If Kimbrel pitches just four more outs with no earned runs, his ERA will be exactly 1. If he throws an inning and two thirds with no runs, his ERA will be under 1. Here's the question: The braves cannot alter their playoff chances at this point, however, with Dickey falling behind in wins, ERA and leading by only 1 in strikeouts, there is no clear Cy Young starter. The best candidate besides Dickey is Kershaw, and we all know this season is nothing like last years Cy Young campaign, and his season last year was nothing like the AL Cy Young winner. I'm just saying, if a starter is chosen, it will be a VERY run of the mill Cy Young, especially to come from a noncontending team. Kimbrel is the obvious alternative, and for many of us, the obvious choice. However, he has to be seen as an underdog. My suspicion is that his numbers aren't eye popping enough. He leads the league in saves, but it's not a historic number, and he hasn't pitched a ton of innings, even for a reliever. That said, if he throws just five more outs, hie ERA will be an eye popping .99. The thing is, all his peripheral stats are epic, legendary and historic, but none of them show up on a stat sheet: Best BA against ever, best strikeout to batter ever, best WHIP ever, etc. They are all staggering, but without the eye popping stat on paper of the sub 1 ERA, I think we have another mediocre Cy Young starter. So this is the question I ask, do you pitch Kimbrel an inning and 2/3 these next two games, to give him the chance he deserves for the Cy Young? Or do you save his arm? Perhaps you boost his confidence by letting him drop his ERA under 1, what do yall think?