Great hitting pitchers?

Specialization. Throwing a baseball and hitting a baseball require two different skills. Similar to football where few QB make good kickers and vice verse (George Blanda being to most notable exception).

Babe Ruth was a pitcher his first 6 years in the majors. He batted .308 with 49 HR and 230 RBI during those years although the last 2 years he played the outfield when he wasn't pitching.

Here are some stats of other good hitting pitchers:

Wes Ferrell - 1176 AB, 38 HR, 208 RBI, .280 BA

Bob Lemon - 1183 AB, 37 HR, 147 RBI, .232 BA

Red Ruffing - 1937 AB, 36 HR, 273 RBI, .269 BA

Walter Johnson - 2324 AB, 24 HR, 255 RBI, .235 BA

Carlos Zambrano - 643 AB, 22 HR, 68 RBI, .240 BA

Schoolboy Rowe - 909 AB, 18 HR, 153 RBI, .263 BA

Mike Hampton - 725 AB, 16 HR, 79 RBI, .246 BA

Don Newcombe - 878 AB, 15 HR, 108 RBI, .271 BA

Ken Brett - 347 AB, 10 HR, 44 RBI, .262 BA

Micah Owings - 188 AB, 9 HR, 34 RBI, .287 BA

George Uhle - 1360 AB, 9 HR, 187 RBI, .289 BA

Erv Brame - 396 AB, 8 HR, 75 RBI, .306 BA

Leaders (not counting Ruth and other part time pitchers)

H - Walter Johnson 547

2B - Red Ruffing 98

3B - Walter Johnson 41

HR - Wes Ferrell 38

RBI - Red Ruffing 273

BA: Erv Brame .306

SLG: Micah Owings .527

Mike Hampton & Micah Owings come to mind.

They mostly suck because they never practice hitting, plus some pitchers are exceptional hitters but you never get to see this as they only pitch one out of five games (a starter), and then there's the DH rule and also when the DH-rule is not in play a pinch-hitter is used in most cases the last inning before the pitcher is taken out. Some pitchers could be good hitters if they had enough chances to swing the bat during the year.

Zack Greinke hasn't had the opportunity to hit much since the majority of his career has been spent in the AL, where the pitchers don't hit. But since being traded to the Brewers he now has an opportunity to hit and already has recorded a Home Run. In High school he hit 31 home runs, drove in 144 runs and batted .444 or better in each of his 4 seasons. Pretty impressive for a high school boy across any position. Expect big hits from him over the years if he sticks around in the NL.

Warren Spahn, Braves 35 career home runs for a pitcher!

Don Drysdale, Dodgers - hit .300 in 1965 ( frequently used as a pinch hitter))

Early Wynn, White Sox 174 lifetime rbi's=

There guys planned on starting what they finished, and the only way they would be around in a close game was iif they had the abaility to help themselves.

Don;t need a DH around here!

they dont practice it as much. they are more wanted for their pitching ability. id think they use to hit all the time in little league and stuff but when they come to the majors, pitchers arent neede for hitting so they dont put effort in to practicing. Babe Ruth was a pitcher. but i guess more modern day, you could say Carlos Zambrano is a good hitting pitcher

Babe Ruth was a pitcher when came up with the Boston Red Sox.

Because they don't spend much time practicing it. Teams want their pitchers to focus on pitching.

Wes Ferrell holds the checklist for many homeruns in a season by a tumbler and the main in a profession by a tumbler. His profession OBP of .351 is likewise 2d between modern-day pitchers. maximum HOMERUNS by PITCHERS (50% of profession video games might desire to have been at pitcher) a million. Wes Ferrell (38) 2. Bob Lemon (37) 3. purple Ruffing (36) 4. Earl Wilson (35) 5. Warren Spahn (35) 6. Jack Stivetts (35) 7. Don Drysdale (34) 8. Walter Johnson (34) 9. Bob Gibson (34) what's thrilling is that six of those 9 are corridor of recognition pitchers. Carlos Zambrano, Micah Owings, and Dan Haren are probably the main suitable hitting pitchers at present interior the MLB. some years in the past, Mike Hampton became into the main suitable. He became into an stunning hitter. all human beings is hyping over Haren this 300 and sixty 5 days, yet Reds pitcher Mike Leake is likewise doing properly (10 for 26 with an more desirable OBP than Haren). Haren is at present batting .425. in basic terms 2 pitchers (min. 40 PA) have finished the season with a greater suited AVG (Walter Johnson hit .433 in 1925 and Jack Bentley hit .427 in 1923).