Every team’s most surprising record holder

The overwhelming majority of franchise leaderboards — particularly for the 16 authentic franchises — look the way you’d count on them to look. Hank Aaron owns the Braves’ board. Many of the Mets’ pitching marks are Tom Seaver’s territory. Willie Mays is a huge amongst Giants. You’re not going to stump anyone by asking them to guess the Cardinals’ all-time wins chief (Bob Gibson, duh).

Be it uncharacteristically nice seasons from forgotten forbearers, unheralded outputs from underrated sources or amusingly meager marks which have in some way held up, there are many data worthy of the record-scratch sound impact.

Here’s one for each workforce that caught our eye, ranked so as of intrigue.

1) Nate Colbert is the Padres’ franchise dwelling run chief (163)
It’s virtually as if the Padres have tried to protect this file. They traded Phil Nevin when he was simply seven homers away from tying it and Adrián González when he was simply two away. Dave Winfield left in free company when he was 9 away, and the good Tony Gwynn retired solely 28 homers shy of the mark. Just for the sake of comparability, there have been three different franchises that launched alongside the Padres in 1969. Put Colbert and his dwelling run complete on these different groups, and he would rank both seventh (Royals and Expos/Nationals) or tenth (Pilots/Brewers) on the house run leaderboard.

2) Jim Slaton is the Brewers’ franchise wins chief … with a dropping file (117-121)
Slaton debuted with the Brewers in 1971, simply their second season of existence in Milwaukee. No one has challenged him when it comes to Brewers tenure (he’s first in innings pitched by greater than 400 innings). So by that measure, it’s no shock that he’s the franchise wins chief. What’s distinctive about Slaton, although, is that he’s the one one of many 30 franchise wins leaders to have a dropping file with that membership. His loss complete can also be a franchise file.

3) Freddy Garcia and Jose Contreras share the White Sox single-season wild pitch file (20)
No shock that these two maintain the file, as they each had a number of seasons with double-digit wild pitch totals and so they each walked round three batters per 9 innings of their profession. No, what’s hilarious about that is that Garcia and Contreras each set the mark in the identical season — 2005. That made the 2005 White Sox the one workforce within the fashionable period with two pitchers throwing at the very least 20 wild pitches apiece. And after all, that’s the yr the White Sox gained the World Series! (Contreras threw two wild pitches within the playoffs that yr, Garcia none.)

4) Lenny Dykstra holds the Phillies’ single-season walks file (129 in 1993)
Prior to 1993, Dykstra had by no means walked greater than 89 instances in a season. He averaged 48 walks per season as much as that time. In truth, this stroll complete in simply considered one of his eight seasons with the Phillies is the equal of 71.3 % of his complete stroll complete in 5 seasons with the Mets. And Dykstra by no means once more walked greater than 68 instances in a yr. With this 1993 output, Dykstra walked proper into the Phillies’ file books, one free go forward of Mike Schmidt’s career-high 128 walks in 1983.

5) Mark Grudzielanek holds the Nationals franchise’s single-season singles (157 in 1996) and doubles data (54 in 1997)
These data which are nonetheless standing from the Expos period got here in back-to-back years from a man whose profession OPS+ was 90, or 10 % worse than league common. Not solely was the 1997 doubles output Grudzielanek’s highest by far (his subsequent highest was 38 in 2003 with the Cubs), however it got here in a yr during which he had only a .384 slugging share and drove in solely 51 runs. Grudzielanek is the one participant within the fashionable period with at the very least 50 doubles in a season during which he had extra doubles than RBIs.

6) Jason Jennings and Ubaldo Jiménez share the Rockies’ profession shutouts file (3 apiece)
Between the Rockies’ relative youth as a franchise and the infamous offensive situations at Coors Field, it ought to come as no shock that their pitching leaderboard is somewhat unpredictable (Jorge De La Rosa is the franchise wins chief … with 86). But this shutout mark hammers the purpose dwelling particularly effectively. The Rockies debuted in 1993 and have solely had 165 shutouts. The D-backs and Rays debuted in 1998 and have 216 and 232, respectively. Even at a time when full video games are more and more uncommon, there have been 5 non-Rockies pitchers who had two shutouts apiece in 2021 — totals that will have put them close to the highest of the Colorado profession leaderboard.

7) Darin Erstad is the Angels’ single-season hits chief (240 in 2000)
Erstad’s hit complete from 2000 is first by a longshot. Next is Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero’s 206 hits in 2004. Though Erstad had a robust profession in Anaheim, this Major League-leading hits complete was uncommon manufacturing for him. He didn’t have greater than 177 hits in another yr, and his total offensive manufacturing in 11 years with the Angels was slightly below league common (96 OPS+). His .355 common in 2000 was 73 factors larger than his profession common.

8) Ricky Nolasco dominates the Marlins’ profession pitching leaderboard
Nolasco is tops in Marlins historical past in wins (81), video games began (197), innings (1,225 2/3), strikeouts (1,001) and Okay/BB ratio (3.512), amongst different classes. Obviously, the Marlins haven’t been round for lengthy, however that is however superb illustration for a man who pitched to a 4.44 ERA and a 94 ERA+ in eight seasons in Miami. Also, shout out to Luis Castillo for having extra video games performed as a Marlin (1,128) than “Mr. Marlin” himself, Jeff Conine (1,014).

9) Rickey Henderson holds the A’s single-season caught stealing file (42 in 1982)
This file — an MLB file, not simply an A’s file — would possibly truly be as unbreakable as Henderson’s 1,406 profession steals. Just to place this in perspective, all the 2018 A’s workforce solely made 56 stolen-base makes an attempt. It is unfathomable in right now’s sport for one participant to get the inexperienced mild sufficient instances to run into 42 outs. Henderson swiped a career-high 130 baggage in that ’82 season, however his 75.6 % success price was among the many worst of his profession. The next-most instances caught stealing belongs to Ty Cobb, who was caught 38 instances in 1915.

10) Johnny Frederick is the Dodgers’ single-season doubles chief (52 in 1929)
Not precisely the primary identify you consider with regards to nice hitters in Dodgers lore. This was the primary of Frederick’s six seasons within the Majors (all with the Dodgers), and he amassed 26 % of his profession doubles complete simply in that rookie yr alone. Somehow, practically a century later, it hasn’t been matched. Shawn Green got here closest with 49 in 2003. (Green, by the best way, is the Dodgers’ considerably shocking holder of the single-season dwelling run file, with 49 in 2001. The Dodgers are considered one of solely three of the unique MLB franchises — the White Sox and the Senators/Twins are the others — which have by no means had a 50-homer man.)

11) Ellis Kinder has the very best pitching championship WPA (season and profession) in Red Sox historical past
This is an obscure stat, however the truth that it’s held by a lesser-known pitcher from Red Sox historical past — and never, say, Pedro Martinez or Roger Clemens — is shocking. Championship Win Probability Added is a measure of how a lot a single participant contributed towards a workforce’s probabilities of profitable the World Series. The Red Sox by no means gained a pennant throughout Kinder’s profession in Boston (1948-55), and he was by no means an All-Star. But he bought down-ballot MVP assist 3 times (1949, 1951 and 1953). Most of his 56.7 cWPA comes from a 36.6 mark in ’49, when he led the Majors with six shutouts — together with two in September, when the Red Sox had been battling the Yankees for the AL pennant.

12) Lance Johnson is the Mets’ single-season hits chief (227 in 1996)
The Mets signed the 32-year-old Johnson to a two-year deal as a free agent previous to the 1996 season. He was coming off a career-high hits complete with the White Sox in 1995 (186), and he took his offensive efficiency to a different degree in his first season in Queens, posting career-bests in batting common (.333) and slugging share (.479). He had that one All-Star season, then was dumped to the last-place Cubs in a waiver commerce halfway by the 1997 season. But in Mets historical past, the one participant aside from Johnson to notch 200 hits in a season was Jose Reyes (204) in 2008.

13) Bert Campaneris holds the Rangers’ single-season sacrifice bunts file (40 in 1977)
It’s not simply that Campaneris went above and past his profession norm with this bunt bonanza (his next-highest complete was 25 sac bunts the next yr, a complete that ranks second on the Rangers’ listing). He went above everyone’s norm. You should go all the best way again to 1929 to seek out the earlier participant with 40 sac bunts in a season (the Philadelphia A’s Mule Haas), and no person’s finished it since Campy.

14) Duane Ward has the Blue Jays’ single-season saves file (45 in 1993)
Ward was a sturdy and reliable late-inning arm for the Blue Jays within the late Eighties and early Nineties. So the shock is much less that he had a 45-save season (main the league in ’93) however somewhat that that is the one 40-save season in franchise historical past. The Blue Jays are the one workforce that has not had a number of 40-save seasons. Franchise saves chief Tom Henke (217) by no means had greater than 34 saves in anyone yr with Toronto.

15) Jose Offerman has the Royals’ highest profession batting common (.306)
OK, so that is skewed by Offerman solely having performed three seasons in Kansas City. Still, it’s fairly a sight to see him sitting atop the legendary George Brett on this class — and by a single level (Brett’s profession common was .305). Offerman hit .303, .297 and .315 in his three seasons with the Royals (1996-98). In his 15-year profession, he had no different seasons during which he hit .300 and solely two others during which he hit larger than .269 (1995 with the Dodgers, 1999 with Boston). All informed, he was a profession .273 hitter.

16) Jason Bartlett has the Rays’ highest single-season batting common (.320 in 2009)
Carl Crawford had 5 seasons with the Rays during which he hit at the very least .300. Bartlett had only one, and it occurred to be a yr during which his common completed 5 factors larger than Crawford’s then-record .315 mark from 2007. It was an uncharacteristic show from Bartlett, who by no means hit .300 in another season during which he performed 100 video games. He was a profession .270 hitter over 3,141 at-bats.

17) Marv Grissom is the Giants’ profession ERA+ chief (139)
The shock right here is seeing somebody aside from Christy Mathewson, whose 2.13 ERA ranks fifth amongst all pitchers since 1900. Grissom spent seven seasons with the Giants (1946,1953-58), had a robust 2.88 ERA in his tenure and was an All-Star in 1954. But it takes a league- and ballpark-adjusted stat like this to provide you a larger appreciation for the way effectively he pitched for the membership. His ERA+ with the Giants is 2 factors higher than Mathewson’s 137 mark.

18) Brian Giles is the Pirates’ profession OPS+ chief (158)
You most likely keep in mind Giles had a really productive tenure in Pittsburgh from 1999-03, however it’s nonetheless somewhat jarring to see how productive it was relative to the franchise greats. Giles can also be the franchise chief in common OPS (1.018). Even whenever you modify for the offensive situations within the league and put issues on a extra degree taking part in area, as OPS+ does, Giles nonetheless comes out forward of Hall of Famers Ralph Kiner (157), Honus Wagner (154), Willie Stargell (147) and Arky Vaughan (141), in addition to Barry Bonds (147).

19) Paul Abbott has the Mariners’ highest profession profitable share (.679)
The Big Unit? Nah. The Big Abbott! His profitable share in 5 seasons with Seattle bests Randy Johnson’s .637 mark over 10 seasons. Abbott managed to go 36-17 from 1998-2002 regardless of a middling 4.48 ERA. It helped that he acquired a median of 6.42 runs of assist per begin, rating fifth in MLB amongst these with at the very least 400 innings in that span.

20) Ken Williams has the Orioles franchise’s highest profession OPS (.961)
No, not the Ken Williams who went on to turn into an govt for the White Sox. This Ken Williams performed for the St. Louis Browns from 1918-27 and isn’t in Cooperstown, so he’s not precisely a family identify amongst Baltimore followers. But his OPS (which features a franchise-record .558 slugging share) ranks larger than these of the Hall of Famers to have performed for the Browns and O’s, together with Goose Goslin (.951), Frank Robinson (.944), Heinie Manush (.930), Eddie Murray (.868) and others. With 1,109 video games performed for the Browns, Williams didn’t have the longevity of a Cal Ripken Jr. (.788 OPS, in case you had been questioning), however his profession is underrated.

21) Wally Pipp has the Yankees’ most profession sacrifice bunts (226)
The Yankees’ profession offensive leaderboard is, as you’d count on, dominated by Babe Ruth, Derek Jeter and, after all, Lou Gehrig, who famously stuffed in for Pipp at first base in the future when Pipp wasn’t feeling effectively and by no means relinquished the job. To get replaced at your job after calling in sick or getting damage is to be “Wally Pipped.” But let the file — this file — present that Pipp had a robust profession going earlier than he was unceremoniously changed by Gehrig. It’s not the sexiest file, after all, however it’s enjoyable to see Pipp on the prime of a depth chart for as soon as.

22) Matthew Boyd holds the Tigers’ highest single-season Okay/BB ratio (4.76 in 2019)
The Tigers’ prime 10 listed here are largely the names you’d count on. Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer occupy seven of the ten spots, with Denny McLain’s 4.44 mark from his Cy Young/MVP season in 1968 rating third and Anibal Sanchez’s 3.74 mark from 2013 tenth. To see Boyd’s identify up prime is a staggering reminder of a Okay/BB ratio that yr that was greater than two factors larger than his profession norm to that time (2.58). Boyd had a robust first half in that ’19 season, solely to wrestle within the second and end with a 4.56 ERA. Yet his Okay/BB ranks forward of a few of the nice pitching seasons in franchise historical past.

23) Kevin Mitchell holds the Reds’ single-season OPS file (1.110 in 1994)
While the numbers listed here are skewed by the character of the strike-shortened season, it’s too straightforward to overlook simply how absurd Mitchell’s offensive efficiency was in his quick time with the Reds. From 1994 by July 1996 (when he was traded to the Red Sox), Mitchell slashed .332/.414/.631. And on this 1994 season, his price stats surpassed even his MVP yr with the Giants in 1989. The Reds have had 12 MVP winners and 5 dwelling run champs within the dwell ball period, however it’s Mitchell on prime right here.

24) Woody English holds the Cubs’ single-season file for instances on base (320 in 1930)
When you consider nice offensive seasons in Cubs historical past, the names Rogers Hornsby, Hack Wilson, Ernie Banks, Ron Santo, Ryne Sandberg and Sammy Sosa come to thoughts. English isn’t as well-known, however it was his 214 hits and 100 walks in 1930 that helped Wilson set the MLB single-season file with 191 RBIs. That was considered one of solely two seasons (1931 being the opposite) during which English hit .300.

25) Les Fleming holds Cleveland’s single-season intentional walks file (23 in 1942)
Not considered one of Cleveland’s many sensational sluggers from the Nineties, like Albert Belle or Jim Thome or Manny Ramirez. Not Travis Hafner throughout his mid-2000s peak or Andre Thornton throughout his thunderous early Eighties output. Nope, if this file is any indication, probably the most feared Cleveland hitter in any single season was Fleming, whose .292/.412/.432 slash in 1942 has largely been misplaced to historical past. Fleming had three superb years sandwiched across the two seasons misplaced as a result of army service, however the 23 intentional walks signify an absurd 71.9 % of his profession complete (32). And he set this mark regardless of spending a lot of that ’42 season batting in entrance of Hall of Famer Lou Boudreau.

26) Bob Lillis has the perfect profession strikeout price of any Astros hitter (21.2 at-bats per Okay)
Taken by the Colt .45s within the 1962 Expansion Draft, Lillis was primarily a utility participant in six seasons in Houston. In 2,044 plate appearances, he hit simply .232 with a .267 on-base share and a .272 slugging share. You may get him out … however you couldn’t strike him out! Lillis Okay’d simply 90 instances complete in these six years.

27) Kevin Slowey has the Twins’ highest profession strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.70)
Slowey was a serviceable mid-rotation man for the Twins from 2007-11, however he solely had one season (2008) during which his adjusted ERA+ was higher than league common. He was a management pitcher, so maybe it’s not completely stunning that he’d price effectively on this specific listing. Still, to see him to date out in entrance of the likes of Johan Santana (3.79) and Brad Radke (3.3) is notable.

28) Kyle Lohse has the Cardinals’ highest single-season win share (.842 in 2012)
Not Bob Gibson or Dizzy Dean or Chris Carpenter, however Lohse, who, if you happen to had been to take away his 16-3 file throughout the 2012 season from his ledger, went 131-140 over the remainder of his profession. With a 2.86 ERA and a 133 ERA+, this was by far the perfect season of Lohse’s life.

29) Tom Hughes is the Braves’ profession WHIP (1.02) and FIP (2.29) chief
This franchise has had some legendary pitchers in its historical past, together with Warren Spahn, Greg Maddux, John Smoltz, Tom Glavine and, if you happen to take all of it the best way again to the 1800s, Kid Nichols, amongst others. Hughes, who pitched for the Boston Braves means again from 1914-18, isn’t as generally often known as these Hall of Famers. Yet right here he’s, well-represented in two necessary pitching classes — WHIP being a measure of walks and hits allowed per inning pitched and FIP being a measure of outcomes a pitcher can management (strikeouts, unintentional walks, hit by pitches and residential runs). Sadly, arm troubles restricted Hughes to only 9 seasons within the large leagues, and he wound up promoting automobiles.

30) Ian Kennedy has the D-backs’ finest single-season win share (.840 in 2011)
Kennedy, who transformed to reduction work in 2019, went 94-101 in his profession as a starter. But for one magical season in 2011, he couldn’t be crushed. He went 21-4 to complete forward of Randy Johnson (.828 mark in 2002) on this specific class. Kennedy had a 2.88 ERA and completed fourth within the NL Cy Young voting that yr. He by no means once more had greater than 15 wins in a season.