Kuzul

There have been hundreds and hundreds of starting pitchers in the history of Major League Baseball.

The question is, who is the best ever?

Rating is a hard thing in a way, an easy thing in a way.

What statistical categories do you look at, which are important, which aren’t?

How much weight do you put on each category?

Is adjusted career more important than peak career?

How much weight do you put on each of those?

Length of career is of importance, how much weight do you put on length of career, or lack there of?

How much do I adjust for the decade they played in?

All of these things and many more have to be seriously considered when rating a player.

As most great historians do, this is a mathematical approach to the rating of every starting pitcher in the history of MLB, and these are the top 10.

I’m a great mathematician, and most good historians that I’ve run across are also, but many of them simply put the wrong weights on the above mentioned areas; too much on some, too little on others.

With all of the above things in mind, and more, this is what my mathematical formula tells me.

A purely scientific approach.

And when this list presented itself from my formula, it also made sense as a fan of the game.

 

An Explanation of the Stats

The statistics used will be Games Pitched, Games Started, Innings Pitched, ERA, ERA+, W, W%+, H/9 (OBA), WHIP (OOB%), SHO, SHO/40 (per 40 games started), Ks and K/BB (ratio). I will also letter-grade their length of career adjusted per their decade.

First, I will include their raw career numbers. These are simply their career numbers.

Second, I will include their adjusted career numbers, if they had a long career (which most have).

Adjusted career is this: Let’s take Walter Johnson, for example. Johnson had a long career. So in order to find his real numbers, I have to exclude some late seasons during his career to find the numbers that he really carried during his career, since he pitched past his prime.

With Johnson, I’d exclude his 1917, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1926 and 1927 seasons. That is his adjusted career. Again, this can only be done with long career players. If I don’t list an adjusted career under a player’s raw career numbers, then it means they didn’t play long enough to adjust for their long career or it means they didn’t have any bad seasons late in their career.

Third, I will include peak career numbers. Many like short peaks, not me. I include the best seasons equaling at least 200 games for a peak. It takes away the possibility of a pitcher having one or two lucky seasons. The 200-game peak will let us know how good the pitcher was at his best.

 

Note: W%+ is a statistic that I have invented. It takes the team’s W% into account. It is very complicated as different weights are applied to seasons depending on how many games and innings pitched a pitcher accumulated during a single season. Having said that, here’s the simple version.

If a starting pitcher has a career .500 W% during the 2000s and that pitcher pitched for the Yankees. Well, .500 is not good. But, if that pitcher pitched for the Royals, then .500 is good. This is the reasoning behind W%+. It is to W% what ERA is to ERA+. It’s not foolproof, but either is ERA+, just another piece of the puzzle and far, far more important than raw W%.

By the way, my invented W%+ uses a linear equation, not a power equation. I’m not trying to over-inflate the numbers, like ERA+, which uses a power equation. OPS+ uses a linear equation, like my W%+ does. Like OPS+ and ERA+, 100 is the normal. Anything over 100 is good and anything under 100 is bad, like OPS+ and ERA+.

 

The Top 10

 

10. Tom Seaver (1970s) Career Length Grade: A

Raw Career: 656 G, 647 GS, 4,782.2 IP, 2.86 ERA, 127 ERA+, 311 W, 121 W%+, 7.5 H/9, 1.12 WHIP, 61 SHO, 3.8 SHO/40 and 2.6 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 513 G, 505 GS, 3,859.1 IP, 2.59 ERA, 138 ERA+, 265 W, 126 W%+, 7.2 H/9, 1.08 WHIP, 54 SHO, 4.3 SHO/40 and 2.9 K/BB (exclude his 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984 and 1986 seasons)

Peak Career: 214 G, 211 GS, 1,681.3 IP, 2.30 ERA, 160 ERA+, 125 W, 134 W%+, 6.8 H/9, 1.02 WHIP, 26 SHO, 4.9 SHO/40 and 3.4 K/BB (include his 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1975 and 1977 seasons)

 

He was a brilliantly smart pitcher. He was to starting pitching what Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking were to science. Seaver was a genius on the mound that would out think even the best and smartest hitters. Along with his brains, he could overpower you, if needed.

Seaver was a winner. Seaver’s teams weren’t all that good, .500 ball clubs, give or take. But even being on mediocre teams, he still never posted a losing record during each of his first 15 seasons in the League.

In fact, he led the League in wins three times and W% twice on his way to posting over 310 wins during his career.

He led the League in H/9 three times and finished his career with 7.5 H/9. That 7.5 H/9 still ranks as the 20^th best H/9 in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher.

Leading the League in pitching categories was one of the many good habits that he had. During his career, he also led the League in Ks five times, K/BB three times, WHIP three times, ERA+ three times, ERA three times and SHO twice.

He recorded over 60 SHO by the time his career was through.

It’s why he collected three Cy Young awards during his Hall of Fame career.

It’s why he’s the best starting pitcher from the 1970s.

 

9. Cy Young (1890s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 906 G, 815 GS, 7,354.2 IP, 2.63 ERA, 138 ERA+, 511 W, 120 W%+, 8.7 H/9, 1.13 WHIP, 3.7 SHO/40 and 2.3 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 791 G, 708 GS, 6,448.2 IP, 2.61 ERA, 143 ERA+, 459 W, 117 W%+, 8.6 H/9, 1.13 WHIP, 3.7 SHO/40 and 2.8 K/BB (exclude his 1900, 1909, 1910 and 1911 seasons)

Peak Career: 221 G, 208 GS, 1,877.1 IP, 1.94 ERA, 176 ERA+, 148 W, 127 W%+, 7.8 H/9, 1.03 WHIP, 4.6 SHO/40 and 2.6 K/BB (include his 1892, 1899, 1901, 1902 and 1908 seasons)

 

Most of you already know, the name of the pitcher of the year award is named after the guy. That tells us something. One of the first pitchers elected to the HOF.

He’s first all time in so many career categories that I won’t list them all. Here are some: 511 Wins, 815 GS, 7,354.2 IP and 749 Complete Games, to name a few.

By the time his career was over, he had led the League in K/BB eleven times, SHO seven times, WHIP seven times, Wins five times, W% twice, ERA twice, Ks twice and ERA+ twice.

His career 138 ERA+ is still 10th all time in the history of MLB for a starting pitcher.

He won over 20 games fifteen times during his career and he had at least a .525 W% during each of his first 10 seasons.

The number of games and innings he pitched during his career were mind boggling, especially for a pitcher that pitched so much in the 1890’s. It’s why he’s the best pitcher from the 1890s, the best pitcher from the 1800’s, period.

It’s easy to do. Cy used to write articles on rules for pitching success. I love this old Cy Young quote, here’s part of it:

 

 

“Let liquor severely alone, fight shy of cigarettes, and be moderate in indulgence of tobacco, coffee, and tea…A man who is not willing to work from dewy morn until weary eve should not think about becoming a pitcher.”

 

No wonder I can’t pitch worth a crud…wait…come to think of it, I don’t drink much tea. Old Cy Young quotes are among my favorites, he was a very quotable guy.

There you go.  

 

8. Randy Johnson (2000s) Career Length Grade: A (so far)

Raw Career: 618 G, 603 GS, 4,135.1 IP, 3.29 ERA, 136 ERA+, 124 W%+, 7.3 H/9, 1.17 WHIP, 2.5 SHO/40 and 3.3 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 481 G, 471 GS, 3,309.5 IP, 3.04 ERA, 147 ERA+, 130 W%+, 6.9 H/9, 1.16 WHIP, 3.1 SHO/40 and 3.3 K/BB (exclude his 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009 seasons)

Peak Career: 200 G, 198 GS, 1,457.1 IP, 2.45 ERA, 190 ERA+, 137 W%+, 6.8 H/9, 1.04 WHIP, 3.2 SHO/40 and 4.7 K/BB (include his 1995, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002 seasons)

 

His peak career is off the charts, just look at it again. Wow.

Randy Johnson is the best left-handed starting pitcher in the history of Major League Baseball, even better than Lefty Grove and Sandy Koufax. I’ll admit, never been a Johnson fan.

Never got over that Yankee/reporter fiasco when he signed in New York. I’m probably being unfairly hard on the guy. Funny, the things that stick with you. The things you forget and the things you don’t.

Like him or not, he’s the best lefty of all time.

His 136 ERA+ is 12th all time in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher. The fact that he has put up these numbers during the single worst era in the history of Major League Baseball for starting pitcher numbers makes it even all the more impressive.

He hasn’t pitched well during his last couple of seasons and he has made it clear that he is retired and will not pitch in 2010. We’ll see.

 

7. Roger Clemens (1990s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 709 G, 707 GS, 4,916.2 IP, 3.12 ERA, 143 ERA+, 122 W%+, 7.7 H/9, 1.17 WHIP, 2.6 SHO/40 and 3.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 566 G, 565 GS, 4,018 IP, 2.91 ERA, 153 ERA+, 125 W%+, 7.4 H/9, 1.14 WHIP, 3.1 SHO/40 and 3.0 K/BB (exclude his 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2007 seasons)

Peak Career: 205 G, 205 GS, 1,469 IP, 2.27 ERA, 195 ERA+, 135 W%+, 6.9 H/9, 1.07 WHIP, 3.1 SHO/40 and 3.3 K/BB (include his 1990, 1992, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2005 and 2006 seasons)

 

Clemens is the only 7 time Cy Young award winner in the history of MLB and his numbers are great and his peak is off the charts, even better than Maddux peak, his peer from the 1990s.

It’s why his numbers belong in the HOF.

The fact that he was better than Maddux doesn’t really bother me.

But the possible reasons as to why he was better…that’s what bothers me.

This is where his numbers put him.

What would his numbers be without the orange juice?

He’s never failed an orange juice test and he’s always denied using orange juice, but he’s still highly suspected of taking orange juice.

Mark McGwire, arguably the best first baseman from the 1990s, recently admitted taking orange juice during his career.

The problem is, McGwire claims that he still would have hit 580 HR even if he’d never taken orange juice.

OK Mark.

You’re either still lying, or you’re the stupidest person that I’ve ever seen.

I don’t like either one of those choices, but they are the only two choices, unfortunately.

Stupid or a liar (or both); a stupid liar.

It’s at least one or the other.

With Clemens, I’ll use the word alleged orange juice use, for now, until we know 100% either way. That’s the word I used for McGwire before I found out from him that performance enhancers don’t work on him because he apparently had a God given talent.

OK.

Here’s a bit of advice for you Roger.

If you did it and you someday admit it, don’t lie during your confession.

That’s basically what Mark did, unless he’s really stupid enough to think that performance enhancers don’tenhance his performance.

  What I’m trying to say: I don’t necessarily like it, but mathematically speaking, this is where his numbers put him.

Next.

 

 6. Pedro Martinez (2000s) Career Length Grade: C+ (so far)

Raw Career: 476 G, 409 GS, 2,827.1 IP, 2.93 ERA, 154 ERA+, 125 W%+, 7.1 H/9, 1.05 WHIP, 1.7 SHO/40 and 4.2 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 424 G, 357 GS, 2,541 IP, 2.72 ERA, 166 ERA+, 129 W%+, 6.8 H/9, 1.02 WHIP, 1.9 SHO/40 and 4.3 K/BB (exclude his 2006, 2008 and 2009 seasons)

Peak Career: 206 G, 204 GS, 1,436 IP, 2.21 ERA, 212 ERA+, 140 W%+, 6.5 H/9, 0.95 WHIP, 2.2 SHO/40 and 5.6 K/BB (include his 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2007 seasons)

 

His 154 ERA+ is the best ERA+ in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher. What else can you say? His 1.05 WHIP is fourth all time in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher and his 7.1 H/9 is eighth all time in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher.

So he’s in the top 10 all time in three of the most important stats for a starting pitcher and he’s done it during the single worst era in history for starting pitcher numbers.

His peak career is up there with the best of all time…period.

He belongs on this list, even with his “C+” length of career, thus far.

He hasn’t pitched well during his last couple of seasons and his days of dominance are likely over. He did go 5-1 last season, but his other numbers were down. He’s still good, don’t get me wrong, he’s just not good compared to the Pedro of old. He’ll likely pitch a couple more seasons and then hang it up.

 

5. Grover Alexander (1920s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 696 G, 599 GS, 5,190 IP, 2.56 ERA, 135 ERA+, 373 W, 121 W%+, 8.4 H/9, 1.12 WHIP, 90 SHO, 6.0 SHO/40, 2,198 K and 2.3 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 567 G, 486 GS, 4,295 IP, 2.33 ERA, 142 ERA+, 317 W, 124 W%+, 8.1 H/9, 1.09 WHIP, 85 SHO, 7.0 SHO/40, 1,975 K and 2.4 K/BB (exclude his 1921, 1922, 1928, 1929 and 1930 seasons)

Peak Career: 213 G, 187 GS, 1,657.2 IP, 1.74 ERA, 175 ERA+, 130 W, 123 W%+, 7.4 H/9, 0.99 WHIP, 46 SHO, 9.8 SHO/40, 765 K and 2.9 K/BB (include his 1915, 1916, 1918, 1919, 1920 and 1927 seasons)

 

His career 135 ERA+ still remains as the 13^th best ERA+ in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher.

He led the League in ERA+ during four of the six seasons from 1915-1920.

He was a winner that won over 20 games during six of his first seven seasons in the League from 1911-1917. He posted over 370 wins by the time his Hall of Fame career was through, which still remains third on the all-time wins list.

He ended up leading the League in wins six times during his career.

He had over a .525 W% during all 20 seasons of his career, except for his last season in 1930. That’s simply incredible.

He drank a good deal during the second half of his career. He reportedly drank because of shell shock from the War. He spent most of the 1918 season at War.

He still managed to arguably have three of his best seasons after the War; most notably, 1919, 1920 and 1927.

Like Vance, his peer from the 1920s, his League leading stats can just be rattled off.

Alexander led the League in SHO seven times during his career and posted 90 by the time he was done; which still remains second all-time.

He led the League in Ks six times during his career.

He led the League in WHIP five times during his career.

He led the League in ERA during four of the six seasons from 1915-1920.

He led the League in ERA+ during four of the six seasons from 1915-1920.

He led the League in H/9 three times during his career.

He led the League in K/BB three times during his career.

As you can see, he was dominant, hands down.

 

 

4. Mordecai Brown (1900s) Career Length Grade: C

Raw Career: 481 G, 332 GS, 3,172.1 IP, 2.06 ERA, 138 ERA+, 239 W, 112 W%+, 7.7 H/9, 1.07 WHIP, 6.6 SHO/40 and 2.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 399 G, 277 GS, 2,655 IP, 1.89 ERA, 149 ERA+, 206 W, 109 W%+, 7.6 H/9, 1.04 WHIP, 7.2 SHO/40 and 2.1 K/BB (exclude his last 3 seasons)

Peak Career: 210 G, 155 GS, 1,460.2 IP, 1.42 ERA, 182 ERA+, 127 W, 107 W%+, 6.7 H/9, 0.93 WHIP, 9.7 SHO/40 and 2.6 K/BB (include his 1906-1910 seasons)

 

His peak was incredible and it was during five consecutive seasons, from 1906-1910. Check out what he averaged during those five straight seasons: a 1.42 ERA, 182 ERA+, 6.7 H/9, 0.93 WHIP and 9.7 SHO/40. Wow!

He won at least 20 games during the six consecutive seasons from 1906-1911.

By the time his career was through, he had led the League in WHIP three times and SHO twice.

His 2.06 ERA still remains as the fourth best ERA in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher, his 1.07 WHIP still remains as the seventh best and his 138 ERA+ still remains as the 10^th best.

 

3. Ed Walsh (1910s) Career Length Grade: C+

Raw Career: 430 G, 315 GS, 2,964.1 IP, 1.82 ERA, 146 ERA+, 195 W, 112 W%+, 7.1 H/9, 1.00 WHIP, 57 SHO, 7.2 SHO/40, 1,736 K and 2.8 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 400 G, 292 GS, 2,800.2 IP, 1.76 ERA, 150 ERA+, 185 W, 112 W%+, 7.1 H/9, 0.98 WHIP, 55 SHO, 7.5 SHO/40, 1,680 K and 3.1 K/BB (exclude his 1913, 1914, 1916 and 1917 seasons)

Peak Career: 201 G, 162 GS, 1,513.1 IP, 1.43 ERA, 167 ERA+, 100 W, 116 W%+, 6.6 H/9, 0.91 WHIP, 32 SHO, 7.8 SHO/40, 872 K and 3.3 K/BB (include his 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910 and 1915 seasons)

 

He led his 1906 Chicago team to a World Series championship in 1906. He pitched in two games, won both of them, posted a 0.60 ERA, 4.2 H/9 and 0.87 WHIP during those two games combined. Those are the kind of numbers he was capable of putting up.

In fact, he ended his career with a 1.82 ERA and that 1.82 ERA still remains as the best ERA in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher. He led the League in ERA twice during his career.

He ended his career with a 1.00 WHIP and that 1.00 WHIP still remains as the second best WHIP in the history of MLB for a starting pitcher. He led the League in WHIP twice during his career.

He ended his career with a 146 ERA+ and that 146 ERA+ still remains as the fourth best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a starting pitcher. He led the League in ERA+ twice during his career.

He ended his career with 7.1 H/9 and that 7.1 H/9 still remains as the eighth best H/9 in the history of MLB for a starting pitcher.

That puts him in the top 10 all time in four of the most important starting pitcher stats in history.

During his career, he also led the League in SHO three times, K/BB three times and Ks twice.

He ended his career with a slightly above average length of career. And during a career with 315 games started, he posted almost 60 SHO.

Why was this HOFer so dominant?

Some say it was the pitchers ballpark that he pitched in. But that’s not it. It was a pitchers ballpark, but how much are you going to take away.

I once heard a ballpark wizard say that his ERA+ that is fourth all time would actually be eighth all time if adjusted for the ballpark.

AND….eighth all time is bad now?

Holy sh*t, get your head out of you’re a*s, he was great.

No one has ever posted a 1.82 ERA, in any park, including that one.

So don’t buy into that pitchers ballpark stuff.

Was it a pitchers park?

Yes, but half of them are, right?

That’s almost like saying that Babe Ruth wasn’t the best hitter ever because he played in a hitters park.

Did he?

Yes, but he was the best hitter ever, hitters park or not. One things for sure, it was a hitters park when he played. It was a pitchers park when Walsh played.

For Ruth, sure the right field fence was closer than some other parks, but Ruth was the best offensive player ever, most historians agree (without bringing up the damn park he played in).

Historians will usually rank Walsh between 10-25 all time. Incredibly high, but not high enough. They refuse to put him in the top five because his career length was only slightly above average. They just bring up that pitchers ballpark sh*t to try and pull the wool over your eyes.

Trust me, it’s length of career that drags him out of their top five, not the damn ballpark he pitched in.

Hey, they still rank him as high as 10^th all-time sometimes anyway, not too far from where he should be.

The reason he was dominant wasn’t the ballpark, it was him. His arsenal of pitches. Especially his spitball.

The pitch was legal back when Walsh played and most historians credit him with having the best spitball in the history of the game; and he threw it a lot.

 

“I think Ed Walsh’s ball disintegrated on the way to the plate and the catcher put it back together again. I swear, when it went past the plate it was just the spit went by.”—Sam Crawford, HOF right fielder

 

 

2. Christy Mathewson (1900s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 635 G, 551 GS, 4,780.2 IP, 2.13 ERA, 135 ERA+, 373 W, 115 W%+, 7.9 H/9, 1.06 WHIP, 5.7 SHO/40 and 3.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 554 G, 485 GS, 4,208 IP, 1.99 ERA, 147 ERA+, 337 W, 114 W%+, 7.8 H/9, 1.05 WHIP, 6.0 SHO/40 and 3.0 K/BB (exclude his last 3 seasons)

Peak Career: 224 G, 185 GS, 1,621.2 IP, 1.59 ERA, 183 ERA+, 142 W, 113 W%+, 7.5 H/9, 0.96 WHIP, 7.0 SHO/40 and 4.2 K/BB (include his 1905, 1908, 1909, 1911 and 1912 seasons)

                             

He won at least 20 games 13 times during his career and he won over 20 games for 12 consecutive seasons from 1903-1914. By the time his career was through, he had won over 370 games and led the League in wins four times.

It’s not the only thing he led the League in. During his career, he also led the League in K/BB nine times, ERA five times, Ks five times, ERA+ five times, SHO four times and WHIP four times.

His 1.06 WHIP still remains as the fifth best WHIP in the history of Major League Baseball for a starting pitcher, his 2.13 ERA still remains as the sixth best and his 135 ERA+ still remains as the 13^th best.

He’s one of the few that you can actually compare to Walter Johnson.

 

1.Walter Johnson (1910s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 802 G, 666 GS, 5,914.2 IP, 2.17 ERA, 147 ERA+, 417 W, 122 W%+, 7.5 H/9, 1.06 WHIP, 110 SHO, 6.6 SHO/40, 3,509 K and 2.6 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 565 G, 472 GS, 4,271.1 IP, 1.75 ERA, 171 ERA+, 317 W, 128 W%+, 7.0 H/9, 1.00 WHIP, 87 SHO, 7.4 SHO/40, 2,692 K and 3.1 K/BB (exclude his 1917, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1926 and 1927 seasons)

Peak Career: 223 G, 170 GS, 1,668 IP, 1.37 ERA, 223 ERA+, 139 W, 130 W%+, 6.6 H/9, 0.91 WHIP, 40 SHO, 9.3 SHO/40, 1,058 K and 3.6 K/BB (include his 1912, 1913, 1915, 1918 and 1919 seasons)

 

He’s simply the best ever. Most historians would agree. Hey, no argument here.

The HOFer Johnson was almost to starting pitching what Babe Ruth was to hitting.

I wonder if anyone really knew if he were bound to be the best starting pitcher in history when he started pitching in MLB baseball as a teenager during the 1907 season?

He won at least 20 games during all 10 seasons of the decade of the 1910s. He ended his career with 417 wins, which still remains second all time.

By the time his career was through, he had led the League in wins six times, including four consecutive seasons from 1913-1916.

He also led the League in W% twice during his career, even though his teams were often times sub .500 teams.

His career 2.17 ERA still remains as the eighth best ERA in the history of MLB for a starting pitcher. He led the League in ERA five times during his career.

His career 147 ERA+ still remains as the third best ERA+ i

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Relief pitching is the most overlooked position in the history of Major League Baseball.

It’s amazing because about 30 percent of the team bus consists of relief pitchers today.

It makes it all the more amazing that most historians have never made a thorough relief pitching all time list.

Here’s what is interesting to me —relief pitchers are getting better and better as time goes by. It’s unlike any other position.

If I did a list of the 10 best first basemen of all time, then they would be evenly distributed from decade to decade, more or less.

For example, there might be one or two from the 1920s, one or two from the 1950, one or two from the 2000s, etc…

The same thing would generally happen with a second base list, a third base list, a center field list, etc…

This in not the case with relief pitchers. Most of the greats of all time are from the 2000s.

In fact, eight of the top 10 are from the 2000s and six of them are still pitching. Even taking the Honorable Mentions list into account, nine of the top 20 are from the 2000s and seven of them are still pitching.

Again, there is no other position like this.

Relief pitchers have it easier today, in a way. They generally pitch less innings per game than they used to and some casual fans attack relief pitchers for this.

Hey, it’s not their fault, it’s just the face of the game today.

Just because they’re babied by the new aged managing style doesn’t mean they are not as good.

In fact, they’re better. Not because of that, but it’s just the way it is.

Almost any respected historians will tell you this and the longer ago, the more it was true. Which means the closer to now, the less it’s true.

Anyway, here’s the ideology: The good arms are in the starting rotation and the duds are in the bullpen.

Again, more or less, true longer ago, and not true now.

This is probably the reason for the overabundance of modern pitchers on this list, the rule was more closely followed the farther away from today you get.

It’s just the way it is folks. Today, they’re babied, but they’re better, generally speaking.

Now, there have been 651 relief pitchers in the history of MLB that have pitched at least 250 G. 182 of them are from the 2000s; that’s 28 percent of all relief pitchers in history are from this decade.

So, there are more relief pitchers from the 2000s than there were from the 1870s, 1880s, 1890s, 1900s, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s combined. More from this single decade than the first 10 decades of MLB combined. That’s another reason for the overabundance from the 2000s, there are simply more relief pitchers today than ever.

If everything were equal, then this top 20 and top 10 should have 28 percent from the 2000s. Of course, everything is not equal, as I said above. That’s why this decade is 80 percent of the top 10 and 45 percent of the top 20; when it should be 28 percent, mathematically speaking.

 

An Explanation of the Stats

The statistics that I include will be Games Pitched, Games Started, Innings Pitched, ERA, ERA+, WHIP (OOB percent), H/9 (OBA), SV, SV/50 (per 50 Games Relieved) and K/BB (ratio.)

I will also letter grade their length of career and list the decade that they generally pitched in.

First , I will include their raw career numbers first. These are simply their career numbers.

Second , I will include their adjusted career numbers, if they had a long career (which most did.) Adjusted career is this: Let’s take Mariano Rivera, for example. Rivera had a long career. So in order to find his real numbers, I have to exclude some late seasons during his career to find the numbers that he really carried during his career.

With Rivera, I’d exclude his 2007 season. That is his adjusted career. Again, this can only be done with long career players. If I don’t list an adjusted career under a player’s raw career numbers, then it means they didn’t played long enough to adjust for their long career or it means they didn’t have any bad seasons late in their career.

Third , I will include peak career numbers. Many like short peaks, not me. I include the best seasons equaling at least 250 games for a peak. It takes away the possibility of a pitcher having one or two lucky seasons. The 250-game peak will tell us how good the pitcher was at his best.   

 

The Top 10

10. Keith Foulke (2000s) Career Length Grade: B+

Raw Career: 619 G, 8 GS, 786.2 IP, 3.33 ERA, 139 ERA+, 1.08 WHIP, 7.5 H/9, 191 SV, 15.7 SV/50 and 3.7 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 501 G, 8 GS, 660.1 IP, 3.04 ERA, 154 ERA+, 1.02 WHIP, 7.1 H/9, 175 SV, 17.7 SV/50 and 4.0 K/BB (exclude his last three seasons)

Peak Career: 283 G, 0 GS, 356 IP, 2.20 ERA, 215 ERA+, 0.92 WHIP, 6.3 H/9, 126 SV, 22.1 SV/50 and 4.7 K/BB (include his 1999, 2001, 2003 and 2004 seasons)

His career 1.08 WHIP ranks as the seventh best WHIP in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. He posted less than a 1.19 WHIP during eight of the 11 seasons during his career and he posted less than a 1.09 WHIP during seven consecutive seasons from 1998-2004.

His career 3.7 K/BB ranks as the eighth best K/BB in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He recorded over 2.8 K/BB during eight of the 11 seasons during his career, including seven consecutive seasons from 1998-2004.

That puts Foulke in the top 10 all time in WHIP and K/BB. In fact, there are only six other relief pitchers in the history of MLB that are in the top 10 all time in each of those two categories with Foulke.

They are: Mariano Rivera, Billy Wagner, Jonathan Papelbon, Trevor Hoffman, Rafael Soriano and Huston Street. Good company there, huh?

Foulke posted over 30 SV during four of the first five seasons of the 2000s, from 2000-2004, including leading the League with 43 during the 2003 season.

He recorded over a 155 ERA+ during six consecutive seasons from 1999-2004.

He posted less than 7.5 H/9 during six of the seven seasons from 1998-2004.

By the time his career was through, he had pitched over 15 G in the playoffs, including capturing the 2004 World Series championship. During his combined career playoff games, he recorded a 2.53 ERA and 6.3 H/9, great career postseason numbers.

It’s amazing just how quickly forgotten this guy is. I mean, I bring this guy up and people say, “He’s a running back, isn’t he?”

Oh, good lord.

Foulke pitched last season in the Minor Leagues. Other than Rickey Henderson, it seems like you only hear about great relief pitchers ending their career in the Minor Leagues. I’m sure there are other great players that are not relief pitchers that go back to the minors after their MLB career is over, but doesn’t it seem like relievers do it far more often?

Some may think this is an off the wall theory, but I theorize that at least part of the reason for this is the fact that most of the great relief pitchers didn’t get the respect they deserved even when they were great; and many are willing to try to earn that respect by starting over at the end of their career.

The problem is, you can’t start over, you’re done. It’s the end, not the start. Kind of sad. This theory isn’t true for all great relief pitchers that end their career in the Minor Leagues, but I believe it to be part of the reason for some; or something like that. Sometimes there is a tinge of sadness where there should be a deluge of glory. That’s relief pitching.

It almost borders on amazing that a pitcher that was as good as Foulke in MLB pitched in the Minor Leagues last year. I mean, Foulke easily has one of the 20 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. His peak consisted of four of the six seasons from 1999-2004.

During his peak, which is a peak over 280 G and 355 IP, he posted a 2.20 ERA, 215 ERA+, 0.92 WHIP, 6.3 H/9, 22.1 SV/50 and 4.7 K/BB.

You can search every relief pitcher in the history of MLB, you won’t find 20 peaks better than his.

What a quickly and tragically forgotten relief pitcher.

This 10^th and final spot was a tough one to choose. There are certainly eight or nine guys on the Honorable Mentions list that have a logical argument to have this spot instead of Foulke; that’s almost the entire HM list.

Two that quickly come to mind are John Franco and Jesse Orosco. Foulke has slightly better overall numbers than either of those two when they are adjusted for the decade. Franco and Orosco had longer careers than Foulke and that does narrow the gap between their numbers, but it doesn’t put either of them ahead of Foulke, in my eyes.

Another relief pitcher on the Honorable Mentions list that brings himself to the forefront of my mind for serious consideration is John Wetteland. Now Wetteland has slightly better numbers than Foulke when adjusted for the decade, but it’s almost a tie; and Foulke has a slightly longer career than Wetteland when adjusted for the decade.

It’s close, but I choose Foulke, as you can see.  

These arguments don’t stop on the HM list and, again, almost everyone on the HM list at least has some kind of logical argument to have this spot. I’m going with Foulke.

 

9. Rich Gossage (1980s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 1,002 G, 37 GS, 1,809.1 IP, 3.01 ERA, 126 ERA+, 1.23 WHIP, 7.4 H/9, 310 SV, 16.1 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 872 G, 37 GS, 1,653.1 IP, 2.87 ERA, 132 ERA+, 1.21 WHIP, 7.2 H/9, 275 SV, 16.5 SV/50 and 2.0 K/BB (exclude his 1986, 1988 and 1993 seasons)

Peak Career: 279 G, 0 GS, 534.2 IP, 1.73 ERA, 217 ERA+, 1.05 WHIP, 5.9 H/9, 125 SV, 22.3 SV/50 and 2.4 K/BB (include his 1975, 1977, 1978, 1981 and 1985 seasons)

His career 310 SV still ranks 18^th all time in the history of Major League Baseball. He led the League in SV three times during his career, including two of the three seasons from 1978-1980.

He posted over 25 SV all three times he led the League.

He posted at least 20 SV during 10 of the 12 seasons from 1975-1986, including the first seven seasons of the 1980s, from 1980-1986.

He had an incredibly long 22 season MLB career and he was basically a starting pitcher for one season and he was a relief pitcher during his other 21 seasons.

He still remains as one of only 13 relief pitchers in the history of MLB to ever pitch over 1,000 G during a career.

He’s one of only five relief pitchers in the history of MLB that is in the HOF and he’s one of only three from the 1980s. The 1980s is the only decade in history with more than one relief pitcher in the HOF.

He was just a hard guy to hit, intimidating, to say the least. He recorded less than 7.5 H/9 during 11 of the 16 seasons from 1975-1991, including six consecutive seasons from 1977-1982.

He had five or six incredible seasons during his career. The two best seasons of his career were arguably his 1977 and 1981 seasons.

During his 1977 season, he pitched in over 70 G of relief and 130 IP. He posted a 1.62 ERA, 26 SV, 243 ERA+, 0.96 WHIP, 5.3 H/9 and 3.1 K/BB.

During the strike shortened 1981 season, he pitched in over 30 G of relief and 45 IP. He recorded a 0.77 ERA, 20 SV, 461 ERA+, 0.77 WHIP, 4.2 H/9 and 3.4 K/BB.

Those are obviously two extraordinary seasons.

He just had a truly great peak.

He arguably has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. During his peak, which is a peak of almost 280 G of relief and 535 IP, he posted a 1.73 ERA, 217 ERA+, 1.05 WHIP, 5.9 H/9 and 22.3 SV/50.

You can search every relief pitcher in the history of MLB, you’ll be hard pressed to find 10 peaks better than this one.

 

8. Troy Percival (2000s) Career Length Grade: B+ (so far)

Raw Career: 703 G, 1 GS, 708.2 IP, 3.17 ERA, 146 ERA+, 1.11 WHIP, 6.1 H/9, 358 SV, 25.6 SV/50 and 2.6 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 613 G, 1 GS, 626.2 IP, 2.92 ERA, 160 ERA+, 1.09 WHIP, 6.0 H/9, 316 SV, 25.9 SV/50 and 2.7 K/BB (exclude his 2005, 2008 and 2009 seasons)

Peak Career: 273 G, 1 GS, 302 IP, 2.15 ERA, 215 ERA+, 0.95 WHIP, 5.2 H/9, 118 SV, 21.9 SV/50 and 3.4 K/BB (include his 1995, 1996, 2001, 2002 and 2007 seasons)

His career 6.1 H/9 ranks as the best H/9 in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. He has posted less than 7.0 H/9 during 11 of the 14 seasons during his career, including each of his first five seasons.

His career 358 SV ranks eighth on the all time list. He recorded over 25 SV for nine consecutive seasons from 1996-2004.

His career 1.11 WHIP ranks as the 11^th best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s posted less than a 1.20 WHIP during eight of his 14 seasons and he posted less than a 1.14 WHIP for three consecutive seasons from 2001-2003.

His career 146 ERA+ ranks as the 15^th best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s recorded over a 150 ERA+ six times during his career and he recorded over a 210 ERA+ during each of his first two seasons.

That puts Percival in the top 15 all time in H/9, SV, WHIP and ERA+. Those are four very important statistical categories for a relief pitcher.

In fact, there are only two other relief pitchers in the history of MLB that are in the top 15 all time in all four of those categories with Percival. They are Billy Wagner and Trevor Hoffman. That fact alone should tell us something.

Percival has always possessed fairly good control. He’s posted over 2.6 K/BB seven times during his career and he posted over 3.2 K/BB during each of his first three seasons.

Many think that Percival’s MLB career is over, as he’s arguably coming off of the two worst seasons of his entire career. We’ll see.

Percival has pitched almost 10 games in the playoffs and he helped his team capture the 2002 World Series championship. His combined career postseason stats are a 2.79 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 7.4 H/9 and 10.0 K/BB. Fabulous postseason numbers.

He arguably has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher.

During his peak, which is a peak over 270 G and 300 IP, he recorded a 2.15 ERA, 215 ERA+, 0.95 WHIP, 5.2 H/9, 21.9 SV/50 and 3.4 K/BB.

You can search every relief pitcher in the history of MLB, you’ll be hard pressed to find 10 peaks better than that one.

 

7. Armando Benitez (2000s) Career Length Grade: A-

Raw Career: 762 G, 0 GS, 779 IP, 3.13 ERA, 139 ERA+, 1.22 WHIP, 6.3 H/9, 289 SV, 19.0 SV/50 and 2.4 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 669 G, 0 GS, 692.1 IP, 2.89 ERA, 151 ERA+, 1.19 WHIP, 6.1 H/9, 261 SV, 19.5 SV/50 and 2.4 K/BB (exclude his 2005, 2007 and 2008 seasons)

Peak Career: 277 G, 0 GS, 298.1 IP, 1.93 ERA, 221 ERA+, 1.05 WHIP, 5.4 H/9, 111 SV, 20.2 SV/50 and 2.9 K/BB (include his 1994, 1997, 1999, 2002 and 2004 seasons)

His career 6.3 H/9 ranks as the fourth best H/9 in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. Incredibly, he posted less than 7.5 H/9 during each of his first 11 seasons.

Obviously, people just couldn’t hit this guy. He had a repertoire of pitches in his arsenal that included a slider and two or three different types of fastballs, including a split fingered fastball and a normal heat fastball.

He threw his heat fastball over 100 MPH. When that pitch was on, he was almost unhittable. When he had trouble controlling it, he was smart enough to slow it down to the mid 90s for control. He was smart with that pitch. Between the arm, the brain and the pitch arsenal, he’s fourth all time in H/9.

By the time his career was through, he recorded almost 290 SV. He recorded over 20 SV for seven consecutive seasons from 1998-2004, including leading the League with 47 in 2004.

He’s another relief pitcher that pitched in the Minor Leagues last season. I talked about this with Keith Foulke in the 10 spot on this list. Again, it’s amazing that a relief pitcher that was as dominant as Benitez is ending his career in the Minor Leagues.

Benitez has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher.

During his peak, which is a peak of almost 280 G and 300 IP, he posted a 1.93 ERA, 221 ERA+, 1.05 WHIP, 5.4 H/9, 20.2 SV/50 and 2.9 K/BB. Incredible.

There is no question that Benitez was every bit as good or better than Percival, in the eight spot on this list, but Percival seemed to get more recognition while he played, for whatever reason. Benitez is kind of like Foulke, he’s kind of forgotten already by the casual fan. Amazing.

 

6. Joe Nathan (2000s) Career Length Grade: C+ (so far)

Raw Career: 533 G, 29 GS, 685 IP, 2.75 ERA, 159 ERA+, 1.11 WHIP, 6.5 H/9, 247 SV, 24.5 SV/50 and 2.7 K/BB

Peak Career: 273 G, 0 GS, 280 IP, 1.61 ERA, 275 ERA+, 0.93 WHIP, 5.9 H/9, 156 SV, 28.4 SV/50 and 4.4 K/BB (include his 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2008 seasons)

His career 6.5 H/9 ranks as the sixth best H/9 in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. He’s posted less than 7.0 H/9 during each of his last eight seasons, every season during his career as a relief pitcher, as he was a starting pitcher during each of his first two seasons.

He’s posted less than 6.0 H/9 during each of his last two seasons.

His career 159 ERA+ ranks as the seventh best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher.

He’s recorded over a 140 ERA+ during each of his last seven seasons, every season thus far during his career except for his first three seasons. He’s recorded over a 160 ERA+ during each of his last six seasons and he’s incredibly recorded over a 205 ERA+ during each of his last four seasons.

His career 1.11 WHIP ranks as the 11^th best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s posted less than a 1.07 WHIP during each of his last eight seasons, again, every season thus far during his career except for his first two seasons when he was a starting pitcher. In fact, he’s posted less than a 0.94 WHIP during each of his last two seasons.

His career 2.75 ERA ranks as the 13^th best ERA in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s recorded less than a 2.75 ERA during each of his last six seasons, every season during his career except for his first four seasons. In fact, he’s recorded less than a 2.15 ERA during each of his last four seasons.

That puts Nathan in the top 15 all time in H/9, ERA+, WHIP and ERA. Those are four very important statistical categories for a relief pitcher.

In fact, there are only six other relief pitchers in the history of MLB that are in the top 15 all time in all four of those categories with Nathan. They are: Billy Wagner, Jonathan Papelbon, Trevor Hoffman, Francisco Rodriguez, Tom Henke and Bryan Harvey. That’s a who’s who of relief pitchers from the last 30 years, more or less. Add Nathan’s name to that list.

Nathan has posted almost 250 SV thus far during his career and he’s posted over 35 SV during each of his last six seasons, every season during his career except for his first four seasons.

His control is extremely good. He’s recorded over 2.5 K/BB during each of his last seven seasons, every season during his career except for his first three seasons. In fact, he’s recorded over 3.8 K/BB during each of his last six seasons.

He easily has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. His peak consists of four of the five seasons from 2004-2008.

During his peak, which is a peak over 270 G and 280 IP, he posted a 1.61 ERA, 275 ERA+, 0.93 WHIP, 5.9 H/9, 28.4 SV/50 and 4.4 K/BB.

You can search every relief pitcher in the history of MLB, you won’t find 10 peaks better than this one.

Unfortunately, it’s apparent that he is going to miss the entire 2010 season because of Tommy John surgery. I’ll miss you this season, I hope you come back well in 2011.

 

5. Hoyt Wilhelm (1960s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 1,070 G, 52 GS, 2,254.1 IP, 2.52 ERA, 146 ERA+, 1.13 WHIP, 7.0 H/9, 227 SV, 11.1 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 989 G, 52 GS, 2,127 IP, 2.46 ERA, 150 ERA+, 1.11 WHIP, 7.0 H/9, 210 SV, 11.2 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB (exclude his last three seasons)

Peak Career: 256 G, 0 GS, 452.2 IP, 1.85 ERA, 191 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP, 5.9 H/9, 54 SV, 10.6 SV/50 and 2.3 K/BB (include his 1954, 1962, 1966, 1967 and 1969 seasons)

His career 2.52 ERA still ranks as the fifth best ERA in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. Incredibly, he posted less than a 2.75 ERA during 14 of the 21 seasons of his career.

In fact, he posted less than a 2.65 ERA during each of the last nine seasons of the 1960s, from 1961-1969.

By the time his long career was through, he led the League in ERA twice and posted less than a 2.45 ERA each time he led the League.

His career 1.13 WHIP still ranks as the 14^th best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He recorded less than a 1.19 WHIP during 15 of the 21 seasons of his career, including 12 consecutive seasons from 1958-1969.

His career 146 ERA+ still ranks as the 15^th best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He posted over a 140 ERA+ during 13 of the 21 seasons of his career. In fact, he posted over a 155 ERA+ during each of the last six seasons of the 1960s, from 1964-1969.

By the time his career was through, he led the League in ERA+ twice and posted over a 150 ERA+ each time he led the League.

That puts Wilhelm in the top 15 all time in ERA, WHIP and ERA+. In fact, there are only seven other relief pitchers in the history of MLB that are in the top 15 all time in those three important categories with Wilhelm.

They are: Mariano Rivera, Billy Wagner, Jonathan Papelbon, Trevor Hoffman, Joe Nathan, Tom Henke and Bryan Harvey.

He was just a hard guy to hit. He had three or four good pitches that he threw, but he was basically a knuckleball pitcher and he threw that pitch quite often. Many historians argue that Wilhelm had the best knuckleball that the game has ever seen.

He recorded less than 7.5 H/9 during 15 of the 21 seasons of his career, including each of the last nine seasons of the 1960s, from 1961-1969.

He led the League in W% during two of the first three seasons of his career, posting over a .745 W% each time he led the League.

He was the first pitcher in the history of MLB to record over 200 SV during a career and he recorded almost 230 by the time his career was through.

He helped his 1954 team capture the World Series championship. He pitched 2 G during that World Series and posted a 0.00 ERA, 0.43 WHIP, 3.9 H/9 and never allowed a run.

Great World Series numbers, to say the least.

Many people forget, he was already 29 years old when he threw his first pitch in MLB during the 1952 season; obviously, he got a late start to his career. But he still had a long 21 season career and he was basically a relief pitcher for 20 seasons and a starting pitcher for 1 season. Started at the age of 29 and still had a long career.

He still remains as one of only 13 pitchers in the history of MLB to ever pitch in over 1,000 G during a career.

Wilhelm is the only relief pitcher from the 1960s that is in the Hall of Fame and he remains as one of only five in the history of MLB to be inducted; and he’s the earliest and first relief pitcher in the HOF.

In his Historical Baseball Abstract book, respected historian, Bill James, rates Hoyt Wilhelm as the best relief pitcher in the history of MLB. The book came out 10 years ago, and I agree with Bill James, 10 years ago.

Bill James may or may not have guys like Rivera ahead of Wilhelm now, I could see him going either way. Of course, only he knows for sure.

Wilhelm has one of the 20 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. During that peak, which is a peak over 255 G of relief and 450 IP, he recorded a 1.85 ERA, 191 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP and 5.9 H/9.

What a peak, what a career, what a pitcher.

 

4. Trevor Hoffman (2000s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 985 G, 0 GS, 1,042 IP, 2.73 ERA, 147 ERA+, 1.04 WHIP, 6.9 H/9, 591 SV, 30.0 SV/50 and 3.8 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 815 G, 0 GS, 878.2 IP, 2.61 ERA, 154 ERA+, 1.03 WHIP, 6.8 H/9, 475 SV, 29.1 SV/50 and 3.8 K/BB (exclude his 2001, 2005 and 2008 seasons)

Peak Career: 259 G, 0 GS, 266.1 IP, 1.89 ERA, 213 ERA+, 0.92 WHIP, 6.0 H/9, 176 SV, 33.8 SV/50 and 4.1 K/BB (include his 1998, 1999, 2003, 2006 and 2009 seasons)

His career 591 SV ranks first all time in the history of Major League Baseball. He has led the League in SV twice and posted at least 20 SV during 15 of the 17 seasons during his career, including nine consecutive seasons from 1994-2002.

His career 1.04 WHIP ranks as the fourth best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. Incredibly, he has recorded less than a 1.19 WHIP during each of his last 16 seasons, every season during his career except for his first season. He’s recorded less than a 1.04 WHIP during each of his last two seasons.

His career 3.8 K/BB ranks as the sixth best K/BB in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He has posted over 2.9 K/BB during each of his last 16 seasons, every season during his career except for his first season. Wow.

His career 2.73 ERA ranks as the 12^th best ERA in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He has recorded less than a 2.75 ERA during 10 of the 17 seasons during his career and he recorded less than a 2.70 ERA the last 4 seasons of the 1990s, from 1996-1999.

His career 147 ERA+ ranks as the 13^th best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He has posted over a 135 ERA+ during 11 of the 17 seasons during his career and he posted over a 140 ERA+ during five consecutive seasons from 1996-2000.

His career 6.9 H/9 ranks as the 14^th best H/9 in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s recorded less than 7.5 H/9 during 10 of the 17 seasons during his career and he recorded less than 7.0 H/9 during the last four seasons of the 1990s, from 1996-1999.

That puts Hoffman in the top 15 all time in SV, WHIP, K/BB, ERA, ERA+ and H/9. Folks, I’m here to tell you, if you told most respected historians that they could only look at six statistical categories for relief pitchers, and only six, these would very likely be the six they would choose to look at.

And Hoffman is in the top 15 all time in all six of those categories, every one of them. In fact, there’s only one other relief pitcher in the history of MLB that is in the top 15 all time in all six of those categories with Hoffman. It’s Billy Wagner, just the two of them. Obviously, with a fact like this, we’re talking about one hell of a special relief pitcher here with Hoffman.

2008 was arguably the worst season of his entire career and I remember a lot of fans in certain circles were begging Hoffman to retire after that disappointing 2008 season. Of course, he didn’t retire. At the age of 42, he came back for the 2009 season and he arguably had the best season of his entire career last season in 2009.

Glad he didn’t retire, huh?

He’s back at the age of 43 this season in 2010, good luck Hoffman. Everyone is questioning how long he can keep this up, it’s been an amazing ride so far and I wish him luck.

He has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher.

During that peak, which is a peak of almost 260 G and over 265 IP, he posted a 1.89 ERA, 213 ERA+, 0.92 WHIP, 6.0 H/9, 33.8 SV/50 and 4.1 K/BB.

 

3. Jonathan Papelbon (2000s) Career Length Grade: F (so far)

Raw Career: 268 G, 3 GS, 298 IP, 1.84 ERA, 254 ERA+, 0.98 WHIP, 6.5 H/9, 151 SV, 28.5 SV/50 and 4.5 K/BB

Peak Career: 251 G, 0 GS, 264 IP, 1.74 ERA, 270 ERA+, 0.92 WHIP, 6.2 H/9, 151 SV, 30.2 SV/50 and 5.2 K/BB (exclude his first season)

His career 1.84 ERA is the best ERA in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. He has posted less than a 2.70 ERA during all five seasons of his career and he has posted less than a 2.35 ERA during each of his last four seasons, every season during his career except for his first season.

His career 0.98 WHIP is the best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He has recorded less than a 1.15 WHIP during each of his last four seasons, every season during his career except for his first season.

His career 254 ERA+ is the best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He has posted over a 170 ERA+ during all five seasons during his career and he’s posted over a 195 ERA+ during each of his last four seasons, every season during his career except for his first season.

His career 4.5 K/BB is the best K/BB in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher (are you starting to see a trend here?) He’s recorded over 3.1 K/BB during each of his last four seasons, every season during his career except for his first season.

His career 6.5 H/9 ranks as the sixth best H/9 in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher (whoops, found a statistical category that he’s not first all time in.) He’s posted less than 7.5 H/9 during three of the five seasons during his career and he posted less than 5.5 H/9 during consecutive seasons in 2006 and 2007.

That puts Papelbon in the top 10 all time in ERA, WHIP, ERA+, K/BB and H/9. Those are five very important statistical categories for a relief pitcher. There is only one other relief pitcher in the history of MLB that is in the top 10 all time in all five of those categories with Papelbon. It’s Billy Wagner.

Papelbon has already pitched almost 20 games in the playoffs during his career, including capturing the 2007 World Series championship. His combined postseason numbers are: 1.00 ERA, 0.82 WHIP, 4.7 H/9 and 2.9 K/BB. Unbelievable postseason numbers.

He easily has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. Now keep in mind, his peak is every season during his career except for his first season.

During this peak, which is a peak over 250 G and almost 265 IP, he’s posted a 1.74 ERA, 270 ERA+, 0.92 WHIP, 6.2 H/9, 30.2 SV/50 and 5.2 K/BB.

You can search every relief pitcher in the history of MLB, you won’t find 10 peaks better than this one.

Papelbon is an F in the length of career category so far and some would argue that no one with an F in the length of career category should possibly be in this top 10. I can buy that argument, though I obviously don’t agree with it.

He belongs, even with a short career. For cry-yi-yi, he’s first all time in the history of MLB in ERA, WHIP, ERA+ and K/BB. First all time for a relief pitcher, period. He’s in the three spot, even with a short career.

At the bottom of this publication there is a 10 highest caliber section which rates the 10 highest caliber pitchers of all time. Papelbon is first on that list. But caliber is only part of the formula, length of career is also part of the formula. It’s why he’s the third best relief pitcher, but the highest caliber.

I’m trying to say, he can pitch as well or better than Rivera and Wagner, but it’s close. But Rivera and Wagner have way longer careers, that’s not close.

 

2. Billy Wagner (2000s) Career Length Grade: A (so far)

Raw Career: 782 G, 0 GS, 833.2 IP, 2.39 ERA, 182 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP, 6.1 H/9, 385 SV, 24.7 SV/50 and 3.9 K/BB

Peak Career: 306 G, 0 GS, 326.1 IP, 1.77 ERA, 250 ERA+, 0.90 WHIP, 5.5 H/9, 161 SV, 26.4 SV/50 and 4.6 K/BB (include his 1999, 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2009 seasons)

His career 6.1 H/9 is the best H/9 in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. Incredibly, he has posted less than 7.5 H/9 during 14 of the 15 seasons during his career, including each of his last nine seasons. In fact, he’s posted less than 6.5 H/9 during each of his last two seasons.

His career 1.01 WHIP ranks as the second best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He has recorded less than a 1.20 WHIP during 14 of the 15 seasons during his career.

Wow. He’s recorded less than a 1.13 WHIP during each of his last nine seasons and he’s recorded less than a 1.03 WHIP during each of his last two seasons.

His career 2.39 ERA ranks as the third best ERA in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher.

Incredibly, he’s posted less than a 2.90 ERA during 14 of the 15 seasons during his career. He’s posted less than a 2.75 ERA during each of his last nine seasons. He’s posted less than a 2.65 ERA during each of his last eight seasons and he’s posted less than a 2.35 ERA during each of his last two seasons.

His career 182 ERA+ ranks as the third best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s recorded over a 135 ERA+ during 13 of the 15 seasons during his career. He’s recorded over a 160 ERA+ during each of his last nine seasons and he’s recorded over a 180 ERA+ during each of his last two seasons.

His career 3.9 K/BB ranks as the third best K/BB in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s posted over 3.2 K/BB during 12 of the 15 seasons during his career, including each of his last nine seasons.

His career 385 SV ranks sixth all time in the history of MLB. He’s recorded over 20 SV during 11 of the 15 seasons during his career, including eight consecutive seasons from 2001-2008.

That puts Wagner in the top 10 all time in H/9, WHIP, ERA, ERA+, K/BB and SV. Again, if historians could only choose six statistical categories to look at, and only six, these would very likely be the six that many historians would choose.

And Billy Wagner is the only relief pitcher in the history of MLB that is in the top 10 all time in all six of those categories, the only one, no one else. That shouldn’t tell us something; that does tell us something.

He’s simply thee best left handed relief pitcher in the history of MLB.

He also has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. During that peak, which is a peak over 305 G and 325 IP, he posted a 1.77 ERA, 250 ERA+, 0.90 WHIP, 5.5 H/9, 26.4 SV/50 and 4.6 K/BB.

 

1.Mariano Rivera (2000s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 917 G, 10 GS, 1,090 IP, 2.25 ERA, 202 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP, 7.0 H/9, 526 SV, 29.1 SV/50 and 3.9 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 850 G, 10 GS, 1,018.2 IP, 2.19 ERA, 207 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP, 6.9 H/9, 496 SV, 29.5 SV/50 and 3.8 K/BB (exclude his 2007 season)

Peak Career: 265 G, 0 GS, 288.2 IP, 1.56 ERA, 285 ERA+, 0.86 WHIP, 6.1 H/9, 167 SV, 31.5 SV/50 and 5.2 K/BB (include his 1999, 2003, 2005 and 2008 seasons)

His career 2.25 ERA ranks as the second best ERA in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. He’s posted less than a 2.90 ERA during 13 of the 15 seasons during his career, including 11 consecutive seasons from 1996-2006.

His career 1.01 WHIP ranks as the second best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. Incredibly, he has recorded less than a 1.19 WHIP during each of his last 14 seasons, every season during his career except for his first season; the only season during his career that he was a starting pitcher.

He’s recorded less than a 0.91 WHIP during each of his last two seasons.

His career 202 ERA+ ranks as the second best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s posted over a 140 ERA+ during each of his last 14 seasons, again, every season during his career except for his first season when he was a starting pitcher. He’s posted over a 240 ERA+ during each of his last two seasons.

His career 526 SV ranks second in the history of MLB. He’s led the League in SV 3 times. He’s recorded over 25 SV during each of his last 13 seasons, every season during his career except for his first two seasons. He’s recorded over 35 SV during each of his last two seasons.

His career 3.9 K/BB ranks as the third best K/BB in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He’s posted over 2.8 K/BB during 12 of the 15 seasons during his career. He’s posted over 3.2 K/BB during each of his last nine seasons. He’s posted over 4.4 K/BB during each of his last five seasons and he’s posted over 5.9 K/BB during each of his last three seasons.

That puts Rivera in the top three all time in ERA, WHIP, ERA+, SV and K/BB. Those are five very important statistical categories for a relief pitcher and Rivera is the only relief pitcher in the history of MLB that is in the top three all time in all five of those categories. The only one.

He’s just a hard guy to hit. He’s recorded less than 7.5 H/9 during 11 of the 15 seasons during his career, including five consecutive seasons from 1998-2002.

He’s pitched about another two seasons worth of games in the postseason during his career. Incredibly, he’s helped his team to the playoff during 14 of the 15 seasons during his career, including 13 consecutive seasons from 1995-2007.

Of those 14 postseason appearances, his team has captured five World Series championships, including three consecutive World Series championships from 1998-2000.

In his combined 14 postseason appearances, he has pitched in almost 90 G and posted a combined 0.74 ERA, 0.77 WHIP, 5.5 H/9 and 5.1 K/BB, absolutely incredible postseason numbers.

Rivera had arguably the worst season of his entire career during the 2007 season and, unbelievably, there were actually some suggesting that he should retire. Well, he didn’t retire, he came back in 2008 and arguably had the best season of his entire career. Pitched very well last season in 2009, too. Glad he didn’t retire, huh?

Rivera easily has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher.

During his peak, which is a peak of 265 G and almost 290 IP, he posted a 1.56 ERA, 285 ERA+, 0.86 WHIP, 6.1 H/9, 31.5 SV/50 and 5.2 K/BB. Actually, that’s not just one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher, it’s simply thee best peak in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher, period.

Overall, he’s the best, hands down. He’s almost to relief pitching what Walter Johnson was to starting pitching. They don’t get any better than Rivera at this position.

 

The Honorable Mentions

Here are the t10 relief pitchers that just missed the top 10 for various reasons.

I will list them in order from oldest to newest: Rollie Fingers (1970s,) Sparky Lyle (1970s,) Jesse Orosco (1980s,) Bruce Sutter (1980s,) John Franco (1990s,) Roberto Hernandez (1990s,) Mike Jackson (1990s,) Jeff Montgomery (1990s,) John Wetteland (1990s) and Francisco Rodriguez (2000s)

 

The 10 Highest Caliber Relief Pitchers of All Time

I consider this to be the Smoky Joe Wood section.

Who’s the best pitcher, putting career values aside; putting length of career aside and putting some other things aside that affect a relief pitchers overall rating? So, these aren’t the best careers, these are the best pitchers, in a way.

Like Smoky Joe Wood in the 1910s, he was a starting pitcher that many historians feel is one of the 10 highest caliber starting pitchers in the history of Major League Baseball. But with his short overall career, he’s never rated that high when you see historians rate starting pitchers because they are almost always rating the best careers.

Don’t get me wrong, caliber is part of historians formula too, it’s just a smaller part of the overall equation; and smaller than it should be, if you ask me, but that’s another article.

Smoky Joe Wood’s overall rating and career value is lower because of his short career and some other factors. But if a highest caliber list were made, Smoky Joe Wood would appear on many historians all time top 10 lists. But almost never in the top 10 on their all time career list, which are the lists that we usually see.

I hope that makes sense. This is basically what I’m doing here with this list. Again, this list is not a list of the best careers, that list is the list you just read. This list is the highest caliber relief pitchers. Here it is.

10. Keith Foulke (2000s)

9. Armando Benitez (2000s)

8. John Wetteland (1990s)

7. Francisco Rodriguez (2000s)

6. Troy Percival (2000s)

5. Trevor Hoffman (2000s)

4. Joe Nathan (2000s)

3. Billy Wagner (2000s)

2. Mariano Rivera (2000s)

1. Jonathan Papelbon (2000s)

The Caliber Honorable Mentions (listed in order from oldest to newest): Hoyt Wilhelm (1960s), Rich Gossage (1980s), Tom Henke (1980s), Jesse Orosco (1980s), Bruce Sutter (1980s), Bryan Harvey (1990s), Jeff Montgomery (1990s), Robb Nen (1990s), Mike Gonzalez (2000s) and Rafael Soriano (2000s)

 

There you go, the best relief pitchers of all time. The 10 best careers and the 10 highest caliber relief pitchers.

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Relief pitchers still don’t generally get the respect they deserve, even though about 30% of the seats on the team bus are taken by this position.

Left-handed relief pitchers even get less respect, generally speaking.

There have been 188 left-handed relief pitchers in the history of Major League Baseball that have pitched at least 250 G.

There have been a total of 656 relief pitchers in the history of MLB that have pitched at least 250 G, righty or lefty.

So that means that 29% of relief pitchers in history have been lefties and 71% have been righties.

There are only five relief pitchers in the history of MLB that have been inducted into the Hall of Fame; and they are all righties. That means, of course, that there is not one left-handed relief pitcher in the HOF.

This list is set to settle the argument, or start the debate: Who is the best left-handed relief pitcher in the history of MLB.

 

An Explanation of the Stats

The statistics that I include will be Games Pitched, Games Started, Innings Pitched, ERA, ERA+, WHIP (OOB%), H/9 (OBA), SV, SV/50 (per 50 Games Relieved) and K/BB (ratio). I will also letter grade their length of career and list the primary decade they pitched in.

First , I will include their raw career numbers first. These are simply their career numbers.

Second , I will include their adjusted career numbers, if they had a long career (which most did). Adjusted career is this: Let’s take Jesse Orosco, for example. Orosco had a long career. So in order to find his real numbers, I have to exclude some late seasons during his career to find the numbers that he really carried during his career.

With Orosco, I’d exclude his 1990, 1991, 1994, 1999, 2001 and 2003 seasons. That is his adjusted career. Again, this can only be done with long career players. If I don’t list an adjusted career under a player’s raw career numbers, then it means they didn’t played long enough to adjust for their long career or it means they didn’t have any bad seasons late in their career.

Third , I will include peak career numbers. Many like short peaks, not me. I include the best seasons equaling at least 250 games for a peak. It takes away the possibility of a pitcher having one or two lucky seasons. The 250-game peak will tell us how good the pitcher was at his best.   

   

The Top 10

10. B.J. Ryan (2000s) Career Length Grade: C+ (so far)

Raw Career: 560 G, 0 GS, 536.2 IP, 3.37 ERA, 133 ERA+, 1.28 WHIP, 7.1 H/9, 117 SV, 10.4 SV/50 and 2.4 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 535 G, 0 GS, 516 IP, 3.24 ERA, 138 ERA+, 1.26 WHIP, 7.0 H/9, 115 SV, 10.7 SV/50 and 2.5 K/BB (exclude his last season)

Peak Career: 284 G, 0 GS, 308 IP, 2.28 ERA, 197 ERA+, 1.11 WHIP, 6.4 H/9, 109 SV, 19.1 SV/50 and 3.2 K/BB (include his 1999, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008 seasons)

 

He’s just a hard guy to hit. He posted less than 7.0 H/9 during three consecutive seasons from 2004-2006.

It’s easy to argue that B.J. Ryan was the best relief pitcher during the middle part of the first decade of the 2000s, from 2004-2006. In fact, during the three consecutive seasons combined from 2004-2006, he pitched almost 210 G of relief and almost 230 IP. He recorded a combined 2.04 ERA, 77 SV, 222 ERA+, 1.05 WHIP, 6.3 H/9 and 3.8 K/BB.

Those are obviously three incredible consecutive seasons from 2004-2006 and, again, there is an argument that he was quietly the best overall relief pitcher in the game during those three consecutive seasons.

There’s actually an argument that he was the best overall relief pitcher during the five seasons from 2004-2008, but that’s another story. He may or may not have been, but he was certainly among the best during those five seasons, no question.

The best season of his career thus far has been his 2006 season. During that 2006 season, he pitched 65 G of relief and over 70 IP. Amazingly, he posted a 1.37 ERA, 38 SV, 335 ERA+, 0.86 WHIP, 5.2 H/9 and 4.3 K/BB.

What a season. Folks, they don’t get much better than that 2006 season.

Ryan hasn’t pitched in MLB during the 2010 season and most think he won’t. Unfortunately, most think his career is through, we’ll see.

My guess?

I hope not; but I think so.

What a relief pitcher.

There are absolutely seven or eight players on the Honorable Mentions list that have a logical argument to have this 10^th and final spot instead of Ryan.

Two that quickly come to mind are Gary Lavelle and Dave Righetti. Both of them had longer careers than Ryan and that helps narrow the gap between their numbers, but it doesn’t narrow the gap all the way.

Another player that comes to the forefront of my mind for serious consideration is John Hiller. Hiller and Ryan had the same length of career, when taken into context of the era, and that obviously makes length of career a wash with these two.

Now, Hiller and Ryan have similar numbers when taken into the context of the era, in my eyes, almost exactly the same. Hiller has better numbers when looked at in their raw state, but they are the same as Ryan’s, more or less, when adjusted for the decade. Let’s remember, Ryan put up his numbers during the 2000s, the steroid era.

My point is, Ryan gets the 10^th and final spot.

Would I have a problem with Hiller having the 10^th spot instead?

No, I wouldn’t have a huge problem with that, but I’m obviously taking Ryan.

 

9. Dan Plesac (1990s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 1,064 G, 14 GS, 1,072 IP, 3.64 ERA, 118 ERA+, 1.29 WHIP, 8.2 H/9, 158 SV, 7.5 SV/50 and 2.6 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 940 G, 14 GS, 991.1 IP, 3.51 ERA, 121 ERA+, 1.28 WHIP, 8.2 H/9, 156 SV, 8.4 SV/50 and 2.6 K/BB (exclude his 1999 and 2002 seasons)

Peak Career: 279 G, 0 GS, 266.1 IP, 2.60 ERA, 165 ERA+, 1.16 WHIP, 7.4 H/9, 88 SV, 15.7 SV/50 and 3.1 K/BB (include his 1987, 1988, 1989, 2000 and 2003 seasons)

 

He was basically a fastball and slider pitcher. His slider was a nice hard slider that neared the speed of his fastball. It worked for him and he had extremely good control.

In fact, he posted over 2.5 K/BB during 11 of the 18 seasons of his career; and he posted over 3.1 K/BB during each of the last four seasons of the 1990s, from 1996-1999.

Plesac remains as one of only seven pitchers in the history of Major League Baseball to ever pitch over 1,050 G during a career; and he’s one of only four left-handed pitchers to ever pitch over 1,050 G during a career.

He might have been the best overall relief pitcher in all of baseball during the last few seasons of the 1980s, from 1987-1989. During those three consecutive seasons from 1987-1989, he combined to pitch almost 160 G of relief and over 190 IP. He recorded a combined 2.47 ERA, 86 SV, 171 ERA+, 1.08 WHIP, 7.3 H/9 and 3.7 K/BB.

What a way to end the decade of the 1980s, wow.

The best season of his entire career was arguably his 1987 season. During that season, he pitched almost 60 G of relief and 80 IP. He posted a 2.61 ERA, 23 SV, 177 ERA+, 1.08 WHIP, 7.1 H/9 and 3.9 K/BB.

Again, he really didn’t let up in the next couple of seasons either. He had a great career and had two or three incredible seasons later in his career, two decades later in the 2000s also.

What a great, long career he had.

 

8. Randy Myers (1990s) Career Length Grade: A-

Raw Career: 728 G, 12 GS, 884.2 IP, 3.19 ERA, 123 ERA+, 1.30 WHIP, 7.7 H/9, 347 SV, 24.3 SV/50 and 2.2 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 666 G, 12 GS, 828 IP, 3.08 ERA, 127 ERA+, 1.29 WHIP, 7.6 H/9, 319 SV, 24.4 SV/50 and 2.3 K/BB (exclude his last season)

Peak Career: 309 G, 0 GS, 357.1 IP, 2.22 ERA, 177 ERA+, 1.17 WHIP, 6.9 H/9, 157 SV, 25.3 SV/50 and 2.6 K/BB (include his 1988, 1989, 1990, 1996 and 1997 seasons)   

 

His career 347 SV still ranks ninth all time in the history of Major League Baseball; it ranks third all time for a left-handed pitcher. He led the League in SV during three of the five seasons from 1993-1997 and posted over 35 SV each of the three seasons that he led the League.

Incredibly, he posted over 20 SV during 10 of the last 11 seasons of his career, including each of his last seven seasons.

This guy was a SV machine.

Myers started his career with the New York Mets and spent more seasons with the Mets than any other team during his career. He had some good seasons for the Mets. His best season with New York was arguably his 1988 season. During that season, he pitched 55 G of relief and almost 70 IP. He recorded a 1.72 ERA, 26 SV, 190 ERA+, 0.91 WHIP, 6.0 H/9 and 4.1 K/BB.

What a season it was.

He only pitched a couple of seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, but he might have pitched his best ball with them. He pitched with the Orioles during the 1996 and 1997 seasons. He combined those two seasons with Baltimore to pitch over 120 G of relief and almost 120 IP. He posted a combined 2.51 ERA, 76 SV, 187 ERA+ and 2.6 K/BB.

His only two seasons with Baltimore, but incredible back to back seasons.

In fact, the best season of his entire career was arguably his 1997 season with Baltimore. During that season, he pitched over 60 G of relief and almost 60 IP. He recorded a 1.51 ERA, 293 ERA+, 1.16 WHIP, 7.1 H/9, 2.6 K/BB and led the League with 45 SV.

What an incredible season that was.

What an incredible career.

By the time his career was through, he had helped his teams to the playoff five times, including capturing the 1990 World Series championship with the Reds.

With all of his playoff appearances, he basically pitched another short season in the postseason. His career postseason numbers: almost 30 G of relief and over 30 IP; a 2.35 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 5.3 H/9.

Great postseason numbers.

Myers career ended after the 1998 season because of some serious arm and shoulder injuries. He already had a nice long career by the time his shoulder went south, and what a career it was.

 

  7. Arthur Rhodes (2000s) Career Length Grade: A (so far)

Raw Career: 780 G, 61 GS, 1,099.2 IP, 4.15 ERA, 107 ERA+, 1.32 WHIP, 7.9 H/9, 32 SV, 2.2 SV/50 and 2.2 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 688 G, 61 GS, 1,015.1 IP, 4.06 ERA, 109 ERA+, 1.28 WHIP, 7.7 H/9, 19 SV, 1.5 SV/50 and 2.3 K/BB (exclude his 2004 and 2006 seasons)

Peak Career: 311 G, 0 GS, 269.2 IP, 2.14 ERA, 198 ERA+, 0.97 WHIP, 6.3 H/9, 7 SV, 1.1 SV/50 and 4.0 K/BB (include his 2001, 2002, 2005, 2008 and 2009 seasons)

 

He’s the only relief pitcher in this top 10 that has never been a closer. This list isn’t meant to be the 10 best left-handed closers of all time, but there are naturally going to be a lot of closers on this list because they are generally among the best relief pitchers in the league. It’s why they’re closers, right?

Well, Rhodes has never been a closer. In fact, he’s never even made the All-Star team. The same thing with the All-Star team, generally speaking, only closers make the All-Star team. Every now and then a non-closer relief pitcher will make the All-Star team, but it’s very rare.

Rhodes probably should have made the All-Star team three or four times so far during his career. Take his 2001 season, for example. Rhodes pitched in over 70 games that season and by the time the season was through, he posted a 1.72 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 6.1 H/9, 242 ERA+ and 6.9 K/BB.

I’m not making those numbers up, those are actually the numbers he posted during his 2001 season. Let me tell you something folks, if you don’t make the All-Star team with those numbers then you’re just never going to make the All-Star team.

Again, Rhodes has arguably had two or three other seasons during his career that were just as good as his 2001 season, but he’s never made the All-Star team. Many suggest that closers don’t get the respect they deserve and, as you can see, non-closer relievers get even less respect.

Here’s a neat little story about Rhodes, I’ll give the quick condensed version here:

In 2006, he arguably had the worst season of his entire career and he suffered from some serious arm injuries that season. Tommy John surgery was performed on him and he missed the entire 2007 season.

Many thought he was done. They thought, he’s old and he’s coming off of surgery, stick a fork in him. But Rhodes had other plans. After sitting out the entire 2007 season, he returned for the 2008 season. He’s 40 years old right now he arguably just pitched the two best seasons of his entire career, the two seasons right after many had counted him out.

I just love those kind of stories, those down for the count but came back stories. Well, Rhodes has one of those. That was the quick condensed version.

Many casual fans would not suspect him, but Rhodes easily has one of the 20 best peaks in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher; and it’s easily one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a left-handed relief pitcher. His peak consists of five of his last eight seasons.

During his peak, which is a peak over 310 G and almost 270 IP, he’s posted a 2.14 ERA, 198 ERA+, 0.97 WHIP, 6.3 H/9 and 4.0 K/BB.

You can search every relief pitcher in the history of MLB, you won’t find 20 peaks better than his; and you won’t find 10 better by a left-handed relief pitcher.

I had told you that his peak consists of five of his last eight seasons. There have been two Arthur Rhodes. The Arthur Rhodes during the first half of his career, which was fairly good, but not great; and the Arthur Rhodes during the second half of his career, which is dominant.

We have to remember, Rhodes was a starting pitcher during his first four seasons in the League and he was still learning how to be a starting pitcher when they moved him to the bullpen. So after four seasons in the League, he found himself spending his next three or four seasons learning how to be a relief pitcher.

He finally figured it out, obviously. By the time he had it all figured out, the first half of his career was basically over. By this time he was a dominant pitcher with a repertoire of pitches that included a fastball, curveball and slider. He’s remained one of the best relief pitchers ever since, and still is, at the age of 40.

 

6. Wilbur Wood (1960s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 651 G, 297 GS, 2,684 IP, 3.24 ERA, 114 ERA+, 1.23 WHIP, 8.7 H/9, 57 SV, 8.0 SV/50 and 2.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 556 G, 209 GS, 2,102 IP, 2.86 ERA, 126 ERA+, 1.17 WHIP, 8.3 H/9, 57 SV, 8.3 SV/50 and 2.3 K/BB (exclude his 1975, 1977 and 1978 seasons)

Peak Career: 292 G, 51 GS, 790.2 IP, 2.23 ERA, 161 ERA+, 1.09 WHIP, 7.8 H/9, 53 SV, 11.0 SV/50 and 2.6 K/BB (include his 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971 and 1976 seasons)

 

There are a lot of parallels to Wilbur Wood and Dennis Eckersley. First of all, they are almost the exact same rating, in my book. Eckersley might edge him out, but it’s close.

Another big parallel between the two of them is the fact that they both basically spent half of their career as a starting pitcher and half of their career as a relief pitcher.

The parallels between the two help some historians argue that if Eckersley is in the Hall of Fame, then Wood should be also. They argue, in short: generally the same career layout, and generally the same career numbers, when adjusted per decade.

Now, Eckersley was a starting pitcher during the first half of his career and he was a relief pitcher during the second half of his career.

Basically, Wood was opposite. He was a relief pitcher during the first half of his career and he was a starting pitcher during the second half of his career. Of course, what Wood did is rare, usually you start first and then spend the twilight of your career in the bullpen. Not Wood, he relieved first, and started as he got older, rare and arguably harder to do.

Wood had an incredibly long 17 season Major League Baseball career and he started pitching in MLB as a teenager during the 1961 season.

He had two or three good pitches he threw, but he was generally a knuckleball pitcher. He usually threw the knuckleball and some historians argue he possessed the best knuckleball in history. Though, his peer relief pitcher from the 1960s, Hoyt Wilhelm, is also argued to have the best knuckleball of all time.

As I said, Wood basically spent the first half of his career as a relief pitcher, and he had some great seasons as a relief pitcher.

His best season as a relief pitcher was arguably his 1968 season. He led the League with 88 G, which was a MLB record at the time, 2 GS and almost 160 IP. Incredibly, while setting a MLB record of 88 G, he posted a 1.87 ERA, 171 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP and 7.2 H/9.

What a season.

He had some truly great seasons as a starting pitcher during the second half of his career, also. It’s arguable if he was a better starter or reliever, as he was great at both.

His best season as a starting pitcher was arguably his 1971 season. He pitched almost 45 G, over 40 GS and almost 335 IP, yes, almost 335 IP. Unbelievably, while pitching almost 335 IP as a starting pitcher that season, he recorded a 1.91 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 7.3 H/9, 210 Ks, 3.4 K/BB, 22 W, .629 W% and led the League with 189 ERA+.

Again, I think it’s close if he or Eckersley was a better overall pitcher, but I can tell you this one thing for sure: Eckersley never had a season as a starting pitcher that was nearly as good as that 1971 season for Wood.

It’s a tough one, again, I might give Eckersley the overall edge, but it’s a virtual tie.

How about this?

Overall, it’s a toss up. Eckersley was a slightly better relief pitcher, but Wood was a slightly better starting pitcher.

Wood posted at least 20 W during four consecutive seasons as a starting pitcher from 1971-1974, including leading the League with 24 W during consecutive seasons in 1972 and 1973. He won almost 50 games in those two seasons combined as a starter and he won 90 games during the four consecutive seasons combined from 1971-1974 as a starter.

Look, Eckersley was a good starting pitcher, don’t get me wrong; but Eckersley won just over 150 games in 12 seasons as a starting pitcher, and Wood won 90 games just in the four consecutive seasons as a starter from 1971-1974.

As you see above, Wood won at least 20 games for four consecutive seasons, and Eckersley never won over 20 games during his 12 seasons as a starter. Again, Eckersley may have been a slightly better relief pitcher, but Wood was certainly a slightly better starter.

 

5. Tug McGraw (1970s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 824 G, 39 GS, 1,514.2 IP, 3.14 ERA, 117 ERA+, 1.25 WHIP, 7.8 H/9, 180 SV, 11.5 SV/50 and 1.9 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 666 G, 37 GS, 1,297.2 IP, 2.93 ERA, 125 ERA+, 1.24 WHIP, 7.6 H/9, 159 SV, 12.6 SV/50 and 1.9 K/BB (exclude his 1979, 1982, 1983 and 1984 seasons)

Peak Career: 307 G, 5 GS, 586 IP, 2.01 ERA, 180 ERA+, 1.12 WHIP, 6.7 H/9, 87 SV, 14.5 SV/50 and 2.3 K/BB (include his 1969, 1971, 1972, 1976, 1977 and 1980 seasons)

 

During his incredibly long 19 season Major League Baseball career, he was basically a relief pitcher for 17 seasons and he was a starting pitcher for two seasons; two of the first three seasons of his career.

The best season of his entire career was arguably his 1980 season and it was the last truly great season of his career.

During that 1980 season, he pitched almost 60 G of relief and over 90 IP. He posted a 1.46 ERA, 260 ERA+, 0.92 WHIP, 6.0 H/9 and 3.3 K/BB.

It was an incredible season.

His best back to back seasons were arguably consecutive seasons in 1971 and 1972. During those two seasons combined, he pitched 105 G, 1 GS and almost 220 IP. He recorded a 1.70 ERA, 199 ERA+, 1.04 WHIP and 6.0 H/9.

By the time his career was through, he had a bunch of good seasons and six or seven seasons that were truly extraordinary.

Incredibly, he helped his team to the playoff during seven of the 13 seasons from 1969-1981, including capturing the 1980 World Series championship.

His combined postseason numbers are: over 25 G of relief and 50 IP; a 2.24 ERA and 6.5 H/9, great career postseason numbers.

Neat trivia: he’s the father of country music superstar Tim McGraw.

 

4. Sparky Lyle (1970s) Career Length Grade: A

Raw Career: 899 G, 0 GS, 1,390.1 IP, 2.88 ERA, 128 ERA+, 1.28 WHIP, 8.4 H/9, 238 SV, 13.2 SV/50 and 1.8 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 688 G, 0 GS, 1,060.1 IP, 2.50 ERA, 146 ERA+, 1.21 WHIP, 7.8 H/9, 214 SV, 15.5 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB (exclude his 1978, 1980, 1981 and 1982 seasons)

Peak Career: 288 G, 0 GS, 505.2 IP, 2.03 ERA, 174 ERA+, 1.16 WHIP, 7.5 H/9, 104 SV, 17.9 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB (include his 1967, 1972, 1974, 1976 and 1977 seasons)

 

He was a true career relief pitcher and never started a game during his long Major League Baseball career.

Incredibly, he posted less than a 2.80 ERA during nine of the first 11 seasons of his career, including four consecutive seasons from 1971-1974.

By the time his career was through, he recorded almost 240 SV and led the League in SV twice, recording over 20 SV each time he led the League. The fact of the matter is, he recorded at least 20 SV during five of the first eight seasons of the 1970s, from 1970-1977.

He won the Cy Young award as a relief pitcher during the 1977 season. During that Cy Young award winning 1977 season, he led the League by pitching 72 G of relief and almost 140 IP. He posted a 2.17 ERA, 26 SV and 183 ERA+.

Another great season for him, and arguably even better than his Cy Young award 1977 season, was three season prior, in 1974. During that 1974 season, he pitched over 65 G of relief and almost 115 IP. He recorded a 1.66 ERA, 215 ERA+, 1.19 WHIP and 7.3 H/9.

All of those numbers I just mentioned from 1974 are better than his Cy Young award 1977 season, except for G and IP. My point is, 1974 was a great season, and arguably just as good or better than his Cy Young award 1977 season.

The best back to back seasons during his career were arguably consecutive seasons in 1976 and 1977. During those two season combined, he pitched over 135 G of relief and 240 IP. He posted a 2.21 ERA, 49 SV and 170 ERA+.

As you can see, this guy had five or six incredible seasons during his career.

He helped his team to the postseason during four of the six seasons from 1976-1981, including capturing the World Series championship in 1977.

His combined career postseason numbers: over 10 G of relief and 20 IP; a 1.69 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 7.2 H/9 and 3.0 K/BB. Great career postseason numbers.

He arguably remains as one of the 20 best relief pitchers in the history of MLB, lefty or righty.

 

3. John Franco (1990s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 1,119 G, 0 GS, 1,245.2 IP, 2.89 ERA, 137 ERA+, 1.33 WHIP, 8.4 H/9, 424 SV, 18.9 SV/50 and 2.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 882 G, 0 GS, 1,030.1 IP, 2.53 ERA, 155 ERA+, 1.29 WHIP, 8.1 H/9, 374 SV, 21.3 SV/50 and 2.0 K/BB (exclude his 1993, 1998, 2001, 2004 and 2005 seasons)

Peak Career: 287 G, 0 GS, 354 IP, 2.01 ERA, 191 ERA+, 1.20 WHIP, 7.6 H/9, 126 SV, 22.1 SV/50 and 1.9 K/BB (include his 1985, 1987, 1988, 1992 and 1996 seasons)

 

His career 424 SV still ranks fourth all time in the history of Major League Baseball; and it’s first all time for a left-handed pitcher. He led the League in SV three times during his career and posted over 25 SV each time he led the League. In fact, he posted over 25 SV during 11 of the 13 seasons from 1986-1998, including six consecutive seasons from 1986-1991.

He’s one of only three players in the history of MLB to ever pitch in over 1,100 games during a career and he’s the only one of the three relief pitchers to pitch in over 1,100 games and post less than a career 2.90 ERA.

In fact, of the 13 relief pitchers in the history of MLB to ever pitch in over 1,000 games, there are only two that have posted less than a career 2.90 ERA and over a career 135 ERA+: John Franco and Hoyt Wilhelm. Nice company there Franco.

So that makes Franco the only left-handed pitcher in the history of MLB to ever pitch in over 1,000 games and post less than a career 2.90 ERA and over a career 135 ERA+, the only one ever.

He was just a hard guy to score against. He recorded less than a 2.95 ERA during 14 of the 21 seasons during his career, including each of the first five seasons of his career. In fact, he recorded less than a 2.65 ERA during each of his first two seasons.

He posted over a 140 ERA+ during 12 of the 21 seasons during his career and he posted over a 150 ERA+ during four consecutive seasons from 1994-1997.

He helped his team to the postseason during consecutive seasons in 1999 and 2000. He pitched 15 games in the two combined postseasons. During those 15 games combined, he recorded a 1.88 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 6.9 H/9 and 3.3 K/BB. Extraordinary postseason numbers.

His team actually made it to the World Series during the 2000 postseason. Unfortunately, they lost, but it wasn’t Franco’s fault. In fact, he pitched four games in the World Series and posted a 0.00 ERA, 0.90 WHIP and never allowed a run.

All of these facts in combination are part of the reasons that he is easily one of the 20 best relief pitchers in the history of MLB, righty or lefty.

 

2. Jesse Orosco (1980s) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 1,252 G, 4 GS, 1,295.1 IP, 3.16 ERA, 125 ERA+, 1.26 WHIP, 7.3 H/9, 144 SV, 5.8 SV/50 and 2.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 945 G, 4 GS, 1,064 IP, 2.80 ERA, 139 ERA+, 1.20 WHIP, 7.0 H/9, 139 SV, 7.4 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB (exclude his 1990, 1991, 1994, 1999, 2001 and 2003 seasons)

Peak Career: 268 G, 0 GS, 336.2 IP, 1.95 ERA, 195 ERA+, 1.10 WHIP, 6.3 H/9, 42 SV, 7.8 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB (include his 1981, 1983, 1986, 1989 and 1997 seasons)

 

His career 1,252 G ranks first all time in the history of MLB for a pitcher, period.

This guy is generally underrated by the casual fan. This is likely because he was only a closer during three or four seasons of his career. He pitched great as a closer but, again, only three or four seasons as a closer.

He spent most of his career as a non-closer relief pitcher and even some of his career as a left-handed specialty relief pitcher. He was, more or less, used as a left-handed specialist during the last 30-40% of his career.

It didn’t matter which role you used him in, he was among the best in the League in whichever role he was used in.

There is a great quote from Bill James that I want to share with you that will help shed some light on this issue:

 

“Who is the best left-handed reliever of all time? The best left-handed reliever specializing in getting out lefties, by far, has been Jesse Orosco. He has been consistently effective for 20 years at a job that most people can’t do two years in a row.”— Bill James, respected baseball historian and Godfather of SABERmetrics

 

During his career, even though he spent the last third of his career as a left-handed specialist, he still faced almost twice as many right-handed hitters. Left-handed hitters had over 1,580 AB against Orosco and right-handed hitters had almost 3,155 AB against him during his career.

For his career, left-handed hitters posted less than a .210 BA and right-handed hitters posted a .230 BA. Those are both exceptional numbers. They’re best and bestest, as my three year old niece would say.

Overall, his career OBA was just over .220 with lefties and righties combined.

Compare that to HOFer, Bruce Sutter, in the three spot and also a relief pitcher from the 1980s. Right-handed hitters recorded almost a .240 BA against Sutter, compared to just over .220 for Orosco. Left-handed hitters recorded almost a .220 BA against Sutter, compared to less than .210 for Orosco. Overall, they combined to hit .230 against Sutter and just over .220 for Orosco.

Orosco simply held his hitters to a lower BA; righties, lefties and combined. And Orosco did it while pitching in almost twice as many career games as Sutter. I’m not saying that Sutter shouldn’t be in the HOF, I’m just saying that Orosco was just as good or better than Sutter. Orosco was just used in different roles for much of his career.

Look, Orosco was just a hard guy to hit. He posted less than 7.5 H/9 during 11 of the 18 seasons from 1981-1998, including five consecutive seasons from 1994-1998.

He had five or six incredible seasons. The best season of his career was arguably his 1983 season. During that season, he pitched over 60 G of relief and 110 IP. He recorded a 1.47 ERA, 247 ERA+, 1.04 WHIP and 6.2 H/9.

What a season.

When he was on, he was on.

He arguably has one of the 20 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher; and he easily has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a left-handed relief pitcher. During his peak, which is a peak of almost 270 G of relief and over 335 IP, he posted a 1.95 ERA, 195 ERA+, 1.10 WHIP and 6.3 H/9.

You can search every relief pitcher in the history of MLB, you’ll be hard pressed to find 20 peaks better than this one; and you won’t find 10 better by a lefty.

In the big picture and the history of relief pitchers, he’s quietly and generally slightly underrated by the casual fan.

He is easily one of the 20 best relief pitchers in the history of MLB, righty or lefty.

 

1. Billy Wagner (2000s) Career Length Grade: A (so far)

Raw Career: 782 G, 0 GS, 833.2 IP, 2.39 ERA, 182 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP, 6.1 H/9, 385 SV, 24.7 SV/50 and 3.9 K/BB

Peak Career: 306 G, 0 GS, 326.1 IP, 1.77 ERA, 250 ERA+, 0.90 WHIP, 5.5 H/9, 161 SV, 26.4 SV/50 and 4.6 K/BB (include his 1999, 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2009 seasons)

 

His career 6.1 H/9 is the best H/9 in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. Incredibly, he has posted less than 7.5 H/9 during 14 of the 15 seasons during his career, including each of his last nine seasons. In fact, he’s posted less than 6.5 H/9 during each of his last two seasons.

His career 1.01 WHIP ranks as the second best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher; and it’s first all time for a lefty. He has recorded less than a 1.20 WHIP during 14 of the 15 seasons during his career. Wow. He’s recorded less than a 1.13 WHIP during each of his last nine seasons and he’s recorded less than a 1.03 WHIP during each of his last two seasons.

His career 2.39 ERA ranks as the third best ERA in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher; and it’s first all time for a lefty.

Incredibly, he’s posted less than a 2.90 ERA during 14 of the 15 seasons during his career. He’s posted less than a 2.75 ERA during each of his last nine seasons. He’s posted less than a 2.65 ERA during each of his last eight seasons and he’s posted less than a 2.35 ERA during each of his last two seasons.

His career 182 ERA+ ranks as the third best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher; and it’s first all time for a lefty. He’s recorded over a 135 ERA+ during 13 of the 15 seasons during his career. He’s recorded over a 160 ERA+ during each of his last nine seasons and he’s recorded over a 180 ERA+ during each of his last two seasons.

His career 3.9 K/BB ranks as the third best K/BB in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher; and it’s first all time for a lefty. He’s posted over 3.2 K/BB during 12 of the 15 seasons during his career, including each of his last nine seasons.

His career 385 SV ranks sixth all time in the history of MLB; and it’s second all time for a lefty. He’s recorded over 20 SV during 11 of the 15 seasons during his career, including eight consecutive seasons from 2001-2008.

That puts Wagner in the top 10 all time in H/9, WHIP, ERA, ERA+, K/BB and SV; and he’s actually either first or second all time in all six of those categories for a lefty. Again, if historians could only choose six statistical categories to look at, and only six, these would very likely be the six that many historians would choose.

And Billy Wagner is the only relief pitcher in the history of MLB that is in the top 10 all time in all six of those categories, the only one, no one else. That shouldn’t tell us something; that does tell us something.

That’s why he’s easily one of the 10 best relief pitchers in the history of MLB, righty or lefty.

He also has one of the 10 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher; and it’s simply the best peak in history for a left-handed relief pitcher. During that peak, which is a peak over 305 G and 325 IP, he posted a 1.77 ERA, 250 ERA+, 0.90 WHIP, 5.5 H/9, 26.4 SV/50 and 4.6 K/BB.

There is really no question that Billy Wagner is the best left-handed relief pitcher to ever grace the fields of MLB.

The arguments on this list is who’s second, not who’s first. Two through eight actually have an argument for that two spot, especially two through six; but no question as to who should be in the one spot: Billy Wagner.

 

  The Honorable Mentions

Here are the ten left-handed relief pitchers that just missed the top 10 for various reasons. I will list them in order from oldest to newest: Bobby Shantz (1950s), Ron Perranoski (1960s), Tom Burgmeier (1970s), John Hiller (1970s), Willie Hernandez (1980s), Rick Honeycutt (1980s), Gary Lavelle (1980s), Dave Righetti (1980s), Mike Stanton (1990s) and Steve Kline (2000s)

 

The 10 Highest Caliber Left-Handed Relief Pitchers of All Time

I consider this to be the Smoky Joe Wood section. Who’s the best pitcher, putting career values aside; putting length of career aside and putting some other things aside that affect a relief pitchers overall rating? So, these aren’t the best careers, these are the best pitchers, in a way.

Like Smoky Joe Wood in the 1910s, he was a starting pitcher that many historians feel is one of the 10 highest caliber starting pitchers in the history of Major League Baseball. But with his short overall career, he’s never rated that high when you see historians rate starting pitchers because they are almost always rating the best careers.

Don’t get me wrong, caliber is part of historians formula too, it’s just a smaller part of the overall equation; and smaller than it should be, if you ask me, but that’s another article.

Smoky Joe Wood’s overall rating and career value is lower because of his short career and some other factors. But if a highest caliber list were made, Smoky Joe Wood would appear on many historians all time top 10 lists. But almost never in the top 10 on their all time career list, which are the lists that we usually see.

I hope that makes sense. This is basically what I’m doing here with this list. Again, this list is not a list of the best careers, that list is the list you just read. This list is the highest caliber relief pitchers. Here it is.

10. Damaso Marte (2000s)

9. Tug McGraw (1970s)

8. Steve Howe (1980s)

7. John Hiller (1970s)

6. B.J. Ryan (2000s)

5. Sparky Lyle (1970s)

4. John Franco (1990s)

3. Jesse Orosco (1980s)

2. Mike Gonzalez (2000s)

1. Billy Wagner (2000s)

 

The Caliber Honorable Mentions (listed in order from oldest to newest): Bill Henry (1960s), Ron Perranoski (1960s), Wilbur Wood (1960s), Al Hrabosky (1970s), Darold Knowles (1970s), Gary Lavelle (1980s), Joe Sambito (1980s), Randy Myers (1990s), Brian Fuentes (2000s) and Arthur Rhodes (2000s)

 

There you go, the best left-hander relief pitchers of all time. The 10 best careers and the 10 highest caliber left-handed relief pitchers.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Relief pitching in the first half of the 20th century was much different than the relief pitching of today.

Back then, it was still the general ideology of managers that the good arms were in the starting rotation and the duds were in the bullpen.

In a way it was true.

However, that ideology was starting to shift by the 1960s and the relief pitchers on this list broke that rule.

They could flat out pitch.

We were also starting to see more and more career relief pitchers during the 1960s. In fact, seven of the 10 on this list started 0-15% of their career games.

It was starting to look like today, in that facet.

The big difference between relief pitchers of the 1960s and relief pitchers of today are the innings pitched that they chewed up.

The average relief pitcher in the top 10 of the 1960s averaged 2.3 innings pitched per game and the average relief pitcher in the top 10 of the 2000s, which were featured in an article I wrote a few weeks ago, averaged 1.2 innings pitched per game.

As you can see, they averaged almost twice as many innings pitched per game in the 1960s, compared to the 2000s.

That’s the biggest difference.  

Hoyt Wilhelm was the earliest relief pitcher inducted into the Hall of Fame and he remains one of only five in the history of Major League Baseball to be inducted; making the 1960s one of only three decades with a relief pitcher in the HoF.

Three of the relief pitchers that are in the HoF are from the 1980s.

The other is from the 1970s.

There were 65 relief pitchers in the 1960s.

If a player does not appear on this list of 65, then they either didn’t reach 250 games or I consider them a relief pitcher from the 1950s or the 1970s.

The 1970s will be covered in a separate article, and I just wrote an article on 1950s relief pitchers.

Relief pitchers will only be in one decade. For example, Don McMahon will appear in this article. So, he will not appear in my 1970s article, which I will write later, and he did not appear in my 1950s article.

 

 

An Explanation of the Stats

 

The statistics that I include will be Games Pitched, Games Started, Innings Pitched, ERA, ERA+, WHIP (OOB%), H/9 (OBA), SV, SV/50 (per 50 Games Relieved) and K/BB (ratio).

I will also letter grade career length.

First , I will include their raw career numbers first. These are simply their career numbers.

Second , I will include their adjusted career numbers, if they had a long career (which most did). Adjusted career is this: Let’s take Wilbur Wood, for example. Wood had a long career. So in order to find his real numbers, I have to exclude some late seasons during his career to find the numbers that he really carried during his career.

With Wood, I’d exclude his 1975, 1977 and 1978 seasons. That is his adjusted career. Again, this can only be done with long career players. If I don’t list an adjusted career under a player’s raw career numbers, then it means they didn’t played long enough to adjust for their long career or it means they didn’t have any bad seasons late in their career.

Third, I will include peak career numbers. Many like short peaks, not me. I include the best seasons equaling at least 250 games for a peak. It takes away the possibility of a pitcher having one or two lucky seasons. The 250-game peak will tell us how good the pitcher was at his best.   

 

 

The 65 Relief Pitchers

 

Here are the 65 Relief Pitchers from the 1960s that reached at least 250 games (listed in alphabetical order):

Ted Abernathy, Hank Aguirre, Jack Aker

Jack Baldschun, Gary Bell, Bobby Bolin, Jim Brewer

Casey Cox

Moe Drabowsky

Roy Face, Turk Farrell, Bill Fischer, Eddie Fisher

Joe Gibbon, Dave Giusti, Fred Gladding

Dick Hall, Steve Hamilton, Jim Hannan, Bill Henry, Ron Herbel, Bob Humphreys

Ron Kline, Cal Koonce

Jack Lamabe, Don Larsen, Barry Latman, Bob Lee, Frank Linzy

Al McBean, Billy McCool, Lindy McDaniel, Don McMahon, Pete Mikkelsen, Bob Miller, Stu Miller

Don Nottebart

Billy O’Dell, John O’Donoghue, Dan Osinski, Jim Owens

Orlando Pena, Ron Perranoski

Dick Radatz, Pedro Ramos, Jim Ray, Claude Raymond, Phil Regan, Hal Reniff, Pete Richert, Ed Roebuck

Diego Segui, Dick Selma, Larry Sherry, Tommie Sisk, Lee Stange, Wes Stock

Ron Taylor

Dave Wickersham, Hoyt Wilhelm, Stan Williams, Wilbur Wood, Hal Woodeshick, Al Worthington and John Wyatt  

 

 

The Top 10

 

10. Turk Farrell (1956-1969) Career Length Grade: A-

Raw Career: 590 G, 134 GS, 1,704.2 IP, 3.45 ERA, 104 ERA+, 1.23 WHIP, 8.6 H/9, 83 SV, 9.1 SV/50 and 2.5 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 490 G, 134 GS, 1,547.2 IP, 3.42 ERA, 105 ERA+, 1.20 WHIP, 8.4 H/9, 68 SV, 9.6 SV/50 and 2.6 K/BB (exclude his last two seasons)

Peak Career: 265 G, 30 GS, 626 IP, 2.82 ERA, 133 ERA+, 1.16 WHIP, 7.8 H/9, 48 SV, 10.2 SV/50 and 2.6 K/BB (include his 1957, 1958, 1960, 1962 and 1967 seasons)

 

He was a good control pitcher with an arsenal of pitches that included a fastball, slider, and palmball. Some historians argue that he had the best fastball of the decade, starter or reliever.

During his 14 year career, he pitched nine seasons as a relief pitcher and five seasons as a starting pitcher.

He was a relief pitcher during his first six seasons and his last three seasons. He was a starting pitcher for five consecutive seasons from 1962-1966.

His best season as a starter was arguably his first season as a starter during the 1962 season. He pitched over 40 G, almost 30 GS and threw over 240 IP. He posted a 124 ERA+, 1.10 WHIP, 3.7 K/BB and over 200 Ks.

Extraordinary numbers for a starting pitcher.

He had four or five great seasons as a relief pitcher.

His best season as a relief pitcher was arguably his 1957 season. He pitched over 50 G of relief and 80 IP. He recorded a 2.38 ERA and 161 ERA+.

His best back to back seasons as a relief pitcher were his consecutive seasons in 1957 and 1958. He pitched over 105 G of relief and almost 180 IP during those two seasons combined and posted a 2.89 ERA and 135 ERA+.

As you can see, Farrell could pitch from the bullpen or the starting rotation and had some extremely good seasons at both.

There are certainly five or six relief pitchers on the Honorable Mentions list that have good arguments to take this 10^th and final spot from Farrell and they were certainly higher caliber pitchers.

Most notably: Ted Abernathy, Hank Aguirre, Jim Brewer, Dick Hall and Frank Linzy.

The difference is, those five all had average length of careers, give or take, and Farrell had a nice long career. His long career more than makes up for the slight caliber difference between he and any of those five when length of career is properly taken into account.

 

9. Bill Henry (1952-1969) Career Length Grade: C

Raw Career: 527 G, 44 GS, 913 IP, 3.26 ERA, 120 ERA+, 1.25 WHIP, 8.3 H/9, 90 SV, 9.3 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 507 G, 43 GS, 886.1 IP, 3.18 ERA, 124 ERA+, 1.24 WHIP, 8.2 H/9, 90 SV, 9.7 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB (exclude his last two seasons)

Peak Career: 256 G, 1 GS, 364.2 IP, 2.34 ERA, 166 ERA+, 1.03 WHIP, 7.1 H/9, 43 SV, 8.4 SV/50 and 3.3 K/BB (include his 1958, 1959, 1961, 1964, 1966 and 1967 seasons)

 

He was basically a starting pitcher during his first three seasons and he was a relief pitcher during his last 13 seasons.

He was okay as a starting pitcher, but he was a much better relief pitcher.

He had some incredible seasons as a relief pitcher during his career.

His best season was arguably his 1964 season. He pitched almost 40 G of relief and over 50 IP. Incredibly, he posted a 0.87 ERA, 420 ERA+, 0.83 WHIP and 5.4 H/9.

It’s on the short list of the great relief seasons of all time.

His two best back to back seasons were arguably his consecutive seasons in 1966 and 1967. He pitched over 60 G, 1 GS and over 40 IP during those two seasons combined and recorded a 2.27 ERA, 159 ERA+, 1.15 WHIP and 6.4 H/9.

As you can see, he had several great seasons as a relief pitcher and he posted extraordinary career numbers. The only reason that he is not higher on this list is because he had an average length of career.

In fact, he’s the only relief pitcher on this list that did not have an above average length of career.

 

8. Ron Kline (1952-1970) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 736 G, 203 GS, 2,078 IP, 3.75 ERA, 102 ERA+, 1.37 WHIP, 9.2 H/9, 108 SV, 10.1 SV/50 and 1.4 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 688 G, 203 GS, 2,012.2 IP, 3.70 ERA, 103 ERA+, 1.36 WHIP, 9.1 H/9, 103 SV, 10.6 SV/50 and 1.4 K/BB (exclude his last two seasons)

Peak Career: 316 G, 1 GS, 477.1 IP, 2.34 ERA, 147 ERA+, 1.21 WHIP, 8.4 H/9, 90 SV, 14.3 SV/50 and 1.8 K/BB (include his 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966 and 1968 seasons)

 

During his incredibly long 17 year career, he was basically a relief pitcher for 10 seasons and a starting pitcher for seven seasons.

He was a relief pitcher during his first season and his last nine seasons and he was a starting pitcher for seven consecutive seasons from 1955-1961.

He was okay as a starting pitcher, but not great.

He was a great relief pitcher during the second half of his career and arguably the best overall relief pitcher during the half dozen seasons from 1963-1968.

He played more seasons for the Pittsburgh Pirates than any other team during his career, but he didn’t have many of his best seasons with them, unfortunately.

Having said that, his 1968 season with Pittsburgh, it was arguably the best season of his entire career, as a relief pitcher, and really his only truly great season with the organization. During the 1968 season, he pitched over 55 G of relief and 110 IP. He posted a 1.68 ERA, 173 ERA+ and 1.11 WHIP.   

He pitched eight seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, but that 1968 season was his best season with them. He pitched four consecutive seasons with the Washington Nationals/Senators from 1963-1966 as a relief pitcher.

His four consecutive seasons with Washington were incredible. During those four consecutive seasons with Washington, he pitched 260 G, 1 GS and almost 365 IP. He recorded a 2.54 ERA, 83 SV, 142 ERA+ and led the League in SV during the 1965 season with 29.

So, he pitched more seasons with Pittsburgh, but he generally pitched his best seasons with Washington.

That was five incredible seasons that I just brought up and they are five of the six seasons from 1963-1968. He was simply an extraordinary relief pitcher during the second half of his career.

 

7. Roy Face (1953-1969) Career Length Grade: A-

Raw Career: 848 G, 27 GS, 1,375 IP, 3.48 ERA, 109 ERA+, 1.24 WHIP, 8.8 H/9, 193 SV, 11.8 SV/50 and 2.4 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 749 G, 27 GS, 1,236 IP, 3.34 ERA, 114 ERA+, 1.23 WHIP, 8.8 H/9, 184 SV, 12.8 SV/50 and 2.4 K/BB (exclude his 1964 and 1969 seasons)

Peak Career: 254 G, 0 GS, 363 IP, 2.48 ERA, 152 ERA+, 1.15 WHIP, 8.0 H/9, 75 SV, 14.7 SV/50 and 2.4 K/BB (include his 1958, 1959, 1962, 1965 and 1967 seasons)

 

He was a career relief pitcher. He had some spot starts here and there during his career, but year in and year out, he was a relief pitcher.

And man, was he good.

He led the League with a .947 W% during the 1959 season and it still stands as the Major League Baseball single season record.

He led the League in SV during three of the five seasons from 1958-1962.

He was dominant when he was on, and he was on during the better part of his career.

His best single season was arguably his 1962 season. He pitched over 60 G of relief and 90 IP; and posted a 1.88 ERA, 211 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP, 7.3 H/9 and led the League with 28 SV.

It was a magical season. One of five or six truly great seasons he had during his career.

His best back to back seasons were arguably his consecutive seasons in 1958 and 1959, the last two seasons of the 1950s. During those two seasons, he combined to pitch almost 115 G of relief and 180 IP; he recorded a 2.79 ERA and .885 W%, yes, .885.

This guy was one of the handful of relief pitchers that helped revolutionize the position during the 1950s and 1960s.

 

6. Ron Perranoski (1961-1973) Career Length Grade: B

Raw Career: 737 G, 1 GS, 1,174.2 IP, 2.79 ERA, 124 ERA+, 1.33 WHIP, 8.4 H/9, 179 SV, 12.2 SV/50 and 1.5 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 656 G, 1 GS, 1,067.2 IP, 2.54 ERA, 136 ERA+, 1.29 WHIP, 8.2 H/9, 172 SV, 13.1 SV/50 and 1.5 K/BB (exclude his last three seasons)

Peak Career: 264 G, 1 GS, 451.1 IP, 2.17 ERA, 168 ERA+, 1.25 WHIP, 7.7 H/9, 92 SV, 17.4 SV/50 and 1.4 K/BB (include his 1961, 1963, 1969 and 1970 seasons)

 

His career 2.79 ERA still ranks as the 17^th best ERA in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. He posted less than a 2.90 ERA during seven of his first 10 seasons, including each of his first three seasons.

He was able to post one of the 20 best ERA’s in history for a relief pitcher, in part, because he had an arsenal of four or five pitches that included a sinkerball, curveball and fastball.

He’s another player in this top 10 that was a career relief pitcher. In fact, he only started one game during his entire career, a relief pitcher, year in and year out.

He was an extraordinary relief pitcher and had some amazing seasons.

His best season was arguably his 1963 season. He led the League with 69 G of relief and almost 130 IP. Incredibly, he posted a 1.67 ERA, 21 SV, 179 ERA+ and led the League with .842 W%.

His best back to back seasons were arguably consecutive seasons in 1969 and 1970.

During those two seasons combined, he pitched over 140 G and 230 IP. He recorded 65 SV, 2.26 ERA, 166 ERA+ and led the League in SV during each of those two seasons and recorded over 30 SV each of those two seasons.

All of these facts in combination are part of the reasons why Ron Perranoski remains as one of the 20 best left-handed relief pitchers in the history of MLB.

 

5. Lindy McDaniel (1955-1975) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 987 G, 74 GS, 2,139.1 IP, 3.45 ERA, 110 ERA+, 1.27 WHIP, 8.8 H/9, 172 SV, 9.4 SV/50 and 2.2 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 862 G, 71 GS, 1,919 IP, 3.36 ERA, 114 ERA+, 1.26 WHIP, 8.8 H/9, 164 SV, 10.4 SV/50 and 2.2 K/BB (exclude his 1967, 1971 and 1975 seasons)

Peak Career: 262 G, 2 GS, 478.1 IP, 2.35 ERA, 160 ERA+, 1.09 WHIP, 7.4 H/9, 63 SV, 12.1 SV/50 and 2.9 K/BB (include his 1960, 1965, 1966 and 1970 seasons)

 

He began his incredibly long 21 year career as a teenager during the 1955 season. Basically, he was a relief pitcher for 18 seasons and he was a starting pitcher for three seasons; three of his first four seasons.

He was OK as a starting pitcher, but he had his best seasons as a relief pitcher.

He had some incredible seasons as a relief pitcher and he led the League in SV during three of the five seasons from 1959-1963.

The best season of his entire career was arguably his 1960 season. He pitched 65 G, 2 GS and over 115 IP. He posted a 2.09 ERA, 197 ERA+, 0.94 WHIP, 6.6 H/9, 4.4 K/BB, led the League with .750 W% and led the League with 26 SV.

What a great season that was. There’s not a relief pitcher today that wouldn’t take those numbers this season.

His best back to back seasons were arguably consecutive seasons in 1965 and 1966. During those two seasons combined, he pitched 135 G of relief and over 250 IP. He recorded a 2.62 ERA and 141 ERA+.

What a pitcher, what a career.

 

4. Stu Miller (1952-1968) Career Length Grade: A

Raw Career: 704 G, 93 GS, 1,693.1 IP, 3.24 ERA, 115 ERA+, 1.25 WHIP, 8.1 H/9, 154 SV, 12.6 SV/50 and 1.9 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 702 G, 93 GS, 1,692.2 IP, 3.22 ERA, 116 ERA+, 1.25 WHIP, 8.1 H/9, 154 SV, 12.6 SV/50 and 2.0 K/BB (exclude his last season)

Peak Career: 305 G, 31 GS, 715.2 IP, 2.29 ERA, 159 ERA+, 1.09 WHIP, 7.1 H/9, 86 SV, 15.6 SV/50 and 2.5 K/BB (include his 1952, 1958, 1961, 1963, 1965 and 1966 seasons)

 

During his nice long 16 year career, he was basically a relief pitcher for 14 seasons and he was a starting pitcher for two seasons.

He actually pitched well as a starting pitcher during his first season in 1952. It was a short season, but a great season for him. He pitched over 10 G, all but one as a starter and almost 90 IP. He posted a 2.05 ERA, 181 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP, 6.4 H/9 and .667 W%.

Again, not a long season as a starting pitcher, but a great first season, nonetheless.

He spent most of his career as a relief pitcher, and man was he great.

He led the League in SV during two of the three seasons from 1961-1963 and seemed to record great numbers year in and year out.

His best season was arguably his 1958 season with the San Francisco Giants. He spent as much time with the Giants as any other team during his career and it was the Giants first season in San Francisco, having just moved from New York.

Again, it was arguably the best season of his entire career. He pitched over 40 G, 20 GS and over 180 IP during that 1958 season. He posted a 1.15 WHIP, led the League with 2.47 ERA and led the League with 154 ERA+.

Four years later, and his last season with San Francisco, Miller helped the Giants to the World Series. Unfortunately, they lost, but Miller pitched great. In fact, during that World Series, he pitched 2 G and recorded a 0.00 ERA, 6.8 H/9 and never allowed a run.

That’s how he finished his time with San Francisco and the following year he pitched for the Baltimore Orioles, and he ended up spending as much time in Baltimore as he did in San Francisco.

He pitched the best overall baseball of his career in Baltimore. His two best back to back seasons were arguably his 1965 and 1966 seasons with the Orioles.

During those two seasons combined, he pitched almost 120 G of relief and over 210 IP. Incredibly, he posted a 2.04 ERA, 42 SV, 169 ERA+, 0.98 WHIP, 6.5 H/9 and 3.2 K/BB.

Wow, two incredible seasons, back to back.

Miller had an amazing career and he was able to do this, in part, because of the pitches that he threw. He had two or three good pitches in his arsenal and some historians still argue that it is Stu Miller that possessed the single best change-up in the history of MLB, starter or reliever.

Here are a few good quotes that I’ve collected that help support this opinion by historians:

 

“Relief ace, Stu Miller, was amazing…He had the greatest change-up in the world, without any question.”—Billy Pierce, seven time All-Star starting pitcher from the 1950s

 

“It was unbelievable. If it wasn’t the best change-up ever, it was one of the best…hitters knew what was coming, and they still couldn’t hit it.”—Frank Robinson, Hall of Fame right fielder from the 1960s

 

“Stu Miller had the best change-up ever.”—Dick Hall, 1960s relief pitcher who’s career 1.10 WHIP still ranks 10^th all time for relievers

 

 

3. Don McMahon (1957-1974) Career Length Grade: A-

Raw Career: 874 G, 2 GS, 1,310.2 IP, 2.96 ERA, 120 ERA+, 1.25 WHIP, 7.2 H/9, 153 SV, 8.8 SV/50 and 1.7 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 722 G, 2 GS, 1,105 IP, 2.80 ERA, 127 ERA+, 1.26 WHIP, 7.3 H/9, 131 SV, 9.1 SV/50 and 1.7 K/BB (exclude his 1969, 1971 and 1972 seasons)

Peak Career: 285 G, 0 GS, 448.2 IP, 1.95 ERA, 177 ERA+, 1.09 WHIP, 6.0 H/9, 45 SV, 7.9 SV/50 and 2.0 K/BB (include his 1957, 1962, 1964, 1967, 1968 and 1973 seasons)

 

During his nice long 18 year career, he was a relief pitcher every season and only had two career starts. He was a career relief pitcher.

He was simply a hard guy to hit and he led the League in SV during the 1959 season. He posted less than 7.5 H/9 during 10 of the 18 seasons during his career, including five consecutive seasons from 1966-1970.

He had six or seven absolutely incredible seasons during his career. One interesting thing about him that can’t be said about many relief pitchers in the history of MLB is that the three best seasons of his entire career were seasons that were in three different decades.

Arguably, the three best seasons of his career are one season in the 1950s, one season in the 1960s and one season in the 1970s.

His best season during the 1950s was arguably the first season of his career in 1957. He pitched over 30 G of relief and 45 IP. Incredibly, he posted a 1.54 ERA, 228 ERA+ and 6.4 H/9.

His best season during the 1960s was arguably his 1962 season. He pitched over 50 G of relief and almost 80 IP. He recorded a 1.69 ERA, 223 ERA+, 1.12 WHIP and 6.3 H/9.

His best season during the 1970s was arguably his 1973 season. He was 43 years old during that season, and still pitched lights out. He pitched over 20 G of relief and 30 IP. Incredibly, at the age of 43, he posted a 1.48 ERA, 263 ERA+, 0.92 WHIP, 6.2 H/9 and 2.9 K/BB.

Those are arguably the three best seasons of his entire career and they are in three different decades. I just love that kind of stuff.

Now, his best back to back seasons were arguably his 1967 and 1968 seasons. During those two seasons combined, he pitched almost 110 G of relief and over 190 IP. He recorded a 1.98 ERA, 158 ERA+, 1.00 WHIP and 5.7 H/9.

I don’t know what else to tell you, this guy was incredible; a bunch of good seasons and six or seven that were simply off the charts.

 

2. Wilbur Wood (1961-1978) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 651 G, 297 GS, 2,684 IP, 3.24 ERA, 114 ERA+, 1.23 WHIP, 8.7 H/9, 57 SV, 8.0 SV/50 and 2.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 556 G, 209 GS, 2,102 IP, 2.86 ERA, 126 ERA+, 1.17 WHIP, 8.3 H/9, 57 SV, 8.3 SV/50 and 2.3 K/BB (exclude his 1975, 1977 and 1978 seasons)

Peak Career: 292 G, 51 GS, 790.2 IP, 2.23 ERA, 161 ERA+, 1.09 WHIP, 7.8 H/9, 53 SV, 11.0 SV/50 and 2.6 K/BB (include his 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971 and 1976 seasons)

 

There are a lot of parallels to Wilbur Wood and Dennis Eckersley. First of all, they are almost the exact same rating, in my book. Eckersley might edge him out, but it’s close.

Another big parallel between the two of them is the fact that they both basically spent half of their career as a starting pitcher and half of their career as a relief pitcher.

The parallels between the two help some historians argue that if Eckersley is in the Hall of Fame, then Wood should be also. They argue, in short: generally the same career layout, and generally the same career numbers, when adjusted per decade.

Now, Eckersley was a starting pitcher during the first half of his career and he was a relief pitcher during the second half of his career.

Basically, Wood was opposite. He was a relief pitcher during the first half of his career and he was a starting pitcher during the second half of his career. Of course, what Wood did is rare, usually you start first and then spend the twilight of your career in the bullpen. Not Wood, he relieved first, and started as he got older, rare and arguably harder to do.

Wood had an incredibly long 17 year career and he started pitching in MLB as a teenager during the 1961 season.

He had two or three good pitches he threw, but he was generally a knuckleball pitcher. He usually threw the knuckleball and some historians argue he possessed the best knuckleball in history. Though, the guy ahead of him on this list in the one spot is also argued to have the best knuckleball of all time.

As I said, Wood basically spent the first half of his career as a relief pitcher, and he had some great seasons as a relief pitcher.

His best season as a relief pitcher was arguably his 1968 season. He led the League with 88 G, which was a MLB record at the time, 2 GS and almost 160 IP. Incredibly, while setting a MLB record of 88 G, he posted a 1.87 ERA, 171 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP and 7.2 H/9.

What a season.

He had some truly great seasons as a starting pitcher during the second half of his career, also. It’s arguably if he was a better starter or reliever, as he was great at both.

His best season as a starting pitcher was arguably his 1971 season. He pitched almost 45 G, over 40 GS and almost 335 IP, yes, almost 335 IP. Unbelievably, while pitching almost 335 IP as a starting pitcher that season, he recorded a 1.91 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 7.3 H/9, 210 Ks, 3.4 K/BB, 22 W, .629 W% and led the League with 189 ERA+.

Again, I think it’s close if he or Eckersley was a better overall pitcher, but I can tell you this one thing for sure: Eckersley never had a season as a starting pitcher that was nearly as good as that 1971 season for Wood.

It’s a tough one, again, I might give Eckersley the overall edge, but it’s a virtual tie.

How about this?

Overall, it’s a toss up. Eckersley was a slightly better relief pitcher, but Wood was a slightly better starting pitcher.

Wood posted at least 20 W during four consecutive seasons as a starting pitcher from 1971-1974, including leading the League with 24 W during consecutive seasons in 1972 and 1973. He won almost 50 games in those two seasons combined as a starter and he won 90 games during the four consecutive seasons combined from 1971-1974 as a starter.

Look, Eckersley was a good starting pitcher, don’t get me wrong; but Eckersley won just over 150 games in 12 seasons as a starting pitcher, and Wood won 90 games just in the four consecutive seasons as a starter from 1971-1974.

As you see above, Wood won at least 20 games for four consecutive seasons, and Eckersley never won over 20 games during his 12 seasons as a starter. Again, Eckersley may have been a slightly better relief pitcher, but Wood was certainly a slightly better starter.

All of these things in combination are part of the reasons why Wood still remains one of the 10 best left-handed relief pitchers in the history of MLB.

 

1.Hoyt Wilhelm (1952-1972) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 1,070 G, 52 GS, 2,254.1 IP, 2.52 ERA, 146 ERA+, 1.13 WHIP, 7.0 H/9, 227 SV, 11.1 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 989 G, 52 GS, 2,127 IP, 2.46 ERA, 150 ERA+, 1.11 WHIP, 7.0 H/9, 210 SV, 11.2 SV/50 and 2.1 K/BB (exclude his last three seasons)

Peak Career: 256 G, 0 GS, 452.2 IP, 1.85 ERA, 191 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP, 5.9 H/9, 54 SV, 10.6 SV/50 and 2.3 K/BB (include his 1954, 1962, 1966, 1967 and 1969 seasons)

 

His career 2.52 ERA still ranks as the fifth best ERA in the history of Major League Baseball for a relief pitcher. Incredibly, he posted less than a 2.75 ERA during 14 of the 21 seasons of his career. In fact, he posted less than a 2.65 ERA during each of the last nine seasons of the 1960s, from 1961-1969.

By the time his long career was through, he led the League in ERA twice and posted less than a 2.45 ERA each time he led the League.

His career 1.13 WHIP still ranks as the 14^th best WHIP in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He recorded less than a 1.19 WHIP during 15 of the 21 seasons of his career, including 12 consecutive seasons from 1958-1969.

His career 146 ERA+ still ranks as the 15^th best ERA+ in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. He posted over a 140 ERA+ during 13 of the 21 seasons of his career. In fact, he posted over a 155 ERA+ during each of the last six seasons of the 1960s, from 1964-1969.

By the time his career was through, he led the League in ERA+ twice and posted over a 150 ERA+ each time he led the League.

That puts Wilhelm in the top 15 all time in ERA, WHIP and ERA+. In fact, there are only seven other relief pitchers in the history of MLB that are in the top 15 all time in those three important categories with Wilhelm.

They are: Mariano Rivera, Billy Wagner, Jonathan Papelbon, Trevor Hoffman, Joe Nathan, Tom Henke and Bryan Harvey.

He was just a hard guy to hit. He had three or four good pitches that he threw, but he was basically a knuckleball pitcher and he threw that pitch quite often. Many historians argue that Wilhelm had the best knuckleball that the game has ever seen.

He recorded less than 7.5 H/9 during 15 of the 21 seasons of his career, including each of the last nine seasons of the 1960s, from 1961-1969.

He led the League in W% during two of the first three seasons of his career, posting over a .745 W% each time he led the League.

He was the first pitcher in the history of MLB to record over 200 SV during a career and he recorded almost 230 by the time his career was through.

He helped his 1954 team capture the World Series championship. He pitched 2 G during that World Series and posted a 0.00 ERA, 0.43 WHIP, 3.9 H/9 and never allowed a run.

Great World Series numbers, to say the least.

Many people forget, he was already 29 years old when he threw his first pitch in MLB during the 1952 season; obviously, he got a late start to his career. But he still had a long 21 season career and he was basically a relief pitcher for 20 seasons and a starting pitcher for 1 season. Started at the age of 29 and still had a long career.

He still remains as one of only 13 pitchers in the history of MLB to ever pitch in over 1,000 G during a career.

Wilhelm is the only relief pitcher from the 1960s that is in the Hall of Fame and he remains as one of only five in the history of MLB to be inducted; and he’s the earliest and first relief pitcher in the HOF.

In his Historical Baseball Abstract book, respected historian, Bill James, rates Hoyt Wilhelm as the best relief pitcher in the history of MLB. The book came out 10 years ago, and I agree with Bill James, 10 years ago.

Though relievers like Mariano Rivera may have something to say about that. Bill James may or may not have guys like Rivera ahead of Wilhelm now, I could see him going either way. Of course, only he knows for sure.

Wilhelm has one of the 20 best peaks in the history of MLB for a relief pitcher. During that peak, which is a peak over 255 G of relief and 450 IP, he recorded a 1.85 ERA, 191 ERA+, 1.01 WHIP and 5.9 H/9.

What a peak, what a career, what a pitcher.

All of these things in combination are part of the reasons why he remains as one of the 10 best relief pitchers to ever grace the fields of MLB.

 

 

 The Honorable Mentions

Here are the ten relief pitchers that just missed the top 10 for various reasons. I will list them in alphabetical order:

Ted Abernathy, Hank Aguirre

Jim Brewer

Moe Drabowsky

Dave Giusti

Dick Hall

Frank Linzy

Bob Miller

Billy O’Dell

Diego Segui

 

The 10 Highest Caliber Relief Pitchers of the 1960s

I consider this to be the Smoky Joe Wood section. Who’s the best pitcher, putting career values aside; putting length of career aside and putting some other things aside that affect a relief pitchers overall rating? So, these aren’t the best careers, these are the best pitchers, in a way.

Like Smoky Joe Wood in the 1910s, he was a starting pitcher that many historians feel is one of the 10 highest caliber starting pitchers in the history of Major League Baseball. But with his short overall career, he’s never rated that high when you see historians rate starting pitchers because they are almost always rating the best careers.

Don’t get me wrong, caliber is part of historians formula too, it’s just a smaller part of the overall equation; and smaller than it should be, if you ask me, but that’s another article.

Smoky Joe Wood’s overall rating and career value is lower because of his short career and some other factors. But if a highest caliber list were made, Smoky Joe Wood would appear on many historians all time top 10 lists. But almost never in the top 10 on their all time career list, which are the lists that we usually see.

I hope that makes sense. This is basically what I’m doing here with this list. Again, this list is not a list of the best careers, that list is the list you just read. This list is the highest caliber relief pitchers. Here it is.

10. Dick Hall

9. Jim Brewer

8. Frank Linzy

7. Stu Miller

6. Dick Radatz

5. Ron Perranoski

4. Bill Henry

3. Wilbur Wood

2. Don McMahon

1. Hoyt Wilhelm

The Caliber Honorable Mentions (listed in alphabetical order): Ted Abernathy, Hank Aguirre, Jack Aker, Roy Face, Steve Hamilton, Bob Lee, Lindy McDaniel, Billy O’Dell, Pete Richert and Al Worthington

 

There you go, the best relief pitchers from the 1960s.

The 10 best careers and the 10 highest caliber relief pitchers.

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