Somehow, this makes Dwight Gooden's ridiculous 1984 season even more impressive:
| Num | PlayerName | Year | IP | K | K/9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Armando Benitez | 1999 | 78.0 | 128 | 14.77 |
| 2 | Armando Benitez | 2000 | 76.0 | 106 | 12.55 |
| 3 | Billy Wagner | 2006 | 72.1 | 94 | 11.70 |
| 4 | Dwight Gooden | 1984 | 218.0 | 276 | 11.39 |
| 5 | Randy Myers | 1987 | 75.0 | 92 | 11.04 |
| 6 | Armando Benitez | 2001 | 76.1 | 93 | 10.97 |
| 7 | Armando Benitez | 2002 | 67.1 | 79 | 10.56 |
| 8 | Billy Wagner | 2007 | 68.1 | 80 | 10.54 |
| 9 | Dennis Cook | 1998 | 68.0 | 79 | 10.46 |
| 10 | Skip Lockwood | 1976 | 94.1 | 108 | 10.30 |
Some thoughts.
- I only included pitchers who accumulated at least 60 innings in a given year.
- Yes, Armando Benitez was that good. In the postseason or late-season games against the Braves, not so much.
- Benitez has four of the seven best K/9 seasons in Mets history.
- Benitez and Billy Wagner have six of the top eight.
- Gooden's 1984 season is the only one by a starting pitcher on the list.
- Don't know who Skip Lockwood is? Read on.
- I'm as shocked as you to see Dennis Cook on this list. That was a great season, though.