BIZARRE MLB One Year Wonders 

Did I miss out on any??

Scooter Gennet looked like he was going to be the reds best player going forward then got hurt and completely fell off.

How does Rick Porcello not make the list? He's terrible for years, suddenly wins the Cy Young, and promptly returns to being hot garbage!

Y’all remember Allen Craig?

Aaron Sanchez was a 2 year wonder. He was a really good setup man in 2015 after he was initially injured plus he held the era title in 2016. He was instrumental in both Blue Jays play off runs

For my Phillies fans, we remember Dominic Brown. I'd say he was a one year wonder

I remember that Chase Headley season, it was way out of the ordinary for him but you can't complain

Anyone remember Kevin Maas? A buddy of mine got his t-shirt in 1990. By 1991 it was a dish towel.

Ahh I was hoping to see Jake Arietta on the list. Came from nowhere to the best pitcher in baseball, then velocity falls off and he falls from grace

I remember seeing the "Bird" pitch in 76'. It was amazing! The Tiger's Attendance more than doubled whenever Fidrych took the mound. We went to the opening of a Meijer's where the Bird was signing autographs, thousands of Fans attended. Then in the Early nineties at another store Opening, he was signing again. This time, the number of fans numbered between one and two-hundred. Again, I stood in line, this time with my children. Then this fella asked me if these were all my children. I turned around and came face to face with my boyhood idol, Mark Fidrych. We chatted for about five minutes . . . it was sad that no one else in the vicinity recognized him. The crowd consisted of fans who only recognized his name. The best part about being a twelve-year-old boy, was Mark Fidrych.

You should do a video on failed RP->SP experiments. Guys like Daniel Bard, Joba, and Feliz pretty much fell off the map when the experiment failed

Brewers fan here: 2011 Nyjer Morgan, 2011 John Axford immediately come to mind. Derrick Turnbow in 2005 would be another popular one.

For one year wonders, I want to mention Morgan Ensberg from the 2005 Houston Astros. Came in at 4th for the MVP voting that year then just disappeared after that.

Ike Davis

Very surprised Morgan Ensberg didn't make the list. Had an unremarkable first few seasons, but came out of nowhere in 2005 to hit 36 homeruns with 101 rbi's, an all-star selection and a silver slugger award. Didn't have another good season and less than 3 years later he was completely out of baseball.

My favorite Tiger of all ! Fidrych is THE reason I'm a Tiger and baseball fan. R.I.P The Bird

As a rangers fan I’m still pissed about the way we handled Feliz and Ogando. Matt Harrison also frustrates me was solid and had potential to be great then injuries ruined his career

As a Braves fan, I can tell you that B.J Upton most certainly deserves to be on this list. He was sooooo bad with the Braves

Joe Biagini for the Jays. 3.06 ERA in his rookie season only gave up 3 HRs in 67.2 innings, 8.2K/9, 1.30 WHIP... his first season was absolutely stellar and then they tried to convert him to a part time starter and his ERA ballooned up to 5.34 in 2017 and 6.00 in 2018. In 2019 he started to turn it around a bit 3.78 ERA but was traded at the deadline in the package with Aaron Sanchez to the Astros and he got lit up like a Christmas tree - 7.36 ERA, K/9 all the way down to 6.1, BB/9 all the way up to 5.5. Just so unfortunate for him. He’s a super nice guy so here’s hoping he gets back on track.

Us Jays have had a lot of out of nowhere’s: Luke Maile at the start of 2018, Goins with his insane Bases Loaded stats in 2017, Smoak’s breakout year in 2017, and Osuna.

You missed one of the most well known, obvious one year wonders - Joe Charboneau, who was the AL Rookie of The Year in 1980 with something like 23 home runs and 87vRBIs and never played a full season again.

I loved Mark fidrych , he was truly a kid out there having fun... it’s ashame he got hurt. I appreciate you throwing him in here... idk why but his magical 1976 was 10 years before I was even alive, but I’ve been obsessed with any videos I can find of the dude... Really wish I coulda met him. Seemed like one of the real ones.

As a giants fan I'd say our former "top prospect" Christian arroyo. He was hyped up a bit BUT the day After his debut was another debut for a prospect..... That man was Cody Bellinger smh

Another note on Fidrych. The doctors couldnt tell the rotator cuff was torn due to a deficiency in technology at the time. But they thought her was making it up and the tigers forced him to play through it damaging it worse before ending his career young. He also unfortunetly died young. He drop a semi truck and while working on the engine alone one night the chain gave out and crushed him.

you could add Chris Johnson to the list. After be traded to the Braves, he hit .321 in 2013 and finished second in the NL batting race. He never came close to that success again and was out of Atlanta shortly thereafter.

You forgot to say that in Sanchez’s astros debut he started a combined no hitter

Will Middlebrooks?

Kent Bottenfield, 1999. He won 18 games for the Cardinals that season, and was promptly cashed in for Jim Edmonds

My All-Time Favorite “One Year Wonder” was “The Bird”(Mark Fidrych) in 1976.

Ubaldo Jiménez was the best and fell hard

Fidrych has a hella sad ending, he fell out of the game of baseball and got a farm, and then he died when a truck fell on him

Brady Anderson???? Took roids and hit 50 homers one year and never even came close to that before or since

Aguilar was a top prospect in cleveland for years but was blocked by Santana and Edwin. He mashed in AAA, and I blamed them for not giving him a shot sooner, despite having a terrible BB/K ratio and below avg glove/speed. He finally got his shot in MIL against fresh pitching and shined for a few months before the league caught up to him. Sometimes Cleveland's farm system can really sniff out the diamonds in the rough and, at the same time, knows when to pass them off at the right time

As a lifelong Mariners fan I look back at that opening cut and should feel pain, but I am laughing like crazy. First off, screw you. Second off, god damnit we suck lol

Bryan LaHair? Dude went from all star for the Cubs to playing in Japan in the span of a year

I remember the Daisuke hype and being so interested to watch one of his first games on TV versus the Mariners (I just checked it was his second start overall). He was okay, 7 IP 3 R. The problem was his opponent threw a 1 hitter. That was Felix Hernandez

Aaron Sanchez’s no hitter last year was pretty cool

Rick Wilkins hit 300 with 30 hrs in 1993 and never came close to that ever again

I thought Dominic Brown of the Phillies might make your list.....what can Brown do for you? Last I heard he was playing in Mexico.

BJ Upton was always a late season hitter. Once August or September hit, his hitting turned on. He just was never a consistent hitter throughout the entire year. I would NOT say he was a one-year wonder though. Like you said, he had some solid years.

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Fellow met fans do you remember when lastings Milledge and F-mart Fernando Martinez were going to be the next big thing for the Mets? 😂😂😭😭😭

When the Rays signed Upton to a long term deal instead of maddon I almost lost it. Worse thing about Upton, laziness. Would jog after balls and to first

Matt Harvey!! Started in baseball with a record for a rookie in something for the mets.. he complained about the coach wanting to take him out in the 9th in a post season game in 2015 game 5..2-0.. he gave up the tying run and they ended up losing.. he is in AA with the A’s I think!?

My dad was a baseball coach growing up so he spent extra time with me learning how to hit stuff on the inner half and outer half and how to drive it to different parts of the field. It made me better as far as being able to do more but just like Aguilar I started to struggle with stuff right over the middle of the plate. I became so ready to make an adjustment that it would surprise me when one would come right down the middle my mind would go blank sometimes so I get that

Braves fan here. Even though Andruw Jones was always a solid player, he randomly won the Homerun Title one year and Russ Ortiz randomly had 21 wins

You need to seriously look at some players who were one-hit-wonders from many years ago (good call with the Fidrych mention). Jim Hickman (1970), Steve Stone (1980), Bill Swift (1993), Ed Morgan (1930), Wes Parker (1970), Walt Dropo (1950), Randy Velarde (1999), Rich Aurilia (2001), Mike McCormick (1967), & Red Barrett (1945), are just some of the guys who were able to figure it out, at a HOF level, but for just one season.

You should do MLB stars that were bad for one season. Then they went back to normal or something like that.

Brady Anderson's 1996 season definitely deserves to be on lists like this. While a decent hitter throughout his career, he was never known for being much of a power hitter. Until 1996, when he hit 50 HRs. He only eclipsed 20 HRs two other times, with his second highest total being 24.

Joe Charboneau for the Indians.

I just found your channel dude, and it is one of the best baseball related-channels I've come across. As someone who has become almost fantastical about the sport since I got properly into it 18 months ago(first got interested in 2013, but I struggled following it since I didn't have a clue about half of the statistics and numbers. ). You go into great detail, instead of presuming the audience doesn't understand the complexities of the sport. The editing is also fantastic. This channel will blow up soon and be like Fuzzy. Keep the awesome content coming bro.

Baltimore Orioles: 2020 World Series Champions. You heard it here first

I will say this- feliz had come up in the rangers org as a starting pitcher and only pitched out of the bullpen because Ron Washington wanted a reliable closer. It was pretty much expected that once the rangers got Joe Nathan, feliz would become a starter. Just unfortunate that it didn't work out

how about aaron small in 2005, he was 10-0 with a 3.20 era

Rick Ankiel, Brady Anderson, Marcus Giles, Gerome Walton

Another factor in agulars decline was that he didn’t have a very good work ethic

Tough to think of as a longtime Orioles fan, but Jeff Ballard could be listed also. He went 18-8 in 1989 and finished 6th in Cy Young voting with the Birds as they almost caught the Jays for the AL East, then 13-25 afterwards. Some would say manager Frank Robinson overused him and Bob Milacki down the stretch, which may well be true, but would definitely qualify him.

Ya know even if he wasn’t that good, Chase Headley on the Yankees will always have a special place in my heart

Jack Cust A's. Put up a .912 OPS as a 28 year old rookie. But teams figured out, he was a three true outcomes hitter, so pitchers just nibbled on the plate to try to strike him out. If he walked, oh well, because he clogged up the basepaths.

It’s Dawson Wright so it’ll be good

Nick Esasky - After playing for Cincinnati for six years, he was trade to Boston. In his one one year in Boston, 1989, he hit 30 HR and posted a 133 OPS+. He was a free agent the following year and signed with Atlanta. He developed vertigo, played in just nine games with the Braves and that was it.

Great video. Alexi was electric in the Rangers pennant years. and Dawson, its Oh-gone-doe ^_^

Have you considered a 2nd video? I can name two others, Super Joe Charbonneau and Kevin Maas. Charbonneau had a ROTY season in 1980 for the Indians and Kevin Maas set the world on fire for the Yankees, hitting 21 homers in just 79 games before flaming out.

Steve Stone 1980 Cy Young award winner for Orioles.

Mark Fidrych was basically a failure of my Detroit Tigers. 10 complete games, in your rookie season? They liked the money that he generated, fans came out to games that he started. So they burned his arm up, he hurt it, and he was done. Partly, of course, it was a symptom of the times, where pitchers were expected to throw 120 -130 pitches routinely. He ended up as a pool installer, and passed away a couple of years ago. He would show up on Tiger telecasts once in awhile, if the Tigers were on the east coast, where he lived. He seemed like a genuinely nice man, and you can tell that not all professional athletes are rich. RIP, Mark, and thanks for all of the memories.

Hey Dawson how about the 2018 Mike Foltynewicz

You mentioned Chase Headley, but I can think of another random dude to play 3rd for the Padres in the 2000s who had an even shorter career, Kevin Kouzmanoff

Travis Shaw, Marwin (as an Astros fan you dont have to tell me why), Carlos Gomez

Relief pitcher Mark Davis: 1989 with the Padres.

How is Chris Coghlan not on this list after winning rookie of the year and then flaming out?

Can you do top 20 one year wonders from across history. I'm pretty sure Mark Fidrych(?) would make that list. Maybe Sparky Anderson who I believe only HAD one season in the 50s? Edit: Wow. I did not expect Fidrych to make THIS countdown. Wonder if he could be #1 classic all time... Sure he has tougher competition.

If you're going to mention Mark Fidyrich, you should have mentioned Joe "Go Go" Charboneau for the Indians in '80.

Sanchez's blisters were hella-frustrating to deal with as a Jays fan. Just a constant battle for him.

Hi Dawson! Great video and keep it up! Go Giants!

What's with some people suggesting players who actually had few good years rather than just one? With that said, Hudek is a legend with that first half of 1994 season...then reality hits him harder than Randy Johnson's fastball on that bird.

Chris Shelton, Mark Prior...

I got very lucky in 1976, My father got tickets to the 1976 All-Star Game in Philadelphia and over my objectives I found myself sitting in The Vet and seeing a rare Mark Fidrych start. My father thought he was kook. The National League won going away and we left happy that hot July night. A couple of weeks later he and I made our way to an Eagles/Steelers pre-season game in a hurricane.

Where is Bob Hamelin ??? ROY to out of the game in a few years.

Jeremy hazelbaker and bo hart for the Cardinals were the one year wonders. You could also probably throw Joel pineiro in the mix.

The Bird was a beautiful, eccentric spirit with a gentle, artless, innocent temperament. He died tragically young in an apparent farm accident (if I remember correctly). Life is a remarkable, surprising miracle. Long live baseball.

Still makes me sad thinking about how dominant Aaron Sanchez was in 2016 for my Blue Jays. It was all downhill from there, sadly.

The homerun derby is bad for you, especially if you are a rookie. It damages your swing

Brian Dozier? Had that one season he hit 40 HR as a 2nd baseman..after that.....

What about 2018 Blake Snell?

Like many starters, MLB changes their official ball and A LOT of pitchers had blister issues with the new ball.

Christian Villanueva?

Wayne Garland. In 1976 he was given the chance in the O's rotation and was actually the equal of HOFer Jim Palmer that year. He got an amazing - at the time of course - 10-year, $2.3 million contract from the Indians as a free agent. And due to bad luck and injuries, he was viewed as a bust who was financially hamstringing the Indians for years (this is a way different era.)

Jerome Walton in 1989

Dominic Brown was crushing the ball for the Phillies,made the All-Star team,then became a minor leaguer! Here is an older one:Garrett Atkins,he was such a great hitter for the Rockies,never made the All-Star team but had one great season then fell off a cliff!!!

Zack Cozart. Fell off the earth

Home run derby probably got to aguilar in the second half ... but he’s looking good w the marlins so far!!

Jacoby ellsbury is all I need to see.

7 ads in 8 minutes? Jeezus Pete!

Marty cardova.Who?won 1995 A.L rookie of year award with Twins then busted out

Matsuzaka's issues dated back to his senior high school year and the national high school baseball tournament at Koshien. Back then, Japanese high schools went by and large with one stud pitcher, whom they dubbed the team's "essu" (ace) pitcher. The following, according to his Wikipedia page: /In the quarterfinal of the 1998 Summer Koshien, Matsuzaka threw 250 pitches in 17 innings in a win over PL Gakuen.[10] (The previous day he had thrown a 148-pitch complete game shutout.) The next day, despite trailing 6-0 in the top of the eighth inning, the team miraculously won the game after scoring 7 runs in the final two innings (four in the eighth and three in the ninth). He started the game in left field, but came in as a reliever in the ninth inning to record the win in 15 pitches. In the final, he threw a no-hitter,[11] the second ever in a final./ From there, he had eight serviceable to excellent seasons with the Seibu Lions of Japan's Pacific League, 108 wins, 72 complete games, 1,402 2/3 IP in 190 starts over those eight seasons; a lot of wear and tear on his arm before he even showed up in Boston. He was far from your typical first-year pro.

Aguilar is raking so far this year for Miami

Kyle freeland??

Fidrych is the lynchpin of the longest, most convoluted What If? scenario in MLB History. Let's just say this: If Fidrych doesn't fall off that fence: 1. The 1984 Tigers win at least 110 games 2. John Smoltz isn't traded to the Braves 3. The Dodgers don't win it all in 1988 as Kirk Gibson stays in Detroit 4. Same for the Twins in 1991 as Jack Morris also stays in Detroit 5. The Indians lose FIVE CONSECUTIVE WORLD SERIES since David Wells and Cecil Fielder both stay in Detroit as well, meaning the Yankees aren't as good from 1995 to 1999

Where’s Chien Ming Wang and Joba Chamberlain

I miss the rangers with josh Hamilton hitting dingers and Ron washington dancing in the dugout