GW2 Noteworthy Games

No-hitters

Season 1

Jayson Bagwell: 1 BB, 5 K in Iowa City's 2-0 win over Atlanta, 3/30/09PM2
Bucky Kelly: 5 BB, 6 K in Louisville's 10-0 win over Oakland, 4/28/09PM2

Season 2

Bucky Kelly: 3 BB, 4 K in Louisville's 6-0 win over Wichita, 8/25/09AM

Season 3

Kenny DiSarcina: 4 BB, 5 K in Minnesota's 6-0 win over Boston, 10/13/09PM2
Earl Buckley: 1 BB, 6 K in Oakland's 3-0 win over Seattle, 10/25/09PM2
Zeus Webster: 3 BB, 6 K in Nashville's 6-0 win over Scranton, 11/13/09PM
Charles Franco: 4 BB, 6 K in Fargo's 6-0 win over Atlanta, 11/29/09PM2 (postseason)

Season 4

None

Season 5

Neil Castillo: 2 BB, 9 K in Helena's 3-0 win over Vancouver, 5/5/10AM

Season 6

Posiedon Lamb (8.1 IP) and Carlos James (0.2 IP): 3 BB, 3 K (all by Lamb) in San Antonio's 6-0 win over Philadelphia, 7/14/10PM

Season 7

Ed McMillan (perfect game): 7 K in Austin's 1-0 win over Minnesota, 12/15/10PM2 (postseason)

Season 8

Ariel Andujar (perfect game): 5K in Helena's 1-0 win over Baltimore, 1/3/11PM
Pat McGee: 1BB, 7K in Pittsburgh's 10-0 win over Nashville, 2/18/11AM

Cycles

Season 1

David Mora: 4-for-5, 2 R, 4 RBI in Chicago Manual of Style's 16-1 win over Trenton, 4/12/09AM

Season 2

Chan Dong: 4-for-5, 3 R, 6 RBI in Trenton's 14-8 win over Los Angeles, 7/11/09AM

Season 3

Eric Allen: 4-for-6, BB, 2 R, 5 RBI in Toledo's 9-7 win over Florida, 10/13/09AM
Cliff Carter: 4-for-8, 3 R, 2 RBI in Hartford's 26-16 win over Kansas City, 10/29/09PM
Hal Price: 4-for-5, 3 R, 2 RBI in Louisville's 11-2 win over St. Louis, 11/22/09PM

Season 4

Roger Barclay: 4-for-6, 2 R, 2 RBI in Fargo's 11-3 win over Iowa City, /28/10AM

Season 5

Cliff Carter: 4-for-5, R, 3 RBI in St. Louis' 6-1 win over Helena, 5/7/10PM

Season 6

Guy Nicholas: 4-for-5, 4 R, 5 RBI in Austin's 12-1 win over Wichita, 7/5/10AM

Season 7

None

Hit milestones

Season 1

6 - Jeromy Wingo 6-for-6, 2B, 5 R, 3 RBI in Honolulu's 23-5 win over Chicago Apple Hurlers, 4/16/09AM

Season 2

6 - Brendan Borland 6-for-7, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI in Scranton's 6-5 win over Mexico City, 7/1/09AM

Season 3

6 - Quentin Cepicky 6-for-6, 3B, 2 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI in Hartford's 13-12 loss to Kansas City, 10/31/09AM

Season 4

7 - Timo Smith 7-for-7, 2B, HR, BB, 6 R, 8 RBI in San Antonio's 36-1 win over Nashville, 1/24/10PM
6 - Hal Price 6-for-6, HR, 3 R, 3 RBI in Louisville's 12-4 win over Austin, 2/7/10PM
6 - Alex McGee 6-for-7, 4 HR, 4 R, 7 RBI in Durham's 27-7 win over Nashville, 1/26/10AM
6 - Bartolo Lee 6-for-7, 3 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 6 R, 11 RBI in Oklahoma City's 37-7 win over Nashville, 1/16/10PM

Season 5

5 - Accomplished at least 15 times

Season 6

5 - Accomplished at least 10 times

Season 7

6 - Parker Lennon 6-for-6, 3 HR, SB, 5 R, 6 RBI in St. Louis' 15-1 win over Nashville, 10/19/10PM

Season 8

6 - Blake Kennedy 6-for-7, 2B, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI in Helena's 8-7 win over Madison, 2/27/11PM2
6 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, 4 HR, BB, 6 R, 10 RBI in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM

HR milestones

Season 1

4 - Carlos Martinez 4-for-4, 3 BB, 5 R, 8 RBI in Fargo's 28-9 win over Wichita, 4/14/09PM2

Season 2

4 - Norman Sutton 5-for-5, 2B, 4 R, 8 RBI in Florida's 11-4 win over Philadelphia, 7/11/09PM
4 - Emilio Moya 5-for-5, 1B, 5 R, 7 RBI in Los Angeles' 13-1 win over Florida, 8/12/09PM2

Season 3

4 - Albert Gonzalez 4-for-6, BB, 5 R, 8 RBI in Durham's 26-5 win over Hartford, 10/14/09PM

Season 4

4 - Alex McGee 6-for-7, 4 R, 7 RBI in Durham's 27-7 win over Nashville, 1/26/10AM

Season 8

4 - Bryan Butler 4-for-5, 4 R, 8 RBI in Fargo's 11-6 win over Scranton, 1/11/11PM
4 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, BB, 6 R, 10 RBI in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM
4 - Omar Andrus 4-for-4, 4 R, 5 RBI in Austin's 11-9 win over Pittsburgh, 3/4/11PM

RBI milestones

Season 1

9 - Vic Javier 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in New York's 14-0 win over Augusta, 3/30/09PM2

Season 2

9 - Ted Wakeland 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in Louisville's 18-8 win over Boston, 8/13/09PM2

Season 3

9 - Matthew Forbes 3-for-4, 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 3 R in Fargo's 19-3 win over Nashville, 10/18/09AM

Season 4

11 - Bartolo Lee 6-for-7, 3 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 6 R in Oklahoma City's 37-7 win over Nashville, 1/16/10PM

Season 5

8 - Pedro Nunez 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in Fargo's 14-1 win over Atlanta, 4/29/10PM
8 - Hamlet Henry 3-for-3, 2 HR, SF, 3 R in Washington's 12-6 win over San Antonio, 5/5/10AM

Season 6

8 - Nicholas Hollingsworth, Jack Hoffman, Orel Sierra, Miguel Carrara

Season 7

8 - Louie Martin, Sammy Barrett, Benji Flores

Season 8

10 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, 4 HR BB, 6 R in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM


Stolen base milestones

Season 4

6 - Bobby Towers 4-for-5, 2B, 3 R, 2 RBI in Iowa City's 9-3 win over Los Angeles, 1/11/10AM

Strikeout milestones

Season 1 (NL)

13 - Whitey Nichting in Wichita's 13-8 loss to St. Louis, 5/18/09PM2
13 - Glen Herzog in Baltimore's 11-3 win over Fargo, 4/13/09PM2

Season 1 (AL)

12 - Jon Cedeno in Iowa City's 5-0 loss to Texas, 4/2/09AM
12 - Louie Jackson in Atlanta's 7-0 win over Seattle, 5/17/09AM
12 - Marc Rolison in Los Angeles' 4-3 win over Wichita, 4/22/09PM2

Season 2 (NL)

13 - Darby Butler in Louisville's 8-4 win over Minnesota, 8/8/09PM

Season 2 (AL)

11 - 6 pitchers (Salem's Peter Larson, New York's Antone Hill, San Antonio's Pat Tipton, Atlanta's Jayson Bagwell, Durham's Willie Castilla, Chicago's Wilfredo Martin)

Season 3 (NL)

12 - 4 pitchers (Louisville's Bob Trammell, St. Louis' Dante Walker, Louisville's Bucky Kelly, Baltimore's David Flores)

Season 3 (AL)

12 - 5 pitchers (Colorado Springs' Lon Cashman, Salem's Cole Perkins, Florida's Cliff Perez, N.Y. Yankees' Antone Hill, Kansas City's Jon Cedeno)

Season 4 (NL)

13 - Sam Ganzel in Austin's 3-1 win over Boston, 1/30/10PM

Season 4 (AL)

13 - Pat Tipton in Toledo's 2-0 win over Kansas City, 1/12/10PM

Season 5 (NL)

13 - Jon Cedeno in Vancouver's 1-0 win over Wichita, 5/13/10PM

Season 5 (AL)

14 - Antone Hill in Washington D.C.'s 7-3 win over Boise, 5/22/10PM

Season 6 (NL)

12 - Andy Atchley in Rochester's 11-0 win over Baltimore, 7/8/10PM2
12 - Jumbo Gil in Oakland's 3-0 win over Atlanta, 8/13/10PM2

Season 6 (AL)

14 - Clint Clark in Iowa City's 5-2 win over Cheyenne, 8/21/10PM2
13 - David Telemaco in Philadelphia's 2-1 win over Toledo, 7/6/10PM2

5 Worst Contacts of All-time?

In no particular order:

Vicente Guzman none none Age: 31 B/T: R/R Born: Hannibal, MO Position(s): P (P) View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The GM: rockitsauce

The contract:
Season 12: $4,000,000
Season 13: $4,000,000
Season 14: $4,000,000
Season 15: $4,000,000
Total paid out: $16,000,000 over 4 years

Quick Summary:
- 20 control
- Cumulative ML stats over 4 seasons: 28.0 IP, 6.75 ERA
- 3 full seasons spent in the minors.

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Ruben Crespo none none Age: 41 B/T: R/R Born: Moncion, DO Position(s): P (LRB) View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The GM: scottie3234

The contract:
Bonus: $9,000,000
Season 11: $12,000,000
Season 12: $16,000,000
Season 13: $16,000,000
Season 14: $17,000,000 (player option - accepted)
No Trade Clause
Total paid out: $70,000,000 over 4 years

Quick Summary:
- Season 11: 287.2 IP, 4.22 ERA
- Season 12: 215.2 IP, 4.67 ERA
- Season 13: 148.2 IP, 6.17 ERA
- Season 14: 17.2 IP, 10.19 ERA

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Diego Nunez none none Age: 39 B/T: R/R Born: Boca De Soco, DO Position(s): P (SP1) View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The GM: thorku

The contract:
Season 11: $12,000,000
Season 12: $13,000,000
Season 13: $13,000,000
Season 14: $12,000,000 (mutual option - auto accepted [jmileskey??])
Total paid out: $50,000,000 over 4 years (should have been $41,000,000)

Quick Summary:
Season 11: 5.57 ERA in 17 starts (20 games) before being shipped off to a newB (morneau33)
Season 12: 7.42 ERA in 44 games
Season 13: 98.2 IP in relief, 4.93 ERA
Season 14: Pitched mostly in AAA

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Sting Berger Oklahoma City Twins Age: 33 B/T: R/R Born: Carmel, CA Position(s): 3B/1B/COF/DH View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The GM: garlogic

The contract:
Bonus: $1,000,000
Season 14: $16,000,000
Season 15: $16,000,000
Season 16: $16,000,000
Season 17: $16,000,000
Season 18: $16,000,000 (team option)
Total paid out: YTBD, but looking like $69,000,000 for 4 years

Quick Summary:
Season 14: .793 OPS in 158 games playing 1B & RF
Season 15: Missed most of the season due to injury, further reducing his ratings.

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Lou Gil Chicago Jayhawks Age: 34 B/T: L/R Born: Hemphill, TX Position(s): 2B/IF/COF/DH View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The GM: goosegoslin

The contract:
Bonus: $9,000,000
Season 11: $18,000,000
Season 12: $18,000,000
Season 13: $18,000,000
Season 14: $16,000,000
Season 15: $16,000,000 (player option - accepted)
No Trade Clause
Total paid out: $96 million over 5 years

Quick Summary:
- Unable to play SS for the most part (never exceeded .955 FP in any season when playing there)
- Peaked with a .798 OPS in 141 games in season 14
- Had seasons of .733 OPS (162 games), .703 OPS (160 games) & .616 OPS (139 games)

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GW1 Historical extremes

Ten regular seasons are in the books in Gleeman World, and the most recent one saw some history made in a few ways. Buffalo tied Los Angeles (Season 1) for the fewest wins by a team with the best record in the world (100-62). Los Angeles set a record for the most wins by a team with the worst record in the world (61-101). And the difference between Buffalo and Los Angeles (39 games) easily set a record for the fewest games between the best and worst teams in the world.

Here's a look at the best team, worst team and difference between the two over the first 10 seasons.

Season 1
Best team: Los Angeles Hangars 100-62
Worst team: San Diego Whales 41-121
Difference: 59 games

Season 2
Best team: Los Angeles Hangars 107-55
Worst team: Colorado Coyotes 59-103
Difference: 48 games

Season 3
Best team: New York Metropolitans 102-60
Worst team: San Antonio Sting 57-105
Difference: 45 games

Season 4
Best team: Chicago Jayhawks 113-49
Worst team: San Antonio Sting 58-104
Difference: 55 games

Season 5
Best team: Chicago Jayhawks 114-48
Worst team: San Antonio Sting 54-108
Difference: 60 games

Season 6
Best team: New York Metropolitans 117-45
Worst team: Tacoma Down Pour 51-111
Difference: 66 games

Season 7
Best team: New York Metropolitans 108-54
Worst team: Colorado Springs Silver Stars 48-114
Difference: 60 games

Season 8
Best team: New York Metropolitans 114-48
Worst team: Las Vegas Armijos 44-118
Difference: 70 games

Season 9
Best team: Minnesota Fatboys and Anaheim Anteaters 112-50
Worst team: Salem Sidehill Gougers 54-108
Difference: 58 games

Season 10
Best team: Buffalo Europeans 100-62
Worst team: Los Angeles Hangars 61-101
Difference: 39 games

Greatest Seasons by our Greatest Pitchers

The challenge here was to find the greatest season by each pitcher - counting only their very best season, each artist submitting their single best painting as it were - before attempting to rank them in order of all time greatness.

Minimum # of IP was set at 150.

Number 8

John Carroll St. Louis Greys Age: 26 B/T: R/R Born: Eclectic, AL Position(s): SP View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Season	Fran	G	GS	CG	W	L	Inn	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	OAV	OBP	SLG	WHIP	ERA
6	STL	36	36	12	22	10	279.1	218	93	89	21	87	263	.214	.280	.308	1.09	2.87

The pride and joy of Eclectic, AL - home to a population of 1146 individuals (all related) - put together his finest season after signing a contract so big that if every single resident of Eclectic put together their average annual income, they still couldn't have covered the 50mm this young gun received at the tender age of 26. The youngest member of this list by a decent margin, his 279.1 IP, 22 wins and 2.87 ERA all represent career bests for this 8 figure man who has several more years - and contracts - ahead of him yet.

Number 7

Don Masato Chicago Jayhawks Age: 30 B/T: S/L Born: Okinawa, JP Position(s): SP View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Season	Fran	G	GS	CG	W	L	Inn	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	OAV	OBP	SLG	WHIP	ERA
6	CH1	37	37	10	22	7	272.1	219	82	81	22	67	288	.219	.276	.305	1.05	2.68

Coming into this exercise I would have expected "The Don" to have been ranked higher, but here he is clocking in at #7. The Okinawan, perhaps more famous for those rumors of Awamori fueled performances in his first season as a Red Sock (Betty Ford wouldn't confirm or deny reports that he spent this past winter recovering at her facilities), delivered a career high in CG/IP/OAV/OBP/SLG/WHIP & ERA in his final season as a Jayhawk before being traded.

Number 6

Vic Alfonzo Milwaukee Twindyans Age: 35 B/T: R/R Born: Quibor, VE Position(s): SP View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Season	Fran	G	GS	CG	W	L	Inn	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	OAV	OBP	SLG	WHIP	ERA
6	MIL	33	32	2	19	2	234.1	169	60	60	20	57	223	.200	.260	.292	0.96	2.30

This devoted patron of St. Francis of Assisi posted a career low ERA of 2.3 and even managed to accumulate a save, in this his greatest season in a very steady career of great seasons. When reached at home for comment, he simply remarked that he felt truly invincible on the mound that year, before capitulating to the pain in his severely inflamed and torn groin that should keep him sidelined and blue-balled through spring training of season 9.

Number 5

Grover Rowand Chicago Jayhawks Age: 35 B/T: S/R Born: Nelsonville, OH Position(s): SP/RP View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Season	Fran	G	GS	CG	W	L	Inn	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	OAV	OBP	SLG	WHIP	ERA
4	CH1	33	26	1	23	1	168.2	122	48	41	18	43	71	.196	.253	.306	0.98	2.19

This son of a coalminer, and one of only 2 players on this list who didn't post their best season during the dead-ball/steroid era of Season 6, holds the current Major League single season winning % record with his stellar performance as a 35 year old Starting Pitcher for the Jayhawk franchise. Now converted to the closer role, his .958 winning percentage (15 decisions min) may be one of the last current records to fall. For his troubles, Rowand earned his 2nd career Cy Young Award.

Number 4

Andres Silva New York Yankees Age: 37 B/T: R/R Born: Bauta, CU Position(s): SP View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Season	Fran	G	GS	CG	W	L	Inn	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	OAV	OBP	SLG	WHIP	ERA
6	NY1	34	34	0	17	3	216.1	153	60	55	23	42	175	.195	.242	.309	0.90	2.29

Probably the biggest surprise on this list. When I started ranking seasons I put his further up before really looking, but each time I compared his season to that of the guy higher up on the list, I couldn't help but conclude that he did better. Silva, famous for having signed one of the most controversial contracts in the history of Gleeman World, delivered instantly for his new owner to the tune of a 17-3 record, 0.9 WHIP (best of any season on this list) and a 2.29 ERA.

Number 3

Billy Ray Prince Albuquerque Isotopes Age: 35 B/T: R/R Born: Damascus, GA Position(s): SP1 View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Season	Fran	G	GS	CG	W	L	Inn	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	OAV	OBP	SLG	WHIP	ERA
7	ALB	33	33	2	23	5	233.2	183	59	52	12	50	172	.214	.265	.291	1.00	2.00

A pretty close call raw numbers wise with number 3 on the list, Billy Ray clocks in with the 3rd best season in our list, an all-around monster year with 23 wins, 233.2 IP, .556 OPS against and a 2.00 ERA... IN ALBUQUERQUE. The pride of Damascus, GA, and it's population of 277 folks (all related), Billy Ray bucked the season 6 trend and instead put up career highs in Wins/IP/OAV/OBP/SLG/WHIP & ERA in season 7, claiming his first and only (to date) Cy Young award.

Number 2

Haywood Towers New York Yankees Age: 34 B/T: R/R Born: Stratton, CO Position(s): SP View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Season	Fran	G	GS	CG	W	L	Inn	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	OAV	OBP	SLG	WHIP	ERA
6	NY1	30	30	0	17	4	194.2	127	36	34	9	50	225	.185	.243	.252	0.91	1.57

Although many in the media chose to focus on his coming out of the closet instead of his on-field accomplishments, Haywood has been nothing short of spectacular as the Yankee ace. The self proclaimed "Inspiration for Brokeback Mountain" (Stratton being a "bunny hop" away from Wyoming), could easily hold 3 or 4 of the top spots in this list and his lead in the ERA dept is over a third of a run lower than the next guy. Unfortunately, Irish teammate Bernard Rhodes said it best when asked "When did you know deep down that Towers was gay?", replying "Littul fary cuin't thro' too hunnern inning cun'e? Bloody obvious if'y'ask me"

El Numero Uno

Red Wainhouse New York Metropolitans Age: 34 B/T: R/R Born: Ellington, MO Position(s): SP View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Season	Fran	G	GS	CG	W	L	Inn	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	OAV	OBP	SLG	WHIP	ERA
6	NY2	38	38	7	26	4	277.2	191	63	60	22	62	198	.190	.245	.286	0.91	1.94

Perhaps the driving force behind the steroids scandal that exploded in the off-season after Season 6, "Robohouse" (as he's better known to the adoring Mets faithful) posted a staggering 26 wins, 277.2 IP, .190 OAV, 0.91 WHIP and 1.94 ERA line in what is largely considered to be the best pitching season of all time. But it wasn't all beer and bubbly for this Cy Young and World Series Champion, as soon after the successful conclusion of the Metropolitans Season 6 campaign, word started leaking that a steroid by the name of "throwinol" was in rampant use by many veteran pitchers throughout the game. Wainhouse has kept his nose in the clear thus far, but many point to his declining numbers since season 6 as proof that the best season of all time - indeed perhaps the top 20 or so seasons of all time (including the last six above) deserve the ol' "*", the ol' "asterisko" - but for now, it's his to enjoy.

Season Averages (Season 6)

Here are the season averages for each league for several stats, compared to real life averages (circa 2007):

*Season averages for Gleeman World taken after 159 games played.
**Disclaimer: Some of these stats may be slightly off (for example, for triple slash stats, I simply added the totals of all teams in a category, then divided by the number of teams in the league, despite the fact that some teams have more at bats than others). However, this shouldn't affect the data significantly.

Triple Slash Averages (AVG, OBP, SLG)

Gleeman World:
AL: .272/.335/.441
NL: .263/.329/.417

MLB:
AL: .271/.338/.423
NL: .266/.334/.423

Runs Scored/Game

Gleeman World:
AL: 5.14
NL: 4.72

MLB:
AL: 4.90
NL: 4.71

Walks (per game)/Strikeouts (per game)

Gleeman World:
AL: 3.11/6.60
NL: 3.18/6.60

MLB:
AL: 3.3/6.57
NL: 3.3/6.76

Stolen Base Percentage

Gleeman World:
AL: 76.0%
NL: 71.1%

MLB:
AL: 73.2%
NL: 75.6%

Home Runs/Game

Gleeman World:
AL: 1.39
NL: 1.23

MLB:
AL: 1.00
NL: 1.05

Best hitters in the world

Last week, we looked at the best pitchers in the world. Now, it's time to take a look at the best hitters in the history of Gleeman World. We'll be looking purely at offensive contributions, so positional considerations don't matter. If you're interested in the best all-around player in world history, it's pretty much a race between a couple of NL center fielders.

Anyway, here are the top dozen hitters over the first five seasons, from No. 12 to No. 1.

12. Brian Wilson doesn't have the power of some of the others on this list, but his career on-base percentage is third-best in the world. For his career, he's hit .327/.413/.524 with 108 homers, 447 runs and 404 RBIs in 743 games.

A two-time Silver Slugger at catcher, Wilson's best season came in season 1, when he hit .340/.438/.564 with 23 homers, 92 RBIs and 98 runs scored. What makes his production even more impressive is that he's spent three seasons playing in pitcher's parks and has never had a home park that helps hitters.

11. Charlie Stevens is similar to Wilson, but with a little more power and a slightly lower OBP. For his career, Stevens has hit .321/.407/.551 with 160 homers, 441 runs scored and 521 RBIs in 717 games. His advantage over Wilson would be bigger except for the fact that he's played four seasons in a hitter's park.

An All-Star and Silver Slugger at DH in season 1, Stevens actually had his best performance in season 5, when he hit .347/.444/.573 with 29 homers, 104 runs scored and 122 RBIs and set career highs in runs, hits, doubles, walks, batting average, OBP and OPS.

10. Trey Fonville has gotten better each full season he's been in the majors, culminating in his AL MVP runner-up campaign in season 5. For his career, Fonville has hit .299/.376/.597 with 210 homers, 517 runs scored and 635 RBIs in 676 games.

A three-time All-Star and one-time Silver Slugger, Fonville could be even higher on this list in another two or three seasons. As is, he's coming off three consecutive 50-plus homer, 115-plus run, 130-plus RBI seasons.

9. Toby Joseph hasn't been flashy, but he gets the job done. He's hit .317/.398/.589 with 210 homers, 572 runs scored and 657 RBIs in 776 games. He's never hit 50 homers, but he's topped 38 every season and has 130-plus RBIs in four of his five seasons.

The AL MVP and Silver Slugger at 1B in season 1 and a two-time All-Star, Joseph has actually been at his best the past three seasons, hitting at least .326 with an OBP of at least .404 and a SLG of at least .572 each season.

8. Bernard Rhodes has only shown big-time home run power once, but he's never collected fewer than 70 extra-base hits in a season and he's also never had a batting average below .325. For his career, Rhodes has hit .337/.404/.595 with 201 homers, 569 runs scored and 619 RBIs in 774 games.

A two-time All-Star, Rhodes had by far his best performance in season 5, when he posted the second-highest average in world history at .379. Along with that came a .453 OBP and .643 SLG. And he controlled the strike zone about as well as possible with 75 walks against only 35 strikeouts.

7. Rickey Dixon is something of an unsung star in Chicago, getting overshadowed by a certain center fielder and starting pitcher, but there's not questioning how important his bat is to the Jayhawks. In his career, he's hit .312/.409/.597 with 209 homers, 504 runs and 655 RBIs in 738 games.

A three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger, Dixon's seasons have ranged from very good (.923 OPS in season 3 and .929 in season 5) to excellent (1.071 OPS in season 4 and 1.096 in season 1). He's posted a batting average as high as .350 (season 4) and topped 50 homers once (51 in season 1).

6. Bryan Beckett is amazingly consistent on offense, posting an OPS between .987 and 1.044 every season and hitting 41-49 homers every year. For his career, the one-time MVP and four-time All-Star has hit .307/.396/.613 with 229 homers, 701 runs and 679 RBIs in 755 games.

If you're wondering why Beckett's ranked ahead of Dixon even though they have nearly the same career OPS and Dixon's is based on the high OBP, it's because Beckett contributes with his legs as well. In addition to being one of the most feared hitters in the game, he has 129 steals in 140 attempts for an 86.6 percent success rate.

5. Matt Governale holds the single-season record with 77 home runs and is one of three players with multiple MVP awards. Also a three-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger, he's hit .324/.398/.660 with 284 homers, 682 runs scored and 689 RBIs in 770 games.

Governale made his big league debut early in season 1 and had a good but not spectacular rookie season. Since then, he's hit .326 while averaging 63 homers, 148 runs and 153 RBIs, missing just three games in those four seasons.

4. Hector Santos doesn't have quite as good a peak season as Governale, but he's been much more consistent over the five seasons. For his career, he's hit .328/.398/.665 with 272 homers, 653 runs and 738 RBIs in 769 games.

A four-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger, Santos is without a doubt the best player who hasn't won an MVP award. His worst season was season 1, when he posted a 1.024 OPS with 44 homers 128 runs and 129 RBIs. He's hit at least 54 homers, driven in at least 144 runs and posted an OPS of at least 1.047 every season since.

3. Fritz Rushford is the only three-time MVP, and much of that is because he's the second-biggest on-base threat in the world. For his career, Rushford has hit .341/.442/.613 with 172 homers, 629 runs and 626 RBIs in 791 games, all while playing his entire career in pitcher's parks.

A three-time All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger, he might rank even higher on this list had he not fallen off a bit in season 5. He posted an OPS between 1.066 and 1.100 in each of his first four seasons before dropping to .939 in season 5. And while he hasn't shown nearly as much home run power as most of the other guys on this list, he does have four seasons with 40-plus doubles.

2. Edwin Hogan may be the best pure hitter in the world. A two-time MVP, three-time Silver Slugger and four-time All-Star, he's hit .364/.454/.654 with 186 homers, 542 runs and 629 RBIs in 655 games.

Hogan holds the league record with a .383 batting average in season 3, and he checks in at third and fourth on the list with .376 and .367 marks in seasons 2 and 4. His .364 career batting average is 21 points higher than Rushford in second place. There are just two reasons he's not No. 1 on this list. One, he's missed an average of 31 games a season. Two, he's played his entire career in the best hitter's park in the league.

1. Unlike Chipper Velandia, who has spent his entire career playing in a pretty severe pitcher's park and still managed to hit .329/.408/.685 with 274 homers, 591 runs and 694 RBIs in 739 games.

A four-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger, Velandia won his first MVP award in season 5 when he hit .334/.399/.759 with 72 homers, 135 runs and a league-record 181 RBIs. That wasn't even his best season, however, as he posted a ridiculous 1.193 OPS in season 3. Not only is he the only player to top the 1.150 mark twice, but Governale's the only other hitter who's even done it once.

As good as he's been, it's scary to think about what Velandia's career might look like if he played in a park that helps hitters.

Best pitchers in the world

There have been some spirited debates over the first five seasons about who the best pitchers in Gleeman World are, and the Cy Young balloting has frequently been contentious. So, what better way to while away the offseason than trying to figure out who the best pitchers in the history of the world have been.

Here are the top dozen pitchers over the first five seasons, from No. 12 up to No. 1.

12. Brian Murata has easily been the best closer in the world. He's converted 177 of 193 save opportunities (92 percent) while posting a 2.04 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in 330 innings. A three-time Fireman of the Year and four-time All-Star, Murata has perfect control and dominates hitters on both sides of the plate. He doesn't throw hard, but instead relies on an excellent sinker/curveball combination.

Murata's worst season was in Season 1, when he posted a 2.52 ERA and only saved 29 games. Since then, he's averaged 37 saves a season with a 1.94 ERA. And although the Yankees have struggled in the postseason, it hasn't been because of Murata. He's yet to allow a run in 11 playoff innings.

11. Ruben Crespo doesn't have the sparkling ERA of some of the pitchers ahead of him on this list, but his ability to soak up innings has been a great value to the Minnesota Fatboys. Crespo is 98-63 with a 4.08 ERA in 1,401 innings. He's topped 270 innings every season except for Season 4, when an injury cost him about a month and he still made 40 starts.

Crespo's best performance came in Season 2, when he went 21-11 with a 3.24 ERA in 280 innings. The three-time All-Star also gets points for spending his entire career in a slight hitter's park in the high-offense American League. He has struggled in the postseason, going 4-8 with a 5.21 ERA in 102 innings, although he had a 3.78 ERA while helping the Fatboys win the Season 5 World Series.

10. Two seasons ago, it would have been laughable to think John Carroll would be this low on the list, but he's only gone 29-23 with a 3.71 ERA in Seasons 4 and 5. For his career, he's 76-45 with a 3.45 ERA in 1,128 innings. Those still-excellent numbers are mitigated somewhat by the fact that the two-time All-Star's played for an NL team in a pitcher's park all five seasons.

Carroll was in AA at world creation but reached the majors by the end of Season 1. In Seasons 2 and 3, he went 42-17 with a 3.14 ERA, winning the Cy Young award in Season 3. In his only postseason experience, Carroll went 1-1 with a 1.69 ERA in 16 innings in Season 2.

9. Jay Cosby has never won more than 15 games in a season, but that's due largely to the quality of some of the offenses he's pitched for. In his career, he's 62-54 with a 3.48 ERA in 1,145 innings, and he's almost certainly the best pitcher to have never won an award of any kind.

Cosby's been remarkably consistent, posting an ERA between 3.35 and 3.55 in four of five seasons, with Season 4's 3.79 ERA the worst of his career. He's been a hard-luck loser in the postseason as well, going 1-3 with a 3.48 ERA in 44 innings.

8. Gary Long is overshadowed on his own pitching staff, but there's no question he's one of the best in the league. The Season 1 Rookie of the Year is also a two-time All-Star who has gone 82-33 with a 3.58 ERA in 1,118 innings. He's also pitched his whole career in the AL, although his home park is beneficial to pitchers.

Long's best work came in Season 4, when he went 19-5 with a 2.81 ERA in 230 innings. He also gets extra credit for his postseason work, going 7-4 with a 3.20 ERA in 98 innings. He went 3-0 with a 1.54 ERA in 35 innings to help the New York Mets repeat as champions in Season 3.

7. Billy Ray Prince is definitely the pitcher on this list who's had the toughest circumstances for most of his career. Not only has he pitched in the AL all five seasons, but he's also spent 3.5 of those seasons toiling in the best hitter's park in the world. Still, he's managed to go 68-37 with a 3.45 ERA in 958 innings.

The two-time All-Star did his best work in Season 1, going 18-7 with a 2.78 ERA in 194 innings for the Mets. His postseason work has been spotty, as he did well in Seasons 1 and 5 while struggling in Seasons 3 and 4. Overall, he's 2-3 with a 4.07 ERA in 42 innings in the playoffs.

6. Haywood Towers might rank higher on this list if not for a debilitating injury in Season 3. Even without the injury, however, Towers just doesn't the arm to be a workhorse in the rotation. So while he's 65-28 with a stunning 2.72 ERA in his career, he's only managed to pitch 813 innings.

Towers has finished the season a sub-3.00 ERA three times, but Season 5 was by far his best effort and earned him his first All-Star appearance. He went 17-4 with a 2.04 ERA in 185 innings as opponents batted just .177 against him. As dominant as Towers has been in the regular season, he's been a postseason bust, going 2-1 despite yielding a 7.84 ERA in 20 innings.

5. While Towers simply never had the stamina or durability to pile up innings, Grover Rowand has struggled with injuries throughout his career, going on the DL in four of five seasons, including one stint on the 60-day DL. That's limited him to 827 career innings, but he's 71-27 with a 2.73 ERA and two Cy Young awards.

His first Cy Young came in Season 2, when he went 19-11 with a 2.68 ERA in 231 innings. He followed that up with his worst season as an injury limited him to 84 innings and his 3.52 ERA was the only time he's had an ERA above 2.90. Rowand bounced back in Season 4 to win another Cy Young by going 23-1 with a 2.19 ERA in 168 innings. He's been good, but not great, going 3-1 with a 3.79 ERA in 38 postseason innings.


4. Max Leary has overall numbers that stack up nicely with the top three on this list, but there's some reason to doubt that he's quite as good as them since his performance improved dramatically when he joined a team that plays in one of the best pitcher's parks in the world the last two seasons. Leary is 67-52 with a 3.16 ERA in 1,115 innings.

He was a very good pitcher the first three seasons, and that prompted Oklahoma City to give him a massive contract that guaranteed him more than $60 million over three seasons and as much as $76.4 million over four seasons. The Twins haven't been disappointed so far, as he's gone 37-21 with a 2.82 ERA in 492 innings while make the All-Star team both seasons. In his only trip to the playoffs, Leary went 1-0 with a 1.42 ERA in 19 innings in Season 4.

3. Red Wainhouse might be No. 1 on this list had he not been mismanaged his first two seasons or gotten hurt in Season 5. Even with those problems, however, he's 82-40 with a 3.11 ERA in 1,044 seasons. Wainhouse was under-appreciated and under-used his first two seasons, getting traded for very little by Nashville and then being used primarily as a reliever by Indianapolis.

When Indy let him walk after Season 2, the Mets jumped at the chance to sign him and he rewarded them with back-to-back Cy Young seasons. Wainhouse went 48-12 with a 2.96 ERA in 552 innings in Seasons 3 and 4. He's also been an excellent postseason pitcher, going 7-4 with a 2.78 ERA in 97 innings.

2. Vic Alfonzo has never won a Cy Young award and he's only made two All-Star teams, but that's partly because his teams have occassionally struggled to help him win games. The past two seasons, he's only gone 29-23 despite posting a 2.79 ERA in 490 innings.

For his career, Alfonzo is 82-44 with a 2.97 ERA in 1,202 innings. His 2.66 ERA in 254 innings in Season 5 was one of the best performances in Gleeman World history even though he still managed to lose 13 games somehow. Alfonzo's been just as good in the postseason, going 8-3 with a 3.03 ERA in 101 innings to help Milwaukee reach the World Series twice.

1. Don Masato is the complete package. A dominant pitcher, he has the stamina and durability to be a workhorse and he's been healthy enough to throw at least 240 innings every season. A two-time Cy Young winning and four-time All-Star, Masato is 109-32 with a 3.09 ERA in 1,275 innings. And although he doesn't have to face a DH in the NL, he has played in a home park that favors hitters.

Masato has three 20-win seasons and he's never won fewer than 18 games, and he's only posted an ERA above 3.25 once. He went 19-8 with a 2.48 ERA in 240 innings to earn the Cy Young in Season 1, and he was 25-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 256 innings to barely win his second in Season 5. Masato hasn't been quite as good in the postseason, going 7-7 with a 3.86 ERA in 142 innings. He did do his best to give Chicago a championship in Season 2, when he was 4-1 with a 2.47 ERA in 54 innings in the playoffs.