One-and-Done: Who Was the Best Pitcher?

did you mean 1985 for Gooden (11.4 K/9, 1.69 FIP, 2.60 ERA, 17 wins)? or maybe 1986 (8.72 K/9, 2.13 FIP, 1.53 ERA, 24 wins)?

er, wait. this list isn't what i thought it was!

brown for sure, imo. if he'd been on, idk, the braves for his entire career and had the exact same record he wouldn't be one and done, he'd be in the HOF.

the pitchers list seem "better" than the position players

Woah, Steve Rogers had a shorter career that I thought. I guess he had the elite seasons, but not the longevity?

Only one or two great years, but had a really solid almost-decade run. My guess is he's the only guy on the list to lose 20 in a year, unless Reuschel did.

Speaking of a one and out pitcher, Eric Gagné has been the manager of the France national baseball team since 2013.

Andy Messersmith through his age-30 season: 123-88, 2.69 ERA, WHIP 1.117, 35.7 WAR, 27 shutouts, three top-5 Cy Young finishes. He pitched in favorable circumstances--pitcher's era, three years in Dodger Stadium--but he was definitely Hall-bound. Pitched over 600 innings in '74-75, blew his arm out, retired at 33.

It's a toss up between Cone and Brown. Brown was more dominant but Cone's one-and-done-ness is more surprising because he played for some really famous teams and won multiple championships.

2004 particularly bad for Canadians: Stieb, Key, and Martinez all one-and-done in the same year. (That didn't make sense to me at first, that Stieb and Key were up at the same time, but it had to do with Stieb's brief comeback attempt.)

Cone and Brown were also two of the most shuffled-around rent-a-pitchers; 11 teams between them. (I'd rather have Cone on my team.)

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