His ERA of 1.97 in 55 gave him an ERA less than half that of the league (ERA+ 201). Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. Recent history doesnt recognize Billy Wagner for how dominant he was. Retired: John McGraw , Bobby Cox , Earl Weaver , . He was arguably as good a pitcher as Whitey Ford. More about data coverage. Stats: 601 saves, 2.87 ERA, 1.058 WHIP, 3.69 K:BB, 141 ERA+, Accolades: 7 All-Star appearances, Baseball Hall of Fame. As Jaffe noted for FanGraphs in 2019, Whitaker belongs to a select group of players (and is the only second baseman besides Jackie Robinson) who finished their careers at least 200 batting runs, 50 fielding runs and 25 baserunning runs above average. But even Michael Jordan missed game-winning shots. Players said they could hear the ball spinning as it approached and went by. In his World Series career, he threw an absurd amount of innings (33.1), appearing in 16 of a possible 19 games and fashioning a 1.35 ERA. But keep in mind that he wasnt used in nearly as much of a specialized role as modern closers are. Billy Wagner. Some defensive statistics Copyright Sports Info Solutions, 2010-2023. And Muhammad Ali lost five fights. 8) Tommy John (1963-1989) (288-231; 3.34 ERA; ERA+ 110; 46 SHO; 4710 IP/ 4783 H/ H/9 9.1; 2245 K/ 1259 BB/ 1.78 ratio; 1.283 WHIP). John then went to LA to join Don Sutton on another team with a pitching rich tradition. By 76 he was pitching again and all three of his 20-win seasons came post-surgery. The greatest relief pitchers of all time include some of the best current MLB players, as well as some legends who are already in the baseball hall of fame. Mack was referring to Jackson -- maybe the games most revered natural hitter before Williams came along -- whom Mack regrettably traded away before he became a star in Cleveland. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? 9 Charlie Buffinton 3.7 Chapman wont qualify on any official leaderboard because hes only at 535.2 innings, but if you look at all pitchers with 500+ innings, hes first all-time at 14.84 K/9 and a 2.01 FIP. And interestingly enough, hes probably more known for his handlebar mustache than what he did on the field. He was a great situation pitcher, and knew how to get out of a jam with his guile and assortment of breaking pitches. Against the Yankees in the series, he pitched well in game two, but took a 3-2 loss. 1) Bert Blyleven (1970-1992) (287-250; 3.31 ERA; ERA+ 118; 60 SHO; 4970/ 4632 H/ 8.4 H/9; 3701 K/ 1322 BB/ 2.80 K/BB ratio; 1.198 WHIP). Curiously enough, Eckersley didnt win the Cy Young award in his best year but then won the award along with the league MVP two seasons later in 1992 when he went 7-1 with a 1.91 ERA and 51 saves, then the second-best single-season total of all-time. He would have been part of the best pitching staffs in historyPappas was still pitching great in '71 and '72. Next came Cy Young. Bucky wasnt done there. He pitched in both the Cubs World Series appearances in '32 and '35, going 2-1 with a 2.63 ERA. The Reds finally won their second World Series. Total Zone Rating and initial framework for Wins above Replacement calculations provided by Sean Smith. I contemplated going 15 names just for pitchers, but thought it would look too out of sync with the rest of the survey. Opposition has cooled considerably in recent years toward enshrining Clemens, a brilliant pitcher long before rumors of performance enhancing drug use surfaced. The players had withstood enough abuse by 1890 and formed their own league. . The reserve clause was so restrictive in his era that once you signed with a team, unless they traded or sold you, you belonged to them. Despite being the top pitcher in the league at least three times, Walters has been overlooked for the HOF. His initial surgery came after the 1974 season. getting voted into the Hall of Fame is difficult for relief . Then again, you typically dont get to 112 blown saves without being a great closer. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. The players who dominated, not just for a season or two, but for years. So with a lack of a real statistical standout, how about Quiz? As MLB.coms Andrew Simon noted, Allens career 156 league-adjusted OPS+ puts him in the very upper echelon of post-integration hitters, and his best 10-year run at the plate was pretty much unmatched by his peers. Always ranking QBs. Honorable mention: Andy Pettitte, Mark Buehrle, Ron Guidry, Tommy John, Mickey Lolich, Jimmy Key (CC Sabathia not yet eligible). 5 Luis Tiant 3.8 For the most part, the best pitchers are in the HOF. The strikeout record was being broken. HOF - Indicates Player is a Hall of Famer. Cooper was slender and had a remarkable smooth and graceful delivery. If we limit it to 3000 innings, heres the top ten: 1 Roger Clemens 5.7 9. Their careers ranged from 1,900+ IP to 2,500 IP. If you cross over 10 by this metric, you are a serious candidate for the Hall of Fame. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. But he will face the same hurdles as Bonds, Clemens and Sosa thanks to multiple transgressions with performance-enhancing drugs that included over a year-long suspension from baseball from 2013-14. Relief Pitcher JAWS Leaders. Although the Tigers walked away losing two of the three World Series, Bridges record stands at 4-1. By '59, Pappas was a mainstay of the Orioles staff. He went 3517 in the minors. This excludes any pitcher still on the mound today, and those like Greg Maddux who are retired but not yet eligble. Al Oliver. The committee found Charles Radbourn early on in their process in '39, but where were Tim Keefe ('63) and John Clarkson ('64)? The Hall of Fame began in 1936, inducting Walter Johnson and Christy Mathewson in its first year. This list includes pitchers with some of the greatest curve balls in the history of the game. He is 5-1 with a 2.47 ERA, 36 Ks against only 8 BB, and a WHIP of 1.077. Why were pitchers like Pennock, Chesbro, and McGinnity going in before greats like Mordecai Brown and Kid Nichols? Baseball Hall of Fame , MLB MVP's , MLB Cy Young Award , MLB Rookie of the Year , Rawlings Gold Gloves , 2023 HOF results , 2024 Hall of Fame ballot , . In 43, his last year before joining the war effort, he went 12-7 with a 2.39 ERA (ERA+ 147), with three shutouts and only 159 hits allowed in 191 innings. This gives us a cut off of 2500 innings to. Many historical player head shots courtesy of David Davis. He holds the all-time record for relief appearances with at least two innings (486) and three innings (197). But Trevor Hoffman may have the most unique path, going from a failed minor league shortstop to one of the all-time great closers. He began his career with the Cleveland Indians in '64, and established himself as an effective pitcher with lots of stuff. This is a truly dominant statistic for this era. He barely played in the postseason. He won 22 games the next year, leading the Reds back to the World Series. Bridges had the most awesome drop off the table curve ball of his era. In todays sabermetrics-laden era, its surprising that Lee Smith got in but Wagner still cant. No real surprises at the top, I suppose. But he might not be on this list much longer. They chose not to have time for their pitching hero from the last generation. The Arkansas Hummingbird pitched for the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals throughout his career. Dave Parker, Does he belong in the Hall of Fame? Cy Young is the games career leader in losses. Another contemporary who made the HOF is Lefty Gomez. He had won 30 games three consecutive seasons before his exile, and won 30 games two more years after he played for the Red Stockings. In 1920, Adams gave up only 18 BB in 263 innings. The top few on the list have a body of work and cases for the HOF so compelling, one wonders how they got missed. He allowed just two home runs to 527 batters in the playoffs. During the season he went 12-0 for the team at Candlestick Park. A 3.10 postseason ERA isn't terrible, but it's not Hall of Fame worthy. That means he entered the game in jams, and usually got out of those jams. Relief LHP: Billy Wagner Among all Live Ball Era pitchers with at least 750 innings, Wagner is the very best in strikeouts per nine innings (11.9) and WHIP (0.998) while also ranking behind only Mariano Rivera in ERA+ (187) and owning the sixth-highest save total in history (422). But by '35, after being sold to the Phillies and because of his great arm, the manager and coaches pushed him to pitch. He was as automatic as youll ever find for a closer. That's the type of respect he garnered. But he was so good at his craft. Bridges continued pitching in the Pacific Coast Leaguewinning the ERA title in 47. He had a 1.80 ERA after the age of 38. He proved it often enough. His career stands up nicely against contemporary HOF pitchers Bob Lemon and Hal Newhowser. Not retired by 2017. After a down year and a couple of years dealing with injury, he ended up in Boston where he re-invented himself in '72. Feb 11, 2023. Wagner has rapidly gained BBWAA support in recent years, rising to 68.1% in 2023, which gives him a good shot to crack the 75% mark over his two remaining ballots. The Pirates won the pennant the next year. That leaves an even matchup between McRae and Don Baylor on the outside looking in. He was perhaps the best lefty in NL history to that date, however, not winning quite as many games as Eppa Rixey. He has been overlooked by the veterans committee. He never received a vote. Voters have three years of his eligibility left to get it right. Since the advent of the live ball in 1921, only four pitchers have 60 shutouts: Warren Spahn, Nolan Ryan, Tom Seaver, and Bert Blyleven. Recently retired stars sure to get a serious look once theyre eligible -- such as Ichiro Suzuki, Joe Mauer and Adrin Beltr -- are noted in the honorable mentions below. Comparing across eras isnt easy, as the role of a relief pitcher has changed drastically over the years. He had a 0.70 career ERA in the playoffs. He was the second great Latin pitcher, following Juan Marichal. Freehan enjoyed a longer career because of Munsons unfortunate passing at age 32, and thus he finished with more hits, homers, RBIs and Gold Glove Awards. Lofton and Andruw Jones still have compelling arguments here, with Lofton's particularly acute given that he went one and done on a crowded ballot in 2013. Im struck by the parity between Kevin Brown and Jim Kaat. (The Tigers ownership and coaching staff were not shy of making mistakes in evaluating personnel. His devastating curve also made him one of hardest pitchers to hit of his generation. He pitched the vast majority of his career for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Hoyt Wilhelm saved 228 games and won 143 more during 21 seasons in the big leagues. The Tigers were focused on a youth movement after the war. Drysdale, Ferguson Jenkins, and Early Wynn are the other pitchers with 49 shutouts, and all are in the HOF. Fingers won a league MVP, a Cy Young award, played an integral part in baseballs only non-New York Yankees three-peat ever, and even won World Series MVP once. Rollie Fingers may be the most decorated relief pitcher in baseball history, and that list includes Mariano Rivera. Stats: 273 saves, 2.23 ERA, 1.023 WHIP, 3.56 K:BB, 184 ERA+, Accolades: 6 All-Star appearances, 1 World Series ring. Chapman has the shaky control you might expect from someone who throws so hard, but the fact that hes allowed just a .233 career slugging percentage is unfathomable. The only question now is whether enough voters will eventually warm to Beltrn's case, given his ties to the 2017 Astros sign-stealing scandal. During his later years, he was instrumental in organizing fellow players to join a baseball players fraternity, done before the first players union. He broke in going 123 with an exceptional 1.11 ERA on a staff that included Vic Willis at the end of his career. Typically, in modern-day play, an active roster will consist of five starting pitchers, seven relief pitchers, two catchers, six infielders, and five outfielders. Q1 Rank the following pitchers, ranging from 1 for most-deserving of Hall of Fame induction to 10 for least-deserving, [From a survey of 425 respondents, fielded via Qualtrics]. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. He was just hoping to save his career. then in Boston. The best players in New York just simply did not get missed by the HOF voters. He featured a fastball, curve, and change-up with excellent control. He held the career record in saves when he retired (341). What did it take to be ignored by the HOF voters and veterans committee? Larry Anderson (1975-1994) 699 games, 995.1 innings pitched, 3.15 ERA, 18.2 K%, 121 ERA+ Paul Assenmacher (1986-1999) 884 games, 855.2 innings pitched, 3.53 ERA, 22.0 K%, 118 ERA+ Luis Ayala (2003-2013) 534 games, 554.1 innings pitched, 3.34 ERA, 15.7 K%, 129 ERA+ Grant Balfour (2001-2015) Big Ed broke in with the Chicago Cubs during their heyday in 1905, going 18-14 with a 1.42 ERA. Al Lopez, the White Sox manager, refused to start Pierce in the 59 World Series. After breaking in with the Cleveland Indians, Tommy John spent significant time with the Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees, as well as a shorter stint with the California Angels. He regularly hits 100 miles per hour on his fastballs and holds the all-time record by registering 105.1 on a pitch (twice). His last year of allowing fewer hits than innings pitched was 81. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Wednesday, March 1, 1:07PM. He ended up nostalgically back in Minnesota for the '86 season, and helped the team to the World Series title in '87. In the 1970s, the closer was the pitcher that would enter the game with the bases loaded in the sixth inning and try to work out of a jam and then sometimes finish the game. Hes insanely dominant against both righties and lefties as well. Sportswriters and players wondered how Pierce could go toe-to-toe with the firepower of the Yankees, coming armed with slap hitters Nellie Fox, Luis Aparicio, and Minnie Minoso. The oldest and wisest twin. Can you name the Best Relief Pitchers not in the MLB Hall of Fame (by Baseball Reference WAR)? Or write about sports? What if Milt Pappas had not been traded to Cincinnati? Craig Muder is director of communications for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. . His post season work began in 77 with the Dodgers, after his return from surgery. 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