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.

Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Andrew Cashner of the San Diego Padres are featured in Friday's matchup. Voting will extend through the end of the first round.

Kershaw is arguably the best pitcher of his generation, having won a pair of Cy Young awards (with a second-place finish mixed in) over the last three seasons. The 26-year-old has a 2.63 ERA, 1.092 WHIP and 1,261 strikeouts over 1,223.1 career innings with the Dodgers. He has led the National League in ERA three years running.

The left-hander was second among all NL players in WAR (8.4) last season and first among pitchers (7.9). Kershaw is still approaching his prime, but ranks fourteenth among all active pitchers in career WAR (33.1). The only knock you can find on him are his postseason numbers, but the sample size is small. In nine playoff appearances, six starts and 38.1 innings, he has a 4.23 ERA, 1.278 WHIP and 39 strikeouts.

Cashner is actually older than Kershaw, but it has taken him longer to achieve Major League success. He is enjoying the best season of his career early in 2014, posting a 2.35 ERA, 1.203 WHIP and 47 strikeouts in 57.1 innings (nine starts). He has already accumulated 0.9 WAR this season. The right-hander had 2.4 WAR in 2013.

Since making his Major League debut in 2010, Cashner has compiled a 3.35 ERA, 1.222 WHIP and 285 strikeouts (against 117 walks) in 343.2 innings. He started to show signs of turning a corner last season when he went 10-9 with a 3.09 ERA and a 2.72 K/BB ratio.

Vote In This Matchup: Kershaw or Cashner?

Previous Matchups:

June 4: Goldschmidt or Tulowitzki?

June 2: McCutchen or Wacha?

May 30: Votto or Gallardo?

May 28: Harper or Rizzo?

May 26: Harvey or Brown?

May 23: Freeman or Fernandez?

May 21: Darvish or Cano?

May 19: Gray or Hernandez?

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: June 9 – Buster Posey vs. Giancarlo Stanton

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