Maddux and Company

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Posted By: ErikV.

With the recent addition of Greg Maddux joining the 300 win club, he became only the 22nd player to win 300 games. In comparison, there are 25 players currently in the 3,000 hit club (Rafael Palmeiro should be joining this group probably sometime next season). Although several new members have joined the 500 homerun club in the last few years, there are only 20 members currently in this group. With all of these members' numbers being comparable, which is the hardest feat in baseball to reach? And as far as card collecting goes, which group of cards would you want complete first?

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Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

With the juiced up ball and juiced up players, the 500 home run club is becoming dubious. The 300 win club may not ever see another member. Randy Johnson and Tom Glavine are close but neither will make it. With the advent of specialized relief pitchers and the decrease in amount of starts pitchers get each year, I suspect that in 50 years there will be two to three times as many members of the 500 HR club and 3000 hit club compared to the 300 win club.

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Posted By: The other One (Julie)

Catchers come second.


Guys who hit singles and an occasional double and wind up at home plate come third.

Home run hitters come fourth.

It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than it is for as guy to win 350 games, or get 3000 hits.

Four of my favorites in my 4 favorite categories.

Don't think Caruthers or Robinson, in the categories mentioned just above (350 and 3000), ever made it, but they're two of my favorites anyway. Not that Jackie does, but Ewing needs no introduction as a catcher, and Oh hit over 900 home runs--in parks that probably average less in size than ours.

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Posted By: Judge Dred

Look at the number of players that won 300 games in the 19th century. Subtract those 6 from the list and you have 16 pitchers that have won 300 games after the 20th and 21st centuries. Note that Cy Young won a large number of his games in the 19th century.

3,000 hit club - Only Anson played his full career in the 19th century. Wagner and Lajoie played only the beginning portions of their career in the 19th century. That would mean 24 players achieved the 3,000 hit plateau in the 20th and 21st centuries.

500 HR club - well we all know that all 20 of those members came after the 1920's.

That 300 win club is looking pretty tough. All three levels (W's, H's and HR's) require a bit of longevity and staying power so any member of any of those clubs are in elite company.

If one had to chose which level might be the toughest to attain in the future then I would probably have to go with the 300 win club.

You've got to love baseball and statistics.

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Posted By: jay behrens

This is a no-brainer. 300 wins is now a true holy grail of pitching. People may sneer at Sutton and Niekro's 300 wins, but it's still 300 wins and need to be good enough to stay on a major league roster to get that many wins.

500 HRs is probably going to be the easiest of the marks to reach. It requires a some longevity, but no where near the longevity and hitting ability that 3000 hits requires.

Jay

I like to sit outside, drink beer and yell at people. If I did this at home I would be arrested, so I go to baseball games and fit right in.

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Posted By: Gilbert Maines

From a card collecting standpoint, the 500 club is the easiest. There are only a few pre-war cards in the grouping. (Ott, Foxx & Ruth are all that comes to mind).

As Julie says, the group of 350+ winners is quite an assembly of talent. As are the top 10 in lifetime hits.

I like the pitchers and I actually got to see one of them play. Heck, I have seen half of the 10 top 3000+ hitters and most of the 500 club play.

350+ wins = eye of the camel

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Posted By: Jamie

If he can stay healthy, Pedro Martinez should join the club (and most likely the 4000 KO club as well- only three members there). I'd also give a nod to Mussina- though that's more reliant on him remaining with a winning ball club to give him the run support he needs. Glavine was mentioned as being close- it would have to mean him dragging out his career Sutton-style to pull it off. I'm hoping he doesn't.

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Posted By: Josh K.

Pedro would have to average 18-19 victories a year for 7 more years (at which time he will be 40 years old) in order to reach 300. He has only won 19+ games only four times in 12 seasons. Mussina has only 208 wins, but is nearly 36. I may certainly be proven wrong, but I wouldnt put any money on either getting to 300 unless they pitch until they are 45.

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Posted By: Pcelli60

More and more room at Cooperstown will have to be made for relief pitching..and the 300 game winner will be lost from this generation.

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Posted By: Peter Thomas

If Pedro wins 6 more games this year he would still need 116 more wins for 300, if he gets there he certainly will have 4,000 K's. If he plays for 8 more years, that would only be an average of 14.5 wins per year which seems possible. He would have to average a little over 16.5 wins per year to do it in 7 years which seems unlikely to me. His next contract will probably have a lot to do with it. If he signs for 4 or 5 years @ $15,000,000 per year, he might well want to spend the rest of his time in a less stressfull environment, rather than signing up for another 3 to 4 years and mastering another pitch to win with, because there is no way he will be able to pitch like Randy Johnson @ 40 years old. I think Johnson will pitch for 3 or 4 more years and make it to 300 and maybe 5,000 K's, but not with the D'backs.

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Posted By: Paul M

Don't rule out the crafty veteran Glavine winning 300, if he had just signed with the Phillies instead of the Mets he'd be at 270 right now. Even so, he only needs 41 more and he could easily go til age 42 and he's still posting a sub 3 ERA so it's not like he's just sticking around.

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Posted By: Gilbert Maines

Hi,

What I am collecting is not the entire 3000 hit club or the 300 win club, solely I am assembling the best of the best:

700 HR Club
.600 Sluggers
4000 Ks
350 Wins
700 Doubles
250 Triples
etc.

Id rather not bog myself down assembling every 3000 hit player, for example. I view this "bogging" as cost without compensating interest. There are numerous alternate fields of accomplishment which to me are more fun to portray with cards than a comparitively long assembly of players who although certainly noteworthy, do not represent the best.

Gil