The second and third greatest knuckleball pitchers of all time?

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Balticfox

Perhaps Wilbur Wood's best season though was 1971 when he pitched 334 innings in 44 appearances including 42 starts and 22 complete games in those starts. And he posted a stellar ERA of only 1.91 while pitching all those innings!

Originally Posted by Balticfox

In 1959 with Paul Richards managing the Orioles, Hoyt Wilhelm pitched 226 innings in 32 appearances including 27 starts and 13 complete games in those starts. He posted an ERA of only 2.19 while pitching an average of over seven innings per appearance!

Originally Posted by Balticfox

In 1978 at the age of 39 his record was 19-18 on an Atlanta Braves team that was 69-93. Niekro pitched 334 1/3 innings in 44 appearances which included 42 starts with 22 complete games in those starts. He posted an ERA of only 2.88 while pitching an average of almost 7 2/3 innings per appearance!

In 1979 at the age of 40 his record was 21-20 on an Atlanta Braves team that was 66-94. Niekro pitched 342 innings in 44 starts with 23 complete games in those starts. He posted an ERA of 3.39 while pitching an average of over 7 2/3 innings per appearance!

Compare the above innings pitched totals to the pathetic ones posted by the "leaders" in 2024 when Logan Gilbert topped the list with 208 2/3 innings:

2024 Innings Pitched Leaders

[packs]

Only mentioning for posterity, but the last person to pitch 300 innings in a season was Steve Carlton in 1980.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Carlton Does it All - Ball Nine

(In 1972 Steve Carlton) made 41 starts, threw 30 complete games, and logged 346 innings, more than anyone since. He also struck out 310 batters, becoming only the second lefthander in National League history to record 300 strikeouts (Sandy Koufax was first) and posted an ERA of 1.97.

Most remarkable, though, he won 27 games for a team that won only 59. (Only one pitcher since has won 27, the A’s Bob Welch whose team won the World Series that year.) In other words, Carlton – who finished 27-10 – accounted for 45.7 percent of his team’s wins in 1972, a record unlikely to be broken.

Wow! Steve Carlton won the Cy Young Award for those numbers in 1972 and then again in 1977, 1980 and 1982. He lacked only a knuckleball.

[Balticfox]

Hmmmm. I was able to embed a video from Youtube a couple of days ago but I've failed completely tonight. Here anyway is the link:

MLB's Dark Art: The Knuckleball - Youtube