The Worst Pitchers With Long Careers

[John1941]

Originally Posted by stlcardsfan

Jose Deleon pitiched 13 seasons and 1,900 innings. Not quite as much as some of the others mentioned.

Went 86-119 and twice lost 19 games in a season. Respectable career ERA of 3.76 and 102 ERA+.

Went 7-19 for the Cardinals in 1990. I remember people saying "you have to be a pretty good pitcher to lose 19 games". Huh?

Getting no run support doesn't make you a bad pitcher.

And pitchers who lose 20 games are frequently the best pitcher on a bad team - they lose so many because they pitch so much for a team with terrible offense. Take Hall of Famer Red Ruffing - he lost 25 and 22 games for the Red Sox in 1928 and 1929 before being traded to the Yankees. Paul Derringer lost 27 and 21 games in 1933 and 1934 while being an above average pitcher - he went on to win 20 games four times.

Some twenty win losers are guys like Jack Nabors going 1-20 for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1916; but I think if you studied it, more 20 game losers would be good pitchers than bad.

[G1911]

Originally Posted by John1941

Getting no run support doesn't make you a bad pitcher.

And pitchers who lose 20 games are frequently the best pitcher on a bad team - they lose so many because they pitch so much for a team with terrible offense. Take Hall of Famer Red Ruffing - he lost 25 and 22 games for the Red Sox in 1928 and 1929 before being traded to the Yankees. Paul Derringer lost 27 and 21 games in 1933 and 1934 while being an above average pitcher - he went on to win 20 games four times.

Some twenty win losers are guys like Jack Nabors going 1-20 for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1916; but I think if you studied it, more 20 game losers would be good pitchers than bad.

One of my favorite hard luck seasons is when Will White won 18 games and lost 42 - but posted a 2.14 ERA, 114 ERA+. White, of course, was an excellent pitcher but bad luck and a bad offense led to one of the worst W-L seasons in MLB history. Jim McCormick had a similar season.

[KJA]

Edwin Jackson, 17 years with a 4.78 ERA and an 8.9 WAR, ERA+ of 88

[BobbyStrawberry]

Originally Posted by KJA

Edwin Jackson, 17 years with a 4.78 ERA and an 8.9 WAR, ERA+ of 88

I mentioned him earlier. He definitely deserves a mention!

[packs]

Jeff Suppan was another one. He managed to pitch 17 seasons and started nearly all the games he appeared in, more than 400 games and 2,500 innings.

He compiled a losing record of 140-146 with a 4.70 ERA (!) and a career ERA+ of 97.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by BobbyStrawberry

I mentioned him earlier. He definitely deserves a mention!

I believe Jackson is tied with Rich Hill for the most franchise changes in a career (15). Or if the 14 figure above is accurate, Hill surpassed him. Hill, anyhow, had multiple stints with multiple teams so we could be talking apples and oranges as between number of franchises and franchise changes.

[KJA]

Originally Posted by BobbyStrawberry

I mentioned him earlier. He definitely deserves a mention!

During the second half of his career I was always surprised to see him show up on a new team

[JollyElm]

To illustrate how reading a random thread piques your interest and sends you down a rabbit hole, I found this:

"In 1993, Jose Canseco of the Texas Rangers pitched one inning against the Boston Red Sox, conceding two hits, three walks, and three earned runs before injuring his arm; the resulting Tommy John surgery ended his season."

He had a long career and apparently was a terrible pitcher.