Pitchers With 4+ Wins In A Single Post-Season
Posted by Steve Lombardi on November 26, 2010
Tim Lincecum this season brought the list to fifteen.
Here's the entire gang -
| Rk | Player | Year | #Matching | W | L | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | ER | HR | BB | SO | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Francisco Rodriguez | 2002 | 5 | Ind. Games | 5 | 0 | 1.000 | 2.08 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8.2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 0.35 |
| 2 | Randy Johnson | 2001 | 5 | Ind. Games | 5 | 0 | 1.000 | 1.08 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 33.1 | 19 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 38 | 0.75 |
| 3 | David Wells | 1998 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 2.93 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30.2 | 24 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 31 | 0.95 |
| 4 | Dave Stewart | 1989 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 2.25 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 32.0 | 23 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 23 | 0.88 |
| 5 | John Smoltz | 1996 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 1.20 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30.0 | 18 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 23 | 0.93 |
| 6 | Curt Schilling | 2001 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 0.79 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 34.0 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 38 | 0.62 |
| 7 | Andy Pettitte | 2009 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 3.33 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24.1 | 19 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 23 | 1.19 |
| 8 | Jack Morris | 1991 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 2.37 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 30.1 | 29 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 18 | 1.19 |
| 9 | Tim Lincecum | 2010 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 2.43 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 29.2 | 19 | 8 | 3 | 8 | 35 | 0.91 |
| 10 | Cliff Lee | 2009 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 1.64 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 33.0 | 22 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 28 | 0.76 |
| 11 | Burt Hooton | 1981 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 1.00 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27.0 | 19 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 11 | 1.22 |
| 12 | Orel Hershiser | 1995 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 0.92 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29.1 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 28 | 0.78 |
| 13 | Livan Hernandez | 1997 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 3.33 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 24.1 | 20 | 9 | 4 | 12 | 23 | 1.32 |
| 14 | Cole Hamels | 2008 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 1.55 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29.0 | 18 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 27 | 0.90 |
| 15 | Josh Beckett | 2007 | 4 | Ind. Games | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | 1.20 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 30.0 | 19 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 35 | 0.70 |
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As we know, these days, you need 11 wins in the post-season, as a team, to get a ring. Note Johnson and Schilling on this list in 2001. They got 9 of the 11 wins that Arizona needed to be World Champions. That leads to a great trivia question: Can you name the two pitchers besides the Big Unit and Red Light to win a post-season game for the D-backs in 2001?
November 26th, 2010 at 11:49 am
If memory serves me, I recall a Byung Yun Kim pitching for this the Dbacks. Maybe he was a reliever though. Also, looks like Lee and Smoltz are the only guys to win 4 in a losing effort.
November 26th, 2010 at 11:58 am
Hershiser's '95 Indians also lost
November 26th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
I'm surprised it was never done in the 5+7 playoff format. Two wins in one of those series was not uncommon, but apparently no pitcher got two wins in both series in the same year.
November 26th, 2010 at 12:03 pm
-- Dave Stewart and Jack Morris are the only ones to win 4 times in a 2-round postseason.
-- Although I faintly remember Hershiser's stellar '95 postseason, it still feels odd to see his name on this list and not for 1988. Orel had 3 wins in '88 (and a save), and saw relievers blow 2 more potential wins in the 8th or 9th inning.
-- Lee (2009), Hamels ('08), Schilling ('01) and Pettitte ('00) are the only pitchers to start 5 games that their team won in a single postseason.
November 26th, 2010 at 12:49 pm
Hershiser's '95 post-season is never talked about but it was a great one.
November 26th, 2010 at 1:29 pm
K-Rod had five regular-season appearances when the 2002 playoffs began.
November 26th, 2010 at 1:40 pm
What surprised me was that none of the pitchers from the early days -- when the Series was a best-of-nine affair, and pitchers commonly started with little rest -- made this list. The closest i found for that was Deacon Phillippe in '03, who went 3-1 against the Boston Americans.
I wonder if any of the Pre-1900 matchups might fit in this area. Can we check Temple Cup records using B-R?
November 26th, 2010 at 1:49 pm
Without knowing how to sort out those early records, the only one I was able to come up with was Lady Baldwin, who went 4-1 for the 1887 Detroit Wolverines.
November 26th, 2010 at 1:52 pm
@7, Frank -- Way to get the Deacon some ink. However, he was actually 3-2 in the 1903 WS, winning his first 3 starts (games 1, 3 and 4), but losing his last 2 (games 7 & 8). (P.S. That pair of consecutive starts looks mind-boggling, but there were 2 days off each time. However, Philippe had just 1 day's rest between games 1 & 3.)
One reason no pitcher won 4 times in any of those best-of-9's is that not one of those Series went the distance. The only pitcher besides Philippe to even start 4 times was Big Bill Dinneen, who went 3-1 for the winners in that same '03 Series. Dineen & Philippe split their 2 matchups, but Dineen had the last laugh in a clinching game-8, 3-0 shutout.
November 26th, 2010 at 6:43 pm
I think K-Rod benefitted from his lack of experience in 2002. He had filthy stuff and nobody had seen it before. Still an incredible stat though for a rookie reliever to win 5 games in a postseason!
November 26th, 2010 at 7:31 pm
@10, Basmati -- As good as K-Rod was in the 2002 postseason, he was far from perfect. Two of his five wins came in blown saves (not "closer" saves, but still), and he allowed 5 of 6 inherited runners to score. He also allowed the last 2 SFG runs in game 6 of the WS, putting the Angels in a 5-0 hole (which only set up their dramatic comeback win). In all, he allowed 5 runs (4 ER) in 18.2 IP.
Another thing (and while I'm a disappointed Mets fan, I'm not just trying to run him down) -- In his postseason appearances since 2002, he has not been good: 10 G, 13 IP, 17 hits and 9 walks (2.0 WHIP), 3 HRs, 9 runs (7 ER), 3 saves and 3 losses. Most of the damage was done by Boston in 2004, '07 and '08.
November 26th, 2010 at 11:20 pm
Correction Re: Francisco Rodriguez in 2002, it looks like he lost Game 4 of the Series that year, 4-3. His post season record would be 5-1... unless I'm seeing things.
November 27th, 2010 at 1:01 am
Hamels started more than four games in 2008, and Lee started more than four in 2009 for the Phillies.
November 27th, 2010 at 3:19 am
Look at those numbers that Schilling put up in 2001, he probably had the best postseason of the men up there.
And Hamels could've won a 5th game but he was taken out of game 5 in the 2008 WS because of the rain delay which suspended the game.
November 27th, 2010 at 5:25 am
I think the table only shows the stats for the games in which the pitcher got a W, as opposed to their whole record that year.
November 27th, 2010 at 5:33 am
I wasn't too sad to see K-Rod leave given he was due a big pay rise but having struggled to replace him I kind of wish he'd stayed. I'm sure he'll end up breakig the all time saves record, partly because he started so young and has been a closer from pretty early on.
November 27th, 2010 at 5:54 pm
I can't believe Hersheiser got absolutely no consideration for the Hall.
November 27th, 2010 at 8:42 pm
So, any pitchers with 4+ losses in a single post-season?
November 27th, 2010 at 9:00 pm
How about wins in three consecutive post season games... Sparky Lyle in 1977. Games 4 and 5 of the ALCS, and Game 1 of the Series.
November 28th, 2010 at 3:16 am
@18 - nope. 19 guys with 3 losses, including Lefty Williams in 1919 for the White Sox, and George Frazier in 1981 Yankees, who each lost three games in the WS.
November 28th, 2010 at 6:57 am
Thanks, Zack. 15 guys with 4 (or even 5) wins, nobody with 4 losses. A spot in the record books just waiting for someone to fall into it (and not, let's hope, the Lefty Williams way).
November 28th, 2010 at 9:35 pm
Incidentally, is Livan Hernández the single least-deserving World Series MVP ever? I was just flabbergasted when I heard he won; he didn't pitch well, something the announcers seemed to miss.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:16 pm
The only blemish for Schilling in 2001 postseason was the go-ahead HR he gave up to Soriano in the top of the 9th of game 7.
However the Diamondbacks comeback in that game gave Randy Johnson his 5th win during the 2001 post season.
November 29th, 2010 at 5:57 pm
You're right Charles Saeger, wow I never bothered to look up Livan's series, but how in the world did he ever win MVP?!
Game 1 - 5.2 IP-8 H-3 R-2 BB-5 K in a 7-4 win
Game 2 - 8 IP-7 H-6 R(5 E)-8 BB(!)-2 K in an 8-7 win
It's not like there was no deserving Florida hitter. Darren Daulton hit .389. Charles Johnson caught all seven games with a team-high 10 hits (.357). Moises Alou (my choice) hit .321 and led all regulars with .721 SLG, 3 HR and 9 RBI
November 29th, 2010 at 11:53 pm
@16, Basmati -- K-Rod certainly has laid the groundwork for setting the career Saves record, but I would be shocked if he lasted long enough. Don't forget, Hoffman has 601 saves; Rodriguez, with 268, is less than halfway there; even if he averages 41 saves for the next 8 years, he'll still be short.
And what I've seen over the last 2 years (watching an estimated 1/4 of his appearances) is a pitcher slipping into the "Pedro Zone": K-Rod no longer trusts his fastball (and maybe he's right in that). Everything he does in an important spot is to set up the breaking ball as the strikeout pitch. And I don't think many closers have made that strategy work over a long period of years.
Then, this: K-Rod's 531 games through seasonal age 28 is 2nd in history. #1 is Mitch Williams with 567; the next 4 are Michael Jackson (474), Felix Heredia (461), Lindy McDaniel (456) and Armando Benitez (433). Of those 5, Williams and Heredia each had his last good year at 28, Benitez at 31, and Jackson was injured and inconsistent from age 34; only McDaniel aged well.
Toss in K-Rod's immaturity / self-control issues, and I think he's a long shot for the saves mark.