tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29090025.post8657497962625832356..comments2024-01-31T08:53:14.005-07:00Comments on Taylor's Twins Talk: My 2008 Hall of Fame BallotJSThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12207754797909843134noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29090025.post-35663935874626821912007-12-26T11:48:00.000-07:002007-12-26T11:48:00.000-07:00An amazing Bert Blyleven statistic that I wouldn’t...An amazing Bert Blyleven statistic that I wouldn’t wish upon any major league pitcher:<BR/>From his 1970 rookie season through 1977 I’ve accumulated his quality starts that I’ve defined as: 6innings, 2earned runs or less; 7,8,9innings, 3earned runs or less; and 9innings+ 4 earned runs or less in which he garnered a no decision or a loss only……<BR/><BR/>The totals are:<BR/>82 games<BR/>658 innings<BR/>583 hits<BR/>185 runs<BR/>160 earned runs<BR/>184 base on balls<BR/>540 strikeouts<BR/>2.19 ERA<BR/>His record: 0 wins and 53 LOSSES. I repeat 0 wins and 53 losses with a 2.19 ERA<BR/><BR/>1970 0-3 2.09 9 games<BR/>1971 0-6 1.90 9 games<BR/>1972 0-9 2.35 13 games<BR/>1973 0-8 2.55 9 games<BR/>1974 0-8 1.80 10 games<BR/>1975 0-6 2.00 10 games<BR/>1976 0-8 2.29 15 games<BR/>1977 0-5 2.45 7 games<BR/><BR/>I understand that pitchers put up great games and get snakebit on occasion, but this accounted for almost 1 of every 3 starts, 82 of 279 to be exact or 29%. Show me a Hall of Famer that had to go through this year by year. Fortunately once Blyleven ended up in Pittsburgh and later some good Minnesota teams, this trend eased to what I would consider normal levels (I had researched this in the past but don’t have the numbers on hand)<BR/><BR/>Imagine 1974, your 17-9 in 27 games, and in the other 10, all of which are essentially quality starts, you post a 1.80ERA and go 0-8. You end up 17-17. If you don’t know the facts, and your voting for the Cy Young award, and you see 17-17. Do you cast a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place vote? Probably not. This is what Blyleven faced in yesteryear, and the same writers, who I contend do not know the facts, are what Blyleven faces every year in the HOF vote.<BR/><BR/>Go ahead, plug in a different year, or harken back to Baseball-reference and neutralize the stats, do it for every one of Blyleven’s contemporaries. The numbers don’t change much, but for Bert Blyleven, they do. The example given above is my attempt to show why. Teams that didn’t score runs and booted the ball around like it was a soccer match.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29090025.post-52517143854556640592007-12-21T15:17:00.000-07:002007-12-21T15:17:00.000-07:00I think awards are probably the worst measure of w...I think awards are probably the worst measure of whether someone is HOF worthy. Someone like Bert probably deserved several Cy Young awards. To not put him into the HOF because he didn't win enough awards is to compound an error.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com