Rick Sutcliffe
The Red Baron's 1984 season remains one of baseball's most dominant half-campaigns. After Cleveland traded Sutcliffe to Chicago in June, he went 16-1 with a 2.69 ERA for the Cubs, becoming the first National League pitcher to win the Cy Young Award after switching leagues mid-season.
That magical run capped a career defined by stark contrasts. Sutcliffe's 4.08 career ERA tells only half the story — when he was on, few pitchers were better. His 1982 Cleveland season showcased his ceiling with a 2.96 ERA and 130 ERA+, numbers that would have been even more impressive if sustained.
The lanky right-hander's 1679 career strikeouts came during an era when power pitching was less common, making his ability to miss bats particularly valuable. His 171 wins over 19 seasons reflected both durability and the kind of competitive fire that made him a three-time All-Star despite the middling overall numbers.
Career · Hitting
18 seasons| Year | Team | G | AB | HR | RBI | AVG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | LAD | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | 0 |
| 1978 | LAD | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1979 | LAD | 40 | 85 | 1 | 17 | .247 | .571 | 79 |
| 1980 | LAD | 44 | 27 | 0 | 3 | .148 | .355 | 50 |
| 1981 | LAD | 14 | 11 | 0 | 2 | .182 | .490 | 71 |
| 1982 | CLE | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1983 | CLE | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1984 | CHC | 35 | 56 | 0 | 6 | .250 | .579 | 82 |
| 1985 | CHC | 20 | 43 | 1 | 3 | .233 | .563 | 79 |
| 1986 | CHC | 29 | 53 | 1 | 4 | .208 | .552 | 77 |
| 1987 | CHC | 35 | 81 | 0 | 6 | .148 | .448 | 60 |
| 1988 | CHC | 33 | 75 | 1 | 6 | .160 | .464 | 67 |
| 1989 | CHC | 37 | 70 | 0 | 5 | .143 | .421 | 61 |
| 1990 | CHC | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .286 | 40 |
| 1991 | CHC | 20 | 32 | 0 | 2 | .094 | .246 | 35 |
| 1992 | BAL | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1993 | BAL | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1994 | STL | 16 | 23 | 0 | 1 | .130 | .304 | 40 |
| Career | 466 | 562 | 4 | 55 | .181 | — | — | |
Career · Pitching
18 seasons| Year | Team | G | IP | W | L | ERA | ERA+ | SO | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | LAD | 1 | 5.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 3 | 0.600 |
| 1978 | LAD | 2 | 1.7 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | — | 0 | 1.800 |
| 1979 | LAD | 39 | 242.0 | 17 | 10 | 3.46 | 115 | 117 | 1.298 |
| 1980 | LAD | 42 | 110.0 | 3 | 9 | 5.56 | 69 | 59 | 1.609 |
| 1981 | LAD | 14 | 47.0 | 2 | 2 | 4.02 | 89 | 16 | 1.298 |
| 1982 | CLE | 34 | 216.0 | 14 | 8 | 2.96 | 130 | 142 | 1.259 |
| 1983 | CLE | 36 | 243.3 | 17 | 11 | 4.29 | 90 | 160 | 1.451 |
| 1984 | CHC | 35 | 244.7 | 20 | 6 | 3.64 | 105 | 213 | 1.304 |
| 1985 | CHC | 20 | 130.0 | 8 | 8 | 3.18 | 122 | 102 | 1.254 |
| 1986 | CHC | 28 | 176.7 | 5 | 14 | 4.64 | 85 | 122 | 1.483 |
| 1987 | CHC | 34 | 237.3 | 18 | 10 | 3.68 | 116 | 174 | 1.386 |
| 1988 | CHC | 32 | 226.0 | 13 | 14 | 3.86 | 96 | 144 | 1.336 |
| 1989 | CHC | 35 | 229.0 | 16 | 11 | 3.66 | 101 | 153 | 1.183 |
| 1990 | CHC | 5 | 21.3 | 0 | 2 | 5.91 | 65 | 7 | 1.734 |
| 1991 | CHC | 19 | 96.7 | 6 | 5 | 4.10 | 95 | 52 | 1.459 |
| 1992 | BAL | 36 | 237.3 | 16 | 15 | 4.47 | 84 | 109 | 1.369 |
| 1993 | BAL | 29 | 166.0 | 10 | 10 | 5.75 | 73 | 80 | 1.723 |
| 1994 | STL | 16 | 67.7 | 6 | 4 | 6.52 | 69 | 26 | 1.847 |
| Career | 457 | 2697.7 | 171 | 139 | — | — | 1679 | — | |
Matchups, projections, comps — grounded in Lahman, Retrosheet, and Statcast.