Post by Sha-Le Unique on Dec 9, 2015 16:39:43 GMT -5
With HOFFBL's 15th season coming to a close very shortly, that means end of season awards are on the way. Those awards of course include the AL and NL Rookie of the Year Award. With that being said, let's see which ROY pitcher had the best season of them all in this rank!
10. SP Ben F. Johnson (MIL; 1956)
Record: 15-16, 3.89 ERA, 264 IP, 81 Ks, 63 BB
Ben Johnson starts us off here and won the 1956 NL Rookie of the Year Award, despite a losing record, an ERA close to 4.00 and just 81 strikeouts. This was clearly one of the least dominant ROY seasons for any pitcher in league history. Johnson's career thus far has pretty similar to his rookie season, which makes a 111-1147 career record and a 4.15 career ERA not too surprising.
9. SP Ramon Arano (CLE; 1959)
Record: 17-12, 4.35 ERA, 297.2 IP, 177 Ks, 129 BB
Next is Ramon Arano, whose ROY season in 1959 may have been worse to some than that of Johnson, but I put him 9th to give him credit for having a winning record and a lot more strikeouts. On the other hand, he also allowed the 2nd-most walks of any ROY pitcher ever. Anyway, Arano's 17 wins put him 10th in the AL that season. He was also 4th in innings pitched and 6th in shutouts with 3.
Arano's career as a starter ended up being rather inconsistent and he was moved to the bullpen to become the Indians' closer in 1964, a post he has held since. He finished 4th in the AL with 31 saves in 1965, but he has not done as well as a closer aside from that season.
8. SP Camilo Pascual (WSH/MIN; 1957)
Record: 14-8, 3.80 ERA, 180 IP, 159 Ks, 74 BB
Camilo Pascual had a solid rookie season of his own in 1957. He was not among the league leaders in any categories, but still won 14 games and had 159 strikeouts in 180 innings. Pascual ended up staying with the Senators/Twins for 9 seasons before being traded to the Mets in 1965. A 123-156 career record and 4.11 ERA is a reflection of the inconsistent career he has said.
7. SP Don Mossi (CLE; 1954)
Record: 10-8, 3.83 ERA, 197.1 IP, 167 Ks, 78 BB
Another Indians pitcher that won the AL Rookie of the Year Award was Don Mossi, back in 1954. Mossi had a decent season, which included being 10th in WHIP and 7th in strikeouts. He also had a nice season at the plate, hitting two home runs and driving in five runs in 61 at-bats.
Mossi remained a mainstay in the Indians' rotation for 13 seasons before signing with the Mets in what will likely be his final season. He has put together 196 career wins and a 4.16 ERA in his 14-year career. His only All-Star appearance came in his career season in 1965, when he won 23 games with a 3.29 ERA.
6. SP Pat Dobson (MIL; 1966)
Record: 20-10, 4.06 ERA, 284 IP, 270 Ks, 119 BB
The defending NL Rookie of the Year, Pat Dobson had a solid debut with 20 wins and 270 strikeouts, but it was his 4.06 ERA that kept him from being higher on this list. He finished 6th in the NL in wins and 5th in strikeouts that year.
Dobson just finished up his 2nd season, which did not go as well as his rookie year.
5. SP Gene Brabender (NYM; 1965)
Record: 18-12, 3.66 ERA, 297.1 IP, 235 Ks, 141 BB)
1965's NL Rookie of the Year was Gene Brabender, who became the 1st player from an expansion team to win the award. He led the Mets in wins, ERA and strikeouts. Speaking of strikeouts, Brabender finished 7th in the NL, but also finished 3rd in walks. Control has continued to be an issue for him, but his potential remains pretty high.
Brabender's 2nd season featured an improved 3.27 ERA and 269 strikeouts (6th in the NL), but in this past season, his ERA was at 3.47 and only had 233 strikeouts.
4. SP Darrell Martin (STL; 1962)
Record: 16-12, 3.35 ERA, 217.1 IP, 171 Ks, 54 BB
Despite pitching noticeably fewer innings that all the other pitchers to win the ROY Award, Darell Martin was efficient in those innings and won the award in 1962 nonetheless. Martin did not finish among the league leaders in any categories, but his ERA in his rookie season is still one of the best among this group.
Martin was in the Cardinals' rotation for the first 3 seasons of his career, but since 1965, he has spent the majority of his time in the bullpen. His best season to date was his second season in 1963, which included 15 wins, a 3.28 ERA, 198 strikeouts and 3 shutouts.
3. SP Ruben Gomez (NYG; 1953)
Record: 22-9, 3.44 ERA, 311.2 IP, 175 Ks, 135 BB
Ruben Gomez was the 1st ever NL Rookie of the Year in league history and had a solid rookie season, despite finishing 2nd in the NL in walks. Gomez's ERA was 8th in the NL and his 22 wins ranked 2nd. He was also 2nd in innings pitched and strikeouts, while finishing 3rd in complete games with 16.
Gomez's career though only lasted 10 seasons, plus an additional season in the minor leagues in 1963. He finished with a 132-109 record and a 4.69 ERA. Gomez's rookie season ended up being his best season, but he made two consecutive All-Star Game appearances in 1954 and 1955. He spent 6 seasons with the Giants, before bouncing around between the White Sox (twice), Phillies, Senators, and Tigers in the latter portion of his career.
2. SP Glenn Cox (BRO; 1957)
Record: 22-7, 3.30 ERA, 283.2 IP, 211 Ks, 97 BB
One of the best rookie seasons ever has been that of Glenn Cox in 1957. Cox finished 3rd in both wins and ERA in his rookie season. He was also 9th in innings pitched, 4th in strikeouts and 3rd in shutouts with 3. Cox not surprisingly was an All-Star as a rookie and helped lead the Dodgers to an NL pennant.
Cox has spent most of his career with the Dodgers, but has bounced around between the rotation and bullpen over the years. His rookie season is still the best season he has had as a starter. Since returning to the Dodgers in 1964, he has pitched in the bullpen and has been the team's closer the past 2 seasons.
1. SP Sandy Koufax (LA; 1959)
Record: 20-7, 3.20 ERA, 273 IP, 209 Ks, 96 BB
But the top spot goes to Cox's current teammate Sandy Koufax. Koufax's ERA is the best of any pitcher that has won the ROY Award. He finished 4th in both wins and ERA that year, as well as 10th in innings pitched, 3rd in strikeouts, 6th in complete games with 15, 6th in shutouts with 3 and 8th in WHIP at 1.17.
Since his rookie season, Koufax has been one of the premier southpaws across the entire league. Through 9 seasons, he already has 194 wins, a 2.45 ERA and 2,755 strikeouts. The sky is the limit for Koufax and time will tell if another rookie pitcher will ever have a better debut than him.
ROY hitters coming up next!
