With the second half of the 2024 MLB season underway, there is ample evidence to start to predict what pitchers will ultimately win both the AL and NL Cy Young Awards.

Before getting to that, here's a few things worth considering.

- This is a prediction of what the final tally for the award will look like at the end of the season, not who would win the award if voting was held today. It's also not just a copy and paste of the current bettings odds.

- You have to consider whether some pitchers who were All-Stars will log enough innings to realistically be candidates for the Cy Young, such as Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Reynaldo López of the Atlanta Braves and Garrett Crochet of the Chicago White Sox.

- Speaking of Crochet, the possibility that he gets traded to an NL team before the July 30 deadline obviously hurt his case for posting a top-five finish in AL Cy Young voting.

With all that acknowledged, this is how we currently see the final voting for both AL and NL Cy Young shaking out in 2024.

AL Cy Young No. 5: Emmanuel Clase, Cleveland Guardians

It might come as a surprise to some to see a reliever in the top five, but the Guardians have as many wins as any team in the AL, and it's because of a dominant bullpen anchored by Emmanuel Clase.

Not only did Clase close out an All-Star Game victory for the AL, but he's having the finest season of what's turning into a really impressive career. Clase currently leads the AL with 29 saves, and has finished an MLB-best 40 games. Clase also has a minuscule 0.81 ERA and 0.677 WHIP. On a team without a true ace, he's been the standout arm.

While we're on the subject of relievers, Oakland Athletics closer Mason Miller deserves a mention here. His 1.8 WAR is the best mark among all relief pitchers in baseball, and he's electrified the sport with a fastball that almost always tops 100 mph.

AL Cy Young No. 4: George Kirby, Seattle Mariners

The Mariners have an excellent starting rotation, and they were represented by Logan Gilbert — who currently leads baseball with 132.1 innings pitched — at the All-Star Game.

Gilbert was a consideration here, but George Kirby might finish with an even better season. Kirby is sixth among AL pitchers with 117.2 innings pitched, fifth with a 2.81 FIP and fifth with a 3.3 WAR, according to FanGraphs.

Kirby finished eighth in AL Cy Young Award voting last season. He has a chance to top that in 2024, particularly if he's at the forefront of an offensively-challenged Mariners team winning the AL West.

AL Cy Young No. 3: Cole Ragans, Kansas City Royals

Cole Ragans was an All-Star for the first time in 2024, finishing the first half with a 3.16 ERA and 2.66 FIP over 116.2 innings pitched. Since the Royals acquired him from the Texas Rangers last summer, Ragans has pitched like one of the best starters in baseball. There's no reason to think that won't continue.

Beyond a tremendous individual season, some voters, right or wrong, will likely give Ragans a boost if he's able to help the team to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2015.

Seth Lugo was also an All-Star for the Royals. In the first half of the season, he had an MLB-best 174 ERA+, AL-best 11 wins and was second in the junior circuit with 127 innings pitched. How the 34-year-old holds up after throwing a career-high 146.1 innings pitched a year ago will be interesting to monitor, but he could very well factor into this discussion.

AL Cy Young No. 2: Corbin Burnes, Baltimore Orioles

In his first year with the Orioles, Corbin Burnes is aiming to become the eighth pitcher in MLB history to win the Cy Young in both leagues, having previously taken home the NL honor in 2021 while pitching with the Milwaukee Brewers.

So far, so good. Burnes started the All-Star Game for the AL, and is in the top five in innings pitched (118.2) and ERA (2.43). He also has impressive marks in terms of FIP (3.36) and WAR (2.6).

Whether Burnes ends up winning AL Cy Young or not, the 29-year-old is likely headed for $300 million+ in free agency this upcoming offseason.

AL Cy Young No. 1: Tarik Skubal, Detroit Tigers

Tarik Skubal was the best starting pitcher in the AL, and maybe all of baseball in the first half of the season. With all due respect to Burnes, he probably should have been the starter for the AL in the All-Star Game, and may very well get revenge by edging him out in Cy Young voting.

From the Fourth of July on last year, Skubal was arguably the best pitcher in baseball. He leads AL starters this year with a 2.41 ERA, and is in the top three among junior circuit starters in terms of FIP (2.57), WHIP (0.88), K/9 (10.86) and WAR (3.4).

Assuming the Tigers don't consider trade offers for Skubal before the July 30 trade deadline, the 27-year-old is the favorite to win the AL Cy Young Award.

NL Cy Young Award No. 5: Ranger Suárez

For much of the first half, Ranger Suárez was the best pitcher in the NL. However, he allowed 15 earned runs over his last three starts of the first half. Despite being selected, Suárez didn't ultimately pitch in the All-Star Game as he dealt with back spasms.

Suárez, though, is expected to be good to go in the second half, and while he certainly would have liked to pitch in the midsummer classic, he may benefit from more than 10 days between starts.

If Suárez slips up, teammates Aaron Nola and Cristopher Sánchez could push him for a spot in the top five. As could Atlanta Braves lefty Max Fried, who replaced him on the NL All-Star roster.

NL Cy Young Award No. 4: Sonny Gray, St. Louis Cardinals

Sonny Gray opened the season on the injured list with a right hamstring strain, but has been excellent during his first campaign with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Though he wasn't an All-Star, Gray is fifth among NL starters in both K/9 (10.93) and WAR (2.9), and third in FIP (2.56). Plenty of questions remain with the Cardinals, both in 2024 and beyond. But in the first season of a three-year, $75 million deal, Gray has the Cardinals in control of one of the three NL Wild Card spots, and still within striking distance of the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central.

Gray finished runner-up in AL Cy Young Award voting last year with the Minnesota Twins, and third as a member of the A's in 2015. He might have a third top-five finish in store in 2024.

NL Cy Young Award No. 3: Logan Webb, San Francisco Giants

Logan Webb struggled in his first career All-Star Game appearance, surrendering three runs over an inning of work in an eventual 5-3 loss for the NL. Fortunately, stats from the midsummer classic don't count, and his slip up was one of the only he's had this year.

Webb leads the NL with 124 1/3 innings pitched and 510 batters faced. His 2.79 FIP is also fifth among starters in the senior circuit. He hasn't been the third-best pitcher in the NL so far, but his track record suggests that he'll be one of the final arms standing at the end of the season.

A year ago, Webb finished runner-up to Blake Snell in NL Cy Young Award voting. With a big second half, he has a chance to get over the hump and win the honor in 2024.

NL Cy Young Award No. 2: Zack Wheeler, Philadelphia Phillies

Like Suárez, Zack Wheeler was elected to the All-Star Game but didn't pitch in it. He had been slated to pitch on the final day of the first half of the season, so he wasn't going to pitch regardless. But back spasms forced him to miss that start, but aren't expected to affect his second half.

Prior to the back spasms, Wheeler had been putting together his typical excellent year. He's 10-4 with a 2.70 ERA, 126 strikeouts and 116.2 innings pitched, third among NL starters.

Since he's joined the Phillies in 2020, Wheeler has been arguably the best pitcher in the NL. He finished a close second to Burnes in 2021 NL Cy Young Award voting, and sixth a year ago. Perhaps this will be the year he finally takes home the NL Cy Young.

NL Cy Young Award No. 1: Chris Sale, Atlanta Braves

With Chris Sale, there's a very real possibility that he either wins the NL Cy Young Award, or doesn't even finish in the top five. Given that the 110 innings Sale has pitched are already the most he's logged in a season since 2019, it's fair to have some skepticism about whether he'll hold up in the second half.

But man, if you forgot just how dominant Sale was when healthy, he's reminded you in his first season with the Braves. Now an eight-time All-Star, Sale leads all of baseball with 13 wins and a 2.23 FIP. Among NL starters, he has the top WAR (3.7), second-best ERA (2.70) and third-most strikeouts (140).

From 2012-2018, Sale finished sixth or better in AL Cy Young Award voting every year, peaking at runner-up to Corey Kluber in 2017. Perhaps when it was least expected, Sale will finally win a Cy Young Award, and reignite his Hall of Fame case.