Cubs hire Sveum; Valentine, Lamont, Lovullo in Sox hunt
Clayton Kershaw won the NL's pitching Triple Crown: 21 wins, a 2.28 ERA and 248 strikeouts. / HARRY HOW/Getty Images
Detroit Free Press News Services
NEW YORK -- Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers won the National League Cy Young Award in a runaway Thursday.
The left-hander received 27 of 32 first-place votes, five seconds and two thirds for 207 points in voting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America.
"I always dreamed about playing in the big leagues. I never dreamed about doing anything special in the big leagues," Kershaw said. "The people I'm now associated with, just by having this award, is something that I never thought would ever happen."
Philadelphia's Roy Halladay was second with four first-place votes and 133 points. Phillies teammate Cliff Lee was third with 90 points, followed by Arizona's Ian Kennedy (one first-place vote) with 76.
Kershaw won the NL's pitching Triple Crown, leading the league with a 2.28 ERA and 248 strikeouts, and his 21-5 record tied Kennedy for most wins.
His .207 opponents' batting average was the second-lowest in the majors, trailing only Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander (.192).
It was the 10th Cy Young by a Dodger, joining Don Newcombe, Don Drysdale, Sandy Koufax (three), Mike Marshall, Fernando Valenzuela, Orel Hershiser and Eric Gagne.
Boston: The Red Sox will add former major league managerBobby Valentine to the mix of candidates to fill their managerial vacancy. Dale Sveum had been a strong candidate and was the only one to interview twice. Other candidates are Tigers third-base coach Gene Lamont, Blue Jays first-base coach and ex-TigerTorey Lovullo and Indians bench coach Sandy Alomar Jr. The Red Sox fired Terry Francona after the season. He had managed the team since 2005.
Chicago Cubs: Brewers hitting coach Dale Sveum was hired as manager. Sveum replaces Mike Quade, who was fired by new president Theo Epstein. Sveum, who turns 48 on Wednesday, has little experience as a manager, other than an interim stint for the Brewers late in 2008. After Ned Yost was fired following a 3-11 slide in September, Sveum led the Brewers to their first playoff appearance in 26 years, winning six of seven down the stretch and capturing the wild card on the final day of the season. Milwaukee then opted for a more experienced manager in the off-season, hiringKen Macha, who lasted two seasons. Sveum stayed as the hitting coach. He was Boston's third-base coach in 2004-05 when Epstein was Red Sox general manager.
Philadelphia: Backup catcher Brian Schneider re-signed for one year, $800,000. He hit .176 with two home runs and nine RBIs in 41 games.
San Diego: Outfielder Mark Kotsay signed a one-year deal for $1.25 million. Kotsay, 35, played in San Diego in 2001-03. He hit .270 with three home runs and 31 RBIs in 104 games with the Brewers last season.
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