Last month I wrote that “Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers is the best pitcher in Major League Baseball.” In that post, I observed that in the past 20 years only five pitchers have achieved 23 wins or more during a single regular season. At the time, Detroit’s Justin Verlander and New York’s C.C. Sabathia were both on pace to do so this year. Let’s check back in to see how they are doing.

New York’s Sabathia has now pitched 30 games. He has 19 wins, 7 losses and 4 blown saves/no decisions. Thus, Sabathia’s season win percentage is 63.33 percent. Slated for three more starts this regular season, at his current pace he would finish with 20 or 21 wins. Consistent with my previous prediction, I’m guessing he ends up on the low end. My pessimism is based in the numbers. Sabathia’s win percentage in his last ten games is 60 percent, which is about three and a third percent under his season percentage. More telling is his ERA. Last month, his ERA was nearly double his season average.

In short, it looks like Sabathia is tiring out and losing his stuff.

Compounding this is the fact that two of his remaining starts are against very good hitting teams (the Angels and the Red Socks). I’m penciling loses in those two games, leaving him with 20 wins for the season. Impressive, but not on Verlander’s level.

Detroit’s Verlander is another story. In his 31 starts, he already has 22 wins, just five losses and four blown saves/no decisions. So his win percentage is an awesome 71 percent. And he still has three more starts to go. At his current pace, he will finish with a beastly 24 wins.

But here’s the thing: Verlander is going to win 25.

He hasn’t lost a game since July 15, which was 11 games ago. That means that his 10-game win percentage is 100 percent. And the Tigers’ bats are finally waking up. In September, they are averaging more than 9 runs per game. Verlander wins games if his team can score a run or two. At run support to the tune of nine, he won’t lose.

Twenty-five wins.

They might as well give him the Cy Young now.

And let the MVP talk commence.