Today’s high octane leadoff hitters are of a different makeup than those who dominated the role in the 20th century. Consider that going back to 1901, the single-year high marks for home runs, RBI, total bases and extra-base hits when batting leadoff all come from players in the 21st century, […]
A one-hit shutout in a 1-0 win. There’s a harmony in this event, the numerical synchronicity, the metered sound adding an extra layer of allure to an already compelling narrative: the tightest of contests where runs are the rarest mineral to be mined, the fellow on the mound taking on […]
In 1978, J.R. Richard became just the fourth different right-handed hurler since 1893 to rocket to 300 strikeouts: a 303-K campaign that placed him alongside Walter Johnson (1910, 1912), Bob Feller (1946) and Nolan Ryan (1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977). It was an explosive outcome for the 28-year-old who, before […]
September baseball is the time to meaningfully count – up and down. With each contest that marches upward toward the 162nd, postseason pursuers can focus on a magic number, counting down toward the desired zero that translates to October baseball. With each day moving a player closer to his final […]
The Rangers franchise has seen Hall of Fame starting pitchers Fergie Jenkins, Gaylord Perry, Bert Blyleven and Nolan Ryan pass through town on their way to Cooperstown. The franchise has boasted of All-Star hurlers like Kevin Brown, Cliff Lee, Kenny Rogers, Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish. But none of these […]
On May 2, 1926, 17-year-old Mel Ott drove in his first career run. Joining the festivities in the sixth inning on a Sunday at the Polo Grounds, Ott pinch-hit for pitcher Tim McNamara, faced down right-hander Frank Ulrich and singled to score Ty Tyson. The names (other than Ott’s) aren’t […]
Jacob deGrom started attacking (and silencing) big league hitters for the official accounting on May 15, 2014, when he allowed a single run over seven innings (and took the loss in a 1-0 affair). The right-hander was 25 years old for this debut and with four hits and two walks […]
As of right now, the big league leaderboard for OPS fans out to reveal a dozen players with a mark above .900. The reigning MVPs – Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani – are there, holding down the top two slots. Kyle Schwarber makes the cut as he positions himself for […]
Scooping up all the seasons from 1893 through 2024 and then sifting through to keep only the most productive offensive campaigns from catchers, one would be left with just 68 lines that were styled in the form of at least 100 games behind the plate and an OPS of at […]
All the way back in June of 1929, Mel Ott (all of 20 years old) punished NL pitchers to the tune of a .339/.500/.711 slash line that featured an astounding 47 RBI. The month featuring the start of summer has never since seen one player drive in as many runs […]