|
MLB 300 Win Club - In Major League Baseball, the 300 win club refers to the group of pitchers 24 as of 2009 who have won 300 or more games. While the "300 club" is an informal group, becoming a member is among the highest accomplishments a starting pitcher can achieve. Several members retired soon after winning their 300th game; two retired with exactly 300 victories. All eligible pitchers with 300 wins have been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
The first player to win 300 games was Pud Galvin in 1888. Six pitchers entered the club in the 19th century, with a seventh, Cy Young, joining in 1901. Early in the history of professional baseball, starting rotations of two men were commonplace, giving the best pitchers far more chances to earn wins than in today's game. Conversely, the rigor required for a two-man rotation meant that most pitching careers didn't last more than a decade or so. In addition, the medical treatments then available were minimal; if a pitcher 'blew out his arm' then his career was over. Four more pitchers joined the club in the first quarter of the 20th century.
However, only three pitchers scored their 300th win between 1924 and 1982: Lefty Grove (1941), Warren Spahn (1961), and Early Wynn (1963). For Grove and Wynn it was the final win of their careers and each struggled in his last season to achieve it. This dearth of 300-game winners may be explained by the offensive explosion following the abolition of the spitball in 1921, changes in the ball itself, World War II military service (in the cases of Bob Feller and Red Ruffing), the growing importance of the home run in the game, and the lowering of the pitching mound following the 1968 season. As the home run became commonplace, the physical and mental demands on pitchers dramatically increased, leading to the use of a four-man starting rotation.
Between 1982 and 1990, the 300-win club gained six members an increase of over 40%. This may be partly explained as a consequence of the era of free agency that began in the mid-1970s. Free agency led to unheard-of player salaries, which encouraged older pitchers to stay in the game longer than they might have in the past. Another part of the explanation is the increasing sophistication of training methods and sports medicine (such as the Tommy John surgery), which have allowed players to maintain a high competitive level for a longer time. Examples include Phil Niekro, who was still under 200 wins at his 40th birthday, went on to win a record 121 games after his 40th birthday and finished his career, at the age of 48, with 318 wins and Randy Johnson, who won more games in his 40s than he did in his 20s. Many of the pitchers who reached 300 wins in this era, such as the aforementioned Niekro, Nolan Ryan, and Don Sutton, each had just a couple of 20+ win seasons and achieved the 300 mark by pitching well into their 40s.
Changes in the game in the last decade of the 20th century have made the 300-game winner an endangered species again, perhaps more so than during the mid 20th century. The four-man starting rotation has given way to a five-man rotation, which gives starting pitchers still fewer chances to pick up wins. As a result, managers are much quicker to put in relief pitchers than in the past, particularly after the starting pitcher has thrown more than 100 pitches, even when the starting pitcher is winning the game. This increases the likelihood that a pitcher not get a win because of circumstances beyond his control.
Pitcher Wins Date of 300th Teams
- Cy Young 511 July 3, 1901 Cle (NL), Bos (AL), Stl (NL), Bos (NL), Cle (AL), Bos (NL)
- Walter Johnson 417 May 14, 1920 Was (AL)
- Grover Cleveland Alexander 373 September 20, 1924 Phi (NL), Chi (NL), StL (NL)
- Christy Mathewson 373 June 28, 1912 NY Giants (NL), CIN
- Pud Galvin 364 June 4, 1888 Buf, Pit (Amer. Assoc.), Pit (NL), Pit (Players League), Stl (NL)
- Warren Spahn 363 August 11, 1961 Bos/Mil, NY Mets (NL), SF
- Kid Nichols 361 September 7, 1900 Bos, StL, Phi (NL)
- Greg Maddux 355 August 7, 2004 Chi (NL), Atl, LA (NL), SD
- Roger Clemens 354 June 13, 2003 Bos, Tor, NY (AL), Hou (NL)
- Tim Keefe 342 June 4, 1890 Troy, NY (Amer. Assoc.), NY Giants (NL), Phi
- Steve Carlton 329 September 23, 1983 StL (NL), Phi, SF, Chi (AL), Cle, Min
- John Clarkson 328 September 21, 1892 Worc, Chi (NL), Bos (NL), Cle (NL)
- Eddie Plank 326 September 11, 1915 Phi (AL), StL (Fed. League), StL (AL)
- Nolan Ryan 324 July 31, 1990 NY Mets (NL), Cal (AL), Hou (NL), Tex (AL)
- Don Sutton 324 June 18, 1986 LA (NL), Hou, Mil (AL), Oak, Cal
- Phil Niekro 318 October 6, 1985 Mil/Atl (NL), NY (AL), Cle, Tor
- Gaylord Perry 314 May 6, 1982 SF, Cle, Tex, SD, NY (AL), Atl, Sea, KC
- Tom Seaver 311 August 4, 1985 NY Mets (NL), Cin, Chi (AL), Bos
- Charles Radbourn 309 May 14, 1891 Prov, Bos (NL), Bos (Players League), Cin
- Mickey Welch 307 August 11, 1890 Troy, NY Giants (NL)
- Tom Glavine 305 August 5, 2007 Atl, NY Mets (NL)
- Randy Johnson 303 June 4, 2009 Mtl, Sea, Hou, Ari, NY (AL), SF
- Early Wynn 300 July 13, 1963 Was, Cle, Chi (AL)
- Lefty Grove 300 July 25, 1941 Phi (AL), Bos (AL)
|
