CLEVELAND -- When looking back on the 2026 Guardians season, the performances of Parker Messick and Cade Smith will come to mind. Both pitchers were crucial to Cleveland winning its third consecutive American League Central title.
Though they came up short of taking home some hardware, their efforts earned them recognition in baseball’s awards season.
Messick finished third in AL Cy Young Award voting, and Smith finished second in voting for the inaugural AL Reliever of the Year Award. The results of both were announced on Wednesday by MLB Network.
Yankees right-hander Cam Schlittler won the Cy Young Award unanimously, receiving all 30 first-place votes. Toronto’s Dylan Cease finished second. Messick received seven second-place votes, 12 third-place votes, nine fourth-place votes and two fifth-place votes.
The Rays’ Drew Rasmussen and Boston’s Sonny Gray rounded out the top five. Smith, meanwhile, received a pair of fifth-place votes.
Messick’s finish marks the highest by a rookie pitcher in Cy Young Award voting in Cleveland franchise history. The results follow the 25-year-old finishing second in AL Rookie of the Year Award balloting on Monday.
In its inaugural season, the AL Reliever of the Year Award balloting was a tight race between winner Louis Varland and Smith. The Blue Jays’ closer received 146 points (including 16 first-place votes) to Smith’s 133 points (seven first-place votes).
Smith also garnered 15 second-place votes and eight third-place tallies. Bryan Baker (Rays), Aroldis Chapman (Red Sox) and Josh Hader (Astros) rounded out the top five.
Even in coming up short, there is a lot for Messick and Smith to hang their hats on from this past season.
Messick was vying to become Cleveland’s seventh Cy Young Award winner and the first since Shane Bieber in 2020. The lefty entered Spring Training on the Guardians’ roster bubble and had to compete for a spot in camp. He made Cleveland’s Opening Day roster, earned an All-Star selection and ultimately made history.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Messick is the sixth rookie to finish in the top three in Cy Young Award voting. He joined Mark Fidrych (1976), Fernando Valenzuela (‘81), Dwight Gooden (‘84), Jose Fernandez (2013) and Paul Skenes (2024).
Over 32 starts this past season, Messick recorded a 2.56 ERA with 193 strikeouts in 186 1/3 innings. He logged 6.3 wins above replacement (per Baseball Reference), which ranked fifth in the AL. Only Rookie of Year Award winner Kevin McGonigle (7.1) recorded more bWAR among AL rookies, and only Schlittler (7.0) logged more among AL pitchers.
Smith also was an All-Star in his first full season as the Guardians’ closer. He recorded a 1.95 ERA, a 0.96 WHIP and a career-high 107 strikeouts in 74 innings over 69 appearances, and finished tied for the MLB lead in saves (41) with Baker.
Smith established himself as one of the Majors’ best relievers in his first two big league seasons. It’s why the Guardians had confidence entering 2026 that the back end of their bullpen was in great hands with the 27-year-old.
It wasn’t just the triple-digit velocity and biting splitter, but Smith’s even-keeled demeanor that helped him stay consistent in any moment.
“He’s established himself as one of the best relief pitchers in baseball, and that has come from an incredible determination to get better every single day, whether that’s physically, mechanically, mentally,” Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti told reporters at the General Managers Meetings in Las Vegas this week.
“He is relentless in his pursuit of being great. What he’s demonstrated is he’s capable of pitching really effectively in the biggest moments of the baseball season, and that’s really, really hard to do. We’re lucky to have him.”
That goes for Smith and Messick both.