Despite all the complaints about lousy pitching, Braves artiste Greg Maddux now has a remarkable 1.56 earned-run average. It’s only the third sub-two ERA since Tom Seaver’s 1.76 with the ‘71 Mets.
When Yankee first baseman Lou Gehrig finally missed a game in 1939, he snapped a string of 2,130. His “unbreakable” record is in jeopardy: shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. has played in 2,009 consecutive Orioles games.
The last Triple Crown winner – leading the league in home runs, average and runs batted in – was Carl Yastrzemski of the Red Sox, in 1967. This summer, Belle and Thomas were battling to end the Triple Crown drought in the AL, and Bagwell had his eyes on the NL prize. (He broke a bone in his hand the day before the strike, so time off may be to his advantage.)
No batter has reached the .400 mark since Ted Williams in ‘41. But the Padres’ Tony Gwynn is only six points shy.
