Tomoyuki Sugano was the No. 1 pitcher in Japan in 2017.
Now he's got the hardware to prove it.
The Yomiuri Giants ace was named the 2017 Sawamura Award winner on Monday afternoon, earning the award for the first time after narrowly beating out Seibu Lions ace Yusei Kikuchi for the honor. Sugano is the first Yomiuri pitcher to win the award since Koji Uehara in 2002.