Brandon Webb

Lore & Background

During his MLB career, Webb won the 2006 National League Cy Young Award and was a three-time MLB All-Star. He was sidelined with injuries for much of 2009–2012 and, after several aborted comeback attempts, retired in 2013. His career Adjusted ERA+ of 142 is elite, though rankings fluctuate over time and are not fixed for a pitcher with his innings total.

Reader's Guide

Webb was mainly known for his sinker, regarded on a par with Roy Halladay and Chien-Ming Wang's as among the game's best sinkerballers. He threw it in the 87–91 mph range, a curveball (72–75), changeup (77–80), and occasionally a cutter against left-handed hitters. His sinker made him an effective groundball pitcher, with one of the best ground ball/fly ball ratios in the game, at more than 3.5:1. His changeup could be useful for getting swinging strikes, yielding a 55% whiff rate in the 2008 season.

Did You Know?

• Webb's 16 wins in 2006 did not mark the lowest win total for a starting pitcher who won the Cy Young in a full season; for example, Jacob deGrom won the NL Cy Young in 2018 with just 10 wins.
• During his tenure with Kentucky, Webb set the single season record for strikeouts by a Wildcat (123).