Top 10 Cleveland Indians Power Pitching Performances

<![CDATA[Continuing with our series of spectacular single seasons, we have our final group of pitchers, the K-Men. These are those pitchers who not only had tremendous seasons, but did it with a little flair. This top ten list will feature the greatest seasons by strike out specialists in Indians history and, while strike outs have certainly been on the rise in recent years, there's still a fair representation from the 1930's until today.

10. Corey Kluber – 2016

Obviously the most recent entry in the top ten, Kluber’s 2016 season was not as impressive as his Cy Young year, but not as far off as it may have seemed. League average ERA rose from 3.74 in 2014 (the lowest point since 1989) to 4.19 in 2016, accounting for most of the difference in ERA. His 9.5 K/9 was the 9th highest qualified number in Indians history and he still struck out 227, 18th most in Indians history, despite throwing just over 200 innings. In addition, while many pitchers on this list were more than a little wild, Kluber kept things under control with just 57 walks and a 1.06 WHIP.

9. Bob Feller – 1939

The Indians all-time career and single season strike out leader is no stranger to this top ten list and the fact that he had a 2.86 ERA in his worst season certainly says something about the quality of those years. Among those on this list, his 7.5 K/9 (third lowest of those considered) hurt him as the rest of the top ten also had an ERA below 3.00, but did so in more dominant fashion.

8. Sam McDowell – 1970

Only three times in Indians history has a pitcher surpassed the 300 K mark, so this season by McDowell was certainly special, but his 9.0 K/9 was actually not that impressive compared to many to come and his 2.92 in an era that favored pitchers also holds him back. The 1970 season was still good enough to make McDowell the winner in 20 games and the third place finisher in the Cy Young race.

7. Herb Score – 1955

The only rookie on the list and thus, the only Rookie of the Year winner (actually the only pitcher to win Rookie of the Year in Indians history), score struck out 245 in 1955, at the time fifth most in Indians history behind Feller (1946), Feller (1940), Feller (1941) and Feller (1939). While he would be surpassed later McDowell four times, Kluber, Luis Tiant and even himself, this was easily the most impressive rookie season by an Indians pitcher ever and remains one of the greatest by any pitcher in an Indians uniform.

6. Bob Feller – 1940

Feller threw nearly 25 more innings in 1940 than he did in 1939 and managed to actually lower his ERA by 0.25 runs per nine innings. While his K/9 of 7.3 is the lowest in the top 10, he made up for the rate by pitching over 300 innings, pushing him to 9th in Indians history in single season strike outs and, at the time, the Indians record and the most in the American League since Walter Johnson in 1912.

5. Herb Score – 1956

Score’s second season was even better than his first, all the more making the tragedy of what happened to start his third season one of the worst events in Indians history. It would be his last significant Major League season as he lowered his ERA and WHIP while maintaining a K/9 of 9.5. While that K/9 has since been surpassed eight times, in 1956 Score was the only Indians pitcher ever to have a qualified K/9 above 9.0 and he did it twice in his first two seasons. A new era of pitchers was coming and Score was the herald.

4. Sam McDowell – 1968

More than anyone else in Indians history, McDowell took that new era of pitchers and advanced it to a level that hasn’t been seen since. Of the 22 qualified seasons with a K/9 at 9.0 or above, McDowell owns six while only Kluber (3), Score (2) and Tiant (2) have more than one. His 1.81 ERA was a reflection of the year of the pitcher, but he was still 1.18 runs per nine lower than the league average in 1968. Continuing the legacy of Feller and Score, thanks to McDowell taking the AL K title five times in six years, including 1968, the Indians had the American League strike out leader 17 times from 1938 through 1970 (Feller 7, Score 2, Bob Lemon 1, Allie Reynolds 1).

3. Corey Kluber – 2014

The only Cy Young winner in the top ten (CC Sabathia‘s 2007 finished in the top 15 and Gaylord Perry‘s 1972 was featured on the other starting pitcher list), Kluber not only finished 5th in Indians history in single season strike outs despite throwing more than 30 less innings than anyone higher, he did it while walking just 51 and holding a 2.45 ERA. The ERA and lack of innings actually hurt him, however, when compared to the top two players on our list.

2. Bob Feller – 1946

Still the Indians record for strike outs, Feller K’d 348 in 1946, his first full season back from World War II and the best in his career. This was also the Indians record for innings pitched, showing what taking a year off or four to fight for your country can do to rejuvenate an arm. I’m fairly certain after this season the Yankees called Japan to see if they were interested in another round.

1. Sam McDowell – 1965

Before the pitching revolution in 1968 that lead to the lowering of the mound, McDowell (along with Sonny Siebert and Luis Tiant) was starting something special. Not only was the 325 batters struck out by McDowell the second most in Indians history, but it was the most in all of baseball since Feller’s 348 in 1946 (although Sandy Koufax also broke this mark in 1965 to lead the NL). Despite pitching nearly 100 fewer innings, McDowell nearly caught Feller by striking out 10.7 batters per nine, still the record among pitchers who threw at least 82 innings in a year (Feller in 1936 and many modern relievers have surpassed him with between 40 and 82 IP).

McDowell would only strike out 300 one more time and had a relatively short career in Cleveland, being traded for Perry between 1971 and 1972, but he still struck out 2,159 batters in 2,109.2 innings, finishing his career just 422 strike outs behind Feller, who pitched seven more seasons in Cleveland. In that tremendous career, the 1965 was his masterpiece and sticks out still today as not only the best strike out season in Indians history, but one of the best overall with his deadball era ERA while playing the modern game.

Borderline: Sonny Siebert (1965), Gaylord Perry (1974), C.C. Sabathia (2007), Carlos Carrasco (2015), Luis Tiant (1967)]]>