Blue Jays' Aaron Sanchez: Pitches way into elite company in first half of season

Sanchez (9-1) sits out the All-Star Game with a 2.97 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 103 strikeouts through 18 starts (118.1 innings) in the first half of the 2016 campaign.

Analysis:

Sanchez was hoping to make his first All-Star appearance and his numbers warranted a selection. He has the fourth-best ERA in the AL and his 14 quality starts are tied for tops in MLB alongside Madison Bumgarner, Clayton Kershaw and Jon Lester. These types of numbers, if continued over a full season, make a guy worthy of being a candidate for the Cy Young Award. The unfortunate news for Sanchez and his owners is that the team seems committed to the idea of moving him to the bullpen at some point during the second half of the season to preserve his young arm.