I love to make fictional leagues combining great from the past with players from the present. That's how I can have Mike Trout face Dazzy Vance or Don Drysdale.
A young Rube Waddell is in my current league pitching for the Pirates. In my latest completed season he struck out
408 National League hitters. Sandy Koufax is also in this league. He struck out "only" 391. Doc Gooden's 388 seems almost low in comparison.
Before you think my settings are way out of wack, Stephen Strasburg was fourth with a pokey 315 Ks so it's not as if everyone is breaking Nolan Ryan's record of 383.
In all of my leagues I've never had a pitcher strike out over 400 batters. Gooden would have done it the previous season but he got hurt with two weeks left in the season.
Oh, Waddell went 23-5 with a 1.86 ERA. But should he get the Cy Young? Koufax was 20-7 with a 1.60 and Gooden was 19-9 with a 1.53. (Again, before you think everything is out of wack, JR Richard was fourth in ERA with a 2.58)
Who would your NL Cy Young vote go to?