Cy Young Award contenders at the quarter mark of the season

We’re about a quarter of the way the through 2016 MLB campaign, and as expected, fantastic pitching has been the dominant story line of the season. With the steroid era now dead and gone (or as close as it can be), baseball has entered into a new golden age of pitching.

This revolution on the mound has made the NL and AL Cy Young Awards two of the most hotly contested prizes in all of professional sports. So with that in mind, let’s take a look at this year's early season candidates for NL and AL Cy Young honors.

1) Jake Arrieta

There are really only two realistic choices for the National League Cy Young Award at the moment: Jake Arrieta and Clayton Kershaw.

We’ll start with the last year’s winner, Arrieta.

After posting the greatest ERA in live-ball era history last season, the Chicago Cubs ace has been back at it again this campaign. Arrieta boasts a perfect 7-0 record and once again leads the NL with a 1.29 ERA. He also threw his second no-hitter in less than a year back in April against the Cincinnati Reds.

Through 56 innings pitched, the 30-year-old has surrendered just 29 hits, meaning opposing hitters bat a porous .153 against Arrieta. Not only is Arrieta an incredibly good pitcher, but he also makes his opponents look like little league ballplayers in the process. Winning back-to-back Cy Young Awards is a distinct possibility for the Chicago righty.

2) Clayton Kershaw

Will the NL Cy Young be given to the aforementioned Arrieta or Los Angeles Dodgers stud Clayton Kershaw? Where have we heard this question before?

The case for Arrieta is ridiculously strong, but what Kershaw is doing so far this season has not just put him in the conversation for a Cy Young Award, but also as maybe the greatest lefty ever to step on to the mound. The 28-year-old from Dallas has faced 253 batter this year, struck out 88 of them and walked just four.

Let that sink in for a moment.

Kershaw has a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 22 to one!

Kershaw also has six straight double-digit strikeout games and averages the most outs recorded per start in the majors with 23 a game. How is this humanly possible? It has almost become comical seeing just how good Kershaw is on the mound.

Sure, the three-time Cy Young Award winner is yet to get it done for the Boys in Blue in the postseason, but when it comes to the long haul of the regular season, no pitcher in the majors has been better than Kershaw the past five years.

3) Max Scherzer

Remember when Washington Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer was off to slow start this season, struggling on the mound game to game? Then he became one of just four pitchers in MLB history to strike out 20 batters in a game last week.

I tend to think about the latter far more.

Outside of Arrieta and Kershaw, the only pitcher in the NL who could have a chance at winning the Cy Young is Scherzer at present. As we’ve seen before, Scherzer can get crazy hot on the mound at times and become simply unhittable. Along with his 20-strikeout game, Scherzer is also just one of six MLB pitchers ever to record two no-hitters in one season.

As good as Kershaw and Arrieta are, when Scherzer is feeling it, the dude is on a different planet all together. The question with him is can he stay consistent enough over the course of an entire season for his hot streaks to carry him to a Cy Young.

4) Chris Sale

Although the race for the Cy Young in the American League is much more open, there is clear front-runner in Chris Sale. The White Sox ace is probably the best pitcher in baseball yet to win a Cy Young. Fortunately for the lefty, it would appear that’s going change by the end of the year.

Sale has won all eight of his starts this year, has an ERA of 1.67 and a 0.76 WHIP. He’s on pace to finish with a WAR above 10. That’s, like, really good. Throw in the fact that opposing hitters are batting just .167 against him, and it becomes clear that Sale is the best lefty in the majors next to Clayton Kershaw. A Cy Young Award win is within his grasp this season.

5) Danny Salazar

Staying in the AL Central, Indians pitcher Danny Salazar could very well become a Cy Young Award winner by the end of the year. Now in his fourth year in Cleveland, Salazar is tied for second in the AL with 60 strikeouts, has posted a 1.80 ERA and 1.00 WHIP. If the 26-year-old could just get a little more run support from the Indians lineup, his record as a starter would look much more robust than just 4-2.

The talent to win a Cy Young is there for Salazar. He just needs to remain consistent and hope for a little fortune in the form of Chris Sale having a few poor outings in order to win a Cy Young.

6) Jose Quintana

The only starting pitcher the in AL with a lower ERA than Chris Sale is actually his teammate, Jose Quintana. Quintana, a southpaw from Colombia, is the midst of a breakout season on the mound in the South Side of Chicago. Through his first eight starts, the 27-year-old has a 5-2 record, 1.54 ERA and 0.99 WHIP.

If Quintana can improve upon his strikeout-walk ratio, Sale just might have some competition for the AL Cy Young on his own team.

7) Chris Tillman

Orioles fans have been waiting patiently since 2009 for this version of Chris Tillman to show up. The 28-year-old righty has easily been the best pitcher in a starting rotation that includes Ubaldo Jimenez and Yovani Gallardo. Through nine games, Tillman is 6-1 with a 2.61 ERA and 1.16 WHIP. Also, opposing hitters are just batting a measly .213 against him in his starts.

Similar to Quintana, Tillman needs to improve his strikeout-walk ratio. But given his performances on the mound thus far, it would appear Tillman has turned a corner in his career and is now a legitimate Cy Young candidate.

8) David Price

Admittedly, the ERA and WHIP just aren’t good enough right now for Red Sox pitcher David Price to be considered a Cy Young contender.

That being said, Price leads the AL in strikeouts with 70 and is still adjusting the confines of Fenway Park. Oh, and a record of 6-1 doesn’t hurt either. The 2012 AL Cy Young Award winner, Price’s stuff on the mound is still good enough for him to work in his way into Cy Young Award conversation. Don’t be surprised if it happens.