October 24 - Strike Year Awards - This Day in Baseball - The Daily Rewind

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October 24, 1994 Atlanta Braves Pitcher Greg Maddux is named the National Leagues Cy Young award winner for the strike-shortened 1994 season. Maddux became the first player to win three consecutive Cy Young Awards in the National League and would add a 4th the following year. The 1994 Major League Players Association struck over their refusal to allow a league imposed salary cap. The 232 day strike halted the season with roughly 50 games left on each team's schedule and led to the cancellation of the World Series. Tony Gwynn was batting .394 with a legitimate chance to become the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams. San Francisco's Matt Williams, with 43 home runs, was on pace to at least tie Roger Maris's single season record of 61. And the doomed Montreal Expos, who in 2005 would become the Washington Nationals, had baseball's top record, 74-40 and would lose what would prove to be their only chance at the World Series. Other National League award winners included Houston Astros first baseman Jeff Bagwell who was MVP, and Los Angeles Dodger outfielder Raul Mondesi who was named Rookie of the year. The American League award winners were all unanimously selected. They included: Chicago White Sox first baseman Frank Thomas as MVP, Kansas City Royals pitcher David Cone as Cy Young, and Kansas City Royals designated hitter Bob Hamelin was Rookie of the Year.