With 3 months until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time rankings in both offensive and defensive categories for all iterations of the current 30 teams for the 833 games I’ve identified that I have attended. We continue today back on the defensive side of the ball with batters hit by a pitch.
Again, based on the raw numbers, the White Sox and Cubs are far and away the leaders in this category, as they are the teams I’ve seen the most. When you adjust the numbers per game, the Devil Rays lead, followed, surprisingly, by the Tigers, who hit a little more than 1 batter every other game. The Phillies and the Braves are at the bottom, hitting less than 1 batter every 15 games, while the Mets have yet to hit a batter in a game I’ve seen.
| Team Name | Hit By Pitch |
|---|---|
| Chicago White Sox | 149 |
| Chicago Cubs | 125 |
| Minnesota Twins | 21 |
| Detroit Tigers | 21 |
| Kansas City Royals | 17 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 16 |
| Cleveland Indians | 16 |
| Texas Rangers | 14 |
| Houston Astros | 14 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates
|
13 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 13 |
| Seattle Mariners | 12 |
| Boston Red Sox | 12 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 11 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 10 |
| Florida Marlins | 10 |
| Oakland Athletics | 8 |
| San Diego Padres | 8 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 7 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 6 |
| New York Yankees | 6 |
| San Francisco Giants | 5 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 5 |
| Tampa Bay Devil Rays | 5 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 4 |
| Colorado Rockies | 4 |
| Washington Nationals | 3 |
| Montreal Expos | 2 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | 2 |
| Anaheim Angels | 1 |
| Atlanta Braves | 1 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 1 |
| New York Mets | 0 |
| Miami Marlins | 0 |
| California Angels | 0 |
| Team Name | Hit By Pitch |
|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Devil Rays | 1 |
| Detroit Tigers | 0.51219512195122 |
| Anaheim Angels | 0.5 |
| Boston Red Sox | 0.461538461538462 |
| San Diego Padres | 0.444444444444444 |
| Florida Marlins | 0.434782608695652 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 0.433333333333333 |
| Texas Rangers | 0.424242424242424 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 0.41025641025641 |
| Minnesota Twins | 0.403846153846154 |
| Montreal Expos | 0.4 |
| Seattle Mariners | 0.375 |
| Washington Nationals | 0.375 |
| Kansas City Royals | 0.369565217391304 |
| Cleveland Indians | 0.363636363636364 |
| Oakland Athletics | 0.363636363636364 |
| Houston Astros | 0.35 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 0.344827586206897 |
| Chicago Cubs | 0.327225130890052 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 0.318181818181818 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 0.30952380952381 |
| Colorado Rockies | 0.307692307692308 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 0.305555555555556 |
| Chicago White Sox | 0.295634920634921 |
| San Francisco Giants | 0.294117647058824 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 0.294117647058824 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 0.285714285714286 |
| New York Yankees | 0.285714285714286 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | 0.133333333333333 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 0.133333333333333 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 0.0625 |
| Atlanta Braves | 0.055555555555556 |
| California Angels | 0 |
| Miami Marlins | 0 |
| New York Mets | 0 |