Fernandez, Kershaw, Wainwright named finalists for NL Cy Young Award

The Baseball Writers Association of America announced the finalists for the 2013 National League Cy Young Award, and they are: 

The winner will be announced on Wednesday, Nov. 12. 

For more details on the voting process, check out the BBWAA's website, which is straight out of 1997. 

The Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw is the favorite to win the award, after he posted a 1.83 ERA and 0.92 WHIP in 33 starts and 236 innings in 2013. Kershaw's ERA, WHIP, and 232 strikeouts led the NL, and only the Cardinals' Adam Wainwright threw more innings. 

Kershaw, only 25, won the Cy Young award in 2011, and finished second in voting last year. His 194 ERA+ was the best of his career, and he struck out 4.46 batters for every one he walked. He's only getting better -- that's the scary part.

How could anyone not like Jose Fernandez? The 21-year-old Cuban took baseball by storm this year, starting 28 games and posting a 2.19 ERA and 0.98 WHIP in 172 2/3 innings. He struck out 187 and walked only 58. Making his story that much more improbable: Fernandez made the jump from High-A to the major leagues in 2013. Oh, and he also defected from Cuba on a boat, arriving in Florida as a 15-year-old. If you can't appreciate Fernandez's story, you can't appreciate anything. 

The Cardinals' Wainwright is the veteran among the three finalists for the NL Cy Young award. He had a 2.94 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in a NL-leading 34 starts and NL-leading 241 2/3 innings pitched. He also led the NL in complete games (five) and shutouts (two, tied with Kershaw and Washington's Jordan Zimmerman). At 32, Wainwright's looking to win his first Cy Young award -- he finished third in voting in 2009, and second in 2010. 

Notable omissions among the finalists: New York's Matt Harvey, and Atlanta's Craig Kimbrel. But make no mistake: Fernandez, Kershaw, and Wainwright are three well-deserving finalists. They pitched brilliantly in 2013.