Sandy Koufax, the man who made the Hall of Fame despite pitching just 12 seasons in the MLB, had a career that was cut short due to an arm injury that likely required Tommy John surgery.
Unfortunately for Koufax, the surgery he needed did not exist, and it cost him his career at the young age of 30.
However, Koufax was brilliant in his time spent on the field. In 397 appearances (314 starts), the southpaw posted a 2.76 earned run average, as well as a FIP of 2.69, an ERA+ of 131, and 53.1 rWAR. He also won three Cy Young Awards, three pitcher Triple Crowns (leading the league in wins, ERA, and strikeouts), five ERA titles, three World Series titles (two MVPs), and even won League MVP in 1963.
Oh, and he was a cool seven-time All-Star.
With a resume like that, it’s no wonder Koufax was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1972, appearing on 86.9 percent of the ballots (344 out of 396).
But that’s a special case, as you seldom see a pitcher get such Hall of Fame recognition in a minute 12-year career. You have to be something other-worldly, and that’s exactly what Koufax was––most notably from 1962 to 1966.
But there’s another case out there who might be worthy of similar recognition. A player who pitched just 12 seasons, had a dominant five-year peak and had a career cut short due to injuries. The only difference is this southpaw’s career ended at the age of 33.
That pitcher is Johan Santana.
Santana made his major league debut with the Minnesota Twins in 2000 and struggled mightily. In fact, the left-hander was staked to the bullpen primarily for the first four years of his career (41 starts in 117 appearances).
Though he was a late-bloomer, the saying has always gone “better late than never” for a reason.
In his first season as a full-time starter, the 2004 version of Santana saw him take home American League Cy Young honors. In 34 starts, Santana led the league in ERA (2.61), FIP (2.92), ERA+ (182), strikeout rate (30.1 percent), and strikeouts (265). In other words, it’s no shocker that Santana won the Cy Young for 2004.
Then came 2005.
While Bartolo Colon, then of the Angels, took home the Cy Young, it’s no mystery that Santana was robbed of that award. Here’s how the two pitchers stacked up against each other:
Note: Numbers in bold indicate they led the league in that category.
Essentially, Colon won Cy Young because he led the league in wins, which has been proven to have little to do with a pitcher’s actual performance and more to do with how the offense does for that pitcher’s team.
Evidently, Santana used the 2005 robbery to his advantage in 2006, as he took home his second and final Cy Young Award. In a league-leading 34 starts, Santana led the league in wins (19), ERA (2.77), innings pitched (233.2), strikeouts (245), ERA+ (162), FIP (3.04), and WHIP (0.997).
So this should come as no surprise to find out that the left-hander got 100 percent of first-place votes.
Santana would go on to post a 2.92 ERA, a 146 ERA+, and a 3.66 FIP across two more top-five Cy Young finishes with the Twins in 2007 and the Mets in 2008.
After two more solid seasons that featured injuries, Santana missed the 2011 season while recovering from an anterior capsule surgery in his throwing shoulder.
He came back in 2012 but had a tale of two seasons. In his first 11 starts, a span that ended with the first no-hitter in New York Mets history, Santana posted a 2.38 ERA, a 2.79 FIP, and a 3.58 SIERA across 68 innings. In his following 10 starts, the left-hander posted an ERA of 8.27, a FIP of 5.89, and a strikeout rate of 18.9 percent.
In his final two starts of his MLB career, he combined to allow 14 earned runs in 6.1 innings.
After retiring in 2015, Santana rounded out his career with a 3.20 ERA, a 3.44 FIP, an ERA+ of 136, and 1,988 strikeouts in 2,025.2 innings. He also took home two Cy Young Awards, a Pitcher Triple Crown, three ERA titles, and four All-Star selections.
Had Colon not robbed Santana of Cy Young back in 2005, Johan Santana’s Hall of Fame resume would look very Koufax-like. While Koufax’s base numbers look better, Santana does best the Dodgers great in ERA+, rWAR/150IP, walk rate, and strikeouts-per-walk percentage.
Unfortunately, Santana’s career did not garner a Hall of Fame plaque. In 2018, the former Twins and Mets lefty received just 2.4 percent of the vote (needed five percent to stay) despite being of the game’s best pitchers,.
Though he compares strongly to Sandy Koufax, it was not enough. But let’s not forget about the wonderful career that was Johan Santana.
