The Most Unlikely 30-Game Hitting Streak
From SABR member Jayson Stark (with help from SABR member Trent McCotter) at ESPN.com on August 10:
So where does [Dan Uggla’s] .220 average — AFTER he’d hit in 30 in a row — rank among the lowest batting averages in modern history by guys who had hitting streaks that long?
No. 1, of course. You were expecting maybe he got beaten out by Joe DiMaggio?
Our favorite streak guru, loyal reader Trent McCotter, sifted through all the 30-game hitting streaks since 1910. Here are the three lowest batting averages — for the season — he found among all those players, after their 30th game of that streak. There’s one thing you may notice about this list:
Not only does Uggla win this competition — nobody else is even in his zip code.
Uggla .220
Taveras (2006) .284
Jimmy Rollins (2005) .287This is the 36th 30-game hitting streak since 1910. And until Uggla came along, only three of the other 35 streakers finished Game 30 with a season average that was under .300 — Taveras, Rollins and Santiago (1987), at .299. And Dan Uggla is at .220. Amazing.
Just for fun, want to know the highest averages after Game 30? Let’s just say they’re not very Uggla-esque:
Ty Cobb (1911) .451
Rico Carty (1970) .430
George Sisler (1922) .415
Sisler (1925) .415
George Brett (1980) .404
Read the full article here: http://espn.go.com/mlb/blog/_/name/stark_jayson/id/6851295/the-most-unlikely-30-game-hitting-streak
Originally published: August 10, 2011. Last Updated: August 10, 2011.