Enduring the robust instances – by G. Scott Thomas

Final Tuesday’s story targeted on single-game heroics that not often obtain a lot publicity.

You would possibly recall that I sifted by way of 2022’s field scores, trying to find the gamers who reached six benchmarks with the best frequency. Right here once more is the record of batters and pitchers who emerged as final season’s leaders of their respective leagues:

• Two or fewer earned runs in seven or extra innings: Shane Bieber, Guardians, 12 video games.

• Ten or extra strikeouts in a recreation: Shohei Ohtani, Angels, 10 video games.

• No baserunners in a save: Emmanuel Clase, Guardians, 22 video games.

• Two or fewer earned runs in seven or extra innings: Sandy Alcantara, Marlins, 20 video games.

• Ten or extra strikeouts in a recreation: Carlos Rodon, Giants, 11 video games.

• No baserunners in a save: Kenley Jansen, Braves, 21 video games.

The entire above had been constructive accomplishments. However this text wouldn’t be true to itself — or to its identify — if it didn’t give equal time to the damaging facet of life. That’s the topic of in the present day’s entry.

I’ll admit to creating one holiday-related concession. There have been six constructive classes final week (three for batters, three for pitchers), however I’m together with solely 4 damaging stats in the present day (two for all sides), which leaves us with an total stability that ideas barely towards the affirmative facet.

Scroll beneath for a breakdown of every league’s tailenders. Further particulars — together with each membership’s leaders in all the constructive and damaging classes — might be discovered within the 418-page print companion to this text: Baseball’s Best (and Worst) 2023 Yearbook.

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• No hits in 5 or extra at-bats: Marcus Semien, a second baseman for the Texas Rangers, went hitless in 5 or extra at-bats on 10 events in 2022, an sad distinction unpassed by anybody else within the American League.

• 4 or extra strikeouts in a recreation: Two free-swinging designated hitters tied for the AL lead on this class. Franmil Reyes of the Guardians and Giancarlo Stanton of the Yankees each struck out at the least 4 instances in 5 totally different video games.

• No hits in 5 or extra at-bats: The Milwaukee Brewers had been a free-swinging workforce in 2022, as evidenced by their one-star ranking for contact hitting. It was an method that didn’t all the time repay. Milwaukee first baseman Rowdy Tellez topped this record by going hitless in 5 or extra journeys on 12 totally different events. Teammate Andrew McCutchen, a delegated hitter, was the runner-up with 9 such video games.

• 4 or extra strikeouts in a recreation: 5 gamers had the misfortune of tying for first place on this record. Every of them suffered at the least 4 strikeouts in 4 video games: Austin Riley of the Braves, Kyle Schwarber of the Phillies, Lane Thomas of the Nationals, Oneil Cruz of the Pirates, and Luke Voit, who break up his season between the Padres and Nationals.

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• Ten or extra baserunners in a recreation: Seattle’s Marco Gonzales, Toronto’s Jose Berrios, and Kansas Metropolis’s Kris Bubic all endured difficulties in 2022, as prompt by their respective earned run averages of 4.13, 5.23, and 5.58. Gonzales was tagged with 15 losses, probably the most for any AL pitcher. He additionally completed because the tailender on this class by permitting at the least 10 baserunners in 11 separate video games. Berrios and Bubic had been runners-up with 10 such appearances apiece.

• A number of earned runs in a save: This could possibly be named the messy save, an occasion through which a reliever is credited within the SV column regardless of giving up at the least one earned run. Liam Hendriks of the Chicago White Sox and Ryan Pressly of the Houston Astros topped the American League with 5 messy saves every.

• Ten or extra baserunners in a recreation: The basepaths usually turned congested in 2022 for German Marquez of the Colorado Rockies and Patrick Corbin of the Washington Nationals, every of whom allowed 10 or extra baserunners in 12 separate begins.

• A number of earned runs in a save: Kenley Jansen picked up seven messy saves for the Atlanta Braves, permitting an earned run on every event, but nonetheless getting credit score for a save. Craig Kimbrel of the Los Angeles Dodgers was proper behind Jansen with six.