Pitching trends are constantly evolving. Part of the reason is changes in game strategy, player usage, or even equipment. Part of it is improvement in players’ skills which, in turn, results in changes in expectations of player performance.

This quiz identifies pitchers who, like James Fenimore Cooper’s Mohican, were the last of a breed. In our case, “breed” is a statistical “feat” that the pitcher accomplished during a season of play.

Thanks to those who played and succeeded in solving 6 of the 10 quizzes (bolded). Here is the solution, for pitcher seasons since 1901:

1. Hank Wyse (1950) is the last pitcher (of 38) with twice as many walks as strikeouts (min. 162 IP).
2. Hugh Mulcahy (1937) is the last pitcher (of 7) to both start and relieve in 25 or more games.
3. Omar Daal (1995) is the only pitcher to appear in 20 or more games and not start or finish any of them
4. David Wells (1998) is the last pitcher (of 41) to have more shutouts than losses (min. 162 IP)
5. Byron Houck (1913) is the only pitcher with an ERA+ lower than 100 times his W-L% (min. 162 IP)
6. Elmer Jacobs (1917) is the last pitcher (of 10) with an ERA under 3.00 that is greater than 10 times his W-L% (min. 162 IP)
7. Ted Wingfield (1927) is the only pitcher with a WHIP higher than his strikeout total (min. 20 games)
8. Bill Lee (1945) is the last pitcher (of 23) with a WHIP higher than his SO/9 ratio (min. 162 IP)
9. Carl Lundgren (1907) is the only pitcher with a BB/9 ratio 3 times as high as his ERA (min. 162 IP)
10. Matt Keough (1982) is the last pitcher (of 7) with a HR/9 ratio twice as high as his SO/BB ratio (min. 162 IP)

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Left-hander Paul Maholm is one of the reasons Atlanta has but a single loss this season, and is currently riding a 10-game win streak. In 3 starts, Maholm has allowed nary a run, and hardly a baserunner (0.787 WHIP).

So, which other starting pitchers are off to hot starts in 2013? Quite a few, actually. In fact, if you’re a starting pitcher with at least 12 IP so far, your ERA needs to be under 2.00 to crack the top 25.

After the jump, more on pitchers who are strong out of the gate – this year and in the recent past.

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Atlanta goes for its tenth straight win tonight, at home against Kansas City. They join Oakland as the second team this season to win nine in a row. The Athletics’ bid for ten straight came a cropper last week when they ran into Justin Verlander and the Tigers.

What is the significance of winning ten straight? More after the jump.

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Quick quiz about players who were like Jackie Robinson.

So, here goes. What do the players below have in common with each other? This shouldn’t take long to solve.

Hint: this may not be an exhaustive list

Congratulations to John Autin, who identified that all of these players played in the post-season in their debut season, and also in their final campaign. The first 6 names all link up nicely with one or more of the others, as either teammates or opponents. For John Wathan? Well, he and Jim Gilliam were both teammates of Tommy Davis, whom Ken Hunt owned, retiring Tommy all four times he faced him, including two strikeouts.

Here are notable pitchers of the past twenty seasons. They alone have accomplished a seasonal feat that epitomizes pitchers of the current era?

What is this feat?

Hint: these are the only pitchers since 1916 to achieve this feat.

There’s also a part B to the quiz after the jump.

I’m afraid I’ve stumped the panel with this one. It’s a bit complicated to explain – the solution is after the jump

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Roy Halladay is struggling. Last season was definitely below par. But, observers were inclined to give Halladay the benefit of the doubt and ascribe his performance to injury and never getting back into rhythm after his return to the lineup. The trouble with that assessment of 2012 is that, rather than rounding into form as the season wound down, Halladay was headed the other direction.

But, “2013 is a new year” went the refrain. With rest and a renewed sense of purpose, it would be the same old Roy again. Except, Halladay had a rough spring with whispers that his old velocity just isn’t there. So far this season, the search party is still looking for the old Roy.

Is this the end of Halladay as the dominant staff ace? Say it ain’t so, Roy!

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If you don’t know Ian Stewart, he is a third baseman, playing mostly for the Rockies, but currently with the Cubs. He’s never had a qualifying season but has exceeded 400 PAs twice in his career. In the equivalent of 3 full-time seasons, he has career totals including 66 doubles, 10 triples and 59 homers. His career slugging percentage is almost 200 points higher than his batting average, and he has more strikeouts than hits in every season of his career.

Nondescript though that synopsis may be, Ian enjoys the distinction of achieving a certain offensive feat more often than every other major-leaguer who has played his entire career since 1916. What is this unusual feat?

It’s approaching midnight Eastern, 27+ hours after this quiz was posted, so I’m calling this one a stumper. The HHS readers were quick to identify that the quiz was about appearing in an opening day game on a player’s birthday, but failed to note the batting feat that Ian Stewart has achieved more often than any other player. That feat is to get a hit in an opening day game on your birthday, something that Stewart has done twice and 24 others have managed only once, including Daniel Murphy of the Mets this season.

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In his Game Notes for April 3rd games, John Autin identified that Michael Brantley had reached based 7 of 9 times in the first two games of the Indians’ series in Toronto. Turns out it wasn’t the first time Brantley has found Rogers Centre to his liking – in fact, he has been a Blue Jay killer just about every game he’s played there.

After the jump, more on players who really take a shine to some ballparks, and also those who would prefer to miss trips to certain cities.
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As of the end of the 2012 season, there were 200 hitters since 1901 with a career bWAR score of 43 or higher, and 98 pitchers at or above the same WAR level for the same period. Of those 298 players, eight were featured on the roster of the 2012 Yankees, the 11th straight year the Yankees have led the major leagues in having the most such players on one team. In fact, the fewest such players the Yankees have featured in any of those 11 years is 6 in 2011, a figure exceeded in the period only by the 2004 Astros (and, of course, the other 10 Yankee clubs).

One would expect teams to do well when stocked with high career WAR players (or players who will go on to accumulate high career WAR). After all, such players must be doing something right and will probably be a help to your ball club at just about any point in their careers (with the possible exception of the very beginning or very end of a career). Sure enough, the Yankees have been a perennial contender for the past 11 years but yet have recorded just one world championship, something of a drought by Yankee standards.

So, what’s gone wrong with the Yankees’ formula for success? More after the jump.

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As first pitch is just hours away, here are some memorable opening day performances, some by notable players and some not.

Included is Raul Mondesi’s 1999 monster game (for which the card at left was issued) and lots more. Have some fun with a tour down opening day memory lane.

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