StatBadger

In 1968, baseball was a pitcher’s game.

Batting averages were at an all-time low. Seven pitchers hit the 20-win mark, and one surpassed 30. When Bob Gibson posted a 1.12 ERA through more than 300 innings pitched, it became clear a change was in order.

As Bob Addie wrote for the Washington Post, “There is ample evidence that the public is getting a wee bit tired of all these ‘pitchers duels.’”

In December of that year, the mound was lowered 10 inches.

Before long, balance returned to America’s pastime. Batting averages and runs per game rose to healthy numbers. Offense hit its homer-happy zenith when the Steroid Era rolled around in the mid-90s, and in the years since, the game has largely remained characterized by the long ball.

While Addie may have been right, we fans have not yet lost our appreciation for great pitching. It demands our attention when an ace excels in his craft, fanning batter after batter, inning after inning — perhaps especially in today’s game of short starts.

Now, there’s no easy way to compile the most dominant pitching performances since that change in 1968. If you limit the list to perfect games, you place pitchers at fault for errors committed by their teammates. Limit the list to no-hitters, and you still forfeit some of the most strikeout-heavy performances.

While there’s no black-and-white solution, there is a fun metric designed for this very purpose. Game Score, developed by Bill James in 1988, uses a simple formula to evaluate pitching performances. The formula is as follows:

• Start with 50 points
• +1 per out recorded
• +1 per strikeout
• +2 per inning pitched after the fourth
• -1 per walk
• -2 per hit allowed
• -2 per unearned run
• -4 per earned run

While the formula is admittedly archaic, the results have proven to be a decent way of evaluating performances over the years. Of course, the metric is far from perfect. Perhaps its most notable flaw is how generously it rewards innings pitched.

It goes without saying that no performance lasting fewer than nine innings deserves a place on this list. The real problem, however, arises when a start lasts more than nine innings. Of course, such performances are exceptionally impressive (not to mention extinct), but they tip the scales of Game Score.

Consider Rudy May’s 12-inning appearance in 1971, which had a Game Score of 103. That would surpass the score of any perfect game in history. May played spectacularly, but he allowed three hits and issued six walks. To rank his performance above complete games where no batters reached base seems unjustified.

Simply put, Game Score inadequately accounts for baserunners when performances extend into extra innings. A solution is found by pairing Game Score with a statistic designed specifically to account for baserunners: WHIP.

Since 1968, 11 performances have topped a Game Score of 100. If you take those 11 performances and filter them through a WHIP of 0.25 or lower, six performances remain. Contained in this list are those six performances. (If this methodology feels arbitrary, take comfort in knowing that our list includes the top five shutouts since 1968, regardless of innings pitched. I think that’s encouraging.)

With that, here are the most dominant pitching performances since the mound was lowered.

T-5.

Nolan Ryan, Rangers vs. Blue Jays (May 1, 1991)

9 IP, 0 H, 2 BB, 16 SO

Game Score: 101

Shockingly, Nolan Ryan pitched what may have been the best game of his career at age 44. This was the last of Ryan’s record seven no-hitters, and his 711th game started. Few players play into their forties. The Ryan Express, though, was running at full steam.

Ryan dominated this game from start to finish, recording a strikeout in each inning. The opposing lineup was no cakewalk — it featured Joe Carter in his prime and eventual Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar, both of whom finished in the top six in MVP voting that year. The Blue Jays would go on to lose in the ALCS to the Twins, who would win the World Series.

If that’s not enough, Ryan pitched this game on four days of rest, instead of five. He felt he owed it to Rangers fans to make an appearance on Arlington Appreciation Night. An appearance it was.

T-5.

Matt Cain, Giants vs. Astros (June 13, 2012)

9 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 14 SO

Game Score: 101

Every perfect game has a story. This one was characterized by a matchup that was as lopsided as any that season. The Giants would go on to win the World Series, while the Astros would finish with an MLB-worst record of 55-107. Such was reflected by how the teams fared that day.

Cain threw 14 strikeouts, tying Sandy Koufax’s record for the most in a perfect game. Meanwhile, the Giants heaped 10 runs on the struggling Astros. The closest thing Houston had to a moral victory was making Cain throw 125 pitches, the most in any perfect game… Not exactly bulletin board material.

Cain’s career waned after that season, and he’s remembered as a good, but not great, pitcher. For one summer day in 2012, though, he was unhittable.

4.

Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers vs. Rockies (June 18, 2014)

9 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 15 SO

Game Score: 102

It’s unsurprising that Clayton Kershaw threw a no-hitter during his Hall-of-Fame-worthy career. To come one error away from a perfect game, though, was quite the leap.

This game took place during the height of Kershaw’s prime. In the three years prior, he had won the Cy Young Award twice and finished second in the voting once (when, by the way, he bested the award winner’s ERA, WHIP, and bWAR). In 2014, Kershaw posted a 1.77 ERA and 0.857 WHIP to go along with a 21-3 record. It was one of the best pitching seasons in MLB history, culminating in Kershaw’s third Cy Young Award as well as MVP honors.

It’s somewhat of a pity that an error prevented this performance from being a perfect game. In the seventh inning, shortstop Hanley Ramírez handled a chopper up the middle, but bounced the throw to first. While the error might have blemished Kershaw’s stat sheet, it’s hard to see essentially retiring 28 batters as being less impressive than retiring 27.

3.

Jose DeLeon, Cardinals vs. Reds (August 30, 1989)

11 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 8 SO

Game Score: 103

It’s ironic that the longest pitching performance on this list is the only one that didn’t constitute a complete game. In fact, it didn’t even count as a win. In August of 1989, Jose DeLeon hurled one of the best pitching performances in MLB history, only for his team to lose 0-2 after 13 innings.

It was a tale of two sides for the Cardinals that day. DeLeon cruised through 11 innings in 109 pitches (compared to the opposing starter, Rick Mahler, who amassed 156 pitches over 10 innings of work). The Cardinals lineup, though, squandered each opportunity they got on offense. They went 0-6 with runners in scoring position while DeLeon was in the game, and 0-5 in such situations after he left.

Two innings after DeLeon took a seat for Todd Worrell, the game was lost. Even still, DeLeon’s outing remains one to remember.

2.

Max Scherzer, Nationals at Mets (October 3, 2015)

9 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 17 SO

Game Score: 104

Like Kershaw, a lone error kept Scherzer from writing his name on the short list of pitchers to throw a perfect game. This error came in the sixth inning, when third baseman Yunel Escobar fielded a sharply hit ground ball, but threw a short hop to first. Regardless, this performance stands out for a few reasons.

For one, it was for the away team (the only such performance on this list). Additionally, it was against a Mets team that would go on to play in the World Series. Interestingly, this was Scherzer’s second no-hitter of the season. This was one of the game’s best pitchers at the height of his abilities, pitching against one of the best teams in the league in their own ballpark. It was set to be a heavyweight battle. Instead, it was a first-round knockout.

Scherzer’s 17 strikeouts lead all performances with a Game Score of 101 or better since 1968…

That is, except one.

1.

Kerry Wood, Cubs vs. Astros, 5/6/1998

9 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 20 SO

Game Score: 105

Perhaps the greatest game ever pitched was neither a perfect game nor a no-hitter. In this game, Wood allowed one hit and hit one batter, the lone hit being a ground ball that escaped the glove of third baseman Kevin Orie.

Like Scherzer’s performance, this was against a very competitive team. The Astros ended the season above the 100-win mark, with a record of 102-60. Their lineup included future Hall of Famers Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell, plus Moisés Alou, who finished third in MVP voting. The Astros finished the season third in the National League in OPS, second in batting average, and first in RBI. In other words, this was no walk in the park.

In sheer dominance, Wood struck out 20 of the 29 batters he faced. The closer you look, the more merciless his performance seems — 11 of his 20 strikeouts came with one ball or fewer. He broke the composure of one of the most disciplined hitting teams in the league, painting corners with his fastball and throwing curves that moved like wiffle balls.

Perhaps the most astounding aspect of this performance, though, is that it was only the fifth start of Wood’s career. He came into the game with 18.1 innings of work to his name, and an ugly 5.89 ERA to show for them. 122 pitches later, though, the 20-year-old rookie would be famous among baseball fans across America.

The game that made Kerry Wood a household name remains the standard against which other performances are measured. We are yet to see another like it.