Best hitters in playoff history: Ruth, Gehrig and … Beltran?

By Aaron GleemanOct 9, 2012, 11:19 AM EDT
43 Comments

The perception of Carlos Beltran’s performance in the playoffs is largely built around his once taking an Adam Wainwright curveball for an NLCS-ending called third strike. That narrative, like many narratives, couldn’t be further from the truth.

After homering twice last night Beltran has now gone deep 13 times in 25 career playoff games while hitting .362 with a 1.297 OPS. He’s played in six different playoff series and has posted an OPS above 1.000 in four of them (including that NLCS against Wainwright and the Cardinals in 2006).

Obviously those are amazing numbers, but did you know Beltran now owns the highest slugging percentage and the highest OPS in postseason history? Here are the career leardboards among everyone with at least 100 plate appearances in the playoffs:

                    PA      SLG                            PA      OPS
CARLOS BELTRAN     115     .819        CARLOS BELTRAN     115    1.297
Babe Ruth          167     .744        Babe Ruth          167    1.211
Lou Gehrig         150     .731        Lou Gehrig         150    1.208

Carlos Beltran. Babe Ruth. Lou Gehrig. No big deal or anything.

The baseball world reacts to news of Kobe Bryant’s death

Kobe Bryant
Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images
By Bill BaerJan 26, 2020, 5:22 PM EST
3 Comments

Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna were two of nine people who died in a helicopter accident in Calabasas, California earlier today. Bryant’s death sent shockwaves throughout the basketball world, as well as the sports world at large. Here were a few reactions from the baseball world.

We certainly echo these sentiments, sending our condolences to the families and friends of those affected today. What a sad day.