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In 1930, he led the league in wins and saves (though it would be decades before the save became an official statistic).
Joe Posnanski • The Baseball 100
in 1920, a 25-year-old Hornsby—a lifetime .310/.370/.440 hitter to that point—hit .370/.431/.559, leading the league in all three splits, and he also led the league in hits, doubles, RBIs, and total bases. Over the next five seasons combined—this is so ridiculous—Hornsby would hit .402. Nobody, not even Ty Cobb, hit .400 over five full seasons.
Joe Posnanski • The Baseball 100
A young pitcher, facing Hornsby, complained about a pitch being called a ball. “Son,” umpire Bill Klem said, “when you pitch a strike, Mr. Hornsby will let you know it.”
Joe Posnanski • The Baseball 100
The legendary Nolan Ryan did strike out Gwynn nine times in 67 plate appearances—that’s the most against any pitcher. Gwynn still hit .300 against Ryan, one of the very few who did.
Joe Posnanski • The Baseball 100
B. J. Ryan (in 2003, with the Baltimore Orioles) and Alan Embree (in 2009, with the Colorado Rockies) were each credited with a victory in a game in which they threw zero pitches. Both relievers picked a runner off a base to end an inning before their offense plated the winning run.
Anthony Castrovince • A Fan's Guide to Baseball Analytics: Why WAR, WHIP, wOBA, and Other Advanced Sabermetrics Are Essential to Understanding Modern Baseball
Gwynn faced the great Greg Maddux 107 times in his career. He never struck out. Not once.