Justin Verlander and teammate Gerrit Cole of the Houston Astros are finalists for the American League Cy Young Award along with Tampa Bay's Charlie Morton.
Verlander is a finalist for the fifth time in his career and won the award with the Detroit Tigers in 2011.
The eight-time All-Star's 0.80 WHIP led all qualified starters, and he struck out 300 hitters in a single season for the first time in his 15-year career.
Former Tiger Max Scherzer of the World Series champion Washington Nationals is one of three finalists for the top pitching award in the National League.
Scherzer is eyeing his fourth Cy Young Award but was limited to 172 1/3 innings because of back issues. His strikeouts-per-nine innings was 12.7 -- best of three finalists, which include Jacob de Grom of the New York Mets and Hyun-Jin Ryu of the Los Angeles Dodgers.