David Wells, baseball player, 1987-2007

David Wells

Born: 5/20/1963 in Torrance, CA, USA

MLB Debut: 1987-06-30 | Final Game: 2007-09-28

Bats: L | Throws: L | Height: 6'3" | Weight: 187 lbs

Full name: David Lee Wells

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Biography

David Wells was a prominent pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1987 to 2007. Born in 1963, Wells made a significant impact on the game during his career, marked by a strong competitive spirit and an unorthodox pitching style. Over his two-decade tenure, he compiled a record of 239 wins against 157 losses, finishing his career with a 4.13 earned run average (ERA) and a total of 2,201 strikeouts. His ability to dominate hitters was complemented by a fierce competitive nature, which earned him respect among his peers and fans alike. Wells was a three-time All-Star and was named the Most Valuable Player of the American League Championship Series (ALCS) during his career, showcasing his ability to perform under pressure. His contributions to the game were particularly notable during a time when pitching was evolving, and he adeptly navigated the challenges of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. With 13 career saves to his name, Wells demonstrated versatility as a pitcher, capable of closing games when needed. His legacy remains as a testament to his skill and determination on the mound, making him a memorable figure in baseball history.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
239 157 660 489 54 12 13 3439.0 3635 1578 407 719 2201 4.13 0

Career ERA 4.13 vs. league average 4.30 across their career seasons — near 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
1987 TOR AL 4 3 18 2 0 0 1 29.3 37 13 12 32 3.99 4.29 (+7%) 1753.7
1988 TOR AL 3 5 41 0 0 0 4 64.3 65 33 31 56 4.62 3.73 (-24%) -2050.3
1989 TOR AL 7 4 54 0 0 0 2 86.3 66 23 28 78 2.40 3.71 (+35%) 2259.4
1990 TOR AL 11 6 43 25 0 0 3 189.0 165 66 45 115 3.14 3.86 (+19%) 2753.4
1991 TOR AL 15 10 40 28 2 0 1 198.3 188 82 49 106 3.72 3.91 (+5%) -1136.0
1992 TOR AL 7 9 41 14 0 0 2 120.0 138 72 36 62 5.40 3.75 (-44%) -2575.1
1993 DET AL 11 9 32 30 0 0 0 187.0 183 87 42 139 4.19 4.19 (avg) 462.7
1994 DET AL 5 7 16 16 5 1 0 111.3 113 49 24 71 3.96 4.51 (+12%) 1245.6
1995 DET AL 10 3 18 18 3 0 0 130.3 120 44 37 83 3.04 4.45 (+32%) 94.0
1995 CIN NL 6 5 11 11 3 0 0 72.7 74 29 16 50 3.59 4.45 (+19%) 1825.4
1996 BAL AL 11 14 34 34 3 0 0 224.3 247 128 51 130 5.14 4.61 (-11%) -185.8
1997 NYY AL 16 10 32 32 5 2 0 218.0 239 102 45 156 4.21 4.39 (+4%) -
1998 NYY AL 18 4 30 30 8 5 0 214.3 195 83 29 163 3.49 4.43 (+21%) -
1999 TOR AL 17 10 34 34 7 1 0 231.7 246 124 62 169 4.82 4.71 (-2%) 2167.6
2000 TOR AL 20 8 35 35 9 1 0 229.7 266 105 31 166 4.11 4.77 (+14%) 7634.3
2001 CHW AL 5 7 16 16 1 0 0 100.7 120 50 21 59 4.47 4.42 (-1%) -
2002 NYY AL 19 7 31 31 2 1 0 206.3 210 86 45 137 3.75 4.28 (+12%) -
2003 NYY AL 15 7 31 30 4 1 0 213.0 242 98 20 101 4.14 4.40 (+6%) -
2004 SDP NL 12 8 31 31 0 0 0 195.7 203 81 20 101 3.73 4.46 (+17%) -
2005 BOS AL 15 7 30 30 2 0 0 184.0 220 91 21 107 4.45 4.29 (-4%) 2201.6
2006 BOS AL 2 3 8 8 0 0 0 47.0 64 26 8 24 4.98 4.53 (-10%) -1038.3
2006 SDP NL 1 2 5 5 0 0 0 28.3 33 11 4 14 3.49 4.53 (+23%) -
2007 SDP NL 5 8 22 22 0 0 0 118.7 156 73 33 63 5.54 4.47 (-24%) -
2007 LAD NL 4 1 7 7 0 0 0 38.7 45 22 9 19 5.12 4.47 (-14%) -

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
660 178 8 23 2 0 0 5 0 3 59 0.129 0.148 0.140 0.289 -645.0

Career AVG .129 vs. league average .264 across their career seasons — 51.1% below league average.

Career OBP .148 vs. league average .333 across their career seasons — 55.4% below league average.

Career SLG .140 vs. league average .413 across their career seasons — 66.0% below league average.

Career OPS 0.289 vs. league average 0.746 across their career seasons — 61.3% 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
1987 TOR AL 18 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1988 TOR AL 41 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1989 TOR AL 54 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1990 TOR AL 43 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1991 TOR AL 40 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1992 TOR AL 41 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1993 DET AL 32 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1994 DET AL 16 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1995 DET AL 18 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1995 CIN NL 11 28 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 0.143 — — — — 0.0
1996 BAL AL 34 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1997 NYY AL 32 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1998 NYY AL 30 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.250 — — — — 0.0
1999 TOR AL 34 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 — — — — 0.0
2000 TOR AL 35 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.167 — — — — 0.0
2001 CHW AL 16 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
2002 NYY AL 31 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.000 — — — — 0.0
2003 NYY AL 31 6 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.167 — — — — 0.0
2004 SDP NL 31 57 2 6 0 0 0 3 0 3 24 0.105 .266 (-60%) .335 (-51%) .427 (-75%) .762 (-65%) -645.0
2005 BOS AL 30 7 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0.143 — — — — 0.0
2006 BOS AL 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2006 SDP NL 5 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.200 — — — — 0.0
2007 SDP NL 22 38 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 0.105 — — — — 0.0
2007 LAD NL 7 15 2 4 1 0 0 1 0 0 6 0.267 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
27 6 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.333

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2006 NLDS2 SDN 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000
2005 ALDS1 BOS 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2003 ALCS NYA 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2003 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2003 WS NYA 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2002 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1998 ALCS NYA 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1998 ALDS2 NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1998 WS NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1997 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1996 ALCS BAL 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1996 ALDS1 BAL 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1995 NLCS CIN 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.500
1995 NLDS2 CIN 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.333
1992 WS TOR 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1991 ALCS TOR 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1989 ALCS TOR 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
10 5 27 17 0 125.0 116 44 25 83 3.17

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2006 NLDS2 SDN 0 1 1 1 0 5.0 7 2 0 2 3.60
2005 ALDS1 BOS 0 1 1 1 0 6.7 7 2 0 2 2.70
2003 ALCS NYA 1 0 2 1 0 7.7 5 2 2 5 2.35
2003 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 1 1 0 7.7 8 1 0 5 1.17
2003 WS NYA 0 1 2 2 0 8.0 6 3 2 1 3.38
2002 ALDS1 NYA 0 1 1 1 0 4.7 10 8 0 0 15.43
1998 ALCS NYA 2 0 2 2 0 15.7 12 5 2 18 2.87
1998 ALDS2 NYA 1 0 1 1 0 8.0 5 0 1 9 0.00
1998 WS NYA 1 0 1 1 0 7.0 7 5 2 4 6.43
1997 ALDS1 NYA 1 0 1 1 0 9.0 5 1 0 1 1.00
1996 ALCS BAL 1 0 1 1 0 6.7 8 3 3 6 4.05
1996 ALDS1 BAL 1 0 2 2 0 13.7 15 7 4 6 4.61
1995 NLCS CIN 0 1 1 1 0 6.0 8 3 2 3 4.50
1995 NLDS2 CIN 1 0 1 1 0 6.3 6 0 1 8 0.00
1992 WS TOR 0 0 4 0 0 4.3 1 0 2 3 0.00
1991 ALCS TOR 0 0 4 0 0 7.7 6 2 2 9 2.35
1989 ALCS TOR 0 0 1 0 0 1.0 0 0 2 1 0.00

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 660 489 149 451 30 25

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1987 TOR P 18 2 2 4 0 1
1988 TOR P 41 0 5 5 0 1
1989 TOR P 54 0 9 11 1 0
1990 TOR P 43 25 7 32 0 1
1991 TOR P 40 28 5 35 2 1
1992 TOR P 41 14 9 14 1 1
1993 DET P 32 30 10 22 1 0
1994 DET P 16 16 5 12 0 0
1995 DET P 18 18 11 16 2 1
1995 CIN P 11 11 4 6 0 1
1996 BAL P 34 34 15 39 1 4
1997 NYA P 32 32 8 29 4 2
1998 NYA P 30 30 8 27 3 1
1999 TOR P 34 34 7 30 0 2
2000 TOR P 35 35 8 18 3 1
2001 CHA P 16 16 4 10 4 1
2002 NYA P 31 31 6 24 1 2
2003 NYA P 31 30 7 32 0 2
2004 SDN P 31 31 7 38 1 1
2005 BOS P 30 30 3 19 3 2
2006 BOS P 8 8 1 4 0 0
2006 SDN P 5 5 1 2 0 0
2007 SDN P 22 22 5 19 1 0
2007 LAN P 7 7 2 3 2 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 660

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
2000 TSN All-Star LHP
1998 ALCS MVP
1998 Player of the Week Week of 1998-05-16
1998 TSN All-Star LHP

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
2007 SDN NL $3,000,000
2006 BOS AL $4,075,000
2005 BOS AL $4,075,000
2004 SDN NL $1,250,000
2003 NYA AL $3,250,000
2002 NYA AL $2,250,000
2001 CHA AL $9,250,000
2000 TOR AL $5,500,000
1999 TOR AL $4,816,667
1998 NYA AL $4,666,666
1997 NYA AL $3,766,667
1996 BAL AL $3,200,000
1995 DET AL $2,191,667
1994 DET AL $2,500,000
1993 DET AL $1,450,000
1992 TOR AL $2,063,000
1991 TOR AL $800,000
1990 TOR AL $275,000
1989 TOR AL $107,000
1988 TOR AL $82,000
Total Career Earnings $58,568,667

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
2000 Cy Young Award AL 3rd 46.0 140 0
2000 Most Valuable Player AL 17th 2.0 392 0
1998 Cy Young Award AL 3rd 31.0 140 0
1998 Most Valuable Player AL 16th 3.0 392 0