1935 American League - Lefty Grove, Boston Red Sox
20-12, 2.70 ERA, 121 K
With his eighth award, Lefty Grove now ties Christy Mathewson for the most that I have given out to one pitcher on this blog. It was his first full season on his new team, the Boston Red Sox, and while his numbers after leaving Philadelphia were never quite the same, he was still the best pitcher in the league in 1935. Along with leading the league in ERA (his sixth time doing so) by nearly a third of a run, he also finished first in WHIP (1.223), ERA+ (175), and WAR (7.7), and fourth in both wins and strikeouts. Apparently, even pitching half of his games in hitter-friendly Fenway Park didn't hurt his ERA too much.
1935 National League - Dizzy Dean, St. Louis Cardinals
28-12, 3.04 ERA, 190 K
It wasn't quite the same as his 1934 season, but Dean still followed it up with another great one, leading the NL (by a lot) in wins in strikeouts, and finishing sixth in ERA (but third in ERA+ at 135). After winning the MVP Award in 1934, he came in second this year to Gabby Harnett. Much like Sandy Koufax 30 years later, Dean was a dominant pitcher for several years, but ended up with a Hall of Fame career that was severely shortened by injury; he played his last full MLB season at the age of 27 and was essentially done by the time he turned 30. But, in the mid 1930's, he was better than anyone else.
No comments:
Post a Comment