Pronk was plunked 12 times this season, 11 as the Indians' designated hitter, earning him the award. Mitch Talbot was the American League's leading hitter of batters among rookie hurlers.
Pronk gets plunked. Indians DH Travis Hafner gets hit by a pitch.Cleveland, Ohio -- So the Cleveland Indians are getting a return on designated hitter Travis Hafner's hefty contract.
Hafner, who has two seasons left on a four-year, $57 million contract, is among the winners of the "2010 Awards for Outstanding Achievement in the field of HBPs" by the blog Plunk Everyone.
HBPs, of course, stand for hit by pitches. Hafner was named to the American League All Plunk Team. Pronk was plunked by pitches 12 times, including 11 while batting as the DH.
The Indians and Pittsburgh Pirates tied for the major league lead in Plunks Thrown. Both teams' pitching staffs drilled 66 opposing hitters. If any intimidation was intended, it didn't work. The Pirates lost 105 games; the Indians, 93.
Plunk Everyone gives Indians right-handed pitcher Mitch Talbot the American League Gus Weyhig Award, for leading AL rookies by hitting batters eight times with pitches.
The blog truly is hilarious, so no dissing intended when we note that other sources, including Baseball-Reference.com, refer to "Gus Weyhig" asGus Weyhing. We assume the two spellings refer to the same man. Weyhing, who fashioned a 264-232 record from 1887-1901, hit 277 batters with pitches to stand as the major leagues' all-time leader.
Weyhing plunked 37, 42 and 34 batters in his first three seasons, respectively. He spent part of his final season with the Cleveland Blues and, for old times sake, nailed four batters in 11 1/3 innings. The Blues became the Bronchos in 1902, the Naps in 1903 and the Indians in 1915.