1921 Cy Young Awards

1921 American League - Red Faber, Chicago White Sox

25-15, 2.48 ERA, 124 K

Pitchers' ERA's increased dramatically in 1920 because of the end of the Dead ball era, and they continued to rise in 1921.  The league average ERA was 4.28, up from 2.77 just three years earlier.  By way of comparison, the 2011 AL ERA was 4.08.  Even with today's emphasis on power hitters and the use of the designated hitter, it's still not as bad for pitchers as it was back then.  That make's Red Faber's 2.48 ERA (and 170 ERA+) even that much more significant; not only was it 1.80 runs lower than the league average, it was 0.52 runs lower than anyone else.  No other AL pitcher finished the season with an ERA under 3.00.  He was also third in wins, fourth in strikeouts, and led the league with a 1.149 WHIP, 7.975 hits per 9 innings, and a 9.9 WAR.  Interestingly, one of the reasons for the sudden jump in offense was the banning of the spitball after the 1920 season.  However, 17 pitchers, including Faber, were allowed to continue throwing it if it was considered to be their primary pitch, which helped him have such an advantage over other pitchers in the league.  He was a member of the 1919 White Sox, but he did not participate in the fix to throw it, and played until 1933.  He was elected to the hall of Fame in 1964.

1921 National League - Burleigh Grimes, Brooklyn Robins

22-13, 2.83 ERA, 136 K

There were no pitchers who had particular standout seasons in the National League in 1921, but Burleigh Grimes was the best overall; he won two thirds of the Triple Crown (finishing fifth in ERA) and leading the league in complete games (30) and WAR (6.1).  Like Red Faber in the American League, Grimes owes some of his success to the fact that he was among those allowed to continue throwing the spitball.  Also a Hall of Famer, Grimes was, of the 17 spitball pitchers grandfathered in, the last one to retire, in 1934.  And nobody has thrown the spitball since.  Just ask Gaylord Perry.