Two records will be broken in Major League Baseball this season.
The players in question are San Diego Padres ace Blake Snell and Philadelphia Phillies left-handed slugger Kyle Schwarber. Both players are approaching records that are unprecedented in Major League Baseball history.
For starters, Snell leads the league in ERA (2.50) and strikeouts (89) through seven days. Michael Kopeck of the Chicago White Sox tied Snell for the lead with five strikeouts against the Detroit Tigers on April 4, but with the rest of the season’s schedule, Snell may have one more start than Kopeck.
Never before in Major League Baseball history has a pitcher with the highest combined ERA in both leagues also allowed the most walks. Snell’s 5.17 strikeouts per nine innings ranks first out of 54 pitchers who have pitched at least one inning. He’s a hard-throwing pitcher, but the reason he leads the league in ERA is because he allows fewer hits.
His .191 batting average is also first overall. He’s given up 105 hits in 155 innings, which is tied for 95th on the list. It’s not an exaggeration to say that he’s the epitome of salty pitching.온라인바카라
Snell could make four or five starts the rest of the season. As the favorite to win the National League Cy Young Award, his ERA will determine whether he gets a fifth start. The Chicago Cubs’ Justin Steele (2.55) is second in ERA, trailing Snell by a hair.
Kopeck could take the lead in strikeouts as well, so we’ll have to wait until the end of the season to see if he can break the ERA-most strikeouts record.
Schwarber is on pace to reach the 40-homer mark for a first baseman. He hit his 41st home run of the season in the first inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park, a mid-month solo shot off Michael Wacha.
Schwarber, who went 2-for-4, also raised his batting average to .195. He’s on pace for a double-double. After dipping into the low teens in early August, Schwarber’s batting average is now in the high teens after going 7-for-19 in six games in September. For Schwarber, a single-digit batting average is embarrassing. He’ll try to get his batting average into the double digits somehow. He could become the first 40-40 home run hitter in history.
Schwarber is the NL’s defending home run king. He won his first career home run title with 46 last season. He’s looking for his second straight home run title. The leader in that category is Matt Olson of the Atlanta Braves, who has 46 home runs in three straight games, including an arching three-game stretch against the St. Louis Cardinals today. A five-run gap doesn’t look easy to overturn.
Snell’s most walks and Schwarber’s one-for-five batting average are records you want to avoid. That’s why it’s a rare record.