This has been one of the better seasons of baseball pitching in recent memory, and it’s an exciting time to be a baseball fan. Let’s have a look at the pitchers leading the charge in the National League, to see who may have a shot at the coveted Cy Young award.

Dan Haren (11-7, 2.59 ERA, 0.89 WHIP). With the lowest WHIP in baseball, Dan Haren has been lights out for most of the season, limiting his opposition to a .202 batting average and pitching the majority of his games having given up 5 hits or less all season.

Consistently one of the best pitchers in baseball during the past few years, Haren has brought it to another level in 2009, as his opposition is batting just .202. He’s slowed down a bit as of late, which may hurt his chances from here.

Wandy Rodriguez (11-6, 2.51 ERA, 1.20 WHIP). Perhaps the most impressive thing about Wandy Rodriguez (aside from the fact that this season seemingly came out of nowhere) is what he’s done on the mound since July. Rodriguez has been legitimately exceptional since July 2nd, having given up a total of just 4 ER in his last 7 starts (and 47.0 IP). That amounts to an ERA of 1.34 over the span, and if he keeps it up, he’s sure to make a legitimate case for himself.

Matt Cain. In any other given year, Cain’s ERA of 2.44 would be good enough to win the Cy Young on its own, and virtually a lock. It’s been a crazy season though, and Cain has company, most notably from teammate Tim Lincecum. Still, Cain has been tremendous in 2009 and should finish the season with 17 or 18 wins to go with some great numbers.

Chris Carpenter (12-3, 2.27 ERA, 0.98 WHIP). Who knew that Carpenter still had it. One of the best pitchers in baseball just a few years ago, Carpenter missed nearly all of 2007 and 2008, and most of the baseball world either forgot about him or wrote him off. At 34 years old, Carpenter looks as good as ever before, with what has been an incredible season of pitching so far. Carpenter has amazingly surrendered just 19 walks in 130 innings pitched, one of the reasons for his career low 2.27 ERA. It’s no coincidence the Cardinals lead their division.

Tim Lincecum. Since last year, Lincecum has emerged as the new dominant pitcher in baseball. No one can strike batters out like he can, and his league-high 205 strikeouts back this up. If this wasn’t enough, he also has the best ERA in the majors, at 2.19. Lincecum is the front runner for the award at this point in time.

In addition to the pitchers above, there are a few other pitchers in the midst of exceptional seasons who could very easily contend for the award with a strong finish in August and September. These pitchers include the likes of Johan Santana, Adam Wainwright, Josh Johnson, Clayton Kershaw, and Javier Vazqeuz. Each of their seasons easily could have won the award in prior seasons. Should be an interesting finish.