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Top Pitching Performances of 2010
Posted by John Dewan on Dec 16th 2015
January 20, 2011
The 2010 season was dubbed "The Year of the Pitcher", thanks in large part to the six no-hitters (including two perfect games and Roy Halladay’s postseason gem).
Bill James devised "Game Score", a metric to rate a pitcher’s dominance in a given start. A Game Score of 65 earns the designation "Gem" as a well-pitched game. The highest Game Score in recent history was 105, achieved by Kerry Wood in a 20-strikeout one-hitter in 1998.
From the 2011 Bill James Handbook, here are the top Game Scores of 2010:
| Pitcher | Date | Opp | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | Game Score |
| Brandon Morrow, Sea | 8/8 | TB | 9.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 100 |
| Roy Halladay, Phi | 5/29 | Fla | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 98 |
| Matt Cain, SF | 5/28 | Ari | 9.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 94 |
| Dallas Braden, Oak | 5/9 | TB | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 93 |
| Johnny Cueto, Cin | 5/11 | Pit | 9.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 93 |
| Travis Wood, Cin | 7/10 | Phi | 9.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 93 |
| Matt Garza, TB | 7/26 | Det | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 92 |
| Ted Lilly, LAD | 8/19 | Col | 9.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 92 |
| Anibal Sanchez, Fla | 7/29 | SF | 9.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 92 |
| Five tied | 91 |
Perhaps surprisingly, the top Game Score wasn’t a no-hitter, but Brandon Morrow’s 17-strikeout one-hitter on August 8. Morrow’s masterpiece reached the elite 100 Game Score, a level last reached by Randy Johnson in his 2004 perfect game.
The worst Game Score of 2010 belongs to Scott Kazmir, whose -8 Game Score on July 10 included 13 runs (all earned). Felix Hernandez had the highest average Game Score of any regular starter last season, at 63.4. Paul Maholm had the worst, at 44.1.