Sale believes deGrom is the best pitcher in the league
Boston Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale may be widely considered one of the top starting pitchers in the majors, but after throwing opposite New York Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom on Sunday, he made up his mind about who is baseball's best.
"He's a good guy, and I think right now he's the best pitcher in the league," Sale told Christopher Smith of MassLive.com.
Sale's Red Sox won the game 4-3, but the Mets hurler didn't make it easy for them, striking out 12 across seven innings.
After deGrom allowed three earned runs in the third inning of Sunday's contest, he sliced through the league's best team, setting down 12 of the last 15 hitters he faced.
His performance was so impressive, he also received praise from Red Sox manager Alex Cora.
"I know voting is tough and all that but he should win the Cy Young in the National League," Cora said. "No doubt about it."
Sale and Cora aren't the first to share their admiration for deGrom, either. San Francisco Giants southpaw Madison Bumgarner said in August that if he had a Cy Young vote, it would go to deGrom over Max Scherzer and Aaron Nola.
The 30-year-old deGrom has the lowest ERA in baseball (1.78), with Sale's 1.92 the next best.