In the past 40 years, certain pitchers have specialized as their teams’ closers. Taking heed of this new role and its increasing importance, the Hall of Fame has been inducting them ever since. Now I doubt whether any closers belong in Cooperstown at all, since many of them were failed starters (who pitch more innings and consequently allow more runs as they run out of steam). However, I will give a chart listing all the relievers in the Hall of Fame and some closers who compare favorably to them. Those in bold are Hall of Famers, and I would not object if the rest were someday inducted. The list is in alphabetical order. For active players, statistics are through the end of the 2021 season.
G GS IP W-L K ERA
Dennis Eckersley 1,071 361 3,285 ⅔ 197-171 2,401 3.50
Rollie Fingers 944 37 1,701 ⅓ 114-118 1,299 2.90
John Franco 1,119 0 1,245 ⅔ 90-87 975 2.89
Goose Gossage 1,002 37 1,809 ⅓ 124-107 1,502 3.01
Tom Henke 642 0 789 ⅔ 41-42 861 2.67
Trevor Hoffman 1,035 0 1,089 ⅓ 61-75 1,133 2.87
Kenley Jansen 701 0 705 37-26 1,022 2.37
Craig Kimbrel 646 0 628 ⅓ 35-29 1,026 2.18
Joe Nathan 787 29 923 ⅓ 64-34 976 2.87
Robb Nen 643 4 715 45-42 793 2.98
Jonathan Papelbon 689 3 725 ⅔ 41-36 808 2.44
Mariano Rivera 1,115 10 1,283 ⅔ 82-60 1,173 2.21
Frankie Rodriguez 948 0 976 52-53 1,142 2.86
Lee Smith 1,023 6 1,289 ⅓ 71-92 1,251 3.03
Huston Street 668 0 680 42-34 665 2.95
Bruce Sutter 661 0 1,042 68-71 861 2.83
Billy Wagner 853 0 903 47-40 1,196 2.31
John Wetteland 618 17 765 48-45 804 2.93
Hoyt Wilhelm 1,070 52 2,254 ⅓ 143-122 1,610 2.52
As Reliever
G IP W-L K ERA GF SV
Dennis Eckersley 710 807 ⅓ 48-41 792 2.85 577 390
Rollie Fingers 907 1,505 ⅔ 107-101 1,183 2.73 709 341
John Franco 1,119 1,245 ⅔ 90-87 975 2.89 774 424
Goose Gossage 965 1,556 ⅔ 115-85 1,340 2.77 681 310
Tom Henke 642 789 ⅔ 41-42 861 2.67 548 311
Trevor Hoffman 1,035 1,089 ⅓ 61-75 1,133 2.87 856 601
Kenley Jansen 701 705 37-26 1,022 2.37 519 350
Craig Kimbrel 646 628 ⅓ 35-29 1,026 2.18 520 372
Joe Nathan 758 761 52-29 881 2.50 587 377
Robb Nen 639 697 43-41 779 2.94 549 314
Jonathan Papelbon 686 709 ⅔ 41-36 793 2.45 585 368
Mariano Rivera 1,105 1,233 ⅔ 79-57 1,135 2.06 952 652
Frankie Rodriguez 948 976 52-53 1,142 2.86 677 437
Lee Smith 1,017 1,252 ⅓ 71-87 1,225 2.98 802 478
Huston Street 668 680 42-34 665 2.95 525 324
Bruce Sutter 661 1,042 68-71 861 2.83 512 300
Billy Wagner 853 903 47-40 1,196 2.31 703 422
John Wetteland 601 683 46-36 730 2.62 523 330
Hoyt Wilhelm 1,018 1,872 ⅓ 124-103 1,363 2.49 651 228
I think your list overall is good, though Dan Quisenberry was better than Bruce Sutter.
ReplyDeleteI have to object to your saying that most starters are scoreless through two innings. I checked on BR, and pitchers have an average ERA of 4.37 in the 1st and 3.87 in the 2nd.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/split.cgi?t=p&lg=MLB&year=2022
Also, I think Mariano Rivera definitely belongs in the Hall of Fame, though I may be a little bit biased.
If any reliever belongs in Cooperstown, it's Rivera, no doubt.
DeleteI will fix my statement because what I meant was that most starters can pitch six, seven, or eight innings without imploding. My point is that closers don't pitch enough to get tired and start allowing more runs. It's just a small sample size. Besides, starters always face the top of the order more than any other part of the lineup. Closers come in when they need to, regardless of what part of the batting order is hitting.
I've read that pitchers face easier batters in the eighth inning than the ninth inning, on average. The idea of a "closer" is pretty arbitrary for sure.
DeleteSpeaking of which, next year could you have Holds as a category in the fantasy league instead of complete games?
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