With universal DH looming, charts and graphs show the best hitting pitchers

Paying homage to Madison Bumgarner of the Giants, Ken Holtzman of the A's, and other pitchers who raked

Madison Bumgarner couldn’t have been thrilled upon hearing that MLB will likely adopt the universal designated hitter once players and owners settle on a CBA. The former Giant stepping to the plate was one of the great attractions in the game.

For pitchers who flail at breaking balls and dread the high heat, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred’s announcement was likely met with a sense of relief. No more hitting for pitchers — save for maybe the Shohei Ohtanis of the world.

Whether the game is better or worse with pitchers taking hacks, let’s look at some of the best and worst since the American League allowed designated hitters in 1973. First off, let’s take Ohtani out of this analysis, and only include players who made at least 25% of their appearances as a pitcher (Ohtani is the greatest hitting pitcher since Babe Ruth, but generally doesn’t bat when pitching and is also an outfielder/DH). Using www.stathead.com, this research also filters out players with limited plate appearances to avoid one-hit — or strikeout — wonders cracking certain lists.

Micah Owings, who went 32-33 with a 4.86 ERA with the Reds, Diamondbacks and Padres from 2007-12, was such a good hitter that he pinch-hit 48 times. He batted .244 with two home runs in that role. The Georgia high school star hit .410 after the All-Star break in his career.

Alameda’s Dontrelle Willis was one of the most athletic pitchers of the DH era, recording the second-most triples (six), behind Bob Forsch’s eight. The former Encinal High star is one of two pitchers (Travis Wood being the other) since 1933 to have at least one home run in each of his first five seasons (2003-07). In the 2003 NLDS, following his rookie season, Willis went 3-for-3 with a triple as the Marlins defeated the Giants on the way to a World Series title.

While Bumgarner doesn’t rank in the top 20 for career or single-season OPS% among pitchers, he is fourth in single-season home runs (five) and second in career home runs (19) since 1973. Mike Hampton benefits from playing two seasons with the Rockies, during which he hit five home runs at high-altitude Coors Field.

Carlos Zambrano hit 16 of his 24 career home runs from 2006-09 with the Cubs, ranking 12th on the team during that span. He won the Silver Slugger award in 2006, 2008 and 2009, with Owings winning in 2007. In 2006, Zambrano put together the longest hitting streak by a pitcher since 1973, a 13-game run from June 2 to August 26, during which he hit .441 with three homers.

According to stathead.com, Craig Lefferts is the only pitcher since 1973 to hit a walk-off home run, beating the Giants with a solo home run in the 12th inning on April 25, 1986. The reliever joined the Giants the next season, and that remained the only home run of his career. Stathead has 23 pitchers hitting walk-off homers since 1903, including Juan Marichal of the Giants on September 21, 1966, against the Pirates.

Bumgarner’s best hitting season came in 2014, when he hit .258 with four homers and 15 RBIs. His slugging percentage that season (.470) trailed only Buster Posey (.490) and Michael Morse (.475) on the Giants. He finished fourth in Cy Young that season. In 16 career pinch-hit appearances, Bumgarner hit .308, though never a homer. He also never managed a postseason hit in 27 at-bats, though I have a hunch he’s forgiven.

Perhaps most impressive is Bumgarner’s flair for the dramatic. He and Denny Neagle are the only pitchers with multiple grand slams since 1973, with Bumgarner’s both coming in 2014.

Mark Portugal played just one full season with the Giants (1994), and while he didn’t hit a home run that season he batted a whopping .354 (17-for-48) with five doubles. Here are players with 50-plus plate appearances with higher batting averages that season: Tony Gwynn (.394), Randy Ready (.381), Jeff Bagwell (.368), Paul O’Neill (.359) and Albert Belle (.357). Portugal hit .138 in 1995 and finished his career at .198. In 1976, Jim Barr showed off his athleticism, hitting two triples and stealing two bases.

The greatest A’s moments by a pitcher came in the Fall Classic.

In Game 4 of the 1989 World Series, Mike Moore lined a double off Don Robinson over Brett Butler’s head, scoring Dave Henderson and Walt Weiss for a 3-0 lead. Oakland won the game 9-6 to complete a sweep of the Giants in the earthquake-delayed series. Before Moore’s double, American League pitchers were hitless in 70 at-bats dating to 1979. Moore’s 1-for-3 performance in the 1989 Series are the only at-bats of his career. The season before, Dodgers starter Orel Hershiser hit two doubles in Game 2 of the World Series against the A’s, a Series record for a pitcher in a game.

During Oakland’s three-consecutive titles from 1972-74, pitcher Ken Holtzman hit .333 with three doubles and a home run. His 1974 homer, in the third inning of Game 4 against the visiting Dodgers, gave Oakland a 1-0 lead in a 5-2 victory. The A’s clinched in Game 5.

The A’s have a connection to the only other World Series homer by a pitcher since 1973, as well. After being traded by Oakland to Philadelphia in 2008, Joe Blanton blasted a solo homer in Game 4 against the Rays. Of the 12 extra-base hits by a pitcher in the World Series since 1973, five are by Oakland and two are against the A’s.

Oakland pitcher Brett Anderson went 4-for-8 in 2019, posting the second-most hits and fifth-best batting average (.500) by an American League pitcher of the DH era (minimum five-plus at-bats). Zack Britton had had an AL-record five hits in 2011 with the Orioles, with a record .625 batting average.

Since 1973, 30 American League pitchers have hit home runs. Ohtani, who typically doesn’t bat when he pitches, has three home runs (the only AL pitcher with multiple homers) and a .214 batting average in 20 games when hitting for himself. Oakland has never had a pitcher hit a regular-season home run.

Max Leon, who pitched for the Braves from 1973-78, also defied the stigma of being an easy out, striking out only four times in 61 plate appearances. He hit .250 in his career. In fact, Leon struck out a higher percentage of hitters (12.6%) than his own strikeout percentage of 6.6%, the lowest among pitchers since 1973 with 40-plus plate appearances.

And then there are the stinkers. To make this interesting, let’s just look at All-Star pitchers (quite honestly, I hardly recognized a name otherwise) who stunk at the plate over their careers. Two-time All-Star reliever Andrew Miller has reached base only four times in 74 at-bats, with 38 strikeouts. Sandy Alcantara, a 2019 All-Star with the Marlins, has the second-worst strikeout percentage, whiffing in 70.8% of plate appearances (minimum 40), or 99 times in 140 PAs.

For the record, Randy Tate has the worst career OPS% (.024) among pitchers, All-Stars or otherwise, with 40-plus at-bats in the DH era. Tate had no hits, one walk and 22 strikeouts in 41 at-bats during 1975 with the Mets, his lone MLB season.