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Around SBN: Missouri Crashes The Top Line After Kansas Win

The Greatest Reds: #18 - #17

18. Eric Davis

Played as Red Primary Position Career Rank Peak Rank Prime Rank
1984-91, 1996 CF, LF 21 19 15
Percent Breakdown of Value Best Season Best player on Reds
Hit Field Pitch 1987 1986, 1987, 1989
85% 15% 0%
Awards/Honors as a Red Leading the League On the Reds Leaderboard
Silver Slugger – 1987, 1989
Gold Glove – 1987, 1988, 1989
All Star – 1987, 1989
N/A

-7th in career OPS+
-8th in career home runs
-8th in career stolen bases
-19th in career runs
-19th in career RBI

Redsbatting0019_medium
via www.hittingfromtheheart.com


One of Bill James’s many "junk stats" is his power-speed creation, which is simply the geometric mean of a player’s home runs and stolen bases (2 x (HR x SB) / (HR + SB)). In terms of a player’s value, it doesn’t mean much, but it perhaps points to the well-roundedness of a player’s athletic skills. Eric Davis owns the two highest power-speed seasons in Reds history by virtue of his 1986 season in which he hit 27 home runs and stole 80 bases, and his follow-up 1987 masterpiece, hitting 37 dingers to pair with the 50 stolen bases. The kicker, and of course the underlying dark drama to any Eric Davis narrative, is that he only played in 132 and 129 games in those two respective seasons. In fact, the most games Davis ever appeared in was 135 (1988). Considering Davis played in just under 80% of his team’s games in 1987, the mind, it boggles: Davis still had that 37/50 season, finishing 4th in the NL in both categories, as well as finishing 7th in walks (84), 8th in RBI (100), and 3rd in runs scored (120!). Despite having what was for him a down season in 1990 (24 HR, 21 SB, 123 OPS+), Davis set the tone for the World Series by hitting a 2-run home run in the first inning off Dave Stewart. A failed Game 4 dive that resulted in a lacerated kidney set the tone for the rest of Davis’s career, which saw him traded to Los Angeles after 1991 (for Tim Belcher and John Wetteland, who was traded for perennial third baseman of the future Willie Greene), a triumphant return to Cincinnati in 1996 (139 OPS+), as well as a masterful victory over cancer (151 OPS+ for Baltimore in 1998).

Star-divide

17. Noodles Hahn

Played as Red Primary Position Career Rank Peak Rank Prime Rank
1899-1905 SP 23 15 11
Percent Breakdown of Value Best Season Best player on Reds
Hit Field Pitch 1902 1899, 1901, 1902
0% 0% 100%
Awards/Honors as a Red Leading the League On the Reds Leaderboard
N/A Strikeouts – 1899, 1900, 1901
Shutouts – 1900
Strikeout / Walk Ratio – 1901
Innings Pitched – 1901
Complete Games – 1901
Walks Per Inning – 1904

-2nd in career complete games
-3rd in career WHIP
-4th in career ERA+
-10th in career wins
-13th in career strikeouts

200px-noodles_hahn_medium
via upload.wikimedia.org


Nearly all of Hahn’s short career was spent with the Reds (about 98% of his total innings), and his final pitch was thrown before his 28th birthday, but he had about six consecutive seasons in which he was a pretty special pitcher. Bursting on to the major league scene a couple weeks before his 20th birthday, Hahn went on to lead the National League in strikeouts (145) and finish 4th in ERA+ (146) in that inaugural season. The next two years saw Hahn’s load increase (up to a peak of 375 innings in 1901), but his quality decline (ERA+’s of 112 and 118). So as a 3-year veteran at the age of 22, Hahn had already logged almost 1000 innings, was averaging 20 wins a year, and had led the league in strikeouts every season of his career. His ERA+ to that point was a very respectable 124. Interestingly, over the next three years his innings went down (a little over 900 for the 3-year span), his strikeouts went down quite a bit, and he continued to average 20 victories per annum. His ERA over that 2nd time-frame was a ridiculous 2.11 (150 ERA+) and he finished in the top 4 in the NL in ERA+ each of those years. His best season of 1902 had numbers as follows: 23-12, 1.77 ERA (170 ERA+), 321 innings. He finished 5th that year in WHIP, 4th in innings pitched, 2nd in ERA+, and 6th in strikeouts. Had the award existed at the time, however, Hahn would have been a long shot to win a Cy Young award for his peak year, due to Jack Taylor’s sublime 202 ERA+ in about as many innings.

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No. 18 on this list

but number 1 in my heart.

Wear something sexy to my funeral.

by Pops Daniels on Dec 1, 2009 12:11 PM EST reply actions  

I'm looking forward to meeting him this weekend

and asking him to pleasure my wife in ways that I could only dream of doing.

Definitely a good argument.

by Slyde on Dec 1, 2009 2:30 PM EST up reply actions  

First here too!

Loved watching him as a kid. I don’t remember the opposing pitcher or even the team. But I was at the game once when ED got on first base and the pitcher threw probably 5 get back “pick-off” attempts. Finally ED had enough and when the pitcher stepped off the rubber ED just stared at him. Pitcher pumped faked, ED stared from same lead off distance. The whole crowd was laughing. Oh, and he stole the base later in the at bat anyways. (at least that is how I remembered it)

by njbentz on Dec 4, 2009 2:07 PM EST up reply actions  

Noodles Hahn

is the answer to at least one Aflec Trivia question each week.

"There is no harder thing than to have Glenn Beck outlive your child."-The Onion

by justin007000 on Dec 1, 2009 1:15 PM EST reply actions  

Easily my favorite growing up

I loved Sabo’s goggles, but Davis was the best.

by doreposts on Dec 1, 2009 3:01 PM EST reply actions  

Fun with "what if"s

Eric Davis, if he’d been healthy in ‘86, might have hit 33 HRs with 98 (!) SB; in ’87, might have hit 46 HRs with 62 SBs.

The most HR since 1901 in a 98 SB season was Rickey’s 10/130 season; the most in a 62 SB season was Rickey’s 28/65 year. The most SB in a 46 HR season was Alfonso Soriano’s 41, and the most in a 33 HR season was Barry Bonds’ 52.

Enough fantasizing; how about comparing real numbers from those seasons? Ty Cobb is the only player in the modern era with a season of 80 or more SB with a higher SLG than Davis’s .523 in ‘86. George Sisler and Cobb are the only two to have 50 or more SB with a SLG higher than Davis’s .593 in ‘87 (and Sisler’s was .594 with 51 SB).

"You never know how you look through other people's eyes"

by sidnancy on Dec 1, 2009 3:46 PM EST reply actions   1 recs

Thank you

I knew those seasons were amazing but the context you’ve supplied casts them in the proper light.

Wear something sexy to my funeral.

by Pops Daniels on Dec 1, 2009 7:31 PM EST up reply actions  

I have two reds' autographs

Eric Davis and José Rijo. The latter I got when my dad took me to my first (and only) reds game in Cincinnati in what must have been ‘89 or ’90. The former I got through my dad – he worked for WLWT from the mid-’70’s through the late ’80’s. I remember how excited I was to get the Eric Davis autograph – he, Barry Larkin and Chris Sabo were my absolute favorite players. I was so proud of my dad – how COOL was it that my dad got to HANG OUT with him?!?!

Very cool, that’s how cool.

by thevole on Dec 1, 2009 8:12 PM EST reply actions  

very cool indeed

What’s not cool, however, is that in the massive time frame since the 2 of them played for the Reds, there’re only about 3 players who’ve donned the uni that i’d like to have an autograph from…Larkin, Casey, and Votto.

That’s roughly 15 years. Collective franchise OUCH.

Now, if Cueto can produce on a Rijo level and Bruce can produce on a (Davis^2)/3 level, we might be on to something…

Set the gearshift to the high gear of your soul.

by Kevin Mitchell is Batman on Dec 1, 2009 8:21 PM EST up reply actions  

coolest autographed ball ever

Jon Coutlangus and Adam Rosales.

And, no, I dont own that one.

"Nate Silver is a genius" .... BK

by obc2 on Dec 1, 2009 10:13 PM EST up reply actions  

I had a Larkin bobblehead for listed sale here at RR for quite some time

It ended up going to Goodwill.

I may be drunk, Miss, but in the morning I will be sober and you will still be ugly.
Winston Churchill

by Madville on Dec 2, 2009 8:43 AM EST up reply actions  

TWSS

Definitely a good argument.

by Slyde on Dec 2, 2009 8:51 PM EST up reply actions  

Your Christmas? Will you at least share?

"Santa Claus doesn't use Craigslist." -- 'tHan

by jch24 on Dec 2, 2009 10:26 PM EST up reply actions  

Sounds fair to me

I’ll have your ball gag ready.

"Santa Claus doesn't use Craigslist." -- 'tHan

by jch24 on Dec 2, 2009 10:31 PM EST up reply actions  

not with Charlie Scrabbles

"And then there was the USAID guy in Kandahar who drove a giant pink Cadillac, which the locals set on fire one day. If you wanted to destroy something symbolic during a riot, you just could not do better than that. Good stuff." - Ghosts of Alexander

by Cy Schourek on Dec 3, 2009 11:32 AM EST up reply actions  

Eric Davis - Great Player in His Prime

For a very brief period, Eric Davis was one of the best all-around players ever. He was called the “next Willie Mays”. He was also compared to a young Cesar Cedeno. Like Cedeno, his career was derailed by injuries. I feel Davis could have been as great as the non-juiced Barry Bonds of the early to mid-1990’s.

"The big possums walk late." - Harry Caray

by memphiscub on Dec 2, 2009 1:42 PM EST reply actions  

Cedeno is a good comp

You had to really see Cesar in his heyday to really appreciate his talents. Come to think of it Jose Cruz Sr would have been a star if he played outside the Astrodome….that place really impacted/reduced hitting stats.

Bonds is in a league of his own. His plate discipline was light years ahead of ED and Barry had a swing that didnt have a hole in it. Eric, remarkably, was able to overcome the hitch in his swing with lightning quick wrists. He had no room in his swing for reduced hand speed.

"Nate Silver is a genius" .... BK

by obc2 on Dec 3, 2009 10:48 AM EST up reply actions  

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