O/T -- Bob Welch dead at 57

[Kenny Cole]

I sure did enjoy watching him pitch when he was with the Dodgers and the A's. Last guy to win 27 games. He was a hell of a pitcher for a few years. RIP Bob.

[CMIZ5290]

Great pitcher, loved the wild life and the booze....

[jimhopkins82]

Those late 80's/early 90's A's teams were my favorite as a kid and the reason I'm an A's fan. My brother is named Welch so he was one of my favorite.

[Peter_Spaeth]

The other Bob Welch (Fleetwood Mac) died only a couple of years ago too.

[familytoad]

I remember his Cy Young season fondly, as I had Canseco and Welch on my fantasy baseball team that year...i ran away with it!

So Bob Welch always was a favorite.

I haven't read the story yet, he sure was young (just 5 years older than me!)
What was the cause?

RIP- Mr.Welch

[calvindog]

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=26fRnCj4SYQ

[Koufax32fan]

I know that winning percentage is not a great indicator of the relative quality of pitchers, but did you know that Welch's winning percentage is higher than several hall of famers including Bob Gibson and Steve Carlton?

[ethicsprof]

very sad news.
my condolences to family, friends and fans.

Barry

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by Koufax32fan

I know that winning percentage is not a great indicator of the relative quality of pitchers, but did you know that Welch's winning percentage is higher than several hall of famers including Bob Gibson and Steve Carlton?

This is a good example of why I love baseball statistics, and why it's so often necessary to look a little deeper.

Career Winning percentage:

Bob Welch 0.5910364145658263
Bob Gibson 0.5905882352941176
Steve Carlton 0.5741710296684119

Complete games:

Welch 61
Gibson 255
Carlton 254

Bob Welch pitched for the Oakland Athletics from 1988 to 1994. Of his career 211 wins, 96 of those came as a member of the A's.

Denis Eckersley, arguably the greatest reliever in baseball history before Mariano Rivera, saved 275 games. Eckersley was the runner up in the 1988 Cy Young, and he won it in 1992.

I'm not taking anything away from Bob Welch, as he was certainly an outstanding pitcher. But when I look at the career winning percentages of the three pitchers named, I'm more impressed by Gibson and Carlton's accomplishments, because they threw so many complete games. Welch, on the other hand, could turn the ball over to the bullpen to save many of his wins.

I would agree, too, that wins, and winning percentage is not a great metric of a pitcher's performance, because so many different things factor into wins and losses. Point in case. The other night, Felix Hernandez threw 7 innings of shutout ball, striking out 15. Yet he got a no decision because his offense didn't score any runs for him.

Edit: I was certain that Welch was going to make it to 30 wins that summer. The A's had an incredible offense with Canseco, McGwire, Rickey Henderson, Dave Henderson, and Eckersley was unhittable with a 0.61 ERA.

Still, 27 wins is a hell of an accomplishment. I don't know if we'll ever see 30 wins again.

RIP, Bob.

[Koufax32fan]

Just to be clear, the comparison is not even close. Gibson and Carlton are objectively and subjectively heads and shoulders (and not just the ones that Gibson used for target practice) ahead of Welch. When I read the sad news of his death, and remembering his efficient pitching, I checked out his stats and was surprised by his career winning percentage. Just goes to show that wins and losses are not only a reflection of the quality of the pitching but also a reflection of the quality of the team. But, Lefty did win 27 games in 1972 for a Phillies team that won only 59 total games.

That Youtube video of Welch vs Jackson brought back a lot of memories. Welch was fearless and Jackson swung so .....violently. And the umpire was holding his chest protector too!

[deadballfreaK]

I had not heard this. Very sad. Still thinking about Don Zimmer.

[irishdenny]

"Rest iN Peace Mr Welch"...

57 is just a young age to leave this world at.

[joeadcock]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

The other Bob Welch (Fleetwood Mac) died only a couple of years ago too.

Peter

Remember him in mind as a Dodger winning against my Braves.

Did not know that former Mac, had passed away, until saw you post this. His music from 70's is one stuck in my head

[frankbmd]

Bob Welch 0.5910364145658263
Bob Gibson 0.5905882352941176
Steve Carlton 0.5741710296684119

I appreciate precision and accuracy in my data, but have never calculated winning percentage to 16 decimal places, when 4 places is sufficient to differentiate between two seemingly tied individuals.

I also appreciate consistency so I would add the following corrected complete game data.

Welch 61.0000000000000000
Gibson 255.0000000000000000
Carlton 254.0000000000000000




FRANK:BUR:KETT - ALMOST OLD ENOUGH TO BE ON A PREWAR CARD.

518/1000 Monster Number --- WHAT'S YOUR MONSTER NUMBER?
Wagner, Plank, Doyle NY Natl, Magie, Demmitt (SL) & O'Hara (SL) are the 6 still needed.

244.0000000000000000 successful B/S/T transactions completed in 2012-14.
Over 120.0000000000000000 satisfied Board members served.
Thank you all.

Did you know that 4 divided by 7 is

.5714285714285714285714285714285714285714285714285 71428571428....................................... .....................................

[barrysloate]

It's not likely we will ever see another 27-game winner. He was a really good pitcher.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Frank your division is only correct if the whole numbers are followed by that many decimal points. It is a basic law of statistics than an output can only be accurate to as many decimal places as the input.

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Frank your division is only correct if the whole numbers are followed by that many decimal points. It is a basic law of statistics than an output can only be accurate to as many decimal places as the input.

I just copied and pasted whatever the calculator spat out. Sorry.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Were you using an OCD brand calculator?

[frankbmd]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Frank your division is only correct if the whole numbers are followed by that many decimal points. It is a basic law of statistics than an output can only be accurate to as many decimal places as the input.

Peter,

If I were to last 9 innings, I would certainly have pitched

1.0000000000000000

complete game.

Q.E.D.

[Fuddjcal]

This was written by a friend of mine who was on the 88 dodger WS team. I thought I would share....

"Total Bummer! He and I were teammates in 1987! Super nice guy! My Little League Coach called Me right after He Struck Out Reggie Jackson in The World Series in Yankee Stadium in 1978 and said "That's gonna be You Pretty Soon! I was a Sophomore at UCLA (like You!). Welch was a recovered Alcoholic since about 1980 and I heard He wasn't doing so well about 6 months ago. But, I saw Him only a year or 2 ago at a Dodger Alumni function and He was lean and chatty! Probably didn't go to the Doctor to get "checkups"! Like so many guys! I go. He had to Pitch the Game in August of '87 after our "eye in the sky Coach" died on the field at Dodger Stadium while throwing "early hitting" batting practice! Don McMahon, Big Dude who pitched in the Majors until He was 44 years old! Great Reliever. He was 58 years old!!! Now that's pretty spooky. Welch was really upset emotionally, but went out there like the Stud Pro that He was, and pitched his ass off. He was such a Great Pitcher-Athlete!! Loved to Compete! Incredible Fastball-Curveball Combo. Then learned a Split finger change up that helped Him win 30 games with the A's! Hall of Fame Caliber Pitcher. Just not quite enough wins or years. Makes Me really think about mortality. Wow"

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Were you using an OCD brand calculator?

It sure seems that way, doesn't it, Peter?

I just got this new laptop last week. It came installed with Windows 7, and apparently, the not ready for prime time calculator.

[Peter_Spaeth]

I have a new computer as well, and I HATE Word 2013. The prior version was much better optically and the track changes options, which I use a lot, were so much simpler.

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I have a new computer as well, and I HATE Word 2013. The prior version was much better optically and the track changes options, which I use a lot, were so much simpler.

I still use Office 2003. I've never found a reason to get a newer version, as it works great on Windows 7.