Clayton Kershaw named finalist for NL Cy Young Award

Los Angeles Dodgers left-handed pitcher Clayton Kershaw has been named a finalist for the National League Cy Young Award, according to Major League Baseball.

Kershaw was 14-9 with a 2.53 ERA in 2012, the second straight year that he led major-league baseball in ERA. He also led the National League in WHIP (1.023), in addition to fWAR and rWAR (6.2 and 5.5). He was second in the NL with 229 strikeouts, behind New York Mets pitcher R.A. Dickey.

After winning the award a season ago, Kershaw becomes the first Dodger to finish in the top three of Cy Young Award finalists in back-to-back seasons since Fernando Valenzuela accomplished the same feat in 1981-1982.

The Baseball Writers' Association of America will hand out the prestigious award, among others, on live television for the first time next week on MLB Network. The announcement of the four biggest awards in baseball will take place on consecutive nights, beginning Monday at 3:00 p.m. PT.

The awards set to be announced, in order of appearance, are Rookie of the Year, Manager of the Year, Cy Young Award and Most Valuable Player.

The Dogers have finished in the top three in Cy Young Award voting three times in the franchise's history.