1963
Born May 20, 1963
Torrance, CA, USA
David Wells Marquee
b. May 20, 1963 · Toronto Blue Jays 1987–1992, 1999–2000, Detroit Tigers 1993–1995, Cincinnati Reds 1995, Baltimore Orioles 1996, New York Yankees 1997–1998, 2002–2003, Chicago White Sox 2001, San Diego Padres 2004, 2006–2007, Boston Red Sox 2005–2006, Los Angeles Dodgers 2007
On May 17, 1998 he retired all twenty-seven Minnesota batters he faced at Yankee Stadium. He led the American League in shutouts that year, won the Championship Series award, and the club he did it for won 114 games and the World Series. He led the league in wins two years later with 20.
Twenty-one seasons and nine clubs gave him 239 wins against 157, 2,201 strikeouts and 3,439 innings. The winning percentage, .604, is higher than most pitchers with that many decisions manage, and he pitched for good clubs almost throughout.
He was heavy, argumentative and open about not training, and made a point of both. He wore a cap he had bought at auction that had belonged to Babe Ruth in a 1997 game and was fined for it. The writers gave him five votes of 569 in 2013 and he came off the ballot after one year.
Honors
| Award | Times | Years |
|---|---|---|
| All-Star selection | 3 | 1995, 1998, 2000 |
| The Sporting News All-Star | 2 | 1998, 2000 |
| ALCS MVP | 1 | 1998 |
| Player of the Week | 1 | 1998 |
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | TOR | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1988 | TOR | 41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1989 | TOR | 54 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1990 | TOR | 43 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1991 | TOR | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1992 | TOR | 41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1993 | DET | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1994 | DET | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1995 | CIN/DET | 29 | 28 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | .143 |
| 1996 | BAL | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1997 | NYY | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1998 | NYY | 30 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .250 |
| 1999 | TOR | 34 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| 2000 | TOR | 35 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .167 |
| 2001 | CHW | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 |
| 2002 | NYY | 31 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | .000 |
| 2003 | NYY | 31 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .167 |
| 2004 | SDP | 31 | 57 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 24 | 0 | .105 |
| 2005 | BOS | 30 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .143 |
| 2006 | BOS/SDP | 13 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .200 |
| 2007 | LAD/SDP | 29 | 53 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 0 | .151 |
| Career | — | 660 | 178 | 8 | 23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 59 | 0 | .129 |
Pitching, season by season
| Year | Team | W | L | G | GS | SV | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | TOR | 4 | 3 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 29.1 | 37 | 13 | 12 | 32 | 3.99 |
| 1988 | TOR | 3 | 5 | 41 | 0 | 4 | 64.1 | 65 | 33 | 31 | 56 | 4.62 |
| 1989 | TOR | 7 | 4 | 54 | 0 | 2 | 86.1 | 66 | 23 | 28 | 78 | 2.40 |
| 1990 | TOR | 11 | 6 | 43 | 25 | 3 | 189.0 | 165 | 66 | 45 | 115 | 3.14 |
| 1991 | TOR | 15 | 10 | 40 | 28 | 1 | 198.1 | 188 | 82 | 49 | 106 | 3.72 |
| 1992 | TOR | 7 | 9 | 41 | 14 | 2 | 120.0 | 138 | 72 | 36 | 62 | 5.40 |
| 1993 | DET | 11 | 9 | 32 | 30 | 0 | 187.0 | 183 | 87 | 42 | 139 | 4.19 |
| 1994 | DET | 5 | 7 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 111.1 | 113 | 49 | 24 | 71 | 3.96 |
| 1995 | CIN/DET | 16 | 8 | 29 | 29 | 0 | 203.0 | 194 | 73 | 53 | 133 | 3.24 |
| 1996 | BAL | 11 | 14 | 34 | 34 | 0 | 224.1 | 247 | 128 | 51 | 130 | 5.14 |
| 1997 | NYY | 16 | 10 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 218.0 | 239 | 102 | 45 | 156 | 4.21 |
| 1998 | NYY | 18 | 4 | 30 | 30 | 0 | 214.1 | 195 | 83 | 29 | 163 | 3.49 |
| 1999 | TOR | 17 | 10 | 34 | 34 | 0 | 231.2 | 246 | 124 | 62 | 169 | 4.82 |
| 2000 | TOR | 20 | 8 | 35 | 35 | 0 | 229.2 | 266 | 105 | 31 | 166 | 4.11 |
| 2001 | CHW | 5 | 7 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 100.2 | 120 | 50 | 21 | 59 | 4.47 |
| 2002 | NYY | 19 | 7 | 31 | 31 | 0 | 206.1 | 210 | 86 | 45 | 137 | 3.75 |
| 2003 | NYY | 15 | 7 | 31 | 30 | 0 | 213.0 | 242 | 98 | 20 | 101 | 4.14 |
| 2004 | SDP | 12 | 8 | 31 | 31 | 0 | 195.2 | 203 | 81 | 20 | 101 | 3.73 |
| 2005 | BOS | 15 | 7 | 30 | 30 | 0 | 184.0 | 220 | 91 | 21 | 107 | 4.45 |
| 2006 | BOS/SDP | 3 | 5 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 75.1 | 97 | 37 | 12 | 38 | 4.42 |
| 2007 | LAD/SDP | 9 | 9 | 29 | 29 | 0 | 157.1 | 201 | 95 | 42 | 82 | 5.43 |
| Career | — | 239 | 157 | 660 | 489 | 13 | 3439.0 | 3635 | 1578 | 719 | 2201 | 4.13 |
On this day & linked events
1987
Major-league debut: David Wells
David Wells made a major-league debut on June 30, 1987.
1998
David Wells's Perfect Game
David Wells threw a perfect game for the New York Yankees against the Minnesota Twins on May 17, 1998, winning 4–0.
2007
Final major-league game: David Wells
David Wells played a final major-league game on September 28, 2007.
Image: SD Dirk, CC BY 2.0