Baseball statistics play an important role in evaluating the progress of a player or team.
Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove was an American professional baseball pitcher. After having success in the minor leagues during the early 1920s, Grove became a star in Major League Baseball with the American League's Philadelphia Athletics and Boston Red Sox. One of the greatest pitchers in history, Grove led the American League in wins in four separate seasons, in strikeouts seven years in a row, and had the league's lowest earned run average a record nine times. Over the course of the three years from 1929 to 1931, he twice won the pitcher's Triple Crown, leading the league in wins, strikeouts, and ERA, while amassing a 79–15 record and leading the Athletics to three straight AL championships. Overall, Grove won 300 games in his 17-year MLB career. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1947.
In baseball, a save is credited to a pitcher who finishes a game for the winning team under certain prescribed circumstances. Most commonly a pitcher earns a save by entering in the ninth inning of a game in which his team is winning by three or fewer runs and finishing the game by pitching one inning without losing the lead. The number of saves or percentage of save opportunities successfully converted are oft-cited statistics of relief pitchers, particularly those in the closer role. The save statistic was created by journalist Jerome Holtzman in 1959 to "measure the effectiveness of relief pitchers" and was adopted as an official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic in 1969. The save has been retroactively tabulated for pitchers before that date. Mariano Rivera is MLB's all-time leader in regular-season saves with 652, while Francisco Rodríguez earned the most saves in a single season with 62 in 2008.
In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine complete innings recorded no hits. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is thereby said to have "thrown a no-hitter". In most cases, no-hitters are recorded by a single pitcher who throws a complete game; one thrown by two or more pitchers is a combined no-hitter.
In baseball statistics, walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP) is a sabermetric measurement of the number of baserunners a pitcher has allowed per inning pitched. WHIP is calculated by adding the number of walks and hits allowed and dividing this sum by the number of innings pitched.
Adrian "Addie" Joss, nicknamed "the Human Hairpin", was an American professional baseball pitcher. He pitched for the Cleveland Bronchos of Major League Baseball, later known as the Naps, between 1902 and 1910. Joss, who was 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) and weighed 185 pounds (84 kg), pitched the fourth perfect game in baseball history. His 1.89 career earned run average (ERA) is the second-lowest in MLB history, behind Ed Walsh, while his career WHIP of 0.968 is the lowest of all-time.
The 2005 Boston Red Sox season was the 105th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished second in the American League East with a record of 95–67, the same record as the New York Yankees. The Yankees were deemed the division winner, due to their 10–9 head-to-head record against the Red Sox during the regular season. The Red Sox qualified for the postseason as the AL wild card, but were swept by the American League Central champion Chicago White Sox in the ALDS.
Richard Charles Wise is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher between 1964 and 1982 for the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians and the San Diego Padres. The two-time National League All-Star pitched a no-hitter on June 23, 1971 - and slugged two home runs to support his own effort. Wise was the winning pitcher for the Boston Red Sox in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series, considered by some to be the greatest Series game ever played.
James Milton McGlothlin, nicknamed "Red", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. During a nine-year MLB career, he pitched for the California Angels (1965–1969), Cincinnati Reds (1970–73) and Chicago White Sox (1973).
The 2005 Minnesota Twins Season was the franchise's 45th season playing in the Twin Cities and the 105th season in its history. The team was managed by Ron Gardenhire in his fourth year as the Twins' manager. They played their home games in the Metrodome.
The 1966 Minnesota Twins finished 89–73, second in the American League. 1,259,374 fans attended Twins games, the second highest total in the American League.
The 1967 Minnesota Twins finished 91–71, tied for second in the American League with the Detroit Tigers. The Twins had a one-game lead on the Red Sox with two games remaining in Boston, but lost both games. A total of 1,483,547 fans attended Twins games, the second highest total in the American League.
The 1971 Minnesota Twins finished 74–86, fifth in the American League West. 940,858 fans attended Twins games, the fifth-highest total in the American League, the first time the Twins failed to attract over one million fans since moving to Minnesota.
The 1996 California Angels season involved the Angels finishing 4th in the American League West with a record of 70 wins and 91 losses.
The 1997 Montreal Expos season was the 29th season of the franchise. They finished 78–84, 23 games back of the Atlanta Braves in the NL East and 14 games back of the Florida Marlins in the Wild Card. They played the Toronto Blue Jays in Interleague play for the first time during the season.
The 1987 San Francisco Giants season was the Giants' 105th season in Major League Baseball, their 30th season in San Francisco since their move from New York following the 1957 season, and their 28th at Candlestick Park. The Giants finished in first place in the National League West with a record of 90 wins and 72 losses. They lost the National League Championship Series in seven games to the St. Louis Cardinals. It was their first playoff appearance since 1971.
The 1911 Cleveland Naps season was a season in American major league baseball. It involved the Cleveland Naps attempting to win the American League pennant and finishing in third place. They had a record of 80 wins and 73 losses.
The 1890 Buffalo Bisons baseball team was a member of the short lived Players' League, and an "outlaw" franchise that used the name of the existing minor league Buffalo Bisons without permission. The Players’ League Buffalo Bisons compiled a 36–96 record, which landed them in last place, 46½ games behind the pennant-winning Boston Reds and 20 games behind the seventh-place Cleveland Infants in the eight-team league. After the season, the league folded, as did the team and the stadium continued to home field for their International League rival Bisons.
In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine. Thus, a lower ERA is better. Runs resulting from passed balls, defensive errors, and runners placed on base at the start of extra innings are recorded as unearned runs and omitted from ERA calculations.
