Remarkable: one-season performances: here are some extraordinary accomplishments achieved by batters and pitchers that are among the greatest in baseball history

Baseball Digest, Sept, 2005 by George Vass

That's all to the good. The more baseball chatter, blather and speculation, the merrier. The fans are entertained, and the game can only benefit from the excitement.

Still it's sad, if inevitable, that the details of many remarkable player performances over a season, such as Sisler's in 1920, are ignored, which may eventually be the case with Suzuki's achievement last year. That's especially true if no "major" record is involved, or if it doesn't represent the best over-all showing of a player's career.

Here's a rundown on five additional remarkable seasons by position players and pitchers in addition to those of Sisler and Suzuki. All deserve far more detailed examination than they usually get instead of being treated in the offhand manner with which Sisler's astonishing 1920 campaign was "dissed" by the media in general:

* Babe Ruth in 1919: It was the Bambino's final year with the Boston Red Sox before being shipped to the Yankees in the game's most celebrated deal.

* Lefty Grove in 1931: About as close to perfection as a starting pitcher could get in the age of the rabbit ball--or in any other era.

* Joe Medwick in 1937: The N.L.'s last batting Triple Crown winner was all-world for the St. Louis Cardinals, but not much more is ever revealed about his total performance that year.

* Hack Wilson in 1930: The record 191 RBI tell only part of the story of the Chicago Cubs center fielder's exploits in 1930, and 1929 also must be taken into account.

* ElRoy Face in 1959: If the emphasis is fixed on W-L rather than on saves, as some would suggest, no reliever ever has been equally successful:

There have been many remarkable season performances in addition to those listed here, but each of these five had exceptional features.

Of none could that be said with more confidence than of Ruth's campaign in 1919, which remains unique in the true meaning of that off-misapplied word.

That season was Ruth's transition year from being the best left-handed starting pitcher in the game, to its most fearsome hitter as an outfielder.

His record as a pitcher shouts for itself. He compiled a 94-46 career record, 17 shutouts, and a 2.24 ERA. From 1915-17 he won 65 games, more than any other lefty. His A.L. record of nine shutouts in a season (1916) by a southpaw still stands.

Ruth's 14-inning. 2-1 victory over Brooklyn in Game 2 of the 1916 World Series remains the longest complete game in the fall classic's history. After a first-inning inside-the-park home run by Hy Myers, Ruth did not allow a run to begin a then-record 29.2 scoreless-inning streak in Series pitching.

But the focus here is on 1919, the year of gradual metamorphosis from pitcher to full-time slugger. It remains perhaps the most unusual and under-appreciated performance by any player in the game's history.

As a pitcher, Ruth went 9-5 with a 2.97 ERA, completing 12 of 15 starts. He relieved in two games, winning one and earning what today is termed a save in the other.

Some current players would gladly settle for Ruth's pitching record as their full-time contribution over a season, but that was just the lesser fraction of his production for the Red Sox in 1919.