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2007 National League Stat LeadersFacts & Figures About the N.L. Baseball's Top Hitters and PitchersThe 2007 baseball season was one for the ages. Records fell, milestones were met and front-runners collapsed. Here is a wrap-up on the NL's top hitters and pitchers.
2007 National League Pitching Leaders Most Wins: (19) by Jake Peavy of the San Diego Padres. Peavy's 19 wins were the most of his career, and was one more than his closest pursuers, Carlos Zambrano and Brandon Webb, who both won 18. Most Strikeouts: (240) by Jake Peavy. Peavy and Aaron Harang, who had 218 Ks, were the only hurlers in the National League to eclipse the 200-strikeout mark. That is the fewest number of National League pitchers to whiff more than 200 batters since 1995, when Hideo Nomo was the sole starter to pass the double century mark -- and that was in a season that had just 144 games. Lowest ERA: (2.54) by Peavy, which was one-half point lower than the next stingiest pitcher, Brandon Webb, who posted a 3.01 ERA for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Most Saves: (47) by Jose Valverde of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Lowest WHIP by a Starter: (1.06) by Jake Peavy. Lowest WHIP by a Reliever: (0.72) by Takashi Saito of the Los Angeles Dodgers. 2007 National League Hitting Leaders Highest Batting Average: (.340) by Matt Holliday of the Colorado Rockies, who barely topped Chipper Jones of the Atlanta Braves, who hit .337. Most Home Runs: (50) by Prince Fielder of the Milwaukee Brewers. By reaching fifty dingers, Fielder created a new club for the game of baseball: the Father and Son 50/50 club. Prince's old man, Cecil Fielder, smacked 51 round-trippers for the 1990 Detroit Tigers. Most Hits: (216) by Matt Holliday. Most Doubles: (50) by Holliday. Most Triples: (20) by Jimmy Rollins of the Philadelphia Phillies. Rollins also had more than 20 doubles, 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases, making him just the fourth player in baseball history to become a member of the the "quadruple 20" club. He joins Willie Mays, who accomplished the feat in 1957, Frank "Wildfire" Schulte (1901) and Detroit's Curtis Granderson, who also did it this season. Most Stolen Bases: (78) by Jose Reyes of the New York Mets. That was the most in the National League since Marquis Grissom swiped 78 bags for the 1992 Expos. The last player in the National League to steal more bases than Reyes was Vince Coleman, who had 109 steals for the 1987 St. Louis Cardinals. Most Runs Scored: (139) by Jimmy Rollins. Highest Slugging Percentage: (.618) by Prince Fielder. Highest On Base Percentage: (.434) by Todd Helton of the Colorado Rockies. Notable Pitching Records and Marks Set in 2007 Brandon Webb of the Arizona Diamondbacks pitched 42 consecutive shutout innings. That was the most consecutive innings pitched without surrendering a run since Orel Hershiser set the all-time record of 59 straight in 1988 with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Jake Peavy won the National League pitching Triple Crown, becoming the first NL pitcher to accomplish the feat since Randy Johnson led the League in the three major pitching categories in 2002. Tom Glavine of the New York Mets won the 300th game of his career on August 5, 2007, becoming the 23rd, and possibly last, member of the 300 Win Club. The pitcher who is currently closest to the mark is Randy Johnson, who has 288 victories. But Johnson's chronic back injuries, which required season-ending surgery in July, may prevent him from making an effective return to the pitcher's mound. Notable Hitting Records and Marks Set in 2007 Craig Biggio collected his 3,000 hit on June 28, 2007, making him the 27th member of the 3,000 Hit Club. Ryan Howard hit 47 home runs, giving him a two year total of 105. Howard is the first player who is not embroiled in a steroid controversy to reach the century mark over a two year period since Roger Maris smacked an even one hundred in 1960-61. That is worth noting. Barry Bonds surpassed Hank Aaron's all-time home run mark by hitting number 756 off Mike Bacsik of the Washington Nationals on August 7, 2007. For more on the 2007 baseball season, check out the 2007 MLB Season Wrap-Up and the 2007 American League Stat Leaders.
The copyright of the article 2007 National League Stat Leaders in Baseball is owned by James Lincoln Ray. Permission to republish 2007 National League Stat Leaders in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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