Phillies still chucking shutouts
Posted by Andy on May 22, 2011
The Phillies threw another shutout on Saturday, giving them 7 on the season and putting them on pace for about 25 this year.
No team has had that many since 1969 when the Amazin' Mets had 28 shutouts.
Here are the most team shutouts since 1919:
| Rk | Tm | Year | #Matching | W | L | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | STL | 1968 | 30 | 30 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 2 | NYM | 1969 | 28 | 28 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 3 | LAA | 1964 | 28 | 28 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 4 | STL | 1944 | 26 | 26 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 5 | CLE | 1948 | 26 | 26 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 6 | NYM | 1968 | 25 | 25 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 7 | NYY | 1951 | 24 | 24 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 8 | LAD | 1963 | 24 | 24 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 9 | LAD | 1988 | 24 | 24 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 10 | CHW | 1967 | 24 | 24 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 11 | ATL | 1992 | 24 | 24 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 12 | OAK | 1972 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 13 | NYG | 1933 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 14 | MIL | 1971 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 15 | LAD | 1968 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 16 | LAD | 1965 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 17 | LAD | 1972 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 18 | CLE | 1968 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 19 | CIN | 1919 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
| 20 | ATL | 1998 | 23 | 23 | 0 | Ind. Games |
May 22nd, 2011 at 5:39 pm
Of course, now they've also BEEN shutout four times, and have six games where they've score a single run.
May 22nd, 2011 at 5:46 pm
However, you only need go back to last year's Padres to find a team with more shutout in their first 45 games. Here are the teams in the last 30 years to throw at least 7 shutouts in their first 45 games.
Generated 5/22/2011.
The record for any team since 1919 is 13 games by the '69 Cubs. Here are the leaders.
Generated 5/22/2011.
As Andy's post shows, history suggests that the Phillies will not be able to keep up their pace of shutouts. However, with the talent that they have, maybe they can buck the trend.
May 22nd, 2011 at 5:49 pm
Andy, a very interesting (implied) comparison between the 1969 Mets pitching staff and this year's Phillies pitchers.
Gotta go and squirrel up some numbers on the staffs.
One has to rule out the 1968 seasons..... for obvious reasons!
May 22nd, 2011 at 6:15 pm
20 teams on the list, and nine of them from the '60s.
Kudos for the '69 Mets to pull off this feat with the lower mound and smaller strike zone.
Many pitchers in '69 didn't fare so well. Luis Tiant, for example, lost 20 games in '69 after winning 21 in '68. Are there any other pitchers who have gone from winning 20 one season to losing 20 the next (or vice-versa)?
Looking at the league stats page, there was, of course, a big jump of 0.65 runs per game from '68 to '69, although hits per game only increased by 0.48. There was another 0.48 increase in hits per game from '52 to '53, but this resulted in only a 0.43 increase in runs per game. Difference, perhaps, was '69 also being an expansion here.
May 22nd, 2011 at 6:38 pm
1969 Mets - Seaver/ Koosman/Gentry/Cardwell in the rotation with McGraw & a young Nolan Ryan in the pen.
2011 Phillies - Halladay/Lee/Hamels/Blanton/Oswalt in the rotation.
Is one difference that the Mets didn't "buy" the best starting rotation in baseball back then?
May 22nd, 2011 at 7:37 pm
Going back to 1901, only one team won more shutouts than the 30 the 1968 Cardinals threw (note: threw, not through), the 1909 Cubs, 32. A couple of other teams are at 30: the 1906 Cubs and White Sox.
May 22nd, 2011 at 8:36 pm
@4
Among others:
Alex Kellner was 20-12 in 1949 and 8-20 in 1950.
Bobo Newsom was 21-5 in 1940 and 12-20 in 1941.
Vic Willis was 12-26 in 1905 and 23-13 in 1906.
May 22nd, 2011 at 8:54 pm
@4: Steve Carlton won 27 in 1972 and then went 13-20 in 1973.
May 22nd, 2011 at 9:19 pm
I see on Sunday, Cardinals vs Royals, Colby Rasmus had 5 walks.
1 walk against each of 5 different pitchers.
I wonder if this is a first (against 5 different pitchers) and if it has even been exceeded.
May 22nd, 2011 at 9:37 pm
@5, Neil -- I feel strange sticking up for the Phillies, but -- what's this business about "buying" the best rotation?
Cliff Lee is the only one they signed as a free agent. They developed Hamels, and traded for Halladay, Oswalt and Blanton. And they probably were only able to sign Lee because they had traded for him before; remember, the Yankees offered him a bigger deal, but he went to the Phils probably out of familiarity.
And let's not forget that trading for Oswalt was hardly a no-brainer; from 2008 through the first half of 2010, Oswalt did not pitch as effectively as he had in his 20s. It was not a given that Oswalt would be nearly as good as he has been since joining Philly.
I'm jealous of their pitching, too, but let's give credit where it's due. In my view, the Phillies built this remarkable rotation in about as noble a way as I can imagine in the free-agent era.
May 22nd, 2011 at 9:41 pm
(To get the taste out of my mouth, I'll gratuitously add that the Phils have now scored 3 runs or less in 9 straight games while averaging 5 hits per game.)
May 23rd, 2011 at 12:06 am
-- Ubaldo Jimenez (0-4) became the 2nd pitcher this year to lose while allowing 2 hits or less in 8+ innings. Jimenez walked 5 and hit a batter, and two of those runners scored on Ryan Braun's 2-out triple in the 3rd. Jason Giambi who homered 4 times in the prior 2 games, pinch-hit as the tying run with 2 out in the 9th, but went down swinging against John Axford. The Brewers are now 16-6 at home, but 8-17 on the road.
-- The Braves have lost 4 of 5. Dan Uggla is hitting .185 -- just .118 against LHPs (6 for 51), with no HRs. Uggla had a .983 OPS vs. LHPs last year, but he has had previous struggles against southpaws. In 2008, Uggla hit .283 with 30 HRs against righties, but just .191 with 2 HRs vs. LHPs.
-- Arizona swept the Twins at home, giving them 6 straight wins and a .500 record. The streak is their longest since April 2008; last year, they never won more than 4 in a row. I'm not a great believer in cutting down strikeouts as a cure-all for offensive woes, but there's no doubt that the D-backs are whiffing less and scoring more than last year. Their rate of SO/G is down 18% from last year. After being the runaway K leader in 2010, with 154 more than the next club, Arizona has just the 5th-most Ks in the NL this year. And where the 2010 edition never went more than 6 games without hitting double-digits in strikeouts, this year's model went the first 18 games without notching 10+ Ks. For Minnesota, Delmon Young hit his 1st HR of the year today, but he's still slugging just .297. Although the Twins won 94 games last year, they closed the regular season on a 2-8 skid, then got swept in the ALDS, so they're 17-41 over their last 58 games.
-- Felix Hernandez got tired of being the prince in Michael Pineda's court, so he slapped a 13-K beatdown on the Padres and their beaten-down fans; San Diego is 8-18 at home. The King took over the AL strikeout lead; he has never won a K crown ... but then, he's still only 25 years old. The M's have won 5 straight, scoring a modest 19 runs but allowing just 4. They've allowed 2 runs or less in their last 7 games, setting a franchise record.
Good night, all.
May 23rd, 2011 at 12:13 am
Stan Bahnsen went 21-16 in the slightly strike-shortened 1972 season and then went 18-21 in 1973 with a marginally better ERA.
His teammate Wilbur Wood also won 24 (24, actually) in 1972 and lost 20 in 1973, but he won 20 (actually 24 again) in 1973. He used to throw his knuckleball on two days rest, so he got a lot of decisions. In 1974 he won 20 again and in in 1975 he lost 20 again.
May 23rd, 2011 at 1:43 am
An impressive lose-20-then-win-20 performance by Walter Johnson: 13-25 in 1909, then he won 25+ every year for the next 7 years, starting with 25-17 in 1910. He also had a win-lose-win, winning 27 in 1915, losing 20 in 1916, winning 23 in 1917 (but in 1916, when he lost 20, he also won 25).
Another HoFer, Eppa Rixey, went 22-10 in 1916, then 16-21 the next year, leading the majors in losses. Dolf Luque led the majors in losses in 1922, 13-23, the next year he was 27-8.
May 23rd, 2011 at 2:23 am
..and none from Halladay.
May 23rd, 2011 at 3:47 am
Thanks guys for all the 20 wins & losses posts.
May 23rd, 2011 at 5:18 am
Great blog, with our run support you have to throw a shutout just to stay in the game!
http://www.baseballcomeback.blogspot.com/
May 23rd, 2011 at 5:26 am
I know this is way off subject, but I saw they caught the scumbag gangbanger that attacted Bryan Stow on opening day. That is great news, but this kind of thing happens in LA, NY, and Philly way too often and it should have taken care of earlier. Go to YOUTUBE and search Dodger fan fights and you will be sickened by what you see. I also think that MLB should stop selling hats and clothing that looks like gang gear.
May 23rd, 2011 at 6:07 am
It seems to me , that this year in MLB are a lot of triples.
I don't remember to see that many triples every year. In last years it was rare , now we have average from 3 to 6 every day.
5/22 Youkilis + Yadier Molina + Braun + Fowler + Kotchman + Kearns [6 , 15 games day]
5/21 Tulo [1 , 15 games day]
5/20 Choo + Espinoza + Ramos + Joyce [twice] + Smith S. + Kubel + Peguero, C [8 , 15 games day]
5/19 Granderson + Gardner + Jeter + Miranda [4 , 15 games day]
5/18 Patterson C. + Johnson E. + Hart [3 , 15 games day]
5/17 Homser + Denorfia + Patterson [3 , 11 games day]
On 5/19 NYY had 3 triples , I guess it's rare nowadays to see something like this.
May 23rd, 2011 at 6:55 am
JA I have deleted your daily recap comment. I am posting it in its own thread. I ask that you stop posting these in the comments and start posting them in their own threads.
May 23rd, 2011 at 8:28 am
@timmy - Except it DIDN'T happen in NY or Philly but it DID happen in L.A.!
(Of course you didn't mention Chicago where the two "fans" attacked on on-field coach.)
Also Google how Phillies fans were attacked by gang-banging sum during the 2009 & 2010 playoffs.
May 23rd, 2011 at 9:59 am
[...] The Phillies have allowed the fewest runs in the major leagues behind a rotation that leads the majors in complete games, strikeouts and fewest walks allowed. The staff has combined for seven shutouts, a pace of 25 — that would be the most since the 1969 Mets recorded 28. [...]
May 23rd, 2011 at 11:29 am
@21 Well that incident in Chicago happened at Sox Park. Cubs fans are rowdy but in a healthy way. Basically New Yorkers and Philadelphians are animals and it's not safe to go to a game in either city. The area around Dodgers Stadium is bad, and the culture of the Dodger fan is slightly below that of a male chimp.
May 23rd, 2011 at 11:34 am
@#8
Are there any other HoF pitchers that had a bad season like Carlton's 1973? 13-20 with a 3.90 ERA.
May 23rd, 2011 at 12:51 pm
I found 21 HOFers with seasons since 1901 where they started 60% of their games, had 100+ IP and an ERA+ <= 80.
Leaving aside seasons very near the beginning or end of careers, these stood out for me. Take your pick for the very worst, but I'll go with Early Wynn and his almost 2 to 1 BB to SO ratio.
Early Wynn, 1948, age 28, 8-19, 5.82 ERA, 74 ERA+, 1.67 WHIP, 0.52 SO/BB, got traded in off-season
Bob Feller, 1952, age 33, 9-13, 4.74 ERA, 71 ERA+, 1.58 WHIP, 0.98 SO/BB
Robin Roberts, 1961, age 34, 1-10, 5.85 ERA, 70 ERA+, 1.51 WHIP, 2.35 SO/BB, sold in off-season
Dennis Eckersley, age 28, 9-13, 5.61 ERA, 78 ERA+, 1.49 WHIP, 1.97 SO/BB, got traded early next year
May 23rd, 2011 at 12:53 pm
@25 Dennis Eckersley's nadir season was 1983.
May 23rd, 2011 at 2:45 pm
@10
"but -- what's this business about "buying" the best rotation?
Cliff Lee is the only one they signed as a free agent. They developed Hamels, and traded for Halladay, Oswalt and Blanton. "
JA, you're right -- technically. In analyzing my feelings when posting @5, although the Halladay deal was a "trade" in name and the small-market team got Kyle Drabek in return (the ML leader in walks as we speak!), it really was a case of talent flowing from the poorer to the richer. His former team wasn't going to be able to afford his services the next year anyway.
Not to replay all the tapes from other blogs, but, IMO, deals like the Halladay one are somewhat forced on the smaller franchise. Although Alex Anthopolous may have been listenening to a few Halladay suitors, none of them were likely from small-market franchises.
Ergo, the deal for Halladay was not made in the best competitive interests of both clubs.
May 23rd, 2011 at 6:00 pm
Neil, I certainly sympathize with your sense of loss when the Blue Jays dealt Halladay.
But were they really forced to trade him? -- and if so, was it because of some inherent unfairness in the industry's financial structure, or was it more due to their own mistakes such as the Vernon Wells contract?
And while I'm not predicting a sudden decline for the Doc, it's by no means certain that Philly will get their money's worth from the massive extension they gave him.
May 23rd, 2011 at 7:03 pm
@29
Touche, JA!
Great point about the Vernon Wells contract.
May 23rd, 2011 at 7:58 pm
@#24, HoFer Red Ruffing was 10-25 in 1928, then 9-22 the next year. He wasn't all that bad - in 1928, his ERA was better than league average - he was just stuck on some lousy Red Sox teams.
HoFer Jim Bunning went 4-14 in 1968 with a 75 ERA+, then finished his career in 1971 going 5-12 with an ERA+ of 65.