George Kirby

CHICAGO (AP) Josh Rojas, Dylan Moore and Victor Robles hit consecutive homers in Seattle s eight-run first inning and the Mariners beat the Chicago White Sox 10-0 on Friday night to end a three-game slide. George Kirby pitched seven strong innings and Jorge Polanco added a two-run drive in the fourth as Seattle won for just the second time in...

Kirby had been handed a total of seven runs of support in his last four starts. The Mariners scored eight in the first to basically guarantee the victory. The right-hander scattered six hits and issued a walk -- just his 14th of the season -- and he was able to eliminate anything that even resembled a jam. After seeing his ERA bump up to 4.33 after a tough start against Baltimore, Kirby has been sensational, and he now is the proud owner of an ERA of 3.03. He's scheduled to face the Red Sox on Wednesday.

Kirby was in complete control early on, limiting Houston's lineup to just four hits over six frames with a fourth-inning ground out by Jeremy Pena leading to the lone tally against him in this one. He generated 15 swinging strikes, including seven on his slider alone, and finished with a 27 percent CSW. He's allowed three earned runs or fewer in 10 consecutive outings since May 29. He'll carry a solid 3.20 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 122/13 K/BB ratio across 123 2/3 innings (21 starts) into a tasty matchup on Friday against the White Sox, who are in the midst of a potential teardown.

Welcome to the third edition of theScore's 2024 Cy Young rankings, where we look at the top five pitchers in each league. The contenders have left the pretenders behind, and the races are taking shape heading into the second half - with one league in particular featuring a loaded field and some tough choices. Who's in the pole position?Odds courtesy of theScore Bet.American League5. Corbin Burnes, Orioles Greg Fiume / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 118.2 2.43 3.37 110 1.05 +300 Burnes finally cracks the top five in a pretty crowded AL field. Although his strikeout totals are below his norms, he's balancing that out with his lowest BB/9 rate (1.9) since his NL Cy Young-winning campaign in 2021. Burnes also ranks second in the AL in ERA and places top 10 in WHIP, fWAR, and innings. He's yet to give up more than four runs in a start - he only surrendered four once - and has stabilized the Orioles' rotation as a virtual lock for a quality start every five days. He could get even better in the second half.4. Cole Ragans, Royals Jamie Squire / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 116.2 3.16 2.67 141 1.14 +3500 Ragans sits second in the AL in fWAR (3.5), but that's only the beginning of his success. He also ranks second in both strikeouts and K/9 (10.9), third in FIP, and ninth in innings pitched. Ragans continues to excel at limiting power, giving up just eight homers while placing in the 52nd percentile of hard-hit percentage. What's hurting him in this race right now is a high ERA and WHIP as well as a few too many walks (nearly three per nine). He's got the ability to correct those issues, though. Ragans isn't going anywhere.3. Tanner Houck, Red Sox Brian Fluharty / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 117 2.54 2.68 112 1.03 +3000 Houck was in a dead heat for the No. 1 spot before a brief rough stretch bumped him back a bit. Still, he's been beyond spectacular for the Red Sox. The 28-year-old's still sitting top five in ERA, FIP, and fWAR (3.4) and top 10 in WHIP while allowing only five homers across 117 innings. Houck still isn't racking up the strikeouts, but he doesn't need them, deftly tying hitters in knots with his four-pitch arsenal that barely gets above 90 mph. If he can continue to decrease his walk rate and drop the ERA and WHIP, Houck can find himself back in the top two pretty quickly.2. Garrett Crochet, White Sox Quinn Harris / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 107.1 3.02 2.36 150 0.95 +2500 The historically bad White Sox have one truly bright star shining every five days in Crochet. The majors' strikeout leader sports a 12.6 K/9 rate alongside a 1.9 BB/9 mark that places top 10 in the AL, and he's leading the Junior Circuit in FIP and fWAR (3.9). Crochet's sitting third in WHIP and ninth in ERA, has given up only 10 homers, and is a certainty to go deep in his starts if the Chicago lets him. His spot in these rankings depends entirely on the White Sox, who could end his shot at an award by either trading him to the NL or shutting him down early. For now, in spite of his awful team, he's in the thick of this race.1. Tarik Skubal, Tigers Rick Osentoski / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 116 2.41 2.57 140 0.88 -130 This is still Skubal's award to lose. The 27-year-old hit the break with an AL-best 2.41 ERA while sitting third in strikeouts, K/9 (10.9), and fWAR (3.4), second in WHIP and FIP, and fourth in BB/9 (1.6). His Savant page is a literal sea of red, demonstrating just how dominant he's been. Opponents are hitting under .200 against four of his five pitches, which range in velocity from 78 to 97 mph. Skubal was the AL's best all-around pitcher in the first half, and it hasn't been particularly close.Apologies to: Logan Gilbert (SEA), George Kirby (SEA), Seth Lugo (KC)National League5. Cristopher S nchez, Phillies Brandon Sloter / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 103.1 2.96 2.54 87 1.23 N/A S nchez, who inked an extension last month, sneaks into an incredibly crowded NL race as one of three (or four?) co-aces in baseball's best rotation. The crafty left-hander is second in the NL in fWAR (3.2) and FIP and fifth in ERA. S nchez's strikeout numbers are quite low, but it's easy to look past that when you see how great he is in other areas. He has allowed the fewest homers in baseball - two - among qualified pitchers, and despite a 7.6 K/9 rate, he's in the 98th percentile of chase percentage and has the league's best ground-ball rate (59.2%).4. Tyler Glasnow, Dodgers Vaughn Ridley / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 109 3.47 2.77 143 0.93 +2500 A high ERA is weighing Glasnow down here, but there's no denying his power on the mound. The Dodgers right-hander is still all over the leaderboards, topping the NL in WHIP and K/9 (11.8) while placing second in strikeouts and fourth in FIP. Glasnow's six double-digit strikeout starts are tied with Crochet for the MLB lead. He's not going to bow out of this race, but Glasnow will have to do a better job of preventing runs in the second half to close the gap. He allowed five earned in three of his last five outings before landing on the injured list.3. Ranger Su rez, Phillies Tim Nwachukwu / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 114 2.76 3.04 112 1.04 +2500 For a little while in June, it looked like Su rez was about to pull away from the pack. A rough stretch in early July dropped him out of the No. 1 spot, but by no means is he out of contention. Su rez still sits third in ERA, fourth in fWAR (3.0), fifth in WHIP, and top 10 in FIP, innings, and BB/9 (2.1). He continues to limit the long ball, giving up nine homers in 114 innings and allowing multiple round-trippers in just one of his 19 starts. Like Houck in the AL, Su rez's success is coming through precision control and finesse instead of sheer power. It's clearly working for him, and he's hardly out of this race.2. Zack Wheeler, Phillies Jaiden Tripi / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 116.2 2.70 3.31 126 0.99 +160 Wheeler's surpassed his Phillies teammate again, and although he can't quite climb into that top spot just yet, he's pitching better than ever. The 34-year-old's tied for second in the NL in ERA and ERA+ (151), sits third in WHIP and innings, and is top 10 in strikeouts, K/9 (9.7), and FIP (3.31). All that's stopping him right now is his highest walk rate since 2018. For all that Su rez, Cristopher S nchez, and even Aaron Nola are doing, it's Wheeler who remains the Phillies' ace, and he's proving it once again with his Cy Young-caliber pitching.1. Chris Sale, Braves Kevin D. Liles/Atlanta Braves / Getty Images Sport / Getty IP ERA FIP K WHIP ODDS 110 2.70 2.24 140 0.96 +125 Sale, for all of his brilliance, has never won a Cy Young award. This may finally be the year that changes. Sale's tied with Wheeler for the NL's second-lowest ERA and tops all Senior Circuit hurlers in fWAR (3.7), wins (13), and FIP by wide margins. He's also sitting second in WHIP and BB/9 (2.0) and third in both strikeouts and K/9 (11.5). The southpaw's allowed two or fewer runs in each of his last seven starts and just one run in four of his last five. Right now, Sale's in pole position for the NL Cy Young.Apologies to: Shota Imanaga (CHC), Reynaldo L pez (ATL), Logan Webb (SF), Sonny Gray (STL)Copyright © 2024 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The real surprise here is that it'll be George Kirby and Bryan Woo taking the ball this weekend against the division-rival Astros. However, Seattle manager Scott Servais told reporters recently that they don't want Woo to have an extended break between starts. It's possible those long layoffs have been leading to physical issues.