Paul Skenes Looks to Repeat as NL Cy Young Winner

Dodgers' Yamamoto and Reds' Greene among top challengers for 2026 award

Feb. 23, 2026 at 1:23am

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Pittsburgh Pirates' ace Paul Skenes is the favorite to repeat as the National League Cy Young Award winner in 2026 after a dominant 2025 season. However, he'll face stiff competition from the likes of Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Hunter Greene of the Cincinnati Reds, among others.

Why it matters

The National League Cy Young race is shaping up to be one of the most competitive in recent memory, with several young, elite pitchers vying for the prestigious award. The outcome could have major implications for their respective teams' playoff hopes and the future of pitching in the NL.

The details

Skenes, the 23-year-old Pirates ace, is the clear favorite after winning the award last season with a 1.96 ERA and 7.6 WAR. However, the 27-year-old Yamamoto, who won World Series MVP with the Dodgers in 2025, and the hard-throwing 26-year-old Greene of the Reds are among the top challengers. Chris Sale of the Braves, the 2024 winner, and two-way star Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers are also in the mix, though they face questions about health and workload, respectively.

  • Skenes won the NL Cy Young Award in 2025.
  • Yamamoto won the World Series MVP in 2025.

The players

Paul Skenes

A 23-year-old right-handed pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates who won the NL Cy Young Award in 2025 with a 1.96 ERA and 7.6 WAR.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto

A 27-year-old right-handed pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers who won the World Series MVP in 2025 after a 2.49 ERA and 5.0 WAR regular season.

Hunter Greene

A 26-year-old right-handed pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds who was on pace for a career-best season in 2025 before a groin injury cut his year short.

Chris Sale

A 36-year-old left-handed pitcher for the Atlanta Braves who won the NL Cy Young Award in 2024 but saw his 2025 season limited to 21 games due to injury.

Shohei Ohtani

A 31-year-old two-way player for the Los Angeles Dodgers who won his fourth MVP award in 2025 but has never won a Cy Young.

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What they’re saying

“To see him face hitters, kind of start his buildup -- he's certainly way ahead of where he was last year on the pitching side. That's a good thing.”

— Dave Roberts, Dodgers Manager

“Yamamoto wants to win a Cy Young and it's one of his goals and if you've watched any of Yamamoto the past two years — it's clear he will be the biggest competition to edging out Paul Skenes.”

— Dave Roberts, Dodgers Manager

What’s next

The judge in the case will decide on Tuesday whether or not to allow Walker Reed Quinn out on bail.

The takeaway

The 2026 National League Cy Young race is shaping up to be one of the most exciting in recent memory, with several young, dominant pitchers vying for the award. While Skenes is the favorite, Yamamoto, Greene, and others will push him to the limit as they look to cement their status as the NL's elite.