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During the 2001 regular season, Arizona's pair of aces -- Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling -- combined for a 43-12 record, 2.74 ERA and 665 strikeouts in 506 1/3 innings. This dominant duo then carried that brilliance into the D-backs' three rounds of postseason play, combining for a 9-1 record, 1.30 ERA and 103 strikeouts in 89 2/3 innings. Fresh off his 1982 American League Most Valuable Play football statistics er Award season, the Brewers' Robin Yount collected a pair of four-hit games and compiled a .931 OPS in the '82 postseason. Mariano Rivera's extraordinary regular-season numbers (a 2.21 career ERA, a 0.998 WHIP) look somewhat pedestrian when contrasted to the 1,000-watt brilliance of his work in the postseason (0.71 career ERA, 0.766 WHIP). Hank Greenberg's career OPS of 1.017 (seventh all-time) football statistics is not as high as the OPS he compiled in 23 World Series games (1.044). It's a little extra-special when the heroes of April and July and September turn out to have more than just a little left in the tank for a final set of engagements. The eight contestants for the 2011 World Series championship claim an array of regular-season studs -- batters who battered the ball with the best of them, and football statistics pitchers who silenced bats with poise, power and precision. With the dust from the scramble through 162 games now beginning to settle, here are some interesting accomplishments and achievements put together by some of the men who'll be playing more baseball as they seek to carry their excellence deep into October. BerkmanDuring the Cardinals' mad dash toward the top of the National League Wild C football statistics ard standings in September, Lance Berkman played in 25 games, batted .374, had an OPS of .941, drew 14 walks, scored 16 runs and had seven extra-base hits. With his final month as part of the big picture, Berkman's end-of-the-season numbers constituted a 166 OPS+. That value placed Berkman 13th for switch-hitters in a single-season since 1901. For any switch-hitter not named Mickey Mantle, Ber football statistics kman's 166 OPS+ was the sixth highest -- Mantle owns the top seven single-season OPS+ seasons for a switch-hitter. Mantle's monopoly on the category was broken up by Chipper Jones' 2008 season. Berkman's 2011 season gave him six with an OPS+ of at least 150, and three with an OPS+ of at least 160. The six at 150 are the second most behind Mantle's 11, and the three at 160 or above tied Berkman w football statistics ith Jones for the second most, behind Mantle's nine. ShieldsThe Rays' James Shields led the Majors in 2011 with 13 starts in which he went at least eight innings and allowed no more than one run. Considering the number of brilliant pitching performances across the Majors this year, the feat was impressive enough. But put into the context of the what pitchers have been doing since the AL introduc football statistics ed the designated hitter in 1973, Shields' total causes even a few more appreciative nods. Sheilds joined Felix Hernandez (2010) as the only pitchers since 1998 to have as many as 13 such starts. Since 1973, only 12 different pitchers have accomplished the feat: Jim Palmer (three times), Catfish Hunter (twice), Fergie Jenkins, Luis Tiant, Gaylord Perry, Mike Torrez, Frank Tanana, Ron Guidry, Mike football statistics Norris, Roger Clemens, Hernandez and Shields. Braun and FielderThis season, Milwaukee's Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder each had at least 75 extra-base hits, each hit more than 30 homers and drove in more than 100 runs, and each compiled an OPS+ of at least 160. Braun and Fielder were one of three sets of teammates in 2011 to each produce at least 75 extra-base hits, with the other two pairs do football statistics ing it in the AL -- Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson for the Yankees and Jacoby Ellsbury and Adrian Gonzalez for the Red Sox. Since 1901, Braun and Fielder are just the fourth pair of National League teammates to have multiple seasons in which each had at least 75 hits go for extra-bases. The other three pairs: Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent (three such seasons), Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins (tw football statistics o) and Utley and Ryan Howard (two). Braun and Fielder, with their 160 OPS+ seasons, became the 16th set of NL teammates since 1901 to reach that level in the same season, and the first since Jim Edmonds and Albert Pujols with the Cardinals in 2004. Phillies acesPhiladelphia's Roy Halladay (19-6, 2.35 ERA, 220 K's), Cliff Lee (17-8, 2.40 ERA, 238 K's) and Cole Hamels (14-9, 2.79, 194 K's) combined football statistics for a 50-23 record, 2.51 ERA and 652 strikeouts in 682 1/3 innings. They also compiled an arrangement of numbers no starting trio had assembled in the modern era of baseball. Entering the 2011 season, five teams since 1901 had two starting pitchers throw at least 200 innings, average at least eight strikeouts per nine innings and finish the season with an ERA+ of at least 130. Halladay, Lee a football statistics nd Hamels all surpassed these thresholds in 2011. The five previous teams to feature two pitchers with 200 or more innings, a strikeout rate of at least eight batters per nine innings and an ERA+ of at least 130 were the 1968 Cleveland Indians (Sam McDowell and Tiant), 2000 Los Angeles Dodgers (Kevin Brown and Chan Ho Park), '01 and '02 Arizona D-backs (Johnson and Schilling) and '03 Cubs (Mark P football statistics rior and Kerry Wood). Cabrera and VerlanderDetroit's Miguel Cabrera led the AL in doubles (48), average (.344) and on-base percentage (.448), finished second in slugging percentage, walks, OPS and OPS+, third in total bases and extra-base hits, fourth in runs, fifth in hits and sixth in RBIs. It was just another superb year from a 28-year-old whose career path mirrors those of a lot of men who ev football statistics entually made their way to Cooperstown. Since 1901, among players through their age-28 season, Cabrera ranks: 21st in runs scored (852); 12th in hits (1,597); 2nd in doubles (346); 13th in home runs (277); 7th in RBIs (984); 8th in extra-base hits (636); 8th in total bases (2,800); 28th with a .950 OPS (min. 2,000 plate appearances); and tied for 38th with a 149 OPS+ (min. 2,000 plate appearances football statistics ). It's not so rare that a pitcher strikes out at least 250 batters -- it's happened 108 times since 1901 -- and it's not unusual for a pitcher to have a WHIP below 1.000 -- there have been 161 of those seasons, and 105 qualifying pitchers have finished a season with a winning percentage of at least .800. But when a pitcher can be a part of all three of these groups, then a fairly special season football statistics has entered the books. In 2011, the Tigers' Justin Verlander won 82.8 percent of his decisions, fanned 250 batters and had a 0.920 WHIP, joining Sandy Koufax (1963), Denny McLain (1968), Dwight Gooden (1985) and Pedro Martinez (1999) as just the fifth pitcher since 1901 to surpass those three thresholds in the same season. Wilson and NapoliThe Rangers' C.J. Wilson threw 223 1/3 innings, put up a football statistics 2.94 ERA for a 152 ERA+ and struck out 206 batters. Since 1901, Wilson is one of 14 different AL left-handers to have a 200-strikeout season while compiling an ERA+ of at least 150. Rube Waddell, Johnson and Johan Santana each had three such seasons, and Hal Newhouser and McDowell each did it twice. Wilson is one of nine AL southpaws to do it once, joining Lefty Grove, Herb Score, Dave McNally football statistics , Vida Blue, Wilbur Wood, Tanana, Guidry and Teddy Higuera. The Rangers' Mike Napoli fell 70 plate appearances shy of qualifying for the batting title, but his 1.046 OPS (.414 on-base percentage/.631 slugging percentage) was the second highest in the Majors for any player with at least 400 plate appearances, trailing only Jose Bautista's 1.056. Doing more with lessSince 1901: Highest OPS for pl football statistics ayers with least 100 games played but fewer than 500 plate appearancesPlayerSeasonOPS Babe Ruth19221.106Ted Williams19601.096Rogers Hornsby19231.086Al Simmons19271.081Ty Cobb19251.066Javy Lopez20031.065Oscar Gamble19791.065Mike Napoli20111.046Kal Daniels19871.046Napoli's combinations of numbers also put him in some interesting company. Excluding the labor-issue-shortened 1981, '94 and '95 seasons, football statistics 29 players have played in 100 or more games, collected fewer than 500 plate appearances and put up a 1.000 OPS. Among the 29, Napoli's 1.046 OPS is tied for the eighth highest. By OPS+, Napoli, with his 171, is tied with Cobb in 1925 for the 11th highest among the 29. The 10 players ahead of Napoli and Ty Cobb are: Ted Williams (190 in 1960), Hornsby (187 in 1923), Oscar Gamble (187 in 1979), football statistics Johnny Mize (186 in 1946), Babe Ruth (182 in 1922), Jim Thome (178 in 2010), Hank Aaron (177 in 1973), John Lowenstein (176 in 1982), Roy Cullenbine (175 in 1946) and Al Simmons (172 in 1927). Among the 29, Napoli is one of 13 to have a .300/.400/.600 slash line. The others: Simmons, Hornsby, Al Watkins, Bill Dickey, Gamble, Ellis Burks, Kal Daniels, J.D. Drew, Lowenstein, Williams, Ruth and Aar football statistics on. Granderson and RobertsonThe Yankees' Curtis Granderson led the AL in both runs scored (136) and runs driven in (119), a combination that has been accomplished by 10 other AL outfielders (a total of 18 times). Granderson is the fourth center fielder to accomplish the feat, and the first since Ken Grffey Jr. in 1997. New York reliever David Robertson, in 66 2/3 innings, compiled a 1.08 ERA whi football statistics le striking out 13.5 batters per nine and allowing 5.4 hits per nine innings. In 36 innings on the road, he allowed one run. A total of 203 relief pitchers have thrown a minimum of 50 innings and allowed fewer than six hits per nine innings. Of those 203, Robertson is tied with Billy Wagner (2010) for the eighth-highest rate of strikeouts per nine. The seven ahead of him: Kenley Jansen (16.10 i football statistics n 2011), Carlos Marmol (15.99 in 2010), Eric Gagne (14.98 in 2003), Wagner (14.95 in 1999), Brad Lidge (14.93 in 2004), Craig Kimbrel (14.84 in 2011) and Armando Benitez (14.77 in 1999). Robertson's 1.08 ERA is the 12th lowest for any pitcher with at least 50 innings pitched. The lowest was 0.61, by Dennis Eckersley in 1990. Robertson had 35 scoreless appearances on the road -- that total tied fo football statistics r the 10th most since 1969. Kennedy and UptonFrom July 8 through the end of the season, Arizona's Ian Kennedy made 15 starts and recorded a 13-1 record, and the D-backs won his only no decision during this stretch. That three-mouth flourish capped a season that saw Kennedy produce the highest winning percentage (.840) in the 14-year history of the franchise, and the eighth highest for a qualifyi football statistics ng NL pitcher in the past 50 seasons. Over these past 50 seasons, 27 qualifying NL pitchers have posted a winning percentage of at least .800; among those 27, Kennedy is one of nine to lead the league in wins, joining Koufax, in 1963 (25-5, .833), Tom Seaver, in '81 (14-2, .875), Dwight Gooden, in '85 (24-4, .857), Greg Maddux, in '95 (19-2, .905), Denny Neagle, in '97 (20-5, .800), Mike Hampton, football statistics in '99 (22-4, .846), Johnson, in 2002 (24-5, .828), and Clayton Kershaw (21-5, .808) and Kennedy (21-4, .840) this season. In his age-23 season, Arizona's Justin Upton collected 75 extra-base hits, which was tied for the third most in the NL. The 75 extra-base hits also made Upton one of 11 different NL outfielders since 1901 to have that many in his age-23 or younger season. Upton joined Mel football statistics Ott (had two such seasons), Ducky Medwick (two), Stan Musial (two), Willie Mays (one), Vada Pinson (one), Jack Clark (one), Vladimir Guerrero (one), Andruw Jones (one), Pujols (one) and Cabrera (one). football statistics
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