300-win club

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Cy Young is the all-time leader in wins. Cy Young.jpg
Cy Young is the all-time leader in wins.

In Major League Baseball, the 300-win club is the group of pitchers who have won 300 or more games. Twenty-four pitchers have reached this milestone. This list does not include Bobby Mathews who won 297 in the major leagues plus several more in 1869 and 1870 before the major leagues were established in 1871. The San Francisco Giants are the only franchise to see four players reach 300 wins while on their roster: Tim Keefe in the Players' League, Christy Mathewson and Mickey Welch while the team was in New York, and most recently Randy Johnson. Early in the history of professional baseball, many of the rules favored the pitcher over the batter; the distance pitchers threw to home plate was shorter than today, and pitchers were able to use foreign substances to alter the direction of the ball. [1] Moreover, a schedule with rest days after most games allowed pitchers to start a far higher proportion of their team's games than modern pitchers do, typically every other game or even more (in the second half of the 1884 season Old Hoss Radbourn started 40 games out of 43). The first player to win 300 games was Pud Galvin in 1888. Seven pitchers recorded all or the majority of their career wins in the 19th century: Galvin, Cy Young, Kid Nichols, Keefe, John Clarkson, Charles Radbourn, and Welch. [2] Four more pitchers joined the club in the first quarter of the 20th century: Mathewson, Walter Johnson, Eddie Plank, and Grover Cleveland Alexander. [1] Young is the all-time leader in wins with 511, a mark that is considered unbreakable. [3] If a modern-day pitcher won 20 games per season for 25 seasons, he would still be 11 games short of Young's mark.

Contents

Only three pitchers—Lefty Grove, Warren Spahn, and Early Wynn—joined the 300-win club between 1924 and 1982, which may be explained by a number of factors: the abolition of the spitball [1] [lower-alpha 1] ; World War II military service, such as Bob Feller's; [5] and the growing importance of the home run in the game. [1] As the home run became commonplace, the physical and mental demands on pitchers dramatically increased, which led to the use of a four-man starting rotation. [1] [2] Between 1982 and 1990, the 300-win club gained six members: Gaylord Perry, Phil Niekro, Steve Carlton, Nolan Ryan, Don Sutton, and Tom Seaver. [2] These pitchers benefited from baseball's increase from a 154-game schedule to a 162-game schedule in 1961, and expansion of the league from 16 teams in 1960 to 26 by 1977. The increased use of specialized relief pitchers, an expanded strike zone, and new stadiums, including Shea Stadium, Dodger Stadium and the Astrodome, that were pitcher's parks all also suppressed offensive production. [2] Also, the increasing sophistication of training methods and sports medicine - such as Tommy John surgery - allowed players to maintain a high competitive level for a longer time. [6] Randy Johnson, for example, won more games in his 40s than he did in his 20s. [7]

Since 1990, only four pitchers have joined the 300-win club: Roger Clemens, Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and Randy Johnson. Changes in the game in the last decade of the 20th century have made attaining 300 career wins difficult, perhaps more so than during the mid-20th century. [8] The four-man starting rotation has given way to a five-man rotation, which gives starting pitchers fewer chances to pick up wins. [2] No pitcher reached 20 wins in a non-strike-shortened year for the first time in 2006; this was repeated in 2009 and 2017. [9]

Recording 300 career wins has been seen as a guaranteed admission to the Baseball Hall of Fame. [10] [11] [12] All pitchers with 300 wins have been elected to the Hall of Fame [13] except for Clemens, who received only half of the vote total needed for induction in his first appearance on the Hall of Fame ballot in 2013 [14] and lost votes from that total in 2014. [15] Clemens fell off the ballot in 2022 and can only be elected via the players' Contemporary Baseball Era ballot of the Veterans Committee. Clemens' future election is seen as uncertain because of his alleged links to use of performance-enhancing drugs. [16] Many observers expect the club to gain few, if any, members in the foreseeable future. [13] [17] [18] Ten members of the 300-win club are also members of the 3,000 strikeout club. [19]

Members

Kid Nichols was the youngest pitcher to win 300 games, achieving the feat at age 30. Kid Nichols Baseball.jpg
Kid Nichols was the youngest pitcher to win 300 games, achieving the feat at age 30.
Randy Johnson is the most recent member of the 300-win club. Big Unit 2009.jpg
Randy Johnson is the most recent member of the 300-win club.
Key
PitcherName of the pitcher
WinsCareer wins
DateDate of the player's 300th win
TeamThe pitcher's team for his 300th win
SeasonsThe seasons this player played in the major leagues
†Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame
Members of the 300-win club
PitcherWinsDateTeamSeasonsRef
Cy Young †511July 3, 1901 Boston Americans 1890–1911 [21]
Walter Johnson †417May 14, 1920 Washington Senators 1907–1927 [22]
Grover Cleveland Alexander †373September 20, 1924 Chicago Cubs 1911–1930 [23]
Christy Mathewson †373July 5, 1912 New York Giants 1900–1916 [24]
Pud Galvin †365September 4, 1888 Pittsburgh Alleghenys 1875, 1879–1892 [25]
Warren Spahn †363August 11, 1961 Milwaukee Braves 1942, 1946–1965 [26]
Kid Nichols †362June 13, 1900 Boston Beaneaters 1890–1901, 1904–1906 [27]
Greg Maddux †355August 7, 2004 Chicago Cubs 1986–2008 [28]
Roger Clemens 354June 13, 2003 New York Yankees 1984–2007 [29]
Tim Keefe †342June 4, 1890 New York Giants (PL) 1880–1893 [30]
Steve Carlton †329September 23, 1983 Philadelphia Phillies 1965–1988 [31]
John Clarkson †328September 21, 1892 Cleveland Spiders 1882–1894 [32]
Eddie Plank †326September 11, 1915 St. Louis Terriers 1901–1917 [33]
Nolan Ryan †324July 31, 1990 Texas Rangers 1966, 1968–1993 [34]
Don Sutton †324June 18, 1986 California Angels 1966–1988 [35]
Phil Niekro †318October 6, 1985 New York Yankees 1964–1987 [36]
Gaylord Perry †314May 6, 1982 Seattle Mariners 1962–1983 [37]
Tom Seaver †311August 4, 1985 Chicago White Sox 1967–1986 [38]
Charles Radbourn †310May 9, 1891 Cincinnati Reds 1880–1891 [39]
Mickey Welch †307August 11, 1890 New York Giants 1880–1892 [40]
Tom Glavine †305August 5, 2007 New York Mets 1987–2008 [41]
Randy Johnson †303June 4, 2009 San Francisco Giants 1988–2009 [42]
Early Wynn †300July 13, 1963 Cleveland Indians 1939–1944, 1946–1963 [43]
Lefty Grove †300July 25, 1941 Boston Red Sox 1925–1941 [44]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Though it is illegal to doctor the baseball, Don Sutton and Gaylord Perry, members of the 300-win club and Hall of Fame, were widely suspected of this behavior. [4]

Sources

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References

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  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Barra, Allen (May 26, 2003). "Baseball; 300-Victory Club Becomes Tougher to Join". The New York Times . Archived from the original on April 6, 2018. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
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  4. ↑ Chass, Murray (June 26, 1979). "John, Perry, Sutton spitball suspected". Star-News . The New York Times News Service. Archived from the original on February 26, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  5. ↑ Verducci, Tom (July 18, 2001). "Maddux's march toward history". Sports Illustrated . Archived from the original on February 12, 2002. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  6. ↑ Remington, Alex (April 9, 2010). "Presenting the Tommy John All-Stars". Yahoo! Sports. Yahoo! . Retrieved June 27, 2012.
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  9. ↑ Newman, Mark (October 3, 2009). "MLB denied 20-game winner in '09". MLB.com. Archived from the original on October 1, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2012.
  10. ↑ Sessa, Danielle (March 30, 2007). "Mets' Glavine Nears 300 Wins, With Only Johnson, Mussina Close". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on September 25, 2013. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
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  12. ↑ Weir, Tom (January 2, 1998). "3,000 hits, 500 HRs, 300 wins just about guarantee Hall entry". USA Today . p. 14.C. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved June 27, 2012.(subscription required)
  13. 1 2 Kurkjian, Tim (August 5, 2007). "Glavine Could be Last to Reach 300 for Years". ESPN The Magazine . Archived from the original on July 23, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
  14. ↑ "2013 Hall of Fame Vote a Shutout" (Press release). National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. January 9, 2013. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved January 9, 2013.
  15. ↑ "Maddux, Glavine, Thomas to HOF". ESPN.com. January 8, 2014. Archived from the original on January 8, 2014. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  16. ↑ Kurkjian, Tim (January 9, 2012). "Whopper of a list of names await in 2013". ESPN.com . Archived from the original on November 1, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2012. But Clemens is, after [Barry] Bonds, the next face of the steroid era. He has been charged with lying before Congress about his use of performance-enhancing drugs. He has no chance to make it to Cooperstown next year, or for many, many years to come.
  17. ↑ Bierman, Fred (May 9, 2009). "Johnson Is Next, and Possibly Last, in Line to Win 300". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 8, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
  18. ↑ Bishop, Greg (June 2, 2009). "Johnson Quietly Nears a Defining Moment". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 7, 2015. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
  19. ↑ "Career Leaders & Records for Strikeouts". Baseball-Reference.com . Archived from the original on April 28, 2011. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  20. ↑ O'Malley, John J. "Nichols Youngest to Win 300: "Kid" in More Ways than Won". Society for American Baseball Research. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved September 20, 2012.
  21. ↑ "Cy Young Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on February 10, 2009. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  22. ↑ "Walter Johnson Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on May 8, 2018. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  23. ↑ "Pete Alexander Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on September 6, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  24. ↑ "Christy Mathewson Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 25, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  25. ↑ "Pud Galvin Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 22, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  26. ↑ "Warren Spahn Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 25, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  27. ↑ "Kid Nichols Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  28. ↑ "Greg Maddux Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  29. ↑ "Roger Clemens Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  30. ↑ "Tim Keefe Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 27, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  31. ↑ "Steve Carlton Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  32. ↑ "John Clarkson Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on September 3, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  33. ↑ "Eddie Plank Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on September 25, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  34. ↑ "Nolan Ryan Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  35. ↑ "Don Sutton Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  36. ↑ "Phil Niekro Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on March 28, 2018. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  37. ↑ "Gaylord Perry Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on February 12, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  38. ↑ "Tom Seaver Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2010. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  39. ↑ "Old Hoss Radbourn Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  40. ↑ "Mickey Welch Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on February 2, 2009. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  41. ↑ "Tom Glavine Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 13, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  42. ↑ "Randy Johnson Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 26, 2014. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  43. ↑ "Early Wynn Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  44. ↑ "Lefty Grove Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 14, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2010.

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