Doug Drabek, baseball player, 1986-1998

Doug Drabek

Born: 7/25/1962 in Victoria, TX, USA

MLB Debut: 1986-05-30 | Final Game: 1998-09-25

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'1" | Weight: 185 lbs

Full name: Douglas Dean Drabek

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Biography

Doug Drabek, born in 1962, was a prominent pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1986 until his retirement in 1998. Known for his impressive command on the mound, Drabek compiled a career record of 155-134 with an earned run average (ERA) of 3.73 over his twelve seasons in the league. He accumulated a total of 1,594 strikeouts, showcasing his ability to overpower hitters. Despite his prowess as a starting pitcher, he did not record any saves during his career, emphasizing his role primarily as a starter. Drabek's career was highlighted by winning the prestigious Cy Young Award, which he earned in recognition of his outstanding performance during the 1990 season. He was also selected as an All-Star once, reflecting his status as one of the top pitchers of his era. Drabek's playing style was characterized by his exceptional control and the ability to induce ground balls, making him a valuable asset to his teams, particularly during the late 1980s and early 1990s. He is remembered not only for his achievements on the field but also for his contributions to the game during a competitive era in baseball history.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
155 134 398 387 53 21 0 2535.0 2448 1052 246 704 1594 3.73 0

Career ERA 3.73 vs. league average 4.14 across their career seasons — 9.8% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1986 NYY AL 7 8 27 21 0 0 0 131.7 126 60 50 76 4.10 3.97 (-3%) -
1987 PIT NL 11 12 29 28 1 1 0 176.3 165 76 46 120 3.88 4.29 (+10%) 1731.4
1988 PIT NL 15 7 33 32 3 1 0 219.3 194 75 50 127 3.08 3.73 (+18%) 642.2
1989 PIT NL 14 12 35 34 8 5 0 244.3 215 76 69 123 2.80 3.71 (+25%) -302.0
1990 PIT NL 22 6 33 33 9 3 0 231.3 190 71 56 131 2.76 3.86 (+28%) 3498.7
1991 PIT NL 15 14 35 35 5 2 0 234.7 245 80 62 142 3.07 3.91 (+22%) 3372.6
1992 PIT NL 15 11 34 34 10 4 0 256.7 218 79 54 177 2.77 3.75 (+26%) 5263.9
1993 HOU NL 9 18 34 34 7 2 0 237.7 242 100 60 157 3.79 4.19 (+10%) 4634.5
1994 HOU NL 12 6 23 23 6 2 0 164.7 132 52 45 121 2.84 4.51 (+37%) 3782.5
1995 HOU NL 10 9 31 31 2 1 0 185.0 205 98 54 143 4.77 4.45 (-7%) 2993.3
1996 HOU NL 7 9 30 30 1 0 0 175.3 208 89 60 137 4.57 4.61 (+1%) 1356.4
1997 CHW AL 12 11 31 31 0 0 0 169.3 170 108 69 85 5.74 4.39 (-31%) -
1998 BAL AL 6 11 23 21 1 0 0 108.7 138 88 29 55 7.29 4.43 (-64%) -2851.1

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
412 716 42 119 17 3 2 46 0 17 207 0.166 0.193 0.207 0.399 -5447.8

Career AVG .166 vs. league average .262 across their career seasons — 36.5% below league average.

Career OBP .193 vs. league average .330 across their career seasons — 41.6% below league average.

Career SLG .207 vs. league average .402 across their career seasons — 48.6% below league average.

Career OPS 0.399 vs. league average 0.732 across their career seasons — 45.4% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1986 NYY AL 27 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1987 PIT NL 30 59 2 7 1 0 0 4 0 2 24 0.119 .262 (-55%) .331 (-52%) .415 (-67%) .746 (-61%) -628.7
1988 PIT NL 33 76 4 13 3 2 0 5 0 1 25 0.171 .254 (-33%) .317 (-36%) .377 (-30%) .695 (-33%) -431.4
1989 PIT NL 40 77 1 8 1 0 0 3 0 3 14 0.104 .254 (-59%) .319 (-54%) .375 (-69%) .694 (-62%) -782.3
1990 PIT NL 33 84 8 18 2 0 1 6 0 4 25 0.214 .257 (-17%) .324 (-20%) .385 (-29%) .710 (-25%) -345.4
1991 PIT NL 36 84 6 15 1 0 0 2 0 1 28 0.179 .255 (-30%) .323 (-42%) .384 (-50%) .708 (-47%) -649.8
1992 PIT NL 35 89 5 14 3 0 0 6 0 2 28 0.157 .255 (-38%) .322 (-45%) .377 (-49%) .699 (-48%) -704.2
1993 HOU NL 34 71 2 6 2 0 1 3 0 2 22 0.085 .265 (-68%) .332 (-67%) .403 (-62%) .735 (-64%) -792.9
1994 HOU NL 24 58 4 14 0 1 0 6 0 0 10 0.241 .269 (-11%) .338 (-23%) .424 (-35%) .763 (-29%) -305.2
1995 HOU NL 33 60 4 14 3 0 0 8 0 2 17 0.233 .266 (-13%) .337 (-24%) .417 (-32%) .755 (-28%) -301.1
1996 HOU NL 32 56 5 10 1 0 0 3 0 0 12 0.179 .269 (-34%) .340 (-48%) .426 (-54%) .767 (-51%) -506.9
1997 CHW AL 32 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1998 BAL AL 23 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
7 17 0 2 1 0 0 1 1 8 0.118

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1992 NLCS PIT 3 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0.000
1991 NLCS PIT 2 5 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 2 0.200
1990 NLCS PIT 2 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.167

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2 5 7 7 0 48.3 40 11 14 33 2.05

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1992 NLCS PIT 0 3 3 3 0 17.0 18 7 6 10 3.71
1991 NLCS PIT 1 1 2 2 0 15.0 10 1 5 10 0.60
1990 NLCS PIT 1 1 2 2 0 16.3 12 3 3 13 1.65

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 398 387 266 342 29 20

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1986 NYA P 27 21 5 13 0 0
1987 PIT P 29 28 24 23 2 0
1988 PIT P 33 32 29 21 6 6
1989 PIT P 35 34 24 34 2 0
1990 PIT P 33 33 25 36 1 1
1991 PIT P 35 35 27 41 5 1
1992 PIT P 34 34 29 36 3 4
1993 HOU P 34 34 19 32 0 2
1994 HOU P 23 23 21 28 3 2
1995 HOU P 31 31 24 20 2 3
1996 HOU P 30 30 17 23 3 0
1997 CHA P 31 31 14 20 1 0
1998 BAL P 23 21 8 15 1 1

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 398

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1995 Player of the Week Week of 1995-07-29
1994 Pitcher of the Month May
1990 Cy Young Award
1990 Pitcher of the Month August
1990 Pitcher of the Month July
1990 Player of the Week Week of 1990-09-08
1990 TSN All-Star RHP
1990 TSN Pitcher of the Year
1987 Pitcher of the Month August
1987 Player of the Week Week of 1987-08-28

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
1998 BAL AL $1,663,162
1997 CHA AL $1,300,000
1996 HOU NL $5,050,000
1995 HOU NL $5,000,000
1994 HOU NL $4,275,000
1993 HOU NL $4,250,000
1992 PIT NL $4,500,000
1991 PIT NL $3,350,000
1990 PIT NL $1,100,000
1989 PIT NL $325,000
1988 PIT NL $160,000
1987 NYA AL $85,000
1986 NYA AL $60,000
Total Career Earnings $31,118,162

College History

School Name City State Years Attended
University of Houston Houston TX 1981, 1982, 1983

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1994 Cy Young Award NL 4th 4.0 140 0
1992 Cy Young Award NL 5th 1.0 120 0
1990 Cy Young Award NL 1st 118.0 120 23
1990 Most Valuable Player NL 8th 59.0 336 0