Cellar-Dwellers Also Have Heroes

“The last shall be first” is a Biblical prediction which has some basis for truth in major league baseball. Beginning in 1877, players on last place teams have been on numerous occasions league leaders in various hitting and pitching categories.

Hitting categories considered as a basis for this article are: Batting average, slugging average, home runs, runs batted in and total bases. Pitching categories taken into account are:  Earned run average, games won, complete games, and strikeouts. Players tying for league leadership, rather than leading outright, have not been included. Those who played some games with a second club in the season they led the league are also excluded.

Hurlers on cellar-dwelling clubs, and this includes those in a division alignment since 1969, have fared slightly better than non-pitchers as league leaders. There have been 28 pace-setting pitching performances, as opposed to 26 top batting feats. The department most commonly excelled in has been complete games, with 13 pitchers and 15 performances represented. John B. Taylor of St. Louis led in 1898 even though his club finished last in a 12-club league.

Hitters have most frequently (10 times) led in the home run category. Both Frank Howard of the Washington Senators and Cy Williams of the Philadelphia Phillies captured a pair of home run titles, whereas the Cincinnati Reds’ Charles “Red” Lucas and the Atlanta Braves’ Phil Niekro each paced the senior circuit in complete games two years running. Niekro could make it three in a row in 1979.

Only one pitcher on a last place team-Steve Carlton of the Philadelphia Phillies in 1972-has ever topped a major league in games won.

Just four doormat team members have managed to pitch their way to ERA leadership, all in relatively recent baseball history. Bob Friend turned the trick for the 1955 Pittsburgh Pirates. Dick Donovan for the 1961 Senators, Carlton for the 1972 Phillies and Craig Swan for the 1978 New York Mets. Nine hurlers have emerged from the basement as strikeout kings.

Last place teams have contributed just two batting champions. Larry Doyle won the title with the New York Giants in 1915, and Richie Ashburn was the batting leader as a member of the 1958 Phillies. (Ironically, the lowly Phils tied pennant-winning Milwaukee for National League team batting average honors that season, with a .266 mark.)

Three players on last place teams have been league leaders in runs batted in, five have led in slugging percentages, six have set the pace in total bases.

Monumental slugging displays by different members of the Senators occurred 11 seasons apart. In 1957, Roy “Squirrel” Sievers won two-thirds of a triple crown, capturing American League home run and RBI honors; for good measure, Sievers led the AL in total bases that year. In 1968, Frank Howard paced the junior loop in homers, total bases and slugging average; “Hondo” is the only last place team performer who has attained league leadership in as many as four of the hitting categories under consideration.

In addition to leading his league in wins and earned run average, Steve Canton hurled the most complete games and fanned the most batters in the NL in 1972. It was a remarkable performance for any hurler. Only one other last-place pitcher-Phil Niekro-has led his league in more than one of the five pitching departments in a single season. Niekro topped the NL in strikeouts and complete games in 1977.

Following are chronological lists of the hitting and pitching leaders from last place clubs.

 

Hitters

Year	Player	Team	League	Category	Number	Pct.
1877	Lipman Pike	Cincinnati	NL	HR	4
1890	Denny Lyons	Philadelphia	AA	SA		.531
1901	Sam Crawford	Cincinnati	NL	HR	16
1905	George Stone	St. Louis	AL	TB	259
1915	Larry Doyle	New York	NL	BA		.320
1918	George Burns	Philadelphia	AL	TB	236
1919	Gavvy Cravath	Philadelphia	NL	HR	12
1920	Cy Williams	Philadelphia	NL	HR	15
1923	Cy Williams	Philadelphia	NL	HR	41
1926	Cy Wffliams	Philadelphia	NL	SA		.568
1930	Chuck Klein	Philadelphia	NL	TB	445
1935	Jimmie Foxx	Philadelphia	AL	SA		.636
1935	Waily Berger	Boston	NL	HR	34
1935	Waily Berger	Boston	NL	RBI	130
1947	Ralph Kiner	Pittsburgh	NL	SA		.639
1947	Ralph Kiner	Pittsburgh	NL	TB	361
1950	Ralph Kiner	Pittsburgh	NL	HR	47
1957	Roy Sievers	Washington	AL	HR	42
1957	Roy Sievers	Washington	AL	RBI	114
1957	Roy Sievers	Washington	AL	TB	331
1958	Richie Ashburn	Philadelphia	NL	BA		.350
1968	Frank Howard	Washington	AL	SA
1968	Frank Howard	Washington	AL	HR	44	.552
1968	Frank Howard	Washington	AL	TB	330
1970	Frank Howard	Washington	AL (East Div.)	HR	44
1970	Frank Howard	Washington	AL (East Div.)	RBI	126

 

Pitchers

Year	Player	Team	League	Category	Number	Pct.
1886	Matt Kilroy	Baltimore	AA	SO	513
1898	John B. Taylor	St. Louis	NL	CG	42
1900	Pink Hawley	N. Y. Giants	NL	CG	34
1901	Noodles Hahn	Cincinnati	NL	CG	41
1906	Irv Young	Boston	NL	CG	37
1907	Stoney McGlynn	St. Louis	NL	CG	33
1924	Sloppy Thurston	Chicago	AL	CG	28
1928	Red Ruffing	Boston	AL	CG	25
1931	Red Lucas	Cincinnati	NL	CG	24
1932	Red Lucas	Cincinnati	NL	CG	28
1940	Kirby Higbe	Philadelphia	NL	SO	137
1951	Ned Garver	St. Louis	AL	CG	24
1955	Bob Friend	Pittsburgh	NL	ERA		2.83
1956	Sam Jones	Chicago	NL	SO	176
1959	Camio Pascual	Washington	AL	CG	17
1961	Dick Donovan	Washington	AL	ERA		2.40
1969	Sam McDowell	Cleveland	AL (East Div.)	SO	279
1972	Steve Carlton	Philadelphia	NL (East Div.)	ERA		1.97
1972	Steve Carlton	Philadelphia	NL (East Div.)	GW	27
1972	Steve Carlton	Philadelphia	NL (East Div.)	CG	30
1972	Steve Canton	Philadelphia	NL (East Div.)	SO	310
1973	Gaylord Perry	Cleveland	AL (East Div.)	CG	29
1974	Nolan Ryan	California	AL (West Div.)	SO	367
1975	Frank Tanana	California	AL (West Div.)	SO	269
1977	Phil Niekro	Atlanta	NL (West Div.)	CG	20
1977	Phil Niekro	Atlanta	NL (West Div.)	SO	262
1978	Craig Swan	New York	NL (East. Div.)	ERA		2.43
1978	Phil Niekro	Atlanta	NL (West Div.)	CG	22