1990 Leaders & Numbers

Dogged by erratic performance through his first four years in the majors, maddened by an arbitration defeat and embarrassed that no team wanted to trade for him, Barry Bonds finally and absolutely came alive. Equally moody but more veteran, Rickey Henderson was never happier with the powerful A’s—and thus never better. One wondered how fans of the Cubs—surprised by Ryne Sandberg’s 30 homers in 1989—felt about his NL-high 40 in 1990. Thanks to a red-hot (.384) second half, 37-year-old George Brett became the only hitter to win batting titles in three different decades. Ron Gant, whose 1988 rookie star fell all the way down to Class-A ball in 1989, rebounded all the way back up, and then some. Yankees fans shook their heads yet again watching another former prospect (Doug Drabek) succeed elsewhere. Bobby Thigpen had the White Sox’ knack of keeping their leads short to thank for smashing the season saves record. As tough as Thigpen was, Dennis Eckersley was damn near perfect. Ramon Martinez’s terrific rookie showing came six years after he pitched for the Dominican Olympic team at 16. Sparky Anderson said every good pitcher has one great year—and so it was for Bob Welch, who flirted with 30 wins. Zane Smith, a combined 6-23 at Atlanta his previous two years, showed what he could do when paired with a winner at Pittsburgh. Ed Whitson, one of the few people to brawl with Billy Martin and win, effectively punched out opponents from the Padres’ mound.

The Ten Best National League Hitters, 1990
Name	Team	G	BA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	IB	HB	SB	CS	GD
1. Barry Bonds	Pittsburgh	151	.301	519	104	156	32	3	33	114	78	15	3	52	13	8
2. Ryne Sandberg	Chicago	155	.306	615	116	188	30	3	40	100	42	8	1	25	7	8
3. Ron Gant	Atlanta	152	.303	575	107	174	34	3	32	84	50	0	1	33	16	8
4. Bobby Bonilla	Pittsburgh	160	.280	625	112	175	39	7	32	120	36	9	1	4	3	11
5. Lenny Dykstra	Philadelphia	149	.325	590	106	192	35	3	9	60	75	14	7	33	5	5
6. Kal Daniels	Los Angeles	130	.296	450	81	133	23	1	27	94	67	1	3	4	3	9
7. Eddie Murray	Los Angeles	155	.330	558	96	184	22	3	26	95	61	21	1	8	5	19
8. Darryl Strawberry	New York	152	.277	542	92	150	18	1	37	108	55	15	4	15	8	5
9. Eric Davis	Cincinnati	127	.260	453	84	118	26	2	24	86	54	6	2	21	3	7
10. David Justice	Atlanta	127	.282	439	76	124	23	2	28	78	60	4	0	11	6	2

The Ten Best American League Hitters, 1990
Name	Team	G	BA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	IB	HB	SB	CS	GD
1. Rickey Henderson	Oakland	136	.325	489	119	159	33	3	28	61	95	2	4	65	10	13
2. Cecil Fielder	Detroit	159	.277	573	104	159	25	1	51	132	79	11	5	0	1	15
3. Fred McGriff	Toronto	153	.300	557	91	167	21	1	35	88	82	12	2	5	3	7
4. Kelly Gruber	Toronto	150	.274	592	92	162	36	6	31	118	46	2	8	14	2	14
5. George Brett	Kansas City	142	.329	544	82	179	45	7	14	87	42	14	0	9	2	18
6. Jose Canseco	Oakland	131	.274	481	83	132	14	2	37	101	64	8	5	19	10	9
7. Ken Griffey Jr.	Seattle	155	.300	597	91	179	28	7	22	80	51	12	2	16	11	12
8. Mark McGwire	Oakland	156	.235	523	87	123	16	0	39	108	101	9	7	2	1	13
9. Wade Boggs	Boston	155	.302	619	89	187	44	5	6	63	68	19	1	0	0	14
10. Julio Franco	Texas	157	.296	582	96	172	27	1	11	69	79	3	2	31	10	12

The Ten Best National League Pitchers, 1990
Name	Team	ERA	W	L	PCT	SV	BS	G	GS	IP	TB	ER	BB	IB	WP	HB	BK	SB	CS	GD
1. Doug Drabek	Pittsburgh	2.76	22	6	.786	0	0	33	33	231.1	280	78	54	2	6	3	0	18	9	11
2. Ed Whitson	San Diego	2.60	14	9	.609	0	0	32	32	228.2	297	66	39	8	2	1	0	12	7	16
3. Frank Viola	New York	2.67	20	12	.625	0	0	35	35	249.2	312	74	58	2	11	2	0	26	15	17
4. Zane Smith	Montreal-Pittsburgh	2.55	12	9	.571	0	0	33	31	215.1	280	61	46	4	2	3	0	27	4	34
5. Danny Darwin	Houston	2.21	11	4	.733	2	2	48	17	162.2	200	40	27	4	0	4	2	17	6	8
6. Ramon Martinez	Los Angeles	2.92	20	6	.769	0	0	33	33	234.1	309	76	62	5	3	4	3	22	13	11
7. Jose Rijo	Cincinnati	2.70	14	8	.636	0	0	29	29	197	223	59	77	1	2	2	5	19	4	10
8. Greg Maddux	Chicago	3.46	15	15	.500	0	0	35	35	237	323	91	61	10	3	4	3	13	4	27
9. Dwight Gooden	New York	3.83	19	7	.731	0	0	34	34	232.2	306	99	67	3	6	7	3	60	16	12
10. Dennis Martinez	Montreal	2.95	10	11	.476	0	0	32	32	226	281	74	40	9	1	6	1	19	9	13

The Ten Best American League Pitchers, 1990
Name	Team	ERA	W	L	PCT	SV	BS	G	GS	IP	TB	ER	BB	IB	WP	HB	BK	SB	CS	GD
1. Roger Clemens	Boston	1.93	21	6	.778	0	0	31	31	228.1	259	49	51	3	8	7	0	14	14	11
2. Dave Stewart	Oakland	2.56	22	11	.667	0	0	36	36	267	319	76	82	1	8	5	0	13	6	23
3. Chuck Finley	California	2.40	18	9	.667	0	0	32	32	236	303	63	78	3	9	2	0	15	18	22
4. Dave Stieb	Toronto	2.93	18	6	.750	0	0	33	33	208.2	249	68	64	0	5	10	0	6	8	7
5. Dennis Eckersley	Oakland	0.61	4	2	.667	48	2	63	0	73.1	58	5	3	1	0	0	0	1	2	3
6. Bobby Thigpen	Chicago	1.83	4	6	.400	57	8	77	0	88.2	87	18	29	3	2	1	0	3	0	12
7. Bob Welch	Oakland	2.95	27	6	.818	0	0	35	35	238	346	78	73	4	2	5	2	10	7	25
8. Kevin Appier	Kansas City	2.76	12	8	.600	0	0	32	24	185.2	237	57	52	2	6	6	1	13	1	21
9. Erik Hanson	Seattle	3.24	18	9	.667	0	0	33	33	236	293	85	62	6	10	2	1	18	8	17
10. Greg Hibbard	Chicago	3.16	14	9	.609	0	0	33	33	211	281	74	53	2	2	6	1	11	8	25

Brown type indicates league leader.
Notes: Walks (BB) do not include intentional walks (IB). For pitchers, caught stealing (CS) also includes pickoffs.
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