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Which players have performed the best in the postseason?
Posted by John Dewan on Dec 16th 2015
October 06, 2009
Performing well during the regular season is one thing, but producing in October wins championships. As we await the Twins-Tigers playoff and the Division Series, let's take a look at the best playoff performers among active players.
| Most Productive Hitters by On-Base Plus Slugging (minimum 50 Plate Appearances) | |||||
| Player | Games | Plate Appearances | Home Runs | Avg |
OPS |
| Carlos Beltran | 22 | 101 | 11 | .366 | 1.302 |
| Troy Glaus | 19 | 82 | 9 | .347 | 1.246 |
| Jason Bay | 11 | 51 | 3 | .341 | 1.105 |
| Kevin Youkilis | 26 | 113 | 6 | .333 | 1.023 |
| Albert Pujols | 53 | 226 | 13 | .323 | 1.022 |
| Lance Berkman | 29 | 129 | 6 | .321 | .992 |
| B.J. Upton | 16 | 72 | 7 | .288 | .985 |
| Jayson Werth | 20 | 83 | 4 | .292 | .983 |
| Carlos Guillen | 19 | 69 | 2 | .344 | .978 |
| Nomar Garciaparra | 32 | 127 | 7 | .321 | .975 |
Astros fans will remember Carlos Beltran's torrid 2004, and Rays fans won't forget B.J. Upton’s 2008. Albert Pujols is right in line with his regular season production as the best hitter in the game. Alex Gonzalez and Adam Everett have fared the worst in the postseason, each posting an On-base Plus Slugging below .500. For those interested, Alex Rodriguez ranks 28th of 104 qualifying players, Derek Jeter places 31st, and David Ortiz comes in 12th.
Because Earned Run Average is volatile, particularly in small samples, we rank pitchers based on Component Earned Run Average, which uses pitchers' hits, walks, and home runs allowed to measure their effectiveness:| Most Productive Pitchers by Component Earned Run Average (minimum 15 Innings Pitched) | |||||
| Player | Games | Innings Pitched | Strikeouts | ERA |
Component ERA |
| Jonathan Papelbon | 16 | 25.0 | 22 | 0.00 | 0.64 |
| Mariano Rivera | 76 | 117.3 | 93 | 0.77 | 1.13 |
| Hideki Okajima | 16 | 21.0 | 16 | 2.14 | 1.55 |
| Alan Embree | 31 | 21.7 | 13 | 1.66 | 1.64 |
| Cole Hamels | 6 | 41.7 | 37 | 2.16 | 1.65 |
| Jon Garland | 2 | 16.0 | 11 | 2.25 | 2.00 |
| Brad Lidge | 26 | 34.3 | 51 | 2.10 | 2.05 |
| Chad Bradford | 24 | 23.3 | 13 | 0.39 | 2.05 |
| Jason Isringhausen | 23 | 26.7 | 23 | 2.36 | 2.10 |
| Carl Pavano | 8 | 19.3 | 15 | 1.40 | 2.13 |
The top two names on this list should surprise no one, but Hideki Okajima has been nearly as successful. Alan Embree, owner of a career 4.59 regular-season Earned Run Average, has been stellar across seven postseasons (and five different teams). A broken leg will keep him on the Rockies' bench this October.
Full postseason stats are available in the 2010 Bill James Handbook, available November 1.