Cooper may be the best pitcher in Pirates history. Cooper struggled as a Cub and finished his career by '26. Follow Cody Swartz on Twitter (@cbswartz5). Why were pitchers like Pennock, Chesbro, and McGinnity going in before greats like Mordecai Brown and Kid Nichols? During his later years, he was instrumental in organizing fellow players to join a baseball players fraternity, done before the first players union. Blyleven continued his career in Cleveland, working through injury to re-invent his delivery and now legendary curve ball. 5 Bret Saberhagen 4.6 King Kelly, McCormick, and others were known to go out and celebrate after games. Three times in his career he led the AL in saves, four times he finished top five in the Cy Young award voting, and he had a 2.63 career World Series ERA. I found some interesting threads that could be followed up. "What if" and "would have become prevalent bylines for the pitchers on this list. The vast majority of these pitcher's careerswere focused in places other thanNew York, Philadelphia, or Boston. He was putting up ridiculously gaudy statistics before it became a regular thing for closers, but his reign of dominance lasted far shorter than the players ranked higher than him. He featured a fastball, curve, and change-up with excellent control. If he does not pick up that . 3 Kevin Brown 4.2 Incredibly, the Pirate management left him there until the end of the 18 season. Cy Young is the games career leader in losses. Tommy Bridges began and finished his career with the Detroit Tigers. But winning the 2005 Cy Young -- which would have given him three straight Cys from 2004-06 -- would have forced the BBWAA to give him a much longer look. Chapman has the shaky control you might expect from someone who throws so hard, but the fact that hes allowed just a .233 career slugging percentage is unfathomable. He was consistently excellent for the Orioles, winning 12 or more games and posting a winning record every year with the team. He was scouted by Hal Newhowser, who encouraged him to sign with the Orioles. The greatest relief pitchers of all time include some of the best current MLB players, as well as some legends who are already in the baseball hall of fame. Francisco Rodrguez debuted on the ballot in 23, getting 10.8%. Bucky wasnt done there. Ill add in hyperlinks for each subsequent post, allowing anyone who happens upon this post later to easily be able to navigate between the different positions. 2 Johan Santana 5.1 In his World Series career, he threw an absurd amount of innings (33.1), appearing in 16 of a possible 19 games and fashioning a 1.35 ERA. The best players in New York just simply did not get missed by the HOF voters. Bob Caruthers was between Cone and Appier, but a lot of his value was from playing the field as well. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. By 1946 they told him he was washed up-finished. Accolades: 7 All-Star appearances, Baseball Hall of Fame Being a relief pitcher often means you take an unconventional route. Kaat is at 2.3, nowhere near HoF level. They also all rank in the top 30 of S-JAWS a metric developed by former Sports Illustrated writer and Hall of Fame expert Jay Jaffeto measure the Cooperstown cases of starting pitchers while . Recently retired stars sure to get a serious look once theyre eligible -- such as Ichiro Suzuki, Joe Mauer and Adrin Beltr -- are noted in the honorable mentions below. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. Freehan enjoyed a longer career because of Munsons unfortunate passing at age 32, and thus he finished with more hits, homers, RBIs and Gold Glove Awards. In the same way that Jerry Rice is unanimously the greatest wide receiver of all-time and Wayne Gretzky is the greatest hockey player and Babe Ruth is the greatest baseball player, Mariano Rivera is far and above any other closer to ever play the game of baseball. After winning 20 games in '24, the Pirates traded him to the Cubs. In 48 they discarded Billy Pierce to the White Sox!). Studying the list of inductions, one has to wonder about the order in which some pitchers received their recognition. This excludes any pitcher still on the mound today, and those like Greg Maddux who are retired but not yet eligble. (Scott Dine/St. Then again, you typically dont get to 112 blown saves without being a great closer. Dennis Eckersley, 1987-1998 (as reliever), Stats (as reliever): 390 saves, 2.85 ERA, 0.999 WHIP, 6.29 K:BB, 136 ERA+, Accolades (as reliever): 4 All-Star appearances, 1 Cy Young award, 1 MVP award, 1 World Series ring, 1 ALCS MVP award, 2x Rolaids Relief award, Baseball Hall of Fame. Bert Blyleven was born in the Netherlands, but grew up in California. Guess there was still some gas in this Tigers tank! First-ever unanimous National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee (Class of 2019) Mariano Rivera is the greatest relief pitcher in Major League Baseball history. Craig Muder is director of communications for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. After breaking in with the Cleveland Indians, Tommy John spent significant time with the Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees, as well as a shorter stint with the California Angels. Heres a stat for you to show Wagner was ahead of his era: There were five seasons before 2000 (38 after 2000) in which a pitcher threw at least 50 IP and had at least a 14.0 K/9 rate. The committee missed his team mate, Mordecai Brown, until after his death in 1948. He barely played in the postseason. As faithful baseball fans, we depend on the Hall of Fame to show us who the truly great players are. 2.21 career ERA. Can you name the Best Relief Pitchers not in the MLB Hall of Fame (by Baseball Reference WAR)? One hundred years have passed since Shoeless Joes last big league season, and his talent and numbers (a ridiculous .356 career average and 170 career OPS+) may still make him the best choice for this spot 100 years from now. Relief Pitcher JAWS Leaders Table; Cy Young Awards Most WAR Player; Rk Name WAR WAR7 JAWS R-JAWS WAR/162 WAA #1 top5 Share #1 top5 Share Yrs Scary, we know. But there are pitchers whose careers have fallen through the cracks. And Muhammad Ali lost five fights. Nothing in his pitching resume says he doesnt belong in the HOF. Still, many big names remain outside the Hall's hallowed Plaque Gallery, so here is a rosterof the best non-Hall of Fame players in baseball history at every position. The Worst Pitchers in the HOF: Searching for Historys Bottom Line. Chapmans statistics look mind-boggling, even when you account for the fact that every reliever strikes out a ton of hitters. The process of selection and voting for the HOF has been uneven at best. Stats: 368 saves, 2.44 ERA, 1.043 WHIP, 4.37 K:BB, 177 ERA+. But he might not be on this list much longer. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for RANDY JOHNSON 2009 Topps #185 Arizona Diamondbacks, HALL OF FAME GREAT PITCHER at the best online prices at eBay! CF: Carlos BeltrnThis was Kenny Lofton's spot before Beltrn reached Hall eligibility on the 2023 ballot, receiving a respectable 46.5% of the vote in his debut. He held the career record in saves when he retired (341). Four straight seasons early on Kimbrel led the league in saves, posting absurd single-season ERAs of 2.10, 1.01, 1.21, and 1.61. Sabermetrics lover. Honorable mention: Curt Schilling, Tim Lincecum, Luis Tiant, Dave Stieb, Kevin Brown, David Cone, Orel Hershiser, Roy Oswalt, Eddie Cicotte. What if Babe Adams hadnt been left to toil in the minor leagues for most of two seasons? Opposition has cooled considerably in recent years toward enshrining Clemens, a brilliant pitcher long before rumors of performance enhancing drug use surfaced. Research is still ongoing and well continue to publish updates as more information becomes available. . Warnekes career backed up into WWII. He led the league in ERA+ and shutouts (nine) in '73, but didnt get the attention he deserved for the Cy Young award. Stats: 346 saves, 2.08 ERA, 0.945 WHIP, 4.14 K:BB, 195 ERA+, Accolades: 7 All-Star appearances, 1 Rookie of the Year award, 1 World Series ring. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. C: Bill FreehanCall this a toss-up between Freehan and Thurman Munson, both of whom could use a longer look from the Halls veteran committees. Movies 8m Length of career has been a subject of debate among those setting the standards for inclusion. And interestingly enough, hes probably more known for his handlebar mustache than what he did on the field. He would hold the ball with both hands and then surprise the hitter. His career records match up well with Catfish Hunter and Don Drysdale. (I cant imagine that happening todayleaving the potential ace of your staff in the minors for 50-plus decisions after he had shown his form had returned?). He simply does not have the statistics or the longevity. In '41 Lon pitched a no-hitter against the Reds. He was just hoping to save his career. The reserve clause was so restrictive in his era that once you signed with a team, unless they traded or sold you, you belonged to them. 6) Babe Adams (1906-1926) (194-140; 2.76 ERA; ERA+ 117; 2,995 IP/ 2,841 H/ 8.5 H/9; 1,036 K/ 4,30 BB/ 2.41 ratio; 1.092 WHIP). Honorable mention: Nathan, Papelbon, Rodrguez, Keith Foulke, Tom Gordon, Tom Henke, Firpo Marberry, Troy Percival, Kent Tekulve, John Wetteland. Active: Terry Francona , Rocco Baldelli , Dave Roberts , . One time, Wilhelm entered a tie game in the eighth inning and pitched through the 18th, allowing just two hits and no runs. His ERA of 1.97 in 55 gave him an ERA less than half that of the league (ERA+ 201). When Pierce retired, sportswriters were distracted with the manic accomplishments of Koufax, Marichal and Gibson. Being a relief pitcher often means you take an unconventional route. Walters spent his developing years struggling in Philadelphias bandbox of a stadium. By the next year in 1939 he was the best pitcher in the National League, going 27-11 with a 2.29 ERA and 31 complete games. But he was also just as accomplished a two-way catcher as the Yankees captain -- and just as revered a leader for the Tigers, too. 8) Tommy John (1963-1989) (288-231; 3.34 ERA; ERA+ 110; 46 SHO; 4710 IP/ 4783 H/ H/9 9.1; 2245 K/ 1259 BB/ 1.78 ratio; 1.283 WHIP). Despite being the top pitcher in the league at least three times, Walters has been overlooked for the HOF. He won three complete games including a shutout against the Tigers. 952 games finished ranks first all-time. He was the best pitcher in the NL during his era. 9 David Cone 4.3 55 percent of his saves came when he had a two or three run lead and pitched a clean inning, which is a higher (and easier) rate than any other reliever in the Hall. I contemplated going 15 names just for pitchers, but thought it would look too out of sync with the rest of the survey. There were new lows for ERA in a season. Rodriguez will now have to endure the waiting game with BBWAA voters, like Bonds, Clemens and Sosa just did. Mccormick ended up in Pittsburgh where he ended his career the next year. He was a product of the more relaxed "Golden Years". No one has a legitimate argument to surpass Rivera, who made 13 All-Star teams, holds the highest adjusted ERA (205) in baseball history, and was a key component in the New York Yankees dynasty. He is first all-time in saves (652) and ERA+ (205). Honorable mentions: Kent, Bobby Grich (Chase Utley not yet eligible). Next came Cy Young. Despite his size, he had quite a delivery, with a high leg kick and dropping his back shoulder. He holds the all-time record for relief appearances with at least two innings (486) and three innings (197). SwartzSports | The Philadelphia Eagles Blog, SwartzSports | The Philadelphia Eagles Blog, Ranking Greatest Relief Pitchers Ever, Part II (#11-50), Power Ranking MLB's Greatest Relief Pitchers Ever, Part II (#11-50), SwartzSports 50 Predictions for the 2022 NFL Season, 2022 SwartzSports First Round Mock Draft (with trades), Ranking the 50 Best Players Not in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Assigning Grades to Key Members of the 2021 Philadelphia Eagles: Part I (Offense), Handing Out Major Awards for 2021 NFL Season, Power Ranking All 235 Major League Players in the Baseball Hall of Fame (Part V: #50-1), Power Ranking All 235 Major League Players in the Baseball Hall of Fame (Part III: #150-101), Power Ranking All 235 Major League Players in the Baseball Hall of Fame (Part II: #200-151), Power Ranking All 235 Major League Players in the Baseball Hall of Fame (Part I: #235-201), Power Ranking All 235 Major League Players in the Baseball Hall of Fame (Part IV: #100-51), Ranking the 10 Greatest Relief Pitchers in Baseball History. Historically, pitchers like Red Ruffing, Red Faber, Ted Lyons, Eppa Rixey, and Burleigh Grimes are in the HOF mostly because of their win totals. On a 25-man roster, teams typically carry 12 or 13 pitchers. Retired: John McGraw , Bobby Cox , Earl Weaver , . 2B: Lou WhitakerJeff Kent famously hit the most homers of any second baseman, thus making his exclusion from the Hall somewhat strange. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Wednesday, March 1, 1:07PM. RF Andre Ethier Voters have three years of his eligibility left to get it right. History doesnt remember Hoyt Wilhelm the way it should. Honorable mentions: Graig Nettles, Ken Boyer, Sal Bando (Adrin Beltr not yet eligible). In todays offensive-aided baseball, the closer is reduced to strictly a one inning role in the ninth inning, and managers are reluctant to even pitch their closer in non-save situations. He was the first pitcher who spent the majority of his career as a reliever to be elected to the Hall of Fame. He was arguably as good a pitcher as Whitey Ford. The problem with Pierce HOF candidacy is that his career backed up into the raised mound era. His 287 wins are certainly HOF material with any historical perspective. Cooper was born in West Virginia. All rights reserved. He allowed just two home runs to 527 batters in the playoffs. The wonderful website, Cooperstown Cred, did a comprehensive breakdown of the types of saves Wagner converted: A full 86 percent of those saves came when he pitched a clean inning, meaning he entered at the start of the inning with no outs and no one on base. With that backdrop in mind, let's proceed with our tenth-best relief pitcher of all time: 10. I gave a list of 10 players at each position, based primarily on who I thought voters would expect to be in the poll. What if Lon Warnekes and Tommy Bridges careers had not been interrupted by WWII? Embed from Getty Imageswindow.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'-CeXsjSMQXpEqN8nMfMOXQ',sig:'aPSIwiN6WT5Zl3uyeAdW_2g5nAPoP84MemQtfAdqDM8=',w:'594px',h:'395px',items:'1023432000',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })}); A few weeks ago, I kicked off a challenge here. Or write about sports? Certainly he can be given credit for his time in the service, as he would have easily made 200 wins without giving up the season and a half to the war, plus the recovery time. He won 22 games the next year, leading the Reds back to the World Series. Its commonplace in todays game for a manager to turn to the bullpen as early as the sixth inning. Ed Reulbach, Tommy Bridges and Bert Blyleven all fall in this category. What do you think: Is Mariano Rivera the best relief pitcher in baseball history? Even though others have won Cy Young awards (and even regular season MVPs), Rivera was as close as youll find to a perfect closer, and he did this all with just the legendary cutter. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1978 Topps #703 Jack Morris RC Rookie Pitchers NM at the best online prices at eBay! He led the NL in fewest H/9 and was second in WHIP, shutouts, and winning percentage. 4 Rick Reuschel 4.0 The knock on Gossage is his high blown save total his 112 are the most in baseball history. He would have had more wins if he hadnt been held back to face the Yankees, or had been given better run support . The 41 voters who ranked Schilling first ranked Clemens eighth-worst among the field, ahead of only Wes Ferrell and Rick Reuschel, with an average ranking for Clemens of 7.00. Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database. Relief LHP: Billy WagnerAmong all Live Ball Era pitchers with at least 750 innings, Wagner is the very best in strikeouts per nine innings (11.9) and WHIP (0.998) while also ranking behind only Mariano Rivera in ERA+ (187) and owning the sixth-highest save total in history (422). For the most part, the best pitchers are in the HOF. 9. Relief Pitcher - Don McMahon (22.4 WAR) McMahon may be the best reliever most modern baseball fans have never heard mentioned. Honorable mentions: McGwire, Don Mattingly, Todd Helton (Pujols not yet eligible). 7 Andy Pettitte 3.7 But for some reason, he was not free of the reserve clause which stated he had to re-sign with St. Louis after Toledo folded. When you compare Chapman to all-time relievers, his relatively low numbers of innings pale in comparison to others. Honorable mention: Andy Pettitte, Mark Buehrle, Ron Guidry, Tommy John, Mickey Lolich, Jimmy Key (CC Sabathia not yet eligible). This was not a pitcher on his last legs! After a down year and a couple of years dealing with injury, he ended up in Boston where he re-invented himself in '72. 2) Luis Tiant (1964-1982) (229-172; 3.30 ERA; ERA+ 114; 49 SHO; 3,486 IP/ 3,075 H/ 7.9 H/9; 2416 K/ 1104 BB/ 2.19 ratio; 1.199 WHIP). Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? However, Smokey Joe Wood is not among those pitchers given a bye for the length of their careers. Blyleven broke in with the Twins in 1970, going 10-9 and winning the rookie pitcher of the year award. He had exceptionally large hands which helped with gripping and releasing the ball with greater spinning revolutions on its way to the plate. I think the voting has become somewhat skewed in recent years in regards to starting pitching; too many of the voters expect no less than 300 wins. 10) Mickey Lolich (1963-1979) (217-191; 3.44 ERA; ERA+ 105; 41 SHO; 3,638 IP/ 3,366 H/ 8.3 H/9; 2,832 K/ 1,099 BB/ 2.58 K/BB ratio; 1.227 WHIP). I put Ferrell and Reuschel in the survey partly in tribute to my friend and fellow baseball researcher Adam Darowski, who has advocated heavily for their induction in recent years, though each has a nuanced case that could be overlooked in a quick survey. John's pitching exploits began in Chicago where he was part of the stingiest pitching staffs ever compiled. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP, File) via Associated Press. . The HOF process seemed uneven, and somewhat political. He was never comfortable in Cincinnati, often being booed even though the trade was not his fault. What did it take to be ignored by the HOF voters and veterans committee? His last year of allowing fewer hits than innings pitched was 81. Hes unlike any relief pitcher weve seen to date, allowing fewer hits per nine innings than Aroldis Chapman and striking out more batters per nine innings than Billy Wagner. hide this ad PLAY QUIZ Score 0/25 Timer 10:00 Recently Published Actresses. Curiously enough, Eckersley didnt win the Cy Young award in his best year but then won the award along with the league MVP two seasons later in 1992 when he went 7-1 with a 1.91 ERA and 51 saves, then the second-best single-season total of all-time. Ahead of: Bob Lemon Red Ruffing Steve Carlton Don Drysdale Fergie Jenkins Dizzy Dean Lefty Gomez Red Faber Waite Hoyt Jim Bunning CC Sabathia* Herb Pennock Lee Smith Hal Newhouser His 49 career shutouts are just about automatic HOF criteria. Jim McCormick was the first Scottish born major league player. His 2.52 career ERA was the lowest by a pitcher with at least 2,000 innings pitched since Walter Johnson. How many relief pitchers are on a baseball team? Career: 16 years (1995-2010) Teams: Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves. Craig Kimbrels ranks among post-1900 pitchers with at least 500 innings pitched: Opponents batting average allowed: .158, H/9: 4.98 (1st), ERA+: 195, K/9: 14.61, opponents slugging percentage allowed: .257 (2nd). He didnt debut in the majors until he was almost 30 and promptly led the National League in ERA (2.43), games pitched (71), and winning percentage (.833). Tony Mullane was just inducted into the Cincinnati Reds HOF earlier this year. When he retired, no one had surpassed his 601 saves; now, only Mariano Rivera has done so. Free shipping for many products! He easily lost enough time to give him credit for not having 200 wins. By 76 he was pitching again and all three of his 20-win seasons came post-surgery. To come up with this list I researched the best pitchers of each era. Cooper was slender and had a remarkable smooth and graceful delivery. Sportswriters and players wondered how Pierce could go toe-to-toe with the firepower of the Yankees, coming armed with slap hitters Nellie Fox, Luis Aparicio, and Minnie Minoso. Lolich had a splendid career with the Detroit Tigers from 6375. I challenge the veterans committee to take a good look at the pitchers whose careers have been bypassed for the honor of induction to the HOF. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your email address will not be published. JAWS (Jaffe WAR Score The other difference is that last year, Hoffman picked up 74 percent of the Hall of Fame vote, which put him just barely on the wrong side of immortality. Those like Greg Maddux who are retired but not yet eligible ) left him there until end. Was between Cone and Appier, but a lot of his 20-win seasons came.. Way to the plate pitcher in Pirates history Ken Boyer, Sal Bando ( Beltr... 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