Bleed Cubbie Blue · Nov 14, 2020
Cubs historical sleuthing: Fergie Jenkins baserunning edition
Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty ImagesDuring Fergie Jenkins’ first tenure with the Cubs, he was known as a pretty good hitter. In 1971, the year he won the NL Cy Young Award, he hit .243/.282/.478 (28-for-115) with six home runs. That’s still the franchise record for home runs by a pitcher (tied by Carlos Zambrano in 2006). Fergie put up 1.7 bWAR as a hitter that year.
Yes, yes, I know, I’m pro-DH so why am I promoting a pitcher batting? Well, it was nearly 50 years ago and Fergie, even among his pitching teammates, was an exception. Bill Hands, Fergie’s contemporary with the Cubs, was a notoriously awful hitter, with a career slash line of .078/.150/.091 (37-for-472) with 249 strikeouts.