Archives for February 2020

It’s hard to imagine a player putting up a career average of .170 and still managing to stay in the major leagues for 11 seasons, going 86 consecutive at bats without a hit or having a 10,000-strong fan club, despite an average below the Mendoza line.  Those are among the “accomplishments” of a hand full of hitters whose performance caught Baseball Roundtable’s attention.  Read on for their stories.

Bill Bergen – .170 career average over 11 MLB seasons

Bill Bergen managed an eleven-season (947-game) career as a major league backstop.  He must have been doing something right behind the plate, because he had plenty of difficulty when at the plate. Over his MLB career, Bergen hit just .170 (516-for-3,028) – the lowest career average for any player with at least 2,500 MLB at bats.  In only one season – 1903 for the Cincinnati Reds – did Bergen hit at least .200 (.227 in 58 games that season).  Bergen also showed little power, with just two career home runs (45 doubles and 21 triples). Note: Over the span of Bergen’s MLB career, the overall MLB batting average was .253.

Bergen wrapped up is career (1901-03/Cincinnati; 1903-11/Brooklyn) with a .194 on-base percentage and a .201 slugging percentage.

In 1909, Bergen hit just .139 in 112 games.  That is the lowest average ever for a batter qualifying for the batting title.  (Note:  Bergen would not qualify under current rules – a minimum 3.1 plate appearances for each team game played.)

Defense! Defense!

Bill Bergen was a superior defensive backstop. He led NL catchers in fielding percentage twice and in assists in three seasons. His career 1,444 assists are ninth overall. For his career, he threw out 48 percent of attempted stealers, twice leading the NL in runners caught stealing.

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Chris Davis –  .168 average in 2018

Photo by Fort George G. Meade

Orioles’ 1B/DH Chris Davis’ .168 average in 2018 (79-for-470) was the lowest recorded by a qualifying batter (under current rules).  Davis, a noted power hitter, did pop 16 long balls and drive in 49 runs in his .168 campaign.  He also fanned 192 times in 522 plate appearance (about 37 percent of his PA’s).

Davis also holds the record for consecutive plate appearances (62) and at bats (54) without a hit (by a non-pitcher). That steak began with an 0-3 game on September 15, 2017 and stretched to April 13, 2019 – when Davis broke out with a three-for-five (two doubles/four RBI) game against the Red Sox in Boston.  Davis, notably, followed up is .168 average in 2018 with a .179 average (105 games) in 2019.

A Blast (or Blasts) From the Past

Chris Davis – a 6’3”, 230-pound power hitter, hit .286, with an AL-leading 53 home runs and 138 RBI for the Orioles in 2015.

In his 12 MLB seasons (Texas and Baltimore), Davis has hit .234, with 295 home runs and 779 RBI. In the four seasons between 2012-2015, he hit .256 with 159 home runs and 412 RBI – leading the AL in home runs twice and RBI once.  Primarily a 1B, he has also played some 3B, OF and DH. Davis has taken the mound twice in his MLB career – tossing three innings and giving up one run on four hits, while fanning three and walking one. Davis is expected back in the Orioles’ lineup (1B/DH) in 2020.

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John Gochnaur – Consistency is not always a virtue

John Gochnaur did not distinguish himself (as least in an enviable way) on the baseball diamond. In 1903 (his last of three MLB campaigns), the Cleveland Naps’ shortstop led all of MLB in errors with 98. Couple that with his .185 batting average (zero home runs and 48 RBI in 134 games) and you can see why 1903 was Gochnaur’s final MLB season.  What caught BBRT’s eye, in addition to his futility at the plate and in the field, was his consistency.   Gochnaur averaged .185 in 1902 (127 games) and again in 1903 (134 games) – his two American League campaigns. Notably as a rookie for Brooklyn (NL) in 1902, he went four-for-eleven, giving him an NL career average of .364, an AL career average of .185 and an overall average of 187 – no home runs and 87 RBI.

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Bob Buhl … Zero for the season

In 1962, Cubs’ pitcher Bob Buhl established a single-season record for futility – going zero-for-seventy (he fanned 36 times, but did draw one walk, drive in one run and steal one base).  Notably, between September 1, 1961 and May 8, 1963, Buhl went 86 consecutive at bats without a safety. Buhl was a career .089 hitter (76-for-857, with zero home runs and 26 RBI). He also fanned 389 times in 953 plate appearances (40.8 percent).

On the mound, Buhl fared better.  In 15 seasons (Braves, Cubs, Phillies), Buhl went 166-132, 3.55 – winning 15 or more games in five campaigns. For the 1957 Word Series Champion Braves, Buhl went 18-7 (a league-leading .720 winning percentage), with a 2.74 ERA.

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Roy Oyler – Biggest Fan Club ever for a .165 hitter

Roy Oyler only once got enough plate appearance to qualify for the batting title, but he did last six seasons in the major leagues (1965-1970 …. Detroit, Seattle, California), playing in 542 games and putting up a .175 average in 542 games (1,265 at bats). He even hit 15 home runs and drove in 86.  Oyler’s annual batting averages went like this:  .186 (82 games); .171 (71 games); .207 (148 games); .135 (111 games); .165 (106 games); and .083 (24 games).

Oyler, like many light hitters, did bring a good glove to the game, but that was not enough for the Tigers to protect him in the 1968 expansion draft and Oyler found himself with the Seattle Pilots in 1969 – where he hit just .165.  Still, a local disc Jockey – noting Oyler’s lack of offensive prowess – started an Oyler fan club called the “Soc It To Me .300 Club” – a play on the popular Rowan & Martin’s Laugh In phrase.  The letters were an acronym for “Slugger Oyler Can, In Time, Top Our Manager’s Estimate.” (He didn’t do that, however, as the .165 average illustrates.  Still, he did hit a career-high seven home runs that  season.)  The Oyler fan club grew to more than 10,000 members and the Pilots even had three Ray Oyler Nights at the ballpark. (The next season, by the way, Oyler was playing for the California Angels and the Pilots were the Milwaukee Brewers.)

Honorable Mention

In MLB history, there have been an unlucky thirteen campaigns in which a batter fanned more than 200 times. Mark Reynolds holds the record with 223 whiffs in 2009 and his three seasons of 200+ K’s (consecutively 2008-10) are also an MLB record. He was also the first batter to whiff 200 or more times in a season. In his three 200+ strikeout seasons, Reynolds hit .234, with 104 home runs and 284 RBI – while fanning in one of every 2.9 plate appearances. Reynolds also had two seasons in which he played least 100 games and hit under .200.  Reynolds put up a stat line of .236-298-871 in 13 MLB seasons (2007-19 … Diamondbacks, Orioles, Indians, Yankees, Brewers, Cardinals, Rockies, Nationals). Reynolds, a free agent, was released by the Rockies late last July.

Primary Resources: Baseball Reference.com; Baseball-Almanac.com; MLB.com; “Pilot Shortstop Ray Oyler played only one season in Seattle and batted .165. Why was he so popular?” Seattle Times, April 4, 2019 by Bill Reader.

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Chicago Cubs’ 1B Micah Hoffpauir – a career .251 hitter over three MLB seasons – had as many hits and more than twice as many total bases in his one game against Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez as Hall of Famer (.312 career hitter) Edgar Martinez had in his entire career against Pedro (10 games).

The tale of those two batters will provide the segue into the Pedro Martinez chapter of Baseball Roundtable ongoing “Who’s your daddy?” series.

Cubs’ first baseman Micah Hoffpauir, who hit .251 over his three-season MLB career (162 games), only faced Pedro Martinez in one game (September 25, 2008). It came in Martinez’ second-to-last MLB season (age 36) and Hoffpauir’s rookie campaign (age 28). Hoffpauir homered off Martinez in the first inning (it was Hoffpauir’s first major-league dinger), slashed an RBI double off him in the third, and singled off him in the fifth.  Hoffpauir was to have a chance to complete a cycle against Martinez in the seventh inning, when he came up with two on and no outs, but Martinez was replaced by Met’s reliever Ricardo Rincon. Hoffpauir hit Ricon’s first pitch for a three-run home run.  Hoffpauir added a single off reliever Scott Schoeneweis in the eighth to complete a five-for-five, five RBI day – and the Cubs still lost 7-6.   Hoffpauir’s three-for-three day off Martinez gives him the most hits of any player never retired by the hard-throwing righty.

Then there are the Edgar/Pedro Martinez match ups.  Notably, after his 2015 election to the Baseball Hall of Fame, Pedro Martinez was asked to name the toughest hitter he ever faced.  His answer was two-time batting champ and future Hall of Famer (elected in 2019) Edgar Martinez. While Edgar Martinez was a superb hitter, his “toughest” label from Pedro was a bit of a surprise.  The two Martinez faced each other in 33 plate appearances (25 at bats) – and Pedro clearly came out on top.  Edgar collected just three hits (seven walks and one hit by pitch), for a .120 average, and fanned 11 times (one of every three plate appearances – one of every 2.3 at bats) against Pedro.  All three hits were singles and none of his hits or walks resulted in an RBI or run scored.   In all fairness, Pedro did say that Martinez always ran up the pitch count against him.   Still, Edgar Martinez did not make the BBRT Pedro Martinez “Who’s your daddy?” lineup.  Before I get into naming BBRT’s lineup of players who performed well against Martinez, here a little background on the topic.

Who’s Your Daddy?  (And, Why it’s about time we featured Pedro.)

On September 24, 2004, in the middle of a tight pennant race, the Yankees handed future Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez and the Boston Red Sox a tough 6-4 loss.  Martinez went 7 1/3 innings giving up nine hits and five earned runs.  The game came just five days after (in his previous start) Martinez had lasted just five frames against the Bronx Bombers (eight hits, eight earned runs) in a 16-7 loss.

After that second loss, Martinez candidly commented, “What can I say? I just tip my hat and call the Yankees my daddy.”  Little did he know that his comment – and a Yankee fans’ chant of “Who’s your daddy?” would follow him into future starts in New York (all the way to his final MLB start – against the Yankees for the Phillies – in Game Six of the 2009 World Series.)

The concept of “Who’s your daddy?” became the inspiration for Baseball Roundtable to take a look at the players who “had the number” of some of MLB’s premier pitchers.  I started with Nolan Ryan (see that post by clicking here) and the topic was well enough received I decided to continue the journey. I followed up with Sandy Koufax – click here for that one. Next I took a look at Bob Gibson – click here. And today, I’m appropriately looking at the pitcher who inspired these posts – Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez.  (And, I’ve since added Randy Johnson, click here.

BBRT Note:  Keep in mind, the pitchers included in the “Who’s your daddy?” series are among the “best in the business.” They are selected not because of the players who performed well against them, but rather because solid hitter performance when they were on the mound was the exception rather than the rule.

Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez had an 18-season MLB career – going 219-100, with a 2.93 earned run average and 3,154 strikeouts in 2,827 innings.  Martinez was a two-time 20-game winner eight-time All Star and three-time Cy Young Award recipient.  He led his league in wins once, winning percentage three times, earned run average five times, strikeouts three times and complete games and shutouts once each.  He struck out 300+ batter in two seasons.

Extra Credit

When filling out this lineup, BBRT granted extra credit to players’ performance against Pedro Martinez in his peak years (1997 – 2003). During that seven-season span, Martinez won all three of his Cy Young Awards and went 118-36, with a 2.20 earned run average and 11.3 strikeouts per nine innings.  Of course, his other 11 season weren’t bad (101-64, 3,65 and 8.8 K/9),  just not as spectacular as those peak years.

————————- BBRT Top  Regular-Season Performers Versus Pedro Martinez —————

Note: For the most part the lineup was limited to players with at least 10 career regular-season at bats against Martinez.

Catcher – Mike Piazza (Six home runs and a .385 average in nine games versus Martinez)

If Baseball Roundtable was putting together a lineup to face Pedro Martinez, Hall of Famer Mike Piazza would be right in the middle of it.  Piazza, as a Dodger, homered in his first at bat off Pedro Martinez (August 24, 1994).  Twelve seasons later (August 9, 2006), as a Padre, he homered in his final at bat against Martinez.   Piazza hit a total of six career home runs in just nine games versus Martinez, the most of any batter. It was also the most home runs Piazza hit off any MLB pitcher (he also had six career long balls off Tom Glavine and Jason Schmidt.)

Mike Piazza was the 1,390th pick (62^nd round) in the 1987 MLB draft.  That’s the latest draft pick ever to make it to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Piazza hit .385 with a 1.115 slugging percentage against Pedro Martinez over his career.  In 2006, Piazza faced Martinez six times in four games and collected three hits – all home runs.  Piazza played for the Dodgers, Mets, A’s, Padres and Marlins over a 16-season MLB career.  He hit .308-427-1,335 – hitting .300 or better in nine campaigns, topping 100 RBI six times and hitting 30 or more home runs in nine seasons.  He was a 12-time All Star and the 1993 NL Rookie of the Year.

Mike Piazza’s 396 home runs as a catcher are the most home runs by a backstop in MLB history.

A shout out here goes to Marlins’ backstop Charles Johnson, who hit .357-2-4 in five career games versus Martinez and .375 (three-for-eight) with a triple and a home run against the Hall of Famer during Martinez’ peak years (1997-2003).

A Pretty Productive .183

Another catcher, Jorge Posada, struck out more times against Pedro Martinez than any other batter – (33 strikeouts in 60 regular-season at bats/69 plate appearances).  Still, despite only a .183 average against Martinez, Posada hit four home runs off him (tied for second-most off Martinez) and drove in 10 career runs off him (tied for the second-most RBI against Martinez). Posada hit .333, (4-for-12), with two doubles and two RBI in five post-season games versus Martinez.

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First Base – Gregg Jefferies (.469 average in 14 games versus Martinez)

Gregg Jefferies’ 15 regular-season hits against Martinez are the sixth most collected by any batter (and those ahead of Jefferies on this list each had between 49 and 86 at bats versus Martinez, as opposed to Jefferies’ 32 at bats).   Jefferies’ .469 career average against Martinez is the third highest among batters with at least 10 at bats against Pedro.

Jefferies’ first four hits against Pedro (in his first nine at bats against him) went for a cycle (in this order) – triple, double, home run and a single (over six games).  He would get 11 more hits off Martinez over his career, but only one more extra base hit (a double).  Jefferies also struck out only once in 36 plate appearances versus Martinez.

Jefferies is one of those players who deserves a little more attention from the followers of the national pastime.  He enjoyed a 14-season MLB career (1987-2000 … Mets, Royals, Cardinals Phillies, Angels and Tigers), during which he averaged .289 (1,593 hits), with 126 home runs, 663 RBI and 196 steals. The two-time All Star put up a .342-16-83 stat line for the Cardinals in 1993 – adding 46 stolen bases and 89 runs scored.  Overall, he had four full seasons of a .300 or better average.  In the 1993-94 seasons, Jefferies hit a combined .335, with 28 home runs, 138 RBI, 141 runs scored and 58 steals (245 games).

Hitting for the Cycle

August 25, 1995, Gregg Jefferies had his best game in the majors – hitting for the cycle, scoring four times and driving in four as his Phillies topped the Dodgers 17-3.   

Greg Jefferies only home run off Pedro Martinez was a game-winner – a solo shot in the top of the tenth-inning of a Cardinals’ 3-2 win over Martinez’ Dodgers.  It was the only extra-inning home run Martinez gave up during his MLB career.

Greg Jefferies was the Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year in both 1986 and 1987. In 1986, playing at A and AA, he hit .353, with 16 home runs, 111 RBI and 57 steals in 125 games.  In 1987, at AA, he hit .367-20-101, with 26 steals in 134 games.

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Second Base – Carlos Baerga (.500 average/.938 slugging percentage in five games versus Martinez)

Carlos Baerga hit .500 versus Martinez for his career (eight-for-sixteen), with two doubles, one triple, one home runs and five RBI.

Extra Credit

Carlos Baerga gets extra credit for his 1997 performance against the mound master. That season Pedro Martinez won the NL Cy Young Award – going 17-8 for the Expos, with a league-low 1.90 ERA and .184 opponents’ batting average against.  Baerga faced Martinez ten times in three games that season, collecting seven hits (.700), including two doubles, one triple and one home run.

Carlos Baerga had a 14-season MLB career (1990-2005 … Indians, Mets, Padres, Red Sox, Diamondbacks, Nationals). The three-time All Star retired with a .291 average, 134 home runs and 774 RBI.    He had his best season in 1993, when he went .321-21-114, with 15 steals, for the Indians.

Howe Farr Did Those Shots Travel?  Or, “Steve’s your uncle.”

On April 8, 1993, Carlos Baerga became the first major leaguer to homer from both sides of the plate in the same inning. In came in the seventh inning of an Indians’ 15-5 win over the Yankees – a two-run shot off Steve Howe and a solo shot off Steve Farr.

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No Kiddin’ Around

Hall of Famer Ken Griffey, Jr. had a little trouble with Martinez.  He faced Martinez 18 times (15 at bats) and collected just one hit (.067 average) and two walks (six whiffs).

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Third Base – Enrique Wilson (.440 in 12 regular season games versus Martinez)

Enrique Wilson was a tough out for Martinez, collecting 11 hits in 25 at bats (.440 average).  In 2003, when Martinez went 14-4, with a league-low 2.22 earned run average for the Red Sox, Wilson faced him nine times and picked up seven hits (four doubles) and a walk – for a .887 average.  Batting against Martinez in the pitcher’s peak years (1997-2003), Wilson went 10-for-29 (.533 average).   Wilson’s 11 career regular-season hits versus Martinez are his most against any pitcher.   Martinez was tougher on Wilson in the post season, holding him to a lone single in eight post-season at bats.

Wilson played nine seasons in the majors (1997-2005 … Indians, Yankees, Pirates, Cubs). He was a .244 hitter (555 games) and hit 22 home runs, while driving in 141 runs and scoring 155.

Who’s your daddy? … Indeed

In 2003, when the then-Yankee Wilson hit .887 versus Pedro Martinez, Wilson hit .189 against the rest of the AL. 

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Shortstop – Jimmy Rollins   (.361 in 12 games versus Martinez)

Jimmy Rollins got off to a slow start against Martinez – with no hits and three strikeouts in his first five at bats against him.  He picked up the pace from there, going 13-for-31 (.419) for the remainder of his career (an overall .361-2-6 line against Martinez).

Jimmy Rollins played 17 MLB seasons (2000-2016, Phillies, Dodgers, White Sox), hitting .264, with 231 home runs, 936 RBI, 1,421 runs scored and 470 steals in 2,275 games.  He was a three-time All Star, four-time Gold Glover and 2007 National League MVP (when he hit .296-30-94, scored a league-leading 139 runs, hit a league-topping 20 triples, stole 41 bases and won a Gold Glove).  Over his career, Rollins stole 30 or more bases in ten seasons, and topped 20 home runs four times. He led his league in games played once, plate appearances three times, at bats four time, runs scored once, triples four times (a high of 20 in 2007), and stolen bases once.

Captain, Oh Captain

Some may have preferred Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter in this spot. After all, he had 22 regular-season hits against Martinez … the most of any batter.  However, that translated into a regular-season line of .256-3-6 in 29 games.  Jeter did better against Martinez when the chips were down. In five post-season games against Martinez, he went 5-for-16 (.313), with two doubles, one home run and ten RBI.

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OF – Marquis Grisssom (.565 average in 13 games against Martinez)

Marquis Grissom’s .565 average is the highest of any player with at least ten regular-season at bats versus Martinez.

Grissom played 17 MLB seasons (1989-2005 … Expos, Braves, Indians, Brewers, Dodgers, Giants) and put up a .272 career average, with 227 home runs, 967 RBI, 1,187 runs scored and 429 steals. He was a tw0-time All Star and twice led the NL in steals (76 SB in 199 and 78 in 1992). He was also a three-time Gold Glover.  Grissom’s best season was 1996 with the Braves, when he hit .308 (207 hits), with 23 home runs, 74 RBI, 106 runs scored and 28 steals. In his career, he hit .300 or better twice, scored 100+ runs twice, topped 50 steals three times and hit 20 or more home runs five times.

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OF – Luis Gonzalez (.388 average in 22 games versus Martinez)

Luis Gonzales collected 19 hits in 49 at bats (.388) against Martinez.  The only player with more career regular-season safeties versus Martinez was Derek Jeter (22 hits, but 37 more at bats). Gonzalez also had two home runs and seven RBI against Martinez. Notably, Gonzalez’ line versus Martinez in the pitcher’s peak (1997-2003) years was .444 (8-for-18)-1-4.

Gonzalez had a 19-season MLB career (1990-2008 … Astros, Cubs, Tigers, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Marlins). He played in 2,591 games and got an identical 2,591 hits (.283 average), with 354 home runs and 1,439 RBI. He was a five-time All Star and led the NL in hits (206) in 1999. He topped 20 home runs seven times (a high of 57 in 2001), had 100+ RBI in five seasons and hit .300 or better five times.

 Game. Set. Match. 

Luis Gonzalez got the game-winning hit the bottom of the ninth inning of Game Seven of the 2001 World Series – giving the Diamondbacks a 3-2 win and their only World Series Championship to date. Notably, the RBI single came off future Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera.   Rivera came into the game in the ninth with the Yankees up 2-1 and his inning went: Mark Grace – single; Damian Miller – safe on a Rivera error; Jay Bell – sacrifice bunt; Tony Womack – run-scoring, game-tying double; Craig Counsell – hit by pitch; Luis Gonzalez – game-winning single.  This outing was like the proverbial “exception that proved the rule.”  In 96 career post-season games, Rivera had an 8-1 record, 42 saves and a 0.70 earned run average. 

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OF – Ryan Klesko (.344 with four home runs in 12 games versus Martinez)

This outfield spot saw a close race between Ryan Klesko and Jose Guillen (more on Guillen in a minute), but Klesko got the edge due to a bit more power and the fact that he hit .364 with two home runs against Martinez during the pitcher’s peak seasons.

Overall, Ryan went .344, with four home runs and eight RBI versus Martinez. Only Mike Piazza hit more home runs versus Martinez and only five players had more career RBI against him.

Klesko enjoyed a 16-season MLB career (1992-2007 … Braves, Padres, Giants), during which he hit .279, with 278 home runs, drove in 987 tallies and stole 91 bases. He was an All Star in 2001, when he hit .286-30-113 for the Padres (and swiped 23 bags).

Honorable Mention

Jose Guillen deserves a mention here. During his career, he hit .388 (13-for-35), with two home runs and eight RBI in 15 regular-season games against Pedro Martinez. In two post-season games, he touched Martinez for three hits in six at bats, getting a pair of strikeouts and grounder to the mound in his other three at bats.

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Throwing in the Towles

Astros’ catcher J.R. Towles popped two home runs in a game against Martinez – and they were his only two career plate appearances against the Hall of Famer.  The long balls came on September 30, 2009, in a Houston 10-3 lost to the Phillies in Philadelphia.  Towles led off the second and fourth innings with home runs off Martinez, who was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the fourth.  So, Towle’s career against Martinez was a 1.000 batting average, 1.000 on-base percentage and 4.000 slugging percentage.

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Pitcher – Doug Drabek (Three-for-nine versus Martinez)

As you might expect, pitchers didn’t fare too well versus Pedro Martinez, so we’ll give this spot to Astros’ righty Doug Drabek, who homered (breaking a 2-2 tie) in his first at bat against Martinez (May 16, 1993) – and ended up going three-for-nine  (.333) with two RBI (and just one strikeout) in five regular-season games against Martinez.

Drabek played 13 MLB seasons, going 155-134, 3.73 (398 games/397 starts). The one-time All Star (1994) had his best campaign in 1990, when he won 22 games (against just six losses), with a 2.76 ERA for the Pirates.  While he didn’t make the NL All Star squad that year, he was the NL Cy Young Award winner.  Drabek, by the way, was a .166 career hitter and had just two home runs in 716 at bats. In 1993, when he went yard against Martinez, Drabek hit .085 for the season.

Primary Resources: Baseball-Reference.com; MLB.com; ESPN.com; “Pedro Martinez Names the Hitter Who Gave Him the Hardest Time,” by David Stout, for Time Magazine, January 7. 2015.

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