These 16 Pitchers’ Control Issues Caused Them To Hit More Batters Than Anyone Else In MLB History

No pitcher is perfect, not even those in Major League Baseball. Though many often showcase an incredible ability to hit a spot, losing control every once in a while is bound to happen.

There are 16 pitchers in MLB history that have hit at least 158 opposing hitters. One man has a commanding lead at the top.

Some of the names are recognizable. Even Hall of Famers miss the strike zone at times.

16 Pitchers That Have Hit The Most Batters

In some cases, throwing inside is a strategy. Many of these hit by pitch instances were a result of attempting to own a certain portion of the plate.

Other times, however, command simply evaded these pitchers to allow an opposing hitter a free pass. Below are the 16 pitchers that have hit more batters than anyone else in MLB history.

16) Nolan Ryan

Nolan Ryan is one of the greatest players to play the position in MLB history. He twice led his league in ERA. He is Major League Baseball’s all-time leader in strikeouts. He also hit his fair share of batters.

Ryan racked up 158 career HBPs across a 27-year career. He led the National League in the category in 1982 as an Astro, while recording a career-high 15 hit batters in 1971 with the Mets.

15) Roger Clemens

Roger Clemens pitched for 24 MLB seasons with the Red Sox, Yankees, Astros, and Blue Jays. He won seven Cy Young awards, led his league in ERA seven times, and paced his league in wins on four occasions.

He also hit 159 batters to rank 15th all-time. Clemens led the American League with 14 HBPs in 1995 with Boston and had three other seasons with double-digit totals.

14) Jim Bunning

Jim Bunning pitched for 17 seasons across a Hall of Fame career. He led the American League in wins with the Detroit Tigers in 1957. He was a strikeout leader in three campaigns, two of which came in the Motor City and another in Philadelphia.

But, with the good came the bad. Bunning topped the list of HBPs on four consecutive occasions between 1964-1967 on his way to hitting 160 batters. He logged double-digit HBPs in nine different seasons.

13) Cy Young

Cy Young is arguably the most accomplished pitcher in Major League Baseball history. The award for top pitcher yearly is named in his honor as a result.

Young is a Hall of Famer and Triple Crown winner that ranks first in MLB wins, complete games, innings pitched, and wins above replacement. He did hit 161 batters across a 22-year career, though, with a career-high 13 coming in 1902 with Boston.

12) Clark Griffith

Griffith pitched 20 years between 1891-1914 with St. Louis, Boston, Chicago, New York, Cincinnati, and Washington. He led the National League in ERA in 1898 with the (now) Cubs.

Control escaped Griffith throughout his career as he logged nine seasons with double-digit HBPs, including three times where he hit at least 20 batters. He recorded 171 total HBPs.

11) Charlie Hough

Hough was a knuckleballer that spent 25 years in Major League Baseball. That choice of pitch often led to wayward tosses.

The former Marlin, Ranger, White Sock, and Dodger twice led his league in HBPs, with a career-high 19 in 1987. He totaled 174 hit batsmen in his lengthy MLB tenure.

10) Joe McGinnity

McGinnity pitched just 10 MLB seasons. Still, he managed to rack up 179 hit batters to average nearly 18 per year.

The right-hander amassed a National League high 40 HBPs in 1900, one of eight seasons in which he plunked at least 13 opposing batters.

9) Tony Mullane

Mullane pitched for seven different teams between 1881- 1894. He racked up 185 HBPs along the way.

The right-handed pitcher and outfielder, who threw lefty a handful of times, recorded double-digit totals in the category on eight occasions. That included a career-high mark of 32 hit batters, which he did twice.

Interestingly enough, his total could’ve been much higher. Mullane’s career began before the statistic was officially tracked. In the early 1880s, a hit batter simply resulted in a ball.

8) Tim Wakefield

Wakefield is another knuckleballer that was often unable to control where his pitches wound up. The former Red Sox starter, who began his career with the Pirates, spent 19 seasons in the MLB.

He twice led the league in hit batters, posting a career-high 18 in 2001. In all, Wakefield racked up 186 HBPs, with 10 double-digit seasons.

T-6) Eddie Plank

Plank pitched 17 professional seasons, 14 of which came with the Philadelphia Athletics. The left-handed thrower lacked command early on in his tenure.

Plank tallied double-digit HBPs in six of his first seven seasons. That included leading the league in the stat twice with his high reaching 24. While he was able to find a bit more control over the second half of his career, he still hit 190 opposing batters.

T-6) Randy Johnson

Johnson was one of the most feared pitchers of his time, and not just for his ability to make hitters look silly. The left-handed flamethrower was also not afraid to challenge batters on the inner half of the plate, which aided him on his way to more than 4,800 strikeouts (2nd all-time).

Johnson hit 190 batters across a 22-year career. He led the American League in the category twice, and recorded 10+ HBPs on 10 different occasions.

5) Charlie Morton

Morton is the lone active player on this list, having logged 199 career HBPs. With that being said, he still has a chance to add to that total and continue moving up the standings.

The righty has played 18 MLB seasons with seven different teams. Twelve times, he’s logged double-digit HBP totals. Four times, he’s paced his league in the statistic. Given his current playing status, he should be expected to eclipse the 200-hit-by-pitch mark before his career comes to a close.

4) Walter Johnson

Johnson was a two-time MVP during his 21-year Hall of Fame career. He is also the MLB’s career leader in shutouts. Still, he found a spot on this undesirable list.

Johnson hit 10 or more batters in nine different seasons. That included an American League leading 20 HBPs in the 1923 campaign. His 205 career hit batsmen ranks fourth all-time.

3) Pink Hawley

Hawley played 10 seasons with Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, and New York. He hit 210 opposing batters, an average of more than 20 per year.

The right-hander hit 20 batters or more in eight of his 10 professional campaigns. In his best statistical season, 1895, Hawley went 31-22 with a league-leading four shutouts. He also recorded a career-high 33 HBPs.

2) Chick Fraser

Fraser spent 14 seasons in professional baseball, starting for seven different clubs. He hit 20 batters or more in five of his first six campaigns, including a career-high 32 in 1901.

In all, Fraser racked up 219 HBPs to earn runner-up honors. There’s only one pitcher that has hit more batters than the right-hander in MLB history. That man is…

1) Gus Weyhing

Weyhing played for nine different teams across a 14-year career. He was nicknamed “Cannonball,” and for good reason.

Weyhing has a rather strong grip on the leaderboard in terms of hit batsmen. He totaled 277 across his professional tenure, nearly 60 more than the next closest pitcher.

The righty’s name is etched in the record books for a number of reasons. He threw a no-hitter in 1888. He set a rookie record for wild pitches the year prior with 49, while also hitting a league-high 37 batters. He somehow outdid himself the following year (56 WP, 42 HBP).

He is also said to be the last Major League pitcher to play without a glove.