Tony Dejak/Associated Press

Cleveland Indians ace Corey Kluber took back his title as the American League's best pitcher during the 2017 season.

Kluber was named the 2017 American League Cy Young winner Wednesday, marking the second time he's captured the award. The Cleveland ace beat out fellow finalists Chris Sale of the Boston Red Sox and Luis Severino of the New York Yankees.

He has been one of the clear-cut best pitchers in all of baseball the last few years, but he posted some notable career-best numbers this season on the way to the recognition.

His 2.25 ERA and sparkling 0.87 WHIP were the best he's ever tallied, and his 18 wins tied his high mark. The 2.25 ERA was the best in the entire American League and gave him an advantage over top competitors.

Kluber, a two-time All-Star, also fanned 265 hitters in 203.2 innings—the fourth straight year he topped the 225-strikeout mark and surpassed 200 innings.

The result was a FanGraphs WAR of 7.3, his best since the 7.4 he posted in 2014 when he won his first Cy Young.

The one downside with Kluber this year was his uncharacteristic 12.79 ERA in 6.1 innings in Cleveland's American League Division Series loss to the New York Yankees, but the Cy Young is a regular-season award.

This recognition caps off a two-year span which saw Kluber help lead the Indians to a World Series appearance in 2016 and the best record (102-60) in the AL in 2017.

The next step for the 31-year-old, who shows no signs of slowing, is landing that elusive championship, and he gives the Indians an excellent opportunity to reach it in the near future if he maintains his place as the top pitcher in the league.