Tag Archives: Josh Hader

Stats the Fact, Jack; August 31, 2020

By Jerry Tapp on | Leave a comment

(A weekly look at several sports stats you may not know)

  • Josh Hader had a truly dreadful stat line on Friday August 29; coming in the game in the ninth inning in a save situation against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Hader ended up with a blown save after walking five batters and recording only one out (he allowed two earned runs). He left the game with the Brewers behind in the contest, but the team eventually came back to win the contest. Hader became the 20th pitcher since 1909 to pitch less than 1/3 of an inning and record five or more walks. The last time it happened was in 2016 when Steve Delabar of the Reds lasted 0.1 innings and also had five walks. Lou Brissie, a pitcher with the Philadelphia A’s in 1950, is the only pitcher in MLB history to pitch less than 0.1 innings in a game and have six walks.
  • Let’s take a look at the flipside of Hader’s stats: Of all MLB pitchers with 200 or more career innings pitched, Hader tops the list with the highest strikeouts per nine innings. Hader had 363 career strikeouts in 214.1 innings, a per nine innings ratio of 15.24. He is one of only five pitchers to have a career strikeouts per nine innings ratio above 14. The others: Aroldis Chapman (14.81), Edwin Diaz(14.7), Craig Kimbrel (14.64) and Dellin Betances (14.44). All five of the pitchers listed above are active this season. Of those pitchers no longer active, Rob Dibble has the highest strikeouts per nine innings ratio, 12.03.
  • Is it possible that the Baltimore Ravens could win 15 or 16 games this season? If they continue their winning trend over the past five seasons, it might happen. The Ravens won five games in 2015, increased that win total to 8 in 2016, 9 in 2017, 10 in 2018, and won 14 games last season. The only others NFL teams to increase their win totals over the past two seasons are the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks; the Broncos have increased their win totals from 5-6-7 over the past three seasons, while the Seahawks have won 9-10-11 over the past three years. It’s interesting to note that the Tennessee Titans have won exactly nine games in each of their last four seasons.
  • The Green Bay Packers will open the 2020 season against the Minnesota Vikings. The Pack and Vikes have opened the season six times, the last being in 2008 when the Packers won 24-19. The teams are each 3-3 in season-opening contests against each other.
  • There is a pretty good chance that Giannis Antetokounmpo will soon become the fifth Bucks player in team history to surpass the 1,000 point mark in playoff games for the team. Giannis has 934 career points in playoff games. Topping the list is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 1,692 career playoff points for the Bucks. He is followed by Sidney Moncrief (1,451), Marques Johnson (1,163) and Bob Dandridge (1,126). Khris Middleton has jumped into 10th place on the list with 684 career playoff points.
  • In the Giannis-era (since the 2013-14 season), the Bucks have now played in seven playoff series… their eighth will be the upcoming conference semifinals against the Miami Heat. In the previous seven series, the Bucks are 3-4 in the first game of the series. In the four series since 2015 where they lost Game One, the Bucks went on to win the series twice.
  • Ryan Braun recently became the 119th player in MLB history to have 800 or more extra base hits in a career. Of those 119 players, 68 are currently in the Hall of Fame. Braun is only the second Brewers player to reach 800 career extra-base hits; Robin Yount had 960 with the club. Can you name the other three Brewers players who ended their careers with the team with 500 or more career extra-base hits? The three: Paul Molitor (651), Cecil Cooper (579) and Geoff Jenkins (521).
  • Did you know that the Green Bay Packers record for most passing yards in a season-opening game is 333… held by three different QBs? Lynn Dickey (in 1983), Brett Favre (in 1999) and Aaron Rodgers (in 2013) each passed for 333 yards in a Packers season-opening game, most in team history. Dickey holds the team record for most TD passes in a season-opening game with five.

 

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Stats the Fact, Jack: August 2, 2020

By Jerry Tapp on | Leave a comment

(A weekly look at several sports stats you may not know)

  • On June 29, four Brewers pitchers (Brandon Woodruff, David Phelps, Devin Williams and Josh Hader) combined on a one-hit shutout in the team’s 3-0 win over the Pirates. It was the first one-hit shutout by the Brew Crew pitching staff since May 7, 2011 when Yovani Gallardo and John Axford combined on a one-hit shutout of the Cardinals in a Brewers’ 4-0 victory. The last one-hit, complete game shutout by one pitcher for the Brewers was August 31, 2008 when CC Sabathia did it against the Pirates in a 7-0 Brewers win.
  • In that same June 29th game, the Brewers pitching staff had 14 strikeouts. It was the 92nd game in team history where the pitching staff had 14 or more strikeouts. The Brewers are 62-30 in those games.
  • Through the first six games of the 2020 season, Christian Yelich was one-for-27, a .037 batting average. In his previous two seasons in Milwaukee, Yelich was 9-for-22 (in 2019) and 10-for-26 (in 2018) in his first six games of those two seasons, a combined average of .396. In his career prior to this season, Yelich was 51-for-170 in the first six games of a season, a .300 average.
  • From 2010-19, the New England Patriots were 24-0 in games where one of their players amassed 100 or more yards rushing, the only undefeated team in that timeframe. The league as a whole was 761-284-7 (a .727 winning percentage) when teams had one player gain at least 100 yards rushing in a contest. The Packers were 20-5-1 (.788) from 2010-19 in games where they had a running back gain 100 or more yards in a game.
  • Former MLB manager John McNamara died on July 28, 2020 at the age of 88. He was the skipper for six different MLB teams in his career (Oakland, San Diego, Cincinnati, California, Boston and Cleveland) and won 1160 games in his managerial career. He is one of 64 managers in league history to win 1,000 or more games as a manager. He managed in one World Series… with the Boston Red Sox in 1986.
  • On one baseball broadcast I watched, there was discussion about how many home runs would lead the majors in the game-shortened season (60 games). The announcers opined that they thought 20 might lead the league this year. For the record, the most home runs in the first 60 games of a season is 32 by Barry Bonds in 2001. He is followed by Mark McGwire with 28 in the first 60 games of the 1998 seasons; Mickey Mantle with 27 HRs in the first 60 games of the 1956 campaign; and Babe Ruth with 27 long balls in the first 60 games of the 1928 season. The most home runs by a Brewers player in the first 60 games of a season happened last year when Christian Yelich had 22 in the first 60 games. Prince Fielder held the record with 21 HRs after the first 60 games of the 2007 season. Carlos Lee (2006) and Richie Sexson (2003) each hit 19 homers in the first 60 games of a season with the Brewers.
  • Prior to the start of the eight-game bubble season for the NBA, the Bucks had two players averaging over 20 points per game for the 2019-20 season: Giannis at 29.6 and Khris Middleton at 21.1. If they both finish the season over 20 points per game, it would be the third time in four years that the Bucks had two players average 20.0-plus points per game in a season. In 2017-18, Giannis and Middleton averaged 26.9 and 20.1 respectively; in 2016-17, Jabari Parker averaged 20.1 and Giannis averaged 22.9 per game. In three straight years starting with the 1999-2000 season, Ray Allen and Glenn Robinson each averaged over 20 points per game in a season for the Bucks, the only time in team history that the same two players averaged 20 or more points per game in three consecutive seasons.
  • Green Bay Packers running back Aaron Jones tied with Christian McCaffrey for the most TDs in the NFL last season with 19. Jones was 12th in the league with 1,084 rushing yards. Tennessee’s Derrick Henry led the league in rushing with 1,540 yards. The Packers have had a player lead the league in rushing only once in team history: Jim Taylor led the NFL in rushing in 1962 with 1,474 yards.
  • The shortened MLB season will likely prevent a few players from reaching important milestones in their careers. The Cubs’ Jon Lester started the season with 190 career wins and appeared a sure bet to reach 200 this season; he had won at least 10 games in 11 of his 15 seasons. Now reaching 200 this year could be a tough road for him. On the batters’ side, Yadier Molina and Ryan Braun were two players who looked like they would pass the 2,000-hit mark this season. Molina started the year with 1,963 career hits; Braun had 1,933.
  • Speaking of 2,000 hits, Ian Kinsler, who played for the San Diego Padres last season, announced his retirement in December, 2019. Kinsler had 1,999 career hits in a 14-year career and it looks like he will end his career one hit short of 2,000. One other MLB player ended his career with 1,999 hits: Jimmy Collins, who played from 1895-1908.

 

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Today’s Sportstat: January 12, 2019

By Jerry Tapp on | Leave a comment

The Milwaukee Brewers in 2018 had three relief pitchers with 12 or more saves: Corey Knebel (16), Jeremy Jeffress (15) and Josh Hader (12). The 2018 Houston Astros also had three relievers with 12 or more saves, the second time they have achieved this milestone in the last three seasons.

The Brewers and Astros became the sixth and seventh teams in MLB history to have three relief pitchers with 12 or more saves in the same season. Here is a look at those seven teams.

1992 White Sox (Hernandez, Radinsky, Thigpen)

2000 Braves (Ligtenberg, Remlinger, Rocker)

2005 Diamondbacks (Bruney, Lyon, Valverde)

2015 Mariners (Rodney, Smith, Wilhelmsen)

2016 Astros (Giles, Gregerson, Harris)

2018 Astros (Giles, Osuna, Rondon)

2018 Brewers (Knebel, Jeffress, Hader)

For the Brewers, it was the eighth time in their history that they had two or more relievers finish the season with 12 or more saves in the same season. Following are those eight seasons.

1972: Frank Linzy (12), Ken Sanders (17)

1986: Mark Clear (16), Dan Plesac (14)

1987: Dan Plesac (23), Chuck Crim (12)

1998: Bob Wickman (25), Doug Jones (12)

2000: Bob Wickman (16), Curtis Leskanic (12)

2003: Mike DeJean (18), Dan Kolb (21)

2006: Derrick Turnbow (24), Francisco Cordero (16)

2016: Jeremy Jeffress (27), Tyler Thornburg (13)

2018: Corey Knebel (16), Jeremy Jeffress (15), Josh Hader (12)

 

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Today’s Sports Stat: July 26, 2018

By Jerry Tapp on | Leave a comment

Both Jeremy Jeffress and Josh Hader have had great seasons up to this point and were both All-Stars this season.

Through games of July 25, Jeffress has a 1.31 ERA in 48 innings pitched over 47 games. Hader has an ERA of 1.43 in 33 games and 50.1 innings pitched.

Neither will qualify for the ERA title in the league since that honor is based on 162 innings pitched for the season. But both have a chance to put their names on the list of Brewers pitchers who have compiled some of the lowest ERAs in a season.

If we base the lowest ERAs for the Brewers in a season on pitching 50 or more innings, Hader already has the second-lowest ERA in team history (of course, the season is not over). Here are the Brewers pitchers with the lowest ERA in a season with a minimum of 50 innings pitched. (Hader is not listed because the 2018 season is not over.)

Lowest ERA in a season (min 50 innings pitched)

1.04-Rollie Fingers, 1981 (78 innings pitched)
1.65-C.C. Sabathia, 2008 (130.2 innings pitched)
1.65-Paul Mirabella, 1988 (60 innings pitched)
1.66-Jerry Bell, 1972 (70.2 innings pitched)
1.74-Derrick Turnbow, 2005 (67.1 innings pitched)

If we change the criteria to games pitched instead of innings pitched, both Jeffress and Hader have a chance to climb near the top of this category. Here are the Brewers pitchers with the lowest ERA in a season with a minimum of 50 games pitched. (Jeffress and Hader are again not listed on because the season is not over.)

Lowest ERA in a season (min 50 games pitched)

1.74-Derrick Turnbow, 2005 (69 games pitched)
1.78-Corey Knebel, 2017 (76 games pitched)
1.89-Chad Fox, 2001 (65 games pitched)
1.90-Tom Murphy, 1974 (70 games pitched)
1.91-Ken Sanders, 1971 (83 games pitched)

For the record, the Brewers single-season record for lowest ERA in a season (minimum off 162 innings pitched) is held by Mike Caldwell… he had a 2.36 ERA for the Brewers in 1978. The second-best ERA is Teddy Higuera’s 2.45 ERA in 1988.

 

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Today’s Sports Stat: May 20, 2018

By Jerry Tapp on | Leave a comment

Here’s some free advice for the Milwaukee Brewers marketing department: Get going on producing some t-shirts made for left-handed reliever Josh Hader. The slogan on the shirt should read…

“Don’t Be a Hader” … or… “Be a Hader”

Hader is certainly putting together a season that has never been seen in baseball history, let alone during the Brewers 50 years as a franchise. Through games of May 19, Hader has 56 strikeouts in the 16 games he’s pitched. Not all that impressive; but if you consider that Hader has 56 strikeouts in only 27.1 innings pitched, more than two strikeouts per inning, that’s pretty darn impressive.

Hader is on a pace to have just under 200 strikeouts (197 to be exact) over the season. Considering that Hader has compiled these gaudy numbers coming out of the bullpen as a reliever, it’s important to point out that no relief pitcher in history has ever had 200 strikeouts in a season.

Let me be more precise: The MLB record for most strikeouts in a season by a pitcher who did not start a game that year is 181. Dick Raddatz fanned 181 in 1964 for the Boston Red Sox as a reliever who did not start a game that season.

Here’s a look at the pitchers who fanned 150 or more batters in a season without the benefit of starting a game.

150 or more strikeouts/No starts

181: Dick Raddatz, 1964, Boston
166: Mark Eichhorn, 1986, Toronto
162: Dick Raddatz, 1963, Boston
157: Brad Lidge, 2004, Houston
153: Dick Selma, 1970, Philadelphia
151: Goose Gossage, 1977, Pittsburgh

The Brewers record for most strikeouts in a season by a pitcher who did start a game was set last year by closer Corey Knebel. He had 126 strikeouts. He is followed on this list by Julio Machado (98 in 1991), John Axford (93 in 2012), Will Smith (91 in 2015) and Tyler Thornburg (90 in 2016).

Will Hader break the MLB record? Will he shatter the Brewers mark? There are still a lot of games to be played this season. But I for one won’t bet against Hader. The Brewers and Craig Counsell have figured out a way to use Hader effectively and it is working. It’s definitely one thing I will keep an eye on as the season progresses.

 

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