that in mind, Bauer decided to hand out his own "Mickey Mouse Cy Young" award now that all 30 MLB teams have played at least 60 games this season.
"Congratulations to Kevin Gausman," Bauer said. "You're the recipient of the 2021 NL Cy Young ... NL Mickey Mouse Cy Young."
New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, who pitched with Bauer at UCLA in 2011, received the 2021 AL "Mickey Mouse Cy Young" award.
Gausman has been one of the best pitchers in all of baseball, not just the National League. In 77 2/3 innings over 12 starts, Gausman has a 1.27 ERA and 0.76 WHIP. He has allowed just 43 hits and struck out 93 batters this season.
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Gausman was so dominant in May that he was named NL Pitcher of the Month.
Part of Bauer's criteria for the award had to do with "dominance and volume."
"You have to make enough starts and you have to be dominant enough in those starts to deserve it," Bauer said.
That's likely why he gave the award to Gausman over New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom, who has been even better than the Giants' ace, but has missed a few starts along the way.
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deGrom has a 0.62 ERA in 58 innings over nine starts. In real life, he's likely the frontrunner for the real Cy Young. But in Bauer's mind, those three extra starts and nearly 20 extra innings are enough to give Gausman the nod.
There's still a long way to go in the 2021 season, but if Gausman keeps pitching the way he has and deGrom falters or misses more time due to injury, the Giants could have their first Cy Young award winner since Tim Lincecum in 2009.