Showing posts with label Andres Galaraga. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Andres Galaraga. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Andres Galarraga, 1994 Colorado Rockies

You couldn't talk about statistical anomalies without talking about the Blake Street Bandbox, right? It's true that Coors Field pumped up power numbers by 25%, turned Vinny Castilla and Preston Wilson into RBI champs, and made Kaz Matsui look worth a damn, but there are some things it couldn't hide. For instance, Galarraga showed it couldn't give you a batting eye, as he became the only man in history to accumulate 30 or more home runs and 20 or fewer walks in the same season. You might have been able to blame the Big Cat's low walk totals on the strike-shortened season, but you'll notice that, while his HR (31) and BB (19) totals look a little sparse, his strikouts (93) would be impressive for even a full season of play.

Record:
30+ home runs, 20- walks

Friday, November 20, 2009

Johnny Mize, 1938 St. Louis Cardinals

Remember Miguel Dilone (he of the fifty swipes and zero triples)? Well, Mize was, in a number of ways, the anti-Dilone. Certain differences between Dilone (800 games, 530 hits, .265/.315/.333) and The Big Cat, version 1.0 (1884 games, 2011 hits, .312/.397/.562) are obvious. Mize's Hall of Fame status is one indicator. Dilone sucking is another. The least obvious difference between them, however, relates to their triple:stolen base ratio. While Dilone became the only player to go 50/0, Mize explored the opposite idea - that a triple hitter needn't steal. In '38, Mize became the only player to hit 15+ triples (16) and steal zero bases. These 16 triples were part of a three year output (43 triples between 1938 and 1940) that seem especially puzzling, considering Mize's 28 CAREER stolen bases. It seems like Mize was only hitting triples to buff up his crazy strong .562 career slugging average. "If a double's good, then a triple..."

Record:
15+ triples, 0 stolen bases