Today, its my pleasure to present how people voted on pitchers. 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. Awards. 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. He was perhaps the best lefty in NL history to that date, however, not winning quite as many games as Eppa Rixey. 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). Wagner is sixth on the all-time list with 422 saves (a number that could have been much higher if he didnt retire after arguably his best year). What if Milt Pappas had not been traded to Cincinnati? He simply does not have the statistics or the longevity. Bert Blyleven was born in the Netherlands, but grew up in California. Even if you dont like him (hand raised here), Jonathan Papelbon was Hall of Fame worthy dominant for his career. 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. But Trevor Hoffman may have the most unique path, going from a failed minor league shortstop to one of the all-time great closers. Join our linker program. He struck out a healthy 1,674 batters. 4 Wes Ferrell 4.7 Stats: 368 saves, 2.44 ERA, 1.043 WHIP, 4.37 K:BB, 177 ERA+. Featuring a slider-heavy arsenal, Lyle twice led the AL in saves and games finished, helping the Yankees to two titles. Note that only He pitched his no-hitter in '77, as well as leading the league that year in WHIP. He racked up 126 saves in his 40s. My last article studied The Worst Pitchers in the HOF: Searching for Historys Bottom Line . . When he finished his career, his 1,999 strikeouts were fifth most for a left-handed pitcher. I contemplated going 15 names just for pitchers, but thought it would look too out of sync with the rest of the survey. Research is still ongoing and well continue to publish updates as more information becomes available. In Game Three he came in to save the game, retiring all three batters he faced in the ninth inning. Full-year historical Major League statistics provided by Pete Palmer and Gary Gillette of Hidden Game Sports. After winning 20 games in '24, the Pirates traded him to the Cubs. 2B: Lou WhitakerJeff Kent famously hit the most homers of any second baseman, thus making his exclusion from the Hall somewhat strange. As faithful baseball fans, we depend on the Hall of Fame to show us who the truly great players are. Much of the play-by-play, game results, and transaction information both shown and used to create certain data sets was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by RetroSheet. What if Tony Mullane had been allowed to pitch for Cincinnati in 1885? Players said they could hear the ball spinning as it approached and went by. In the '30s he pitched with Schoolboy Rowe, and later with Bobo Newsome. Relief Pitcher - Don McMahon (22.4 WAR) McMahon may be the best reliever most modern baseball fans have never heard mentioned. He was as automatic as youll ever find for a closer. Lolich had a splendid career with the Detroit Tigers from 6375. His H/9 rate of 5.3 in 1906 is one of the best in history. He displayed consistent excellence throughout his career. He proved it often enough. He had a 1.80 ERA after the age of 38. In the '40s he pitched with young pitchers Hal Newhowser, Virgil Trucks and Dizzy Trout. . Follow Cody Swartz on Twitter (@cbswartz5). Or what if the fans in Cincinnati had accepted his efforts for the team? His alleged involvement in the Black Sox Scandal cut his careers short and has prevented him from being inducted in the Hall of Fame. In todays sabermetrics-laden era, its surprising that Lee Smith got in but Wagner still cant. Tommy was pitching in October for six consecutive seasons, posting a 6-3 mark with a 2.65 ERA over 88 innings. His resume for the HOF is strong. Bridges was still an effective pitcher after his peak. Bridges was gutsy and tough in the postseason. He was as good as Rixey and Stan Coveleski, both in the HOF, and better than Marquard, Grimes, Pennock, and Hoytall from the same period. Initials. I found some interesting threads that could be followed up. He came back from a torn ACL at age 42 to put up a typical Rivera season, and then he retired when there was plenty of reason to believe he had many years left. Being a relief pitcher often means you take an unconventional route. Im struck again by the level of parity in this survey after Clemens. Cooper struggled as a Cub and finished his career by '26. Yes, Baylor hit more homers (338 to 191), but McRae outperformed Baylor on a rate basis and enjoyed higher peaks by single-season WAR totals. Many of them were from the initial live ball era1921-1945. Perhaps some oversights can be corrected. He led the league in ERA+ and shutouts (nine) in '73, but didnt get the attention he deserved for the Cy Young award. His 1.000 WHIP is the lowest among qualified pitchers in the live ball era. If we limit it to 3000 innings, heres the top ten: 1 Roger Clemens 5.7 Adams was perhaps the most extreme control pitcher in the history of the game. In Cleveland he won 25 or more games four times, and 40 games twice. 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). He sustained his excellence late into his career. 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. The best players in New York just simply did not get missed by the HOF voters. His last year of allowing fewer hits than innings pitched was 81. The Pirates won the pennant the next year. He never received a vote. Rivera was literally dominant for close to two decades in a row. I guess his curve ball fooled a few batters. Being the second best ever to Mariano Rivera is a pretty strong accomplishment, and Goose Gossage did it the hard way. He was never comfortable in Cincinnati, often being booed even though the trade was not his fault. Over a five-year span, he led the league in saves twice, finished in the top six in Cy Young award voting four times, and turned in one of the most dominant seasons in baseball history in 1990: 0.61 ERA, 48 saves, 73 K to 4 BB in 73.1 IP. 14) Bucky Walters (1934-1948,50) (198-160; 3.30 ERA; ERA+ 115; 42 SHO; 3,104 IP/ 2,990 H/ 8.7 H/9; 1,107 K/ 1,121 BB; 1.324 WHIP). Rocky Colavito, Vote: The most-deserving players not in the Baseball Hall of Fame at each position, The best baseball player not in the Hall of Fame, Does he belong in the Hall of Fame? He won 20 games three consecutive years right at the Tigers heyday in the mid-30s. When he retired, no one had surpassed his 601 saves; now, only Mariano Rivera has done so. By 1946 they told him he was washed up-finished. He is first all-time in saves (652) and ERA+ (205). . Particularly blighted were the pitchers in Pittsburgh. In '68 his career took off. It is not a stretch to believe he would have won thirty games the year he was forced to sit out in protest of the reserve clause. The Blue Stockings folded after one year, and he then signed with Cincinnati. Mack was referring to Jackson -- maybe the games most revered natural hitter before Williams came along -- whom Mack regrettably traded away before he became a star in Cleveland. Reulbach had arguably a more impressive career than any of them. He pitched in both the Cubs World Series appearances in '32 and '35, going 2-1 with a 2.63 ERA. Al Lopez, the White Sox manager, refused to start Pierce in the 59 World Series. 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. From 1939-1946 Walters accumulated totals led the major leagues in wins, innings pitched; 2,030, complete games; 178, and ERA. 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. Teams can vary this somewhat . 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 . During the '76 season he was traded to Texas, where he joined a strong staff and put in some outstanding work. 3B: Dick AllenIt's unfortunate that Allen (who died in December 2020) didn't live long enough to celebrate his induction, because he boasted some Cooperstown-worthy credentials. Retired: John McGraw , Bobby Cox , Earl Weaver , . RF Andre Ethier He threw 33 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings in October ball. Tommy Bridges began and finished his career with the Detroit Tigers. 7 Andy Pettitte 3.7 Reulbach used a high leg kick, a la Juan Marichal, to hide the delivery of the best curve ball of his generation. He pitched over 400 innings six times, and won over 30 games five times (three times he won 40 games or more). 1) Bert Blyleven (1970-1992) (287-250; 3.31 ERA; ERA+ 118; 60 SHO; 4970/ 4632 H/ 8.4 H/9; 3701 K/ 1322 BB/ 2.80 K/BB ratio; 1.198 WHIP). He faced Ford 15 times in his career and went 7-7. Stats: 422 saves, 2.31 ERA, 0.998 WHIP, 3.99 K:BB, 187ERA+. That said, here are some names I wanted to put in but didnt have space for this time: Verlander, Johan Santana, Dave Stieb, Andy Pettitte, Orel Hershiser, and Dwight Gooden. Important note: For this exercise, we only considered players who have been retired for at least five years, the waiting time required before one can appear on a BBWAA ballot. It barely existed when Babe Ruth and Ted Williams played, as starters would routinely pitch complete games. Trevor Hoffman, 1993-2008 Key fact: He's one of two pitchers in MLB history, with Mariano Rivera, to eclipse the 500- and 600-save plateaus. But his rookie year really came in 09 for Pirates at age 27. The committee found Charles Radbourn early on in their process in '39, but where were Tim Keefe ('63) and John Clarkson ('64)? He had exceptionally large hands which helped with gripping and releasing the ball with greater spinning revolutions on its way to the plate. Here are the best Hall of Fame candidates. In 34 he out-dueled Dizzy Dean to win 3-1. With quick succession he sold or traded them to other teams. From 1918-1924 he won 19 or more games six times. He would have had more wins if he hadnt been held back to face the Yankees, or had been given better run support . Cooper was born in West Virginia. That year, facing Ty Cobb and the Tigers in the postseason, the Pirates manager went on a hunch and started Adams in game one of the series. I suspect he will reach the necessary 75 percent sometime in his remaining three years of eligibility. Jim McCormick was the first Scottish born major league player. The Tigers were focused on a youth movement after the war. Bridges is only six wins shy of the requisite 200 to be considered for the HOF. Part of this is probably due to the distraction of the war years. Opposition has cooled considerably in recent years toward enshrining Clemens, a brilliant pitcher long before rumors of performance enhancing drug use surfaced. His career K/BB ratio of 2.80 is also a mark of historical significance. Baseball Hall of Fame , MLB MVP's , MLB Cy Young Award , MLB Rookie of the Year , Rawlings Gold Gloves , 2023 HOF results , 2024 Hall of Fame ballot , . The Pirates went on to win the game. He won 22 games the next year, leading the Reds back to the World Series. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. Honorable mentions: Graig Nettles, Ken Boyer, Sal Bando (Adrin Beltr not yet eligible). While I was limited through my free account to 10 questions and thus chose to forgo demographic questions to get the maximum amount of data, it is possible to use filters to show how certain voters voted. But whos the second best relief pitcher ever? If you cross over 10 by this metric, you are a serious candidate for the Hall of Fame. 7 Noodles Hahn 4.4 He would have been part of the best pitching staffs in historyPappas was still pitching great in '71 and '72. Dave Parker, Does he belong in the Hall of Fame? When you compare Chapman to all-time relievers, his relatively low numbers of innings pale in comparison to others. Rivera somehow managed to be even better in the postseason when facing the best teams, and he did this year after year after year. In 48 they discarded Billy Pierce to the White Sox!). Movies. There were new lows for ERA in a season. Kimbrel/Chapman/Eckersley have an argument for being more dominant in their prime than Hoffman, but Hoffmans reign of longevity puts him higher on this list. But Trevor Hoffman may have the most unique path, going from a failed minor league shortstop to one of the all-time great closers. Babe Adams had brief looks at the major leagues in 06 with the St. Louis Cardinals and 07 for the Pirates. Top 25 Relief Pitchers not in the Hall of Fame Quiz Stats - By adubbdubb Quizzes Babe went on to pitch the rest of his career for Pittsburgh. When he finished playing nearly two decades later, Wilhelm held the major league record for games pitched (1,070), relief wins (124), and saves (228). Chapmans statistics look mind-boggling, even when you account for the fact that every reliever strikes out a ton of hitters. His ERA+, curve ball, postseason record and H/9 all speak of a pitcher who was one of the best of his era. He has the requisite 200 wins, over 40 shutouts, and his 2,832 Ks are still third among left-handed pitchers all-time. The committee missed his team mate, Mordecai Brown, until after his death in 1948. When Bruce Sutter began experimenting with the split-fingered fastball, he wasn't looking for a path to Cooperstown. What if Babe Adams hadnt been left to toil in the minor leagues for most of two seasons? Relief Pitcher JAWS Leaders. "Billy the Kid was part of the Tigers post-war youth movement, getting a look with the club at age 18 in 45. 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. He allowed just two home runs to 527 batters in the playoffs. In fact, from 1905 through 1909 his H/9 never reached 7.0. Find out more. 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. I attempted to rank the 10 best ever. He ended up nostalgically back in Minnesota for the '86 season, and helped the team to the World Series title in '87. 7) Tommy Bridges (1930-1946) (194-138; 3.57 ERA; ERA+ 126; 33 SHO; 2,826 IP/ 2,675 H/ 8.5 H/9; 1,674 K/ 1,192 BB/ 1.40 ratio; 1.368 WHIP). The HOF process seemed uneven, and somewhat political. Rodriguez will now have to endure the waiting game with BBWAA voters, like Bonds, Clemens and Sosa just did. 5) Billy Pierce (1945-1964) (3.27 ERA; ERA+ 119; 38 SHO; 3,306 IP/ 2,989 H/ 8.1 H/9; 1,999 K/ 1178 BB/ 1.70 ratio; 1.260 WHIP). Comparing across eras isnt easy, as the role of a relief pitcher has changed drastically over the years. His WHIP of 1.09 is remarkable, as are his 44 shutouts. That said, if I field this again in the future, Ill probably sub in Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer for Ferrell and Reuschel. 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. (Scott Dine/St. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. The Best MLB Player at Every Position Rejected by Hall of Fame Joel Reuter January 27, 2021 Focus on Sport/Getty Images The 2021 MLB Hall of Fame voting results were released Tuesday evening,. He isnt the first Pittsburgh pitcher on this list. The best reason I can come up with for Cooper being overlooked for the HOF is that he pitched in Pittsburgh, out of the spotlight of the sportswriters of the day. With the help of the survey website Qualtrics, I asked people to go position by position and rank the most-deserving players not in the Baseball Hall of Fame, ranging from 1 for most-deserving to 10 for least-deserving. And he never got a single Cy Young vote. Kaat is at 2.3, nowhere near HoF level. Uehara's 2013 season was one of the most dominant by any relief pitcher in . Pitchers who, for one reason or another, never got the votes or attention needed to make it in. Before the '66 season, Pappas was sent to Cincinnati for Frank Robinson in a very unpopular trade. As MLB.coms Andrew Simon noted, Allens career 156 league-adjusted OPS+ puts him in the very upper echelon of post-integration hitters, and his best 10-year run at the plate was pretty much unmatched by his peers. Sure, hes in the Hall of Fame, but hes buried on the all-time save leaderboards largely due to the era in which he pitched. 9. 4 Rick Reuschel 4.0 Your email address will not be published. Despite having made his MLB debut over 100 years ago (1908), "Shoeless" Joe Jackson remains one of the most controversial figures in the game. Nothing in his pitching resume says he doesnt belong in the HOF. But Beltrn gets the slight edge, given his enviable combination of power (435 homers), speed (312 steals), defense (three Gold Gloves) and postseason heroics. Relief RHP: Dan QuisenberryJust about every modern-day righty reliever who should be in the Hall is already there following Lee Smiths election in 2018. But long before Cooperstown honored him on Sunday, the first black reliever inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame was well-known around baseball circles as: Lee Arthur Smith. 6 Tim Hudson 3.8 The process of selection and voting for the HOF has been uneven at best. Heck, you can easily make the argument he's the best pitcher in baseball, and that's not even his primary position. 11) Lon Warneke (1930-1945) (192-121; 3.18 ERA; ERA+ 119; 30 SHO; 2782 IP/ 2726 H/ H/9 8.8; 1140 K/ 739 BB/ 1.54 ratio; 1.245 WHIP). .208. In the 1970s, the closer was the pitcher that would enter the game with the bases loaded in the sixth inning and try to work out of a jam and then sometimes finish the game. The ballot just isnt that strong over the next few years. With the aid of Comiskey Park, Gary Peters, Tommy John, and Joe Horlen, they were backed up by the likes of Bob Locker, Eddie fisher, Don McMahon and none other than Hoyt Wilhelm at his peak. Fingers won a league MVP, a Cy Young award, played an integral part in baseballs only non-New York Yankees three-peat ever, and even won World Series MVP once. The top ten pitchers eligible but not in the HoF, by rWAR/200 IP, minimum 2000 IP: 1 Roger Clemens 5.7 Reulbachs 97-39 record combined with Browns 114-42 for a 211-81 record over those five years. position. The only question now is whether enough voters will eventually warm to Beltrn's case, given his ties to the 2017 Astros sign-stealing scandal. His 1,804 Ks were a high number for the era. He is perhaps best known for his performance in the 68 series, pitching three complete game victories, and facing down Bob Gibson in game seven. It took the veterans committee some 90 years to find and induct Vic Willis. 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). Tom Brady lost three Super Bowls. Its hard not to wonder whether Santana would be making a steady year-by-year improvement in the voting totals now if he had rightfully taken home the 2005 AL Cy Young Award that went to Bartolo Colon instead. Its time the veterans committee woke up and realized he should also be in baseballs HOF, good looks aside. Against Detroit, he pitched a five hitter to win Game Two, and a complete game shutout to win Game Five. 8 Chuck Finley 3.7 He had one shutout. Its no wonder the Cubs won the NL pennant four times behind these twoin 1906-1908, and 1910. Fingers wasnt just a one-inning closer either; he holds the all-time record with 135 multi-inning saves. Also, lets take a good look at our current candidate on this list and give him his due before it is too late, before the HOF voting body truly looks out of touch with what it takes to be in the Hall of Fame. Pitching for the Cubs, Reulbach teamed up with Mordecai Brown to make one of the great pitching tandems in baseball history. 2/4/18 Super Bowl champs. What do you think: Is Mariano Rivera the best relief pitcher in baseball history? No starting pitchers. 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