STATS Corner

There is no such thing as the sophomore jinx for the Brewers’ Ryan Braun. The Granada Hills High product was the National League rookie of the year in 2007 and was an All-Star this year, propelling himself into the MVP race by ranking among league leaders in home runs and runs batted in.

He’s not just cleaning up against No. 5 starters and middle relievers. As the Brewers play at Dodger Stadium this weekend, Braun has a .364 batting average against pitchers with an ERA of 3.00 or below, second-best in the major leagues.

In this week’s STATS Corner, a look at the best against the best, the worst against the best, the best against the worst and the worst against the worst, all this season with a minimum of 50 at-bats, through Friday’s games, from STATS LLC:

Best batting average vs. pitchers with ERA of 3.00 or below:

*--* 1. Chipper Jones Braves 393 2. Ryan Braun Brewers 364 3. Jack Wilson Pirates 350 4. Brian McCann Braves 329 5. Mark Kotsay Braves 321 *--*

Worst batting average vs. pitchers with ERA of 3.00 or below:

*--* 1. Dan Uggla Marlins 108 2. Jimmy Rollins Phillies 117 3. Jeff Francoeur Braves 118 4. Khalil Greene Padres 127 5. Mark Reynolds Diamondbacks 130 *--*

Best batting average vs. pitchers with ERA above 5.00:

*--* 1. Ryan Church Mets 436 2. Gabe Kapler Brewers 434 3. Kaz Matsui Astros 413 4. Albert Pujols Cardinals 403 5. Carlos Lee Astros 398 *--*

Worst batting average vs. pitchers with ERA above 5.00:

*--* 1. Matt Treanor Marlins 193 2. Geoff Blum Astros 200 3. Edwin Encarnacion Reds 211 4. Chris Snyder Diamondbacks 220 5. Austin Kearns Nationals 224 *--*