Dexter Dunn's impressive strike-rate at the Big M

In Major League Baseball, one of the hurdles one must clear to be considered as one of the game’s best is to have a batting average of .300. Have success three out of every 10 trips to the plate and you might just end up in the Hall of Fame.

The .300 mark is also one to be envied by those who compete night in and night out at The Meadowlands, as in UDRS (Universal Driver Rating System), a mathematical analysis of how well one is performing, based on how often they finish in the money (first, second or third).

It’s not as if drivers don’t reach the .300 UDRS mark often in harness racing, because they do. What they don’t do, is do it very often at the top venue in the sport, The Meadowlands.

Two of The Big M’s top pilots have a shot at the .300 mark for 2021, and their names will surprise no one who follows the harness game.

Dexter Dunn, the 32-year-old New Zealand who is seeking his third consecutive United States Harness Writers Association Driver of the Year trophy, sits atop the standings at The Meadowlands with 156 wins and earnings of $5,280,629. His win percentage is strong at 19 as is his in-the-money percentage of 45. His UDRS stands at .304.

Newly minted Hall of Famer Tim Tetrick, a 40-year-old who was born in Illinois, also has a UDRS of .304 and his win percentage is a hair lower than Dunn’s, at 18. His in-the-money rate matches Dunn’s at 45. Where Tetrick leads the pack is earnings per start, where his total Big M bank account of $4,074,451 averages out to a track-best $7,989 per drive.

“There are only six racing cards left in the 2021 season,” said Big M Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Jason Settlemoir. “So, it will be exciting to see if Dexter and Timmy can finish the 2021 season ‘batting’ over .300.”

The way to the Hall of Fame?

Following is a list of drivers who have compiled a UDRS of at least .300 at The Meadowlands since 2016:

2020: Dunn, .326; Yannick Gingras, .312

2019: Gingras, .340; Tetrick, .313

2018: Gingras, .341; Andrew McCarthy, .308; Dave Miller, .300

2017: Gingras, .340

2016: Miller, .315; Gingras, .310

It should come as no surprise that from the above list, Tetrick and Miller are already in the Hall of Fame, and Gingras will be inducted this July. Does the same honor await Dunn down the road?

(courtesy of Harnesslink)