Santana wins second AL Cy Young Award

Johan Santana
Twins pitcher Johan Santana in the locker room, after receiving a celebratory champagne shower when the Twins clinched a playoff spot in October.
MPR Photo/Jim Bickal

(AP) Johan Santana won the AL Cy Young Award on Thursday for the second time in three years, and the Minnesota Twins' ace was a unanimous choice once again.

Santana received all 28 first-place votes for a perfect total of 140 points in balloting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Chien-Ming Wang of the New York Yankees finished a distant second with 15 second-place votes and 51 points. Toronto's Roy Halladay was third.

Santana separated himself from the competition during a dominant season, going 19-6 with a 2.77 ERA and 245 strikeouts to lead Minnesota to the AL Central title. The left-hander tied Wang for most wins in the majors and led the AL in ERA, strikeouts and innings pitched (233 2-3).

Forget the Triple Crown - it was the pitching version of a Quadruple Crown.

Santana also was a unanimous winner in 2004, when he was 20-6 with a 2.61 ERA and 265 strikeouts. He is the fourth pitcher to win the Cy Young Award unanimously twice, joining Roger Clemens, Pedro Martinez and Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax, who did it three times.

The award was established 50 years ago, and there was only one selection from both leagues from 1956-1966.

Arizona's Brandon Webb won this year's NL Cy Young on Tuesday.

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