Best single season starting rotations
Goldenage
Posts: 3,278 ✭✭✭✭✭
Who are the top five ? Who’s #1 ?
1
Goldenage
Posts: 3,278 ✭✭✭✭✭
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Hard to beat the braves in the mid 90s
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
the full rotation wasnt fantastic, but the diamondbacks had an amazing top 2 for a few seasons with Johnson and Schilling
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
1954 Cleveland Indians:
Bob Feller 13-3.
Mike Garcia 19-8.
Art Houtteman 15-7.
Bob Lemon 23-7.
Early Wynn 23-11.
Certainly there will be discussion, especially since the Indians lost the WS in four games that season, but the numbers posted by the five primary starting pitchers are hard to ignore Also, consider that the five starters listed above won approximately 84% of the teams then record 111 games while also accounting for approximately 84% of the Indians 43 losses. That's pretty hard to wrap my head around while I wonder what the rest of the pitching staff was doing!!
that was a monster rotation!
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
1954 Indians was first thing I thought of.
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Ralph
3 HOFers in the starting rotation and another in the 'pen!
Half a season so maybe doesn't count, especially since they did nothing with it but:
2014 Detroit Tigers
Scherzer, Verlander, Porcello, Price, Sanchez
Four Cy Young winning pitchers who have won the award 7 combined times (with an 8th coming this year), finished runner-up a pile of times, an MVP, AND the other guy was the defending ERA champion.
Four Cy Young winning pitchers who have won the award 7 combined times.
That doesn't make sense because in 2014 they had a combined three CYA's. How can you credit them for something they haven't won yet??
While I would not place them above the 1954 Indians or the 1997/1998 Braves, the 1898 Beaneaters (later the Braves) deserve mention:
Kid Nichols: 31-12
Ted Lewis: 26-8
Vic Willis: 25-13
Fred Klobedanz: 19-10
OK, fine. Do it your way. 3 CYAs and an MVP and the ERA champ and four more CYAs in their futures.
No reason for anyone else to post. You nailed it.
"I spent 50% of my money on alcohol, women, and gambling. The other half I wasted.
@Tabe said: OK, fine. Do it your way. 3 CYAs and an MVP and the ERA champ and four more CYAs in their futures.
Hey, c'mon, I'm not looking for a fight or anything. The pitchers you listed, the 2014 Detroit Tigers, were all fine pitchers but it just wasn't in that season. To be honest, in 2014 the only exceptional starter was Max Scherzer's 18-5 record, while David Price and Drew Smyly split the season with two teams. Everyone else, even Verlander, were only above average with a combined 55-47 record.
I'd hate to sound presumptuous, but probably not many people think that qualifies them as one of the best starting rotations of all-time.
So basically just the staff with the most wins and without regard to the era they pitched in. Then there is only one answer, the 1906 Chicago Cubs staff since their starters won more games than anyone else and had ridiculous ERA's under 2.00 as a group.
@1948_Swell_Robinson, the trouble is that none of us know about these guys or this team, but it would probably be the Best Starting Rotation in the Modern Era. Were you aware of it or did you search for it?? That was phenomenal year by a really great team.
Mordecai Brown 26-6 1.04
Jack Pfiester 20-8 1.51
Ed Reulbach 19-4 1.65
Carl Lundgren 17-6 2.21
Jack Taylor 12-3 1.83
Orval Overall 12-3 1.88
Bob Wicker 3-5 2.99
Jack Harper 0-0 0.00
I was aware. They had the most wins ever until Seattle beat them, but the Cubs still had a better winning percentage.
I just posted the W/L for the 1898 Beaneaters because that was what the others had done. But I mentioned them because (1) their team was 102-47-3, and (2) their hitting was just average (OPS+ of 102). In other words, it was pitching that made the team great.
Same is also true for the 1954 Indians (111-43-2, OPS+ of 102) and the 1997 Braves (101-61, OPS+ of 99).
It's also true of the 1906 Cubs (116-36-3, OPS+ of 103). I didn't mention them because they didn't really have a "rotation"; they used a total of 9 pitchers, every single one of them started at least one game, and six of them started 14 or more. They had a truly phenomenal pitching "staff", of that there can be no doubt.
Not true of the 1971 Orioles (101-57, OPS+ of 112). That they had four pitchers with 20 wins is interesting, as trivia goes, but it's trivial nonetheless. They would not have earned that distinction except that the Orioles hit (and fielded) very, very well. The top 4 in WAR on the team were B. Robinson, Merv Rettenmund, Don Buford, and Mark Belanger. Dobson and Cuellar may have won 20 games, but they didn't make the top 10 on the team.
@dallasactuary I have a RPPC of the 1906 Cubs I’ll dig it out and post it sometime. Also RPPC of Orvall Overall on a minor league team. I collected a ton of turn of the century baseball memorabilia including 250 T206’s. Man have they appreciated. I used to find them in 700 count boxes for $1-$10 when everyone wanted Pete Rose and Johnny Bench cards.
"I spent 50% of my money on alcohol, women, and gambling. The other half I wasted.
@dallasactuary
"I spent 50% of my money on alcohol, women, and gambling. The other half I wasted.
This is the first group that I thought of.