Top Starter Strikeout Staff in AL V.

But back to the Big Three of 1964-68! Sam, Sonny, and Luis were the only 3 pitchers to be with the Tribe's top strikeout staff for all 5 of the record-breaking ’64-68 seasons. They would average together 582 strikeouts per year over that period, with Sam averaging 249, Luis 177, and Sonny 156. From ’64-’68, The Big 3 averaged 8.44 strikeouts / 9 innings, an all-time record. They also allowed 3.42 BBs, and 6.83 hits per 9 innings. No such AL trio playing together 5 consecutive years matches the Big 3 in career strikeouts per 9 innings: 7.13. In career strikeouts / 9 innings for non-relievers pitching 10 years or more, McDowell is 8th (8.86), and Siebert (6.32) and Tiant (6.24) in the top 150. In hits /9 innings, McDowell is 6th (7.03), with Tiant (7.93) and Siebert (8.03) in the top 100. The 3 allowed 0.69 HR/9 innings pitched, when the league average was 0.92 from 1964-2008.

In order to get additional legitimate comparison of the records of the Staff vs. the staffs that subsequently broke the '67 club season record, we can compare the records of the Big 3 during their record-setting years versus the other 3 league-leading record-breaking staffs' (Seattle in '97, Cleveland in '00, the Yankees in '01) top starters. The top 3 starters on those staffs averaged only 32 appearances over their record-setting seasons, all starts except for 1 appearance in relief. They averaged 209 innings, and 196 strikeouts, or 8.4 strikeouts per 9 innings. In addition, they averaged 0.8 HR/ 9 innings (Table 1).

Table 1. Individual and average statistics for the top 3 starters of staffs that set the AL record for strikeouts that broke the Tribe’s record of 1967.

If we examine the average for the Tribe’s Big 3 for their 4 consecutive complete seasons of ‘65-68 (Table 2), we find the Big 3 had more average appearances, starting only 2.3 less games on average, but pitching 5.2 more innings, on average. They struck out more batters, had a similar strikeout / 9 inning ratio, and gave up fewer HR. The Big 3’s average season compared favorably to best of other staffs.

Table 2. Individual and average statistics for the Big 3 in their 4 complete seasons together (excluding 1964), including the record breaking season of 1967.

If one examines the Big 3’s stats for the ’64 season, where they were together only after July 19, and where Siebert and Tiant started only in the 2nd half of the season, they averaged 7.8 strikeouts / 9 innings in 386 innings as starters, and 8.2 in 160.3 innings of relief. The strikeouts as starters would represent the highest seasonal numbers recorded up until that year.

As previously noted, McDowell and Siebert were the first duo to strike out 9 batters/9 innings in 1965. No other duo has struck out 9 batters/ 9 innings twice (1967-68) as did McDowell and Tiant in ’67 and ’68. No other duo would strike out 9 batters/ 9 innings until Nolan Ryan and Bobby Witt in 1990. Martinez and Nomo would do it in 2001, with Martinez pitching only 116 innings, however.

The Big 3 averaged 8.94 strikeouts/ 9 innings in 1965 (McDowell 10.7, Siebert 9.1, Tiant 7.0). No AL trio with more than 125 innings pitched or more than 16 starts has struck out more (1).

Reference:

(1) Tomsick T., STRIKE THREE! My Years in the 'Pen, Cincinnati Book Publishing, June, 2010, p. 155.

<!--EndFragment-->