Ben Sheets is Awesome

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In many ways, 2006 was a disappointing season for Ben Sheets, who only made 17 starts, a good number of them after the Brewers were out the NL Central race. It was the fourth time in his six-year career that he finished with a losing record, and his ERA was the highest it had been since 2003.

It wasn't all bad, though: Sheets's core skills—throwing strikes and preventing bases on balls—were intact. In fact, he was as good as ever, allowing 11 walks and striking out 116 in 106 innings. As Dan Szymborski pointed out (comment #23), those numbers made for a one-of-a-kind performance: no other pitcher has ever thrown 50 or more innings in a season while striking out a batter per inning and walking fewer than one per nine.

Hard Ball Times