Over the next few weeks RealGMBaseball will be holding our 2014 Major League Baseball ‘Be The GM’ Contest to determine which player would be the best selection to build a franchise around.

The contest, which is being brought to you by the Original Retro Brand, is described and previewed here: RealGM’s 2014 ‘Be The GM’ Contest. You’ll want to check out the link for rules on how to enter to win a $50 Retro Brand gift card and to see the full contest schedule.

Sonny Gray of the Oakland Athletics and Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners are featured in Monday’s matchup. Voting will extend through the end of the first round. 

Gray has followed up a promising rookie season with an even better start in 2014. The right-hander, who made his Major League debut only 10 months ago, has a 2.10 ERA, 1.117 WHIP and 52 strikeouts (21 walks) through nine starts. He is averaging 6.2 innings per start after lasting 5.1 innings per appearance last season.

His strikeouts are down, but Gray has been a more efficient pitcher in his second year. That’s an adjustment that often takes much longer for young pitchers to master. The Vanderbilt graduate has also shown an ability to rise to the occasion. In two starts (13 innings) against the Detroit Tigers in the ALDS last fall, Gray had a 2.08 ERA and 12 strikeouts.

Hernandez, who just turned 28 last month, already has 115 victories on his Major League resume. The 2010 American League Cy Young winner has a career 3.19 ERA, 1.199 WHIP and average of 8.4 strikeouts per nine innings.

He only pitches every fifth day, but ranks 25th among active players with 40.1 WAR. Tim Hudson, Mark Buehrle, CC Sabathia, Cliff Lee, Bartolo Colon and Justin Verlander are the only hurlers ahead of him on that list. Hernandez is at least three years youngest than all six of those pitchers. Colon and Hudson both have a decade or more on him.

It helps that Hernandez has been remarkably durable for the Mariners, making at least 30 starts in each of his eight full Major League seasons.

Vote In This Matchup: Gray or Hernandez?

Previous Matchups:

May 16: Springer or Trout?

May 14: Perez or Gibson?

May 12: Kipnis or Cabrera?

May 9: Lawrie or Sale?

May 7: Tanaka or Longoria?

May 5: Machado or Bogaerts?

Next Matchup: May 21 – Yu Darvish vs. Robinson Cano (Wild Card)

Don’t forget to Tweet your pick along with #BeTheGM to be entered to win a $50 Retro Brand gift card.