Lmst

2024 Game 111: Minnesota Twins at Chicago Cubs

https://wgom.org/2024/08/05/2024-game-111-minnesota-twins-at-chicago-cubs/

Kyle Hendricks who had the best ERA in baseball in 2016, now has baseball’s worst ERA in 2024 (through his first five starts)

Highest ERA by a Cub in first five starts

YearPlayerERA2024Kyle Hendricks12.001999Micah Bowie9.782006Rich Hill9.532021Zach Davies9.472022Steve Smyth9.00

Which is interesting that there are no old-time Cubs in this list. I’m including all-time Cubs in this query.

Most earned runs by a Cub in first five starts

YearPlayerEarned runs1901Tom Huges292024Kyle Hendricks281921Hippo Vaughn281937Roy Parmelee272011Ryan Dempster262000Kyle Farnsworth251999Micah Bowie252006Rich Hill241901Jack Taylor24

Now you see a lot more old players. Why aren’t they in the ERA list? Because in the old days, they would just keep the starting pitcher in the game longer. More innings lowers the ERA.

Kyle Hendricks sits at #6 in the earned run list. In his next start, can he shoot up higher in the list for Cubs pitchers in their first six starts?

Most likely, Hendricks won’t break the Cub record for worst 6-game start. Ryan Dempster has 33 earned runs. Hendricks would need six to break it.

Going back to ERA, Hendrick’s 12.00 is another tier higher than the next Cubs on the list. How does Hendrick’s 12.00 ERA stand all-time for all teams?

Worst ERA for first five starts, for all teams

YearPlayerTeamERA1991Kevin RitzDET18.002007Jeff WeaverSEA15.352002Jaret WrightCLE14.442010Jason MarquisWSN14.331995Pat MahomesMIN14.291996Bryan RekarCOL13.972006Hayden PennBAL13.761999Dan ReichertKCR13.501983Rick LangfordOAK13.501999John BurkettTEX13.242022Kris BubicKCR13.142007Phil DumatraitCIN13.001977Frank LaCorteATL12.762010Charlie MortonPIT12.572000Jaime NavarroMIL12.542024Kyle HendricksCHC12.001975Stan BahnsenCHW12.00

Hendricks comes in at #16 all-time. Not extremely horrible.

Look at #1 on this list. Kevin Ritz’s 18.00 is head-and-shoulders above the rest. What happened to Ritz in 1991? Sabr.org has a nice detailed story on Ritz. Here’s the summary.

In 1989 Ritz was the Tigers Rookie of the Year (although the Tigers were an awful team). His first three games in 1990 were disappointing, and he was sent down after his first three games. He pitched well in the minors, adding a slider to his mix. The Tigers, looking to the future, brought Ritz back to give him a shot. But he started off by getting a 18.00 ERA.

Ritz’s difficulties were attributed to a mental block by his coaches, a problem he acknowledged might require psychiatric help if it continued. This psychological hurdle significantly impacted his ability to pitch effectively at the major league level.

Most earned runs in first five starts of season (all MLB teams)

Kyle Hendricks ranks 20th all time for most earned runs in the first five starts of the season.

YearPlayerTeamEarned runs1994Kevin BrownTEX352006Carlos SilvaMIN341902Bill CarrickWSH341937Vern KennedyCHW322004Scott ElartonCOL302004Jason JenningsCOL302000Roy HalladayTOR301998Pedro AstacioCOL301998John BurkettTEX301996Bryan RekarCOL301951Sid HudsonWSH302007Jeff WeaverSEA292000José LimaHOU292000Ryan RupeTBD291999Dan ReichertKCR291993Jack MorrisTOR291922Dixie DavisSLB291902Wyatt LeeWSH291901Tom HughesCHC292024Kyle HendricksCHC282012Clay BuchholzBOS282004Édgar GonzálezARI282002Julián TavárezFLA281999LaTroy HawkinsMIN281999Jamie MoyerSEA281996Steve SparksMIL281976Bart JohnsonCHW281949Ray ScarboroughWSH281937Wes FerrellBOS281935George EarnshawBROCHW281932Phil CollinsPHI281921Hippo VaughnCHC281901Win KellumBOS28Kevin Brown, 1994 Topps #345

At the top of this list is Kevin Brown in 1994. Brown was 29 years old in 1994. This bad start was sandwiched by a series of All-Star appearances in 1992 and 1996 (and also 1997-1998, 2000, and 2003).

https://www.57hits.com/kyle-hendricks-12-era

#1 #16 #345 #6 #ChicagoCubs #KevinBrown #KevinRitz #KyleHendricks #RyanDempster