WHY I THINK TOMMY BOND SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

WHY I THINK TOMMY BOND SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

By- Damien 

Tommy Bond was the most dominant pitcher of his time. He won 234 games with a 2.14 ERA in ten seasons, earned a Triple Crown in 1877, won two ERA titles, and pitched 490 or more innings five times. He led his league in virtually every pitching category at least once, and played in four different leagues throughout his career. Bond was also an incredible fielder and an amazing hitter for a pitcher. Tommy Bond started his career with the National Association Brooklyn Atlantics in 1874, going 22-32 to become the youngest 20-game winner ever. That was still at the time when pitchers had to throw underhand, and you still couldn’t pitch overhand until 1884. He was traded to the NA Hartford Dark Blues in 1875 and went 19-16 and 31-13 in two seasons there. He went to the National League Boston Red Stockings in 1877 and earned a Triple Crown with 40 wins, a 2.11 ERA, and 170 strikeouts. He was even better in 1878 but just missed out on a second Triple Crown, as he led the NL in wins and strikeouts but finished fifth in ERA. Bond went 43-19 in 1879 with his other ERA crown before going 26-29 in 1880. After an 0-3 season Bond was traded to the NL Worcester Ruby Legs and went 0-1. Bond stayed out of baseball in 1883 but returned in 1884 to go 13-14 in a season that he split between the Union Association Boston Reds and the American Association Indianapolis Hoosiers, and then retired. Tommy Bond was one of the best pitchers in the history of baseball. He ranks better than the average Hall of Fame pitcher, but the reason why he never made it is simple. He, like many other pre-1900 stars that I write about, played before the Hall of Fame ever existed, and therefore had a very hard time getting in. Bond did get some votes by the Veterans Committee in 1936, but they were probably still too young to have seen him pitch. 

LIFETIME STATISTICS

Games Pitched career: 417 season high: 64 in 1879 led NL: 59 in 1878

Starts career: 408 season high: 64 in 1879 led NL: 59 in 1878

Complete Games career: 386 season high: 59 in 1879 led NL: 57 in 1878

Shutouts career: 42 season high: 11 in 1879 led NL: 6 in 1877, 9 in 1878, 11 in 1879

Games Finished career: 13 season high: 6 in 1880

Wins career: 234 season high: 43 in 1879 led NL: 40 in 1877 and 1878 

Losses career: 163 season high: 32 in 1874 led NA: 32 in 1874

Winning Percentage career: .589 season high: .702 in 1877 led NL: .702 in 1877

ERA career: 2.14 season low: 1.41 in 1875 led NL: 2.11 in 1877, 1.96 in 1879

WHIP career: 1.091 season low: 0.878 in 1875 led NL: 1.086 in 1877, 1.021 in 1879

Innings Pitched career: 3,628 ⅔ season high: 555 ⅓ in 1879 led NL: 532 ⅔ in 1878 

Strikeouts career: 972 season high: 182 in 1878 led NL: 170 in 1877, 182 in 1878

Strikeouts Per Nine Innings career: 2.4 season high: 5.5 in 1884 led NL: 1.9 in 1876

Walks career: 193 season high: 45 in 1880

Strikeouts Per Walk career: 5.04 season high: 10.00 in 1875 led NA: 5.25 in 1874 led NL: 6.77 in 1876, 4.72 in 1877, 5.52 in 1878

Saves career: 0

Fielding Percentage career: .902 season high: .952 in 1879 led NL P: .957 in 1879 (the league fielding percentage was .873) 

Double Plays career: 32 season high: 8 in 1880 

Putouts career: 336 season high: 60 in 1875 and 1880

Assists career: 928 season high: 153 in 1880 led NL P: 117 in 1878, 144 in 1879, 141 in 1880

DID YOU KNOW?

-allowed only 0.479 walks per nine innings for his career, which is the second fewest of all time

-had a winning percentage of nearly .600 despite the fact that 1,069 of his 1,931 runs allowed were unearned

-batted .238 with totals of 213 runs scored, 471 hits, 53 doubles, 11 triples, 174 RBI’s, and 22 walks, and batted as high as .276, .275, and .266 in three different seasons

-ranks tenth in career ERA, 21st in WHIP, 20th in complete games, and second in strikeouts per walk

-was the youngest player in the National Association in 1874

-was second in the 1875 NA ERA race to Hall of Famer Pud Galvin 

-led the NL in batters faced in 1878 (2,159) 

-threw exactly six shutouts every season from 1875 through 1877 

-also played six games at first base, three at second base, two at third base, three in centerfield, and 89 in leftfield