Baseball Player Won-Loss Records
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The 1950 Season as seen through the Prism of Player Won-Lost Records


As part of their last update, Retrosheet added two new seasons with "deduced games" to supplement their play-by-play data. These are games for which they do not have full play-by-play data, but they have been able to deduce enough about what happened from box scores and newspaper reports that they were able to reconstruct play-by-play data. Combining games with full play-by-play and deduced games, I now have full play-by-play data for all seasons dating back to 1949. This gives me two new full seasons: 1949 and 1950

This article looks at the latter of these two seasons: 1950.

The Best of 1950

The top 10 players in pWins above Positional Average and Replacement Level were as follows.

pWins over Positional Average
Top 10 Players
          pWins over Replacement Level
Top 10 Players
Player pWins pLosses pWOPA pWORL           Player pWins pLosses pWOPA pWORL
1Vic Raschi19.413.23.5
5.0
1Vic Raschi19.413.23.5
5.0
2Yogi Berra18.011.73.2
4.4
2Bob Lemon23.018.92.8
4.7
3Robin Roberts19.814.43.1
4.7
3Robin Roberts19.814.43.1
4.7
4Vic Wertz23.416.43.1
4.6
4Vic Wertz23.416.43.1
4.6
5Larry Doby21.614.63.0
4.5
5Larry Doby21.614.63.0
4.5
6Al Rosen22.715.62.9
4.4
6Vern Stephens23.518.62.8
4.4
7Pee Wee Reese20.014.92.8
4.2
7Al Rosen22.715.62.9
4.4
8Eddie Stanky21.215.92.8
4.2
8Yogi Berra18.011.73.2
4.4
9Vern Stephens23.518.62.8
4.4
9Eddie Stanky21.215.92.8
4.2
10Bob Lemon23.018.92.8
4.7
10Phil Rizzuto22.317.62.7
4.2


The top 10 players in eWins above Positional Average and Replacement Level were as follows.

eWins over Positional Average
Top 10 Players
          eWins over Replacement Level
Top 10 Players
Player eWins eLosses eWOPA eWORL           Player eWins eLosses eWOPA eWORL
1Larry Doby21.115.02.6
4.0
1Ewell Blackwell19.615.62.5
4.2
2Ewell Blackwell19.615.62.5
4.2
2Larry Doby21.115.02.6
4.0
3Eddie Stanky20.916.22.5
3.9
3Eddie Stanky20.916.22.5
3.9
4Phil Rizzuto21.818.02.2
3.8
4Phil Rizzuto21.818.02.2
3.8
5Al Rosen21.916.42.1
3.6
5Hoot Evers22.316.72.1
3.7
6Hoot Evers22.316.72.1
3.7
6Al Rosen21.916.42.1
3.6
7Jim Hearn8.75.41.9
2.5
7Warren Spahn20.518.21.8
3.5
8Yogi Berra16.713.11.9
3.0
8Vern Stephens22.419.71.7
3.3
9Early Wynn15.913.11.9
3.2
9Sid Gordon21.316.41.8
3.3
10Sid Gordon21.316.41.8
3.3
10Vic Wertz22.117.81.7
3.3


Let's take a look at a few of the more interesting players in the above tables.

Top AL Pitchers: Vic Raschi vs. Fred Hutchinson
The top player in three of the four above tables was an American League starting pitcher. Vic Raschi of the New York Yankees led the major-leagues in pWins over either positional average or replacement level, while Detroit Tigers pitcher Fred Hutchinson led the major leagues in eWins over either positional average.

Vic Raschi had a traditional won-lost record of 21-8 with a 4.00 ERA over 256.2 IP. Hutchinson went 17-8, 3.96 in 231.2 IP and added a .326/.407/.400 batting line over 112 PAs.

Both Raschi and Hutchinson had interesting seasons statistically. Neither ranked particularly well in 1950 for WAR at Baseball-Reference. This is really not too surprising given their season ERA's. In terms of winning percentage, however, they finished 1st and 5th in the AL. They also ranked 2nd (Hutchinson) and 4th (Raschi) in FIP in the 1950 AL, according to Baseball-Reference. Hutchinson led the AL in BB/9 and K/BB; Raschi was 3rd in K/9 and 4th in K/BB. Player won-lost records sort of care the most about the latter statistics - FIP, K/BB - and the former statistic - winning percentage - but less so about the intermediate statistic, ERA. Raschi and Hutchinson were very good at the things most in control of the pitcher - striking batters out, avoiding walks - and their teams ultimately won a lot of games when they were pitching.

Raschi, in particular, also excelled at "pitching to the score". The Yankees were 9-3 in one-run games started by Raschi, with Raschi amassing a traditional record of 9-2 in those games. The ability to "pitch to the score" may or may not be a "skill", but there's no doubt that the timing of Raschi's performance in 1950 - whether by skill or by luck - contributed to real Yankee wins in 1950.

Hutchinson and Raschi ended up having fairly similar careers overall. They both got late starts, presumably due to World War II - Hutchinson's first full-time season was at age 26, Raschi's was at age 29 - put together a few very good seasons, but were out of baseball by their mid-to-late 30's, resulting in veryshort careers for pitchers of their quality. I am missing several games from the early parts of both Hutchinson's and Raschi's careers. The next table compares their career records, as measured by Player won-lost records, from 1928 onward. The Player won-lost records shown here are (context-neutral, teammate-adjusted) eWins.



Fred C. Hutchinson Vic Raschi
Season Games pWins pLoss Win Pct. eWOPA eWORL Games pWins pLoss Win Pct. eWOPA eWORL
1928
 
1929
 
1930
 
1931
 
1932
 
1933
 
1934
 
1935
 
1936
 
1937
 
1938
 
1939135.05.70.466-0.2
0.3
1940174.84.60.5110.2
0.7
194120.00.10.000-0.0
-0.0
1942
 
1943
 
1944
 
1945
 
19464014.112.20.5371.5
2.7
21.31.00.5630.20.3
19475615.813.30.5441.8
3.0
155.85.60.5070.20.7
19487614.714.70.4990.5
1.8
3615.613.90.5291.32.6
19493811.19.70.5331.0
1.9
3818.117.10.5141.02.3
19504413.411.30.5431.6
2.7
3317.415.20.5331.63.1
19514711.610.20.5311.0
2.0
3515.916.90.483-0.11.3
1952171.82.10.462-0.1
0.1
3113.913.20.5120.82.0
195340.10.10.6050.0
0.0
2811.010.00.5260.81.8
1954
 
3010.912.10.474-0.30.8
1955
 
216.67.80.458-0.40.1
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
CAREER RECORDS35492.584.00.5247.3
15.3
269116.4112.80.5085.114.9
Robin Roberts
One of the big stories of the 1950 season was the Philadelphia Phillies and their surprise pennant, the first for the franchise in 35 years. The Phillies starting lineup featured two 23-year-olds, a 24-year-old, and a 25-year-old, and their top five starting pitchers were 21, 23, 24, 25, and 26 years old.

By far the biggest star among the Whiz Kids was 23-year-old starting pitcher Robin Roberts. Roberts would eventually be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame (in 1976) on the strength on an incredible six-year peak, of which 1950 was the first season. In 1950, Roberts started 39 games (and relieved in one other, earning a save), completing 21, with a league-leading 5 shutouts. Overall, he pitched 304.1 innings with a 3.02 ERA (4th in the NL) and a traditional won-lost record of 20-11.

Player won-lost records agree that Roberts's 1950 season was outstanding as he ranks in the top 10 in all four of the above tables, ranking 2nd (1st in the NL) in pWins over either positional average or replacement level.

Robin Roberts's career record, as measured by Player won-lost records, is shown in the next table.

Robin Roberts
Basic Player Won-Lost Records
Value Decomposition
Season Team Age Games pWins pLosses pWin Pct. pWOPA pWORL eWins eLosses eWin Pct. eWOPA eWORL
1948PHI21
21
9.79.80.4970.2
1.0
9.89.70.5030.31.2
1949PHI22
43
14.113.50.5110.6
1.7
14.013.70.5050.51.6
1950PHI23
40
19.814.40.5793.1
4.7
18.216.00.5321.53.1
1951PHI24
44
20.916.80.5552.5
4.2
21.016.70.5582.64.3
1952PHI25
39
20.713.50.6064.3
5.7
18.615.60.5452.23.7
1953PHI26
44
24.818.00.5804.1
5.9
24.817.90.5804.15.9
1954PHI27
45
20.717.50.5412.2
4.0
20.717.50.5412.24.0
1955PHI28
51
21.817.70.5522.6
4.1
20.718.80.5231.53.0
1956PHI29
43
19.019.10.4990.5
2.3
18.319.80.481-0.21.6
1957PHI30
39
14.220.10.413-2.5
-1.1
16.018.30.467-0.60.7
1958PHI31
36
18.115.00.5472.1
3.4
17.215.90.5201.22.5
1959PHI32
35
17.817.40.5060.7
2.2
17.517.70.4980.51.9
1960PHI33
35
14.014.90.484-0.0
1.2
14.214.70.4930.21.4
1961PHI34
26
5.18.10.385-1.4
-0.8
5.67.50.430-0.8-0.2
1962BAL35
27
10.38.80.5391.0
1.9
10.19.10.5270.81.6
1963BAL36
35
14.615.80.480-0.1
1.3
15.015.40.4930.31.7
1964BAL37
31
13.611.20.5481.6
2.8
12.212.60.4910.21.4
38
30
11.010.80.5050.5
1.5
11.610.30.5291.02.0
39
24
6.77.20.483-0.1
0.6
6.17.90.437-0.7-0.1
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
CAREER (reg. season)
688
296.9269.70.52422.1
46.6
291.6275.00.51516.841.3
------ ------ ------ ------ ------
PostSeason (career)
2
0.40.70.403 -0.00.60.50.538 0.1
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
COMBINED
690
297.3270.30.524
46.5
292.2275.50.515 41.4


Larry Doby
When Player won-lost records are controlled for context and teammate ability, the best position player in the American League, as measured by (context-neutral, teammate-adjusted) eWins over either positional average or replacement level was Cleveland Indians centerfielder Larry Doby.

Larry Doby made his major-league debut in 1947, becoming the first African-American player in American League history on July 5, 1947. The next season, Doby batted .301 splitting time between center and right field and helped the Cleveland Indians win their last World Championship (to date).

The 1950 season saw Doby take a big step forward from solid starter to star. He set career highs in batting average (.326), on-base percentage (.442), and slugging percentage (.545), leading the AL in OBP and OPS (.986). He also set a career high in runs scored (110) and drove in over 100 runs for the first time in his career (he would do so three more times). In addition to his hitting exploits, Doby was an above average baserunner and defensive centerfielder in 1950 as well.

I feel like Larry Doby is often under-rated - if not forgotten - as a baseball player. He wasn't elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame until 1998 and I think most people assume he only made it then because of his position as the first black player in AL history. Yet, as measured by Player won-lost records, Larry Doby's career was Hall-worthy even without giving him pioneering extra credit (which he absolutely deserves).

Larry Doby's career record, as measured by Player won-lost records, is shown in the next table.

Larry Doby
Basic Player Won-Lost Records
Value Decomposition
Season Team Age Games pWins pLosses pWin Pct. pWOPA pWORL eWins eLosses eWin Pct. eWOPA eWORL
1947CLE23
28
0.61.00.365-0.2
-0.1
0.60.90.377-0.2-0.1
1948CLE24
120
16.414.00.5390.6
1.9
16.413.90.5410.71.9
1949CLE25
147
22.017.60.5571.7
3.3
21.917.70.5541.63.2
1950CLE26
142
21.614.60.5973.0
4.5
21.115.00.5842.64.0
1951CLE27
134
19.115.20.5571.6
2.9
19.714.60.5742.23.5
1952CLE28
140
21.715.10.5902.9
4.4
21.515.20.5852.84.2
1953CLE29
149
21.615.80.5772.3
3.9
21.416.10.5702.13.6
1954CLE30
153
26.915.30.6384.9
6.6
23.818.40.5641.83.5
1955CLE31
131
17.714.60.5490.9
2.3
17.714.60.5491.02.3
1956CHA32
140
18.816.70.5290.5
1.9
18.716.70.5280.41.9
1957CHA33
119
16.114.10.5330.5
1.7
16.214.10.5350.51.8
1958CLE34
88
9.28.20.5300.2
0.9
9.28.30.5260.20.9
35
39
2.73.90.413-0.7
-0.4
2.63.90.401-0.8-0.5
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
CAREER (reg. season)
1,530
214.3165.80.56418.4
33.8
210.7169.40.55414.830.2
------ ------ ------ ------ ------
PostSeason (career)
10
1.21.30.479 -0.01.21.20.498 0.0
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
COMBINED
1,540
215.5167.10.564
33.8
211.9170.70.554 30.3


The 1950 World Series

On the surface, the 1950 World Series looked like a rout. The New York Yankees won their second of five consecutive World Series in a sweep against a Philadelphia Phillies team making its only World Series appearance between 1915 and 1980. But looking more closely, the first three games were all one-run games and the Yankees out-scored the Phillies by a total of only 6 runs across the four games.

The stars of the 1950 World Series for the Yankees were their starting pitchers. Vic Raschi and Whitey Ford pitched a combined 17.2 innings without allowing an earned run (Ford allowed 2 unearned runs) and each earned a traditional pitching win, and Allie Reynolds added 10.1 IP at a 0.87 ERA with a win and a save.

Player won-lost records agree. The top performances of the 1950 World Series as measured by Player won-lost records are shown next.

1950 World Series
pWins pLosses pWORL
Vic RaschiNYA1.00.10.5
Whitey FordNYA1.00.30.4
Allie ReynoldsNYA0.90.30.4
Jerry ColemanNYA0.70.30.2
Joe DiMaggioNYA0.70.30.2
Ed LopatNYA0.50.20.2
Jim KonstantyPHI0.90.80.2
Gene WoodlingNYA0.60.30.2
Bobby 'Doc' BrownNYA0.50.40.1
Tom FerrickNYA0.20.10.1
Phil RizzutoNYA0.50.40.1
Yogi BerraNYA0.40.30.1


Best of 1950 by Factor and Position

Next, let's look at the top players in (context-neutral, teammate-adjusted) eWins over Positional Average in various aspects of the game.
Best by Factor: Batting, Baserunning, Pitching, Fielding
There are four basic factors for which players earn Player won-lost records: Batting, Baserunning, Pitching, and Fielding. The top players in 1950 in eWOPA by factor were as follows.

Batting
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Stan Musial15.59.72.6

Positional Average excludes pitcher offense



Baserunning
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Willie E. Jones1.40.90.2
Red Schoendienst1.10.60.2
George Kell1.30.80.2
Johnny Pesky1.20.70.2
Ted Williams0.70.30.2
Pee Wee Reese1.41.00.2
Sam Jethroe1.71.30.2
Billy Goodman1.00.60.2
Eddie Yost1.61.20.2
Yogi Berra1.10.70.2
Phil Masi0.90.60.2
Dom DiMaggio1.30.90.2
Carl Furillo1.30.90.2
Bob Elliott1.00.70.2
Sam Mele0.80.50.2
Ray Coleman0.70.40.1
Roy Hartsfield1.00.70.1
Buddy Kerr0.80.50.1
Chico Carrasquel1.10.80.1
Johnny Lipon1.20.90.1
Irv Noren1.00.70.1
Joe Collins0.50.30.1
Ralph Kiner1.10.80.1
Ted Kluszewski0.90.60.1
Bobby Avila0.60.30.1
Marty Marion0.70.50.1
Jim Russell0.60.40.1
Gil Coan0.90.70.1
Phil Cavarretta0.50.30.1
Alvin Dark1.21.00.1
Hal Jeffcoat0.50.30.1
Early Wynn0.30.10.1
Willard Marshall0.40.20.1
Joe Gordon0.50.30.1
Sherm Lollar0.70.50.1
Lloyd Merriman0.80.60.1
Marv Rickert0.50.30.1
Walker Cooper0.70.50.1
Larry Doby1.00.80.1
Bob Ramazzotti0.40.20.1
Johnny Hopp0.90.70.1
Bobby Adams0.80.60.1
Owen Friend0.50.40.1
Monte Irvin0.60.40.1
Dick Sisler0.90.70.1
Eddie Waitkus1.21.00.1
Pete Reiser0.20.10.1
Gene Woodling0.90.80.1
Phil Rizzuto1.41.20.1
Tom Upton0.70.60.1
Dick Whitman0.40.20.1
Doyle Lade0.20.00.1
Randy Jackson0.20.10.1
Johnny Ostrowski0.30.20.1
Al Evans0.30.20.1
Bobby 'Doc' Brown0.40.30.1
Erv Palica0.20.10.1
Jerry Coleman0.90.70.1
Danny O'Connell0.80.60.1
Granny Hamner1.10.90.1
Luke Appling0.20.10.1
Billy Johnson0.50.40.1
Hank Bauer0.70.60.1
Gil Hodges1.10.90.1

Positional Average excludes pitcher offense



Pitching
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Ewell Blackwell14.410.83.6
Robin Roberts16.013.42.7


Fielding, P
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Mel Parnell0.60.30.3
Eddie Erautt0.40.00.3
Dizzy Trout0.50.20.3
Hal Newhouser0.40.20.3


Fielding, C
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Wes Westrum1.51.10.4


Fielding, 1B
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Eddie Robinson2.72.40.3


Fielding, 2B
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Connie Ryan5.14.70.3
Bobby Doerr5.14.80.3
Sam Dente1.20.90.3
Jerry Priddy6.46.10.3
Bobby Adams1.81.50.3
Jerry Coleman5.14.80.3


Fielding, 3B
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Al Rosen4.63.61.0


Fielding, SS
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Phil Rizzuto6.45.50.9


Fielding, LF
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Hoot Evers6.65.21.4


Fielding, CF
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Duke Snider5.84.71.1


Fielding, RF
eWins eLosses Net Wins
Carl Furillo6.44.61.7
Bob Kennedy6.44.81.7


Best by Position
Next, we look at 1950 Major-League leaders in eWOPA by position. The figures shown here only include Player decisions earned while playing this particular position, and include no contextual adjustments (expected or actual).

Catcher
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Yogi Berra16.413.11.7
Andy Seminick12.79.51.7


First Base
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Earl Torgeson19.115.21.1


Second Base
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Eddie Stanky20.015.82.3


Third Base
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Al Rosen20.915.91.9


Shortstop
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Phil Rizzuto21.618.42.0


Left Field
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Hoot Evers20.916.31.7


Center Field
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Larry Doby19.914.62.2


Right Field
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Del Ennis20.616.81.5


Starting Pitcher
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Ewell Blackwell14.110.81.6


Relief Pitcher
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Jim Konstanty8.16.11.0


Relief pitching was much less prominent in 1950 than it is today. Nevertheless, Jim Konstanty won the 1950 NL MVP Award on the strength of 74 games and 152 innings pitched, all in relief.

For relief pitchers, context-neutral records may not be the best measure of how good they are, as context can matter a great deal, depending on how a pitcher is used. Here are the top relief pitchers of 1950 in context, as measured by pWins over replacement level (pWORL).

Top Relief Pitchers of 1950, based on pWORL
Player pWins pLosses pWin Pct. pWOPA pWORL
Jim Konstanty9.86.20.6132.03.0
Al Brazle11.210.00.5290.92.1
Mickey Harris6.85.40.5570.81.6
Sam Zoldak4.33.10.5780.71.1
Jesse Flores3.32.50.5710.50.8


Jim Konstanty was excellent in 1950 and his performance did tower over that of other relief pitchers (his pWOPA was more than double that of any other relief pitcher). But compared to the best starting pitchers and position players of 1950, I think that Konstanty's MVP award was probably a mistake. Finally, here are the best at three oft-forgotten positions that can nevertheless matter: pitcher offense, pinch hitter, and pinch runner.

Pitcher Offense
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Bob Lemon2.52.10.8


Pinch Hitter
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Charlie Keller1.10.60.3


Pinch Runner
eWins eLosses eWOPA
Bobby Avila0.10.00.05
Joe Collins0.20.10.05


Notable Debuts
The 1950 season saw the major-league debut of one player who went on to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame: Whitey Ford. The final table of this article presents the career record of Whitey Ford, as measured by Player won-lost records.

Whitey Ford
Basic Player Won-Lost Records
Value Decomposition
Season Team Age Games pWins pLosses pWin Pct. pWOPA pWORL eWins eLosses eWin Pct. eWOPA eWORL
1950NYA21
20
7.24.70.6031.4
2.0
6.55.30.5500.81.4
1953NYA24
33
12.511.00.5321.1
2.1
11.512.10.4880.11.1
1954NYA25
34
14.811.30.5672.1
3.4
13.712.40.5251.12.3
1955NYA26
39
17.313.60.5592.3
3.5
15.915.00.5140.92.1
1956NYA27
31
16.911.20.6023.3
4.6
15.812.20.5642.23.5
1957NYA28
24
8.86.80.5641.2
1.9
7.97.70.5070.31.0
1958NYA29
30
14.310.90.5662.1
3.0
14.310.90.5662.13.0
1959NYA30
35
14.112.40.5331.3
2.5
13.712.80.5170.92.0
1960NYA31
33
13.911.60.5451.5
2.6
13.412.10.5261.02.1
1961NYA32
39
19.212.70.6023.8
5.1
16.415.60.5130.92.2
1962NYA33
38
16.511.70.5842.8
4.0
14.913.30.5281.32.5
1963NYA34
38
16.913.50.5562.2
3.6
16.114.30.5291.42.8
1964NYA35
39
17.311.10.6083.5
5.0
16.212.20.5692.43.9
1965NYA36
38
14.814.90.4980.5
1.7
14.814.80.5000.51.8
1966NYA37
22
3.34.40.430-0.5
-0.1
3.44.30.446-0.30.0
1967NYA38
7
2.62.40.5240.2
0.4
2.62.40.5260.20.4
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
CAREER (reg. season)
500
210.3164.30.56129.0
45.3
197.1177.50.52615.732.1
------ ------ ------ ------ ------
PostSeason (career)
22
9.78.80.525 1.69.98.70.532 1.7
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
COMBINED
522
220.1173.10.561
46.9
207.0186.20.526 33.8




All articles are written so that they pull data directly from the most recent version of the Player won-lost database. Hence, any numbers cited within these articles should automatically incorporate the most recent update to Player won-lost records. In some cases, however, the accompanying text may have been written based on previous versions of Player won-lost records. I apologize if this results in non-sensical text in any cases.

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