A little project I'm thinking of doing (HGM's Historical MVP/Cy Young Choices)

1952:

AL MVP: Bobby Shantz
NL MVP: Jackie Robinson
AL Cy: Bobby Shantz
NL Cy: Robin Roberts

I agreed with the BBWAA on giving Bobby Shantz, a pitcher, the AL MVP, and thus, by extension, he gains my Cy Young as well. Larry Doby and Mickey Mantle were both neck and neck in the position player department, and it was really close, so I looked a bit deeper. Shantz was in the upper third of pitchers that year in terms of hitting, which, while a small part, does have value. I used that to give him a slight nudge and agree with the BBWAA.

In the NL, the BBWAA had a close 3 way race with both the winner Hank Sauer and Joe Black receiving 8 first-place votes, and Robin Roberts, my clear NL Cy Young pick, receiving 7. I went, though, for Jackie Robinson, who led the league in on-base percentage while providing excellent defense up the middle.

1951:

AL MVP: Ted Williams
NL MVP: Roy Campanella
AL Cy: Early Wynn
NL Cy: Sal Maglie

This was one of Ted's lesser seasons, and he didn't get much love from the BBWAA, finishing 13th in the voting. However, he still had a fantastic season, and nobody was close in terms of offense. Defense closes the gap a little between the BBWAA winner Yogi Berra, Larry Doby, and him, but not enough for me to look over Ted. I agreed with the BBWAA's selection of Roy Campanella for the NL MVP, again.

For the AL Cy Young, I went with Early Wynn who pitched 274.1 innings with a 126 ERA+. Sal Maglie was my NL pick after pitching 298 innings with a 134 ERA+. Robin Roberts was a close second.

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Originally Posted by boomboom

quit being a troll

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Why is every comment I make considered trolling? :confused:

1950:

AL MVP: Phil Rizzuto
NL MVP: Eddie Stanky
AL Cy: Ned Garver
NL Cy: Robin Roberts

Phil Rizzuto's 1950 MVP is often disputed, but I think it was deserved. He had his peak offensive season, while combining that with excellent defense at shortstop. Combine it with a weak class of players all around, and he comes out on top. Al Rosen, who finished 17th in the BBWAA voting, was a close second for me.

The NL MVP went to reliever Jim Konstanty. I'm giving it to Eddie Stanky of the Giants. The slick-fielding second basemen led the league with an awesome .460 on-base percentage.

The AL Cy Young goes to Ned Garver, which will probably be one of my more controversial picks. Garver posted a 146 ERA+ in 260 innings. He played for the St. Louis Browns, a pretty bad team. In 1951, the following year, he overcame his team's 102 losses to post a 20-12 record, which earned him a 2nd place finish in the MVP voting. In 1950, though, luck wasn't on his side, and despite an appreciably better year, his record was a lowly 13-18, while his team went 58-96.

I'm giving the NL Cy Young to Robin Roberts, his fourth HGM Cy. He had a 135 ERA+ in over 300 innings. He also had a very legitimate argument in 1951, which would've given him a 5th, but I had Sal Maglie just a tad above him.

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Originally Posted by metsguy234

Why is every comment I make considered trolling? :confused:

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Because you say some pretty outrageous things that seem to be made for no reason other than to elicit a reaction.

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Originally Posted by HoustonGM

Because you say some pretty outrageous things that seem to be made for no reason other than to elicit a reaction.

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But when boomboom just told me to stop trolling, it was because of me misreading something.

1949:

AL MVP: Ted Williams
NL MVP: Jackie Robinson
AL Cy: Mel Parnell
NL Cy: Warren Spahn

The BBWAA and I agreed on both MVP awards. For the AL Cy Young, Mel Parnell was the clear choice. He combined excellent quantity (295 innings) with excellent quality (157 ERA+). I gave Warren Spahn (302 innings, 124 ERA+) the NL Cy Young over Howie Pollot (230 innings, 150 ERA+) because of the massive innings gap.

1948:

AL MVP: Lou Boudreau
NL MVP: Stan Musial
AL Cy: Bob Lemon
NL Cy: Johnny Sain

I agreed on both MVP's, again. Ted Williams had another ridiculous offensive season, but Boudreau's combination of offense and up-the-middle defense gives him the edge.

Bob Lemon had an awesome year, putting up a 144 ERA+ in 293 innings, the clear AL winner. In the NL, Johnny Sain had an even better year, with a 147 ERA+ in 314 innings. Harry Brecheen was up there thanks to his sick 182 ERA+, but falling roughly 80 innings short of Sain, and making 9 less starts, is a huge chunk of value.

HGM,

I'm going to disagree with your '48 AL MVP. Williams was clearly better offensively, out-OPS+ing Boudreau 189 to 164. I don't think Boudreau's defense is enough to bring him closer. The only reason the Indians beat the Sox by a game is because of the pitching of Lemon, Bearden, and Feller.

1947:

AL MVP: Ted Williams
NL MVP: Ralph Kiner
AL Cy: Bob Feller
NL Cy: Warren Spahn

After two years of agreeing with both MVP choices, I disagree with both this season. Joe DiMaggio beat out Ted Williams for the AL MVP from the BBWAA, but Williams just out-hit everyone this year, and nobody was close. In the NL, Ralph Kiner holds that distinction, although it wasn't by as much of a gap as Williams. Bob Elliot, the BBWAA NL MVP, does come in a closer second to Kiner on the strength of his third base defense.

The AL Cy Young was close between Bob Feller and Hal Newhouser. Feller started 37 games and pitched in relief in 5, throwing 299 innings at a 130 ERA+ and amassing a 20-11 record. Newhouser started 36 games and pitched 4 in relief. He threw 285 innings with a 132 ERA+ and a 17-17 record. There's barely any difference between the two, so I went with the guy with the more innings.

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Originally Posted by PotatoOfCouch13

HGM,

I'm going to disagree with your '48 AL MVP. Williams was clearly better offensively, out-OPS+ing Boudreau 189 to 164. I don't think Boudreau's defense is enough to bring him closer. The only reason the Indians beat the Sox by a game is because of the pitching of Lemon, Bearden, and Feller.

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It's a combination of Boudreau's excellent defense at shortstop and Williams relatively poor defense at left field that does it for me. Fielding Runs has Boudreau at 24 above average, and 52 above replacement. Williams is at 9 below average and 4 above replacement. I also factored in that Boudreau played in 15 more games than Williams.

1946:

AL MVP: Ted Williams
NL MVP: Stan Musial
AL Cy: Bob Feller
NL Cy: Howie Pollet and Johnny Sain (tie)

Ah, this was a weird year. The MVP's were both incredibly easy calls, and the BBWAA got it right. Both Cy Young awards, though, are incredibly difficult. As I'm typing this, I've yet to make a call. Each league has two incredibly close candidates. In the AL, there's Bob Feller and Hal Newhouser (again!):

Feller: 26-15, 371.1 IP, 153 ERA+, 348 K, 14.8 WARP, 161 Pitching Runs Above Replacement
Newhouser: 26-9, 292.2 IP, 188 ERA+, 275 K, 13.8 WARP, 141 Pitching Runs Above Replacement

This is so tough because I want to reward Newhouser's ridiculous quality, but I can't ignore Feller's huge gap in quantity, while still retaining an incredibly level of excellence. Agh...okay, I'll go with Feller, because he led the league in games by 8, innings by 80, and batters faced by nearly 400.

In the NL, it's between Johnny Sain and Howie Pollet:

Pollet: 21-10, 266 innings, 164 ERA+, 107 K, 8.5 WARP, 92 PRAR
Sain: 20-14, 265 innings, 156 ERA+, 129 K, 11.2 WARP, 103 PRAR

The WARP advantage is huge for Sain, but I'm not seeing why exactly. Both pitchers gave up basically the same amount of unearned runs as well. Sain faced just 3 more batters. I honestly can say that I haven't come across two pitchers, at the top of the league, being so damn close. With that said, I'm going to do a first, and award a tie, as the BBWAA did in the late 60's with Denny McLain and Mike Cueller.

1945:

AL MVP: Hal Newhouser
NL MVP: Tommy Holmes
AL Cy: Hal Newhouser
NL Cy: Hank Wyse

We're into the WWII years, where most of the games top players were overseas serving their country. This allowed Hal Newhouser to go nuclear on the league and utterly decimate opposing batters (although he did show, in the following years, that he was mostly for real, and wasn't purely a product of facing weak hitters). I agree with the BBWAA selection of him as MVP, and thus, he's my AL Cy Young as well.

The NL MVP from the BBWAA was awarded to Phil Cavarretta. I have Cavarretta second to Tommy Holmes, who placed a distant second to him in the BBWAA voting. Holmes was the superior hitter, while also amassing much more playing time.

The NL had a real lack of good pitchers. Hank Wyse pitched 278.1 innings and had a 136 ERA+, beating out Preacher Roe and Claude Passeau, each who had higher ERA+'s but less innings.

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Originally Posted by HoustonGM

1950:

AL MVP: Phil Rizzuto
NL MVP: Eddie Stanky
AL Cy: Ewell Blackwell
NL Cy: Ned Garver

Phil Rizzuto's 1950 MVP is often disputed, but I think it was deserved. He had his peak offensive season, while combining that with excellent defense at shortstop. Combine it with a weak class of players all around, and he comes out on top. Al Rosen, who finished 17th in the BBWAA voting, was a close second for me.

The NL MVP went to reliever Jim Konstanty. I'm giving it to Eddie Stanky of the Giants. The slick-fielding second basemen led the league with an awesome .460 on-base percentage.

The AL Cy Young goes to Ned Garver, which will probably be one of my more controversial picks. Garver posted a 146 ERA+ in 260 innings. He played for the St. Louis Browns, a pretty bad team. In 1951, the following year, he overcame his team's 102 losses to post a 20-12 record, which earned him a 2nd place finish in the MVP voting. In 1950, though, luck wasn't on his side, and despite an appreciably better year, his record was a lowly 13-18, while his team went 58-96.

I'm giving the NL Cy Young to Robin Roberts, his fourth HGM Cy. He had a 135 ERA+ in over 300 innings. He also had a very legitimate argument in 1951, which would've given him a 5th, but I had Sal Maglie just a tad above him.

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Now, I'm confused...

1944:

AL MVP: Dizzy Trout
NL MVP: Stan Musial
AL Cy: Dizzy Trout
NL Cy: Mort Cooper

The BBWAA gave Hal Newhouser the MVP in 1944 as well, but Trout was easily better. Trout had both a higher ERA and ERA+, and tossed 40 more innings. I found it slightly amusing that Dick Wakefield placed 5th in the MVP voting, even picking up 2 first place votes, even though he only played half the season (albeit at an incredible level).

The NL MVP went to Stan Musial's teammate, infielder Marty Marion. Marion had to have been playing an insane level of defense, though, to make up for the 300 points of OPS that Musial had on him. Stan the Man takes home his 3rd HGM MVP.

I had originally given the NL Cy Young to Bucky Walters, but then something caught my eye - Walters struck out less batters than he walked. He was helped by his defense at an incredible level (but still gave up 16 unearned runs). If nobody was close to him, I'd overlook that, but Mort Cooper posted an ERA+ just two points lower, albeit in less innings. Cooper gave up just 5 unearned runs, and struck out 97 batters to 60 walks.

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Originally Posted by metsguy234

Now, I'm confused...

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Ah. I screwed up there because I misread leagues when I was evaluating the players. The AL Cy is Ned Garver, and the NL Cy is Robin Roberts, as the commentary says. I'll fix that, thanks.

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Originally Posted by HoustonGM

1984:

While I agreed that Willie deserved the Cy Young, I disagree on the BBWAA's election of him as the MVP as well. In another mystery I've uncovered, does anybody care to explain to me how the BBWAA voted Cal Ripken the MVP in 1983, but in 1984, despite posting an IDENTICAL season, he received just 1 10th place vote? Oh. Nevermind. I checked. The Orioles went from 1st to 5th, so, obviously, that makes Ripken barely worthy of a vote in 1984! Ripken had a 145 OPS+ and combined it with great defense up the middle. A truly MVP worthy performance, as the BBWAA agreed the year prior.

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Gladly.

There was a higher number of great performances in the AL in 1984 then there was in 1983. Consider this:

In Year A- the top MVP candidates are
Bob Smith- .330 25 HR 134 RBI 40 SB and very good defense
John Adams- .275 30 HR 110 RBI 2 SB and okay defense
Steve Johnson- .300 32 HR, 115 RBI 10 SB and below average defense

In Year B- the top MVP candidates are
Bob Smith- .330 25 HR 134 RBI 40 SB and very good defense
Rich Anderson- .360 45 HR 160 RBI 20 SB and average defense
Larry Stevenson- .390 20 HR 100 RBI 70 SB and above average defense

In Year A, Bob Smith is the clear MVP, in Year B, not so much.

Except that wasn't the case in 1983 and 1984.

1943:

AL MVP: Spud Chandler
NL MVP: Stan Musial
AL Cy: Spud Chandler
NL Cy: Mort Cooper

Agreed on both here. I have Luke Appling very closer to Chandler in the AL MVP, and he did finish in second in the BBWAA voting. I almost gave it to Appling, but a 197 ERA+ in 253 innings can't be ignored.

For the NL, Mort Cooper was an easy choice for me, as he wins his second consecutive HGM Cy Young. 274 innings, 147 ERA+. Max Lanier had a 178 ERA+ but in 60 less innings.

1942:

AL MVP: Ted Williams
NL MVP: Mort Cooper
AL Cy: Tex Hughson
NL Cy: Mort Cooper

Cooper grabs his 3rd consecutive HGM Cy Young, as I agree with the BBWAA on his MVP selection. In the AL, the BBWAA voted Joe Gordon MVP. Williams, though, posted a 217 OPS+. And that's that.

For the AL Cy Young, Tex Hughson nabs it with 281 innings and a 144 ERA+. He finished tied for 5th in ERA, but those he tied with and the guys ahead of him all had significantly less innings. Ted Lyons, the leader with a 173, was 100 innings short of Hughson.

HGM Thanks for this....I am glad to see Gator take 2 awards in 78 and sad to see Sparky lose his in 77 but other than that I like what you are doing and the reasoning behind it.

1941:

AL MVP: Ted Williams
NL MVP: Pete Reiser
AL Cy: Thornton Lee
NL Cy: Whit Wyatt

Joe DiMaggio won the 1941 MVP, but sorry, if you bat .406 and get on base 55% of the time, you're the MVP, unless there's somebody better than that, or you were somehow so terrible defensively that you gave back as many runs as you put on the board. The NL BBWAA MVP award went to Dolph Camilli, but I see his teammate Pete Reiser slightly better than him, on the basis of position and defense.

For the AL Cy Young, it was a clear call. Thornton Lee had a fantastic season. He completed 30 of his 34 starts, throwing 300 innings and compiling a 173 ERA+. Whit Wyatt, my NL choice, had almost as good of a season, throwing 288.1 innings at a 157 ERA+ level.

1940:

AL MVP: Hank Greenberg
NL MVP: Johnny Mize
AL Cy: Bob Feller
NL Cy: Bucky Walters

I agreed on the AL MVP, but disagreed strongly with the NL choice of Frank McCormick. McCormick, just like my choice, Johnny Mize, was a first basemen. Yes, McCormick was a better fielder than Mize, but Mize trounced the league by nearly 30 points in OPS+. His raw OPS was 200 points higher than McCormick. He hit 34 more home runs. He drove in 10 more runs. McCormick had more doubles, but Mize had 10 more triples than him. Mize walked more. Mize scored more. I can go on and on and on. This was a terrible decision.

The Cy Young's were pretty easy. Bob Feller had his usual huge season, throwing 320 innings and putting up a 161 ERA+. Bucky Walters, as I mentioned earlier, was helped greatly by the defense behind him, but was still good enough to win this award with 305 innings at a 154 ERA+ level.

1939:

AL MVP: Joe DiMaggio
NL MVP: Bucky Walters
AL Cy: Bob Feller
NL Cy: Bucky Walters

Agreed on both the MVP's here. The Cy Young winners from last year both repeat. Walters had a weak enough crop of competition from the position players that I think he deserved this MVP. 319 innings, 168 ERA+. Add to that his excellent hitting, a 111 OPS+ in 120 at bats, and he was doing it on both sides of the field! Feller was a step below with 296 innings and a 154 ERA+, but that was easily enough to beat out the rest of the American League pitchers.

1938:

AL MVP: Jimmie Foxx
NL MVP: Mel Ott
AL Cy: Red Ruffing
NL Cy: Bill Lee

I agreed with Jimmie Foxx in the AL, as he just walloped the ball. The NL award from the BBWAA went to catcher Ernie Lombardi, but I've gotta to give it to Mel Ott, who I have just slightly ahead of Arky Vaughan. For the Cy's, Red Ruffing and Bill Lee were both relatively easy calls. Lee had a 144 ERA+ in 291 innings. Ruffing had a 137 ERA+ in 247 innings.

1937:

AL MVP: Joe DiMaggio
NL MVP: Joe Medwick
AL Cy: Lefty Gomez
NL Cy: Jim Turner

The BBWAA gave the AL MVP to Charlie Gehringer. DiMaggio, though, placed third in the league to Hank Greenberg and teammate Lou Gehrig in OPS+, while leading the league in home runs and playing terrific defense in center field. The NL MVP going to Joe Medwick, as the BBWAA did, was a pretty easy call. Speaking of easy calls, so was the AL Cy Young. Lefty Gomez had a truly magnificent year with a 191 ERA+ in over 270 innings. Jim Turner was my NL pick, having gone 20-11 with a 152 ERA+ in 256 innings.

1936:

AL MVP: Lou Gehrig
NL MVP: Arky Vaughan
AL Cy: Lefty Grove
NL Cy: Carl Hubbell

Lou Gehrig was the clear choice in the AL. The BBWAA NL MVP was given to my NL Cy Young choice, Carl Hubbell, though I think his season was just shy of the level needed for him to win both. Arky Vaughan put up a 148 OPS+, a .453 OBP, and was a fantastic defensive shortstop, earning him the honors. The AL Cy Young was Lefty Grove, who in 253 innings had a 188 ERA+, not to be confused with last year's winner, Lefty Gomez.

1935:

AL MVP: Jimmie Foxx
NL MVP: Arky Vaughan
AL Cy: Lefty Grove
NL Cy: Dizzy Dean

Hank Greenberg won the AL MVP from the BBWAA because he absolutely dominated the league when it came to RBI, driving in 170. Lou Gehrig and Jimmie Foxx, my MVP choice, placed 2nd and 3rd with 119 and 115. Despite the huge RBI advantage, Greenberg trailed both in on-base percentage and OPS while trailing Foxx in slugging. They were all first basemen and pretty similar defensively, so I've given the slight edge to Foxx and his league-leading 182 OPS+. The NL MVP went to Gabby Hartnett, but Vaughan easily trounced him in value. Vaughan had a ridiculous season, quite possibly the best ever by a shortstop not named Honus Wagner. He hit .385/.491/.607, good for a 190 OPS+ which topped the majors (and trounced the National League). Add to that excellent defense up the middle, and it's not a question. The AL Cy Young went to Lefty Grove for the second consecutive year as he threw 273 innings and compiled a 175 ERA+. Dizzy Dean takes home the NL Cy with a 135 ERA+ in 325 innings, making 36 starts and 14 relief appearances.

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Originally Posted by HoustonGM

1941:

AL MVP: Ted Williams

Joe DiMaggio won the 1941 MVP, but sorry, if you bat .406 and get on base 55% of the time, you're the MVP, unless there's somebody better than that, or you were somehow so terrible defensively that you gave back as many runs as you put on the board.

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That is an amazing oversight. Wow.

1934:

AL MVP: Lou Gehrig
NL MVP: Arky Vaughan
AL Cy: Lefty Gomez
NL Cy: Carl Hubbell

Disagreed with both MVP's here. The BBWAA chose Mickey Cochrane in the AL and Dizzy Dean in the NL (who doesn't get my NL Cy Young, either, but that 30-7 record sure is pretty). In the AL, Lou Gehrig put up a sick 208 OPS+, and won the Triple Crown. The clear MVP to me. In the NL, I've got Arky Vaughan getting his third consecutive MVP for the reasons I've previously stated. Lefty Gomez, NOT Grove, wins the AL Cy Young. You'd think these guys were the same guy, as when Grove wasn't up to speed in the 1930's, like this year, Gomez put up a season straight out of Grove's career. In the NL, Dizzy Dean won the MVP from the BBWAA, but I think Carl Hubbell was just slightly better. They pitched an equivalent number of innings, but Hubbell beat Dean 168-159 in ERA+. They went about their fantastic seasons in different ways, as Dean was a strikeout machine (relative to his time), while Hubbell had fantastic control, walking just 37 batters in those 313 innings he pitched.

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Originally Posted by ragecage

That is an amazing oversight. Wow.

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Well, to be fair, the voters at the time weren't as astonished by a .400 season as we are now, as they weren't too far removed from the time when a .400 average was somewhat routine....and 1941 was the year that DiMaggio took the league by storm with his 56 game hitting streak.

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Originally Posted by HoustonGM

1937:

AL MVP: Joe DiMaggio
NL MVP: Joe Medwick
AL Cy: Lefty Gomez
NL Cy: Jim Turner

The BBWAA gave the AL MVP to Charlie Gehringer. DiMaggio, though, placed third in the league to Hank Greenberg and teammate Lou Gehrig in OPS+, while leading the league in home runs and playing terrific defense in center field. The NL MVP going to Joe Medwick, as the BBWAA did, was a pretty easy call. Speaking of easy calls, so was the AL Cy Young. Lefty Gomez had a truly magnificent year with a 191 ERA+ in over 270 innings. Jim Turner was my NL pick, having gone 20-11 with a 152 ERA+ in 256 innings.

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Im kind of confused on this one. Dimaggio wins even though Lou hit better than Joe and also played great Defense at first. Is the only reason Dimaggio is getting MVP is because of the fact CF is harder to play than 1st?

1933:

AL MVP: Jimmie Foxx
NL MVP: Carl Hubbell
AL Cy: Lefty Grove
NL Cy: Carl Hubbell

Agreed. Not much more to say on this year. Easy calls all around.

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Originally Posted by ragecage

Im kind of confused on this one. Dimaggio wins even though Lou hit better than Joe and also played great Defense at first. Is the only reason Dimaggio is getting MVP is because of the fact CF is harder to play than 1st?

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Great center field defense is WAY more valuable than great first base defense.

1932:

AL MVP: Jimmie Foxx
NL MVP: Mel Ott
AL Cy: Lefty Grove
NL Cy: Lon Warneke

I agreed on the AL MVP while disagreeing on the NL MVP. Chuck Klein was given the award by the BBWAA and his numbers, on the surface, do appear slightly better than Ott's, so I can't fault the voters of the time for not really paying attention to the thing that separates the two - home park. Ott was helped by his home park a good deal, but Klein's home park, the Baker Bowl, was just a launching pad. Further separating them is Ott's superior defense. The Cy Young's were both easy calls, as Lefty Grove put up a 159 ERA+ in 291.2 innings, and Lon Warneke matched that ERA+, albeit in 277 innings.

If Lefty Grove doesnt get MVP for 1931, im going to pull my hair out. :D

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Originally Posted by ragecage

If Lefty Grove doesnt get MVP for 1931, im going to pull my hair out. :D

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Prepare to pull your hair out.

1931:

AL MVP: Babe Ruth
NL MVP: Chuck Klein
AL Cy: Lefty Grove
NL Cy: Bill Walker

Lefty Grove did have a truly fantastic season, and won the BBWAA AL MVP, as he had a silly 219 ERA+ in 288.2 innings. I wanted to give him the MVP, but we're entering Babe Ruth's years, and Babe Ruth in 1931 was, well, Babe Ruth. .373/.495/.700, 46 HR, 163 RBI, 218 OPS+. Grove, obviously, gets the AL Cy. The 1931 NL MVP from the BBWAA went to Frankie Frisch, but, I don't see it, at all. After losing his 1932 MVP, Chuck Klein gets this one, on the basis of extra playing time over Mel Ott, dampening the difference on defense. Bill Walker, my NL Cy Young, had a 164 ERA+ in 239.1 innings, edging out teammate Carl Hubbell.

Having reached 1931, I'll now compare my choices to those of the BBWAA. I've gone through 78 years, so that comes out to a total of 156 awards. I agreed on 77, about 49%. I had agreed on the Cy Young awards 59% of the time. I'd say that's about right, as the Cy Young is usually more clear-cut than the MVP, on the simple basis that there's less of a pool of players and less factors to consider.

So, basically, I agree with the BBWAA roughly 55% of the time, which is actually a lower percentage of agreement than I was expecting before embarking on this project.

As stated earlier, I'm going to continue going back in time...tomorrow. :)

1930:

AL MVP: Babe Ruth
NL MVP: Hack Wilson
AL Cy: Lefty Grove
NL Cy: Dazzy Vance

Babe Ruth was Babe Ruth, etc. Hack Wilson set a still-standing record for RBI in a single season, putting up a 178 OPS+. The difference in defense makes it close between him and guys like Mel Ott, but I still give the slight edge to Wilson. Lefty Grove and Dazzy Vance were both heads and shoulders above the rest of their league. Vance had a 188 ERA+ in 258.2 innings. The next highest ERA+ was Pat Malone's 124. Grove had a 185 ERA+ in 291 innings. Wes Ferrell placed second with a 146 ERA+.