There are some interesting findings to highlight along these lines as we get there. The Go-Go White Sox of the period scored few runs. Hoffman never won a Cy Young but finished second twice. Despite being the top pitcher in the league at least three times, Walters has been overlooked for the HOF. system) was developed by sabermetrician Jay Jaffe as a means to Retired: John McGraw , Bobby Cox , Earl Weaver , . But Trevor Hoffman may have the most unique path, going from a failed minor league shortstop to one of the all-time great closers. Tommy Bridges began and finished his career with the Detroit Tigers. It is a significant total. Blyleven had tremendous stuff on the ball: fastball, curve and change-up. Do you have a sports website? By the late '50s Pierce had come out on top, beating Ford more often than losing, and in '59 winning the game against Ford that put the White Sox ahead for good in the pennant race. He had one shutout. They have been treated very differently by baseball writers voting for the HOF. (Scott Dine/St. He pitched in both the Cubs World Series appearances in '32 and '35, going 2-1 with a 2.63 ERA. Pappas, of Greek descent, was born in Detroit. Babe Adams was a great pitcher who was overlooked by the veterans committee. Babe Adams had brief looks at the major leagues in 06 with the St. Louis Cardinals and 07 for the Pirates. Im a little bummed to see Wes Ferrell and Rick Reuschel anchoring the list, though its not stunning. 2B: Lou WhitakerJeff Kent famously hit the most homers of any second baseman, thus making his exclusion from the Hall somewhat strange. 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. Al Lopez, the White Sox manager, refused to start Pierce in the 59 World Series. It took the veterans committee some 90 years to find and induct Vic Willis. He has been overlooked by the veterans committee. 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. I suspect he will reach the necessary 75 percent sometime in his remaining three years of eligibility. Trevor Hoffman is getting a lot of love this year, and Lee Smith did really well by the voters . Most Unique Players by Age by Similarity Scores, Most Games without a World Series Appearance, Most Games without a Postseason Appearance, Highest Career and Single-Season Salaries, Scores from any date in Major League history, Minor, Foreign, College, & Black Baseball, Frequently Asked Questions about MLB and Baseball, Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE. Heck, you can easily make the argument he's the best pitcher in baseball, and that's not even his primary position. Honorable mention: John Franco, Sparky Lyle, Tug McGraw, Randy Myers, Kelly's all-time non-HOF team (as of 2023), C: Bill Freehan1B: Rafael Palmeiro2B: Lou Whitaker3B: Dick AllenSS: Alex RodriguezLF: Barry BondsCF: Carlos BeltrnRF: Shoeless Joe JacksonDH: Hal McRae---R-H SP: Roger ClemensL-H SP: Johan SantanaR-H RP: Dan QuisenberryL-H RP: Billy Wagner, rightfully taken home the 2005 AL Cy Young Award. He threw 33 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings in October ball. When you compare Chapman to all-time relievers, his relatively low numbers of innings pale in comparison to others. Blyleven continued his career in Cleveland, working through injury to re-invent his delivery and now legendary curve ball. 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 Uehara's 2013 season was one of the most dominant by any relief pitcher in . Hoffman broke in with the inaugural Florida Marlins team, was traded for Gary Sheffield, and then racked up an absurd 15 seasons of 30+ saves and nine of 40+, each of which still stands as MLB records. But whos the second best relief pitcher ever? Tony Mullane was just inducted into the Cincinnati Reds HOF earlier this year. Four pitchers in the HOF fall into this categoryDizzy Dean, Lefty Gomez, Sandy Koufax, and Addie Joss. Many thanks to him. Many historical player head shots courtesy of David Davis. This was a formula we have only recently seen again with the deep bullpens of many championship teams. If Jack Chesbro can parlay winning 40 games into the HOF, then Will White should be an automatic selection. Were there a clear consensus, someone would be closer to 1 here. That leaves an even matchup between McRae and Don Baylor on the outside looking in. Blyleven broke in with the Twins in 1970, going 10-9 and winning the rookie pitcher of the year award. Honorable mentions: Sammy Sosa, Dwight Evans, Reggie Smith, Gary Sheffield, Dave Parker, Bobby Abreu (Ichiro Suzuki not yet eligible). Dave Parker, Does he belong in the Hall of Fame? 13)Wilbur Cooper (1912-1926) (216-178; 2.89 ERA; ERA+ 116; 35 SHO; 3480 IP/ 3415 H/ H/9 8.8; 1252 K/ 853 BB; 1.47 ratio; 1.226 WHIP). Starting LHP: Johan SantanaSantanas one-and-done appearance on the ballot seemed like a mistake when it happened, and it still does two years later. Always ranking QBs. He pitched at the height of the live ball era on and against some of the greatest offensive teams ever gathered. Bridges was gutsy and tough in the postseason. Ed Reulbachs career somehow fell between the cracks by the time the veterans committee was reconstructing who should be in the HOF. He was a major factor in Oaklands stretch of three straight pennants, winning the 1988 ALCS MVP award. Typically, in modern-day play, an active roster will consist of five starting pitchers, seven relief pitchers, two catchers, six infielders, and five outfielders. 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. Perhaps his strongest career stat is his 43 shutouts, more than Hunter, Jim Bunning, Lemon, Newhowser, and Sandy Koufax. I found some interesting threads that could be followed up. Sabathia is at 3.5 right now. If we limit it to 3000 innings, heres the top ten: 1 Roger Clemens 5.7 But by 48 the Tigers gave up on Pierce, shipping him off to the White Sox. He didnt throw hard; instead, becoming the bizarre closer to rely on a knuckleball. 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. 3 Kevin Brown 4.2 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. His stamina and effectiveness began to wane in the early '80s. Robinson went on to win the triple crown in '66 and the MVP award for the American League. Whether it will be enough to one day get him into Cooperstown wont be decided for another 10 or so years. History doesnt remember Hoyt Wilhelm the way it should. What if Billy Pierce and Bert Blyleven had received league average run support though the peak of their careers? That means he entered the game in jams, and usually got out of those jams. Rivera trails only Trevor Hoffman in all-time saves and has perhaps the most dominant one-pitch arsenal this side of Phil Niekro. Tom Glavine 1987-2002, 2008 (63.6 WAR) Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images. If you put Gossage in a traditional one inning relief pitcher role, those blown saves assuredly go way down. 6 Tim Hudson 3.8 He pitched the vast majority of his career for the Pittsburgh Pirates. During his later years, he was instrumental in organizing fellow players to join a baseball players fraternity, done before the first players union. 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. Seven successful years followed, including three more 20-win seasons, and some World Series heroics in '76. He led the league in ERA+ and shutouts (nine) in '73, but didnt get the attention he deserved for the Cy Young award. He wasnt perfect think of the Luis Gonzalez walkoff single in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. He is the one pitcher on this list that is still on the HOF ballot. After an off year in 1916 he was sent to the minor leagues to work out his problems. Thisresearch should give us a framework to look within for our best pitchers not in the HOF. 7 Noodles Hahn 4.4 Tommy John is perhaps guilty of hanging on longer than the normal impact of his career allowed. He was less than stellar in the World Series though, famously giving up Kirk Gibsons home run and allowing a 5.79 ERA in six career Fall Classic appearances. What if Tony Mullane had been allowed to pitch for Cincinnati in 1885? All images are property the copyright holder and are displayed here for informational purposes only. For his career he gave up only 430 BB in 2,995 innings. 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. 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. He had winning streaks of 14 and 17 games, and at one point held the NL record consecutive scoreless inning streak with 44. That said, if I field this again in the future, Ill probably sub in Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer for Ferrell and Reuschel. Looking at the names below, Curt Schilling is probably moving toward enshrinement. 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. Walters spent his developing years struggling in Philadelphias bandbox of a stadium. Larry Anderson (1975-1994) 699 games, 995.1 innings pitched, 3.15 ERA, 18.2 K%, 121 ERA+ Paul Assenmacher (1986-1999) 884 games, 855.2 innings pitched, 3.53 ERA, 22.0 K%, 118 ERA+ Luis Ayala (2003-2013) 534 games, 554.1 innings pitched, 3.34 ERA, 15.7 K%, 129 ERA+ Grant Balfour (2001-2015) All are in or will be in their respective sports Hall of Fame. His 2.41 K/BB ratio is exceptional as well. Its commonplace in todays game for a manager to turn to the bullpen as early as the sixth inning. Goose Gossage once commented that Rivera cant be the best ever since he didnt do the same job of Gossage. Wagner has rapidly gained BBWAA support in recent years, rising to 68.1% in 2023, which gives him a good shot to crack the 75% mark over his two remaining ballots. Mark McGwire reached higher peaks, but Palmeiro nearly matched McGwires career homer total, almost doubled Big Macs hit total and was a more lauded defender, too. 4 Rick Reuschel 4.0 He pitched Game Two of the Series, but was taken out with the score tied 2-2 in the 7th inning. Warneke has more shutouts, a better K/BB ratio, and a better WHIP. If he does not pick up that . His career records match up well with Catfish Hunter and Don Drysdale. 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. 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. 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. Many of them were from the initial live ball era1921-1945. He easily lost enough time to give him credit for not having 200 wins. And John is at 2.6, not much better. Drysdale, Ferguson Jenkins, and Early Wynn are the other pitchers with 49 shutouts, and all are in the HOF. He faced Ford 15 times in his career and went 7-7. 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. Mullane was ahead of his time. I will be presenting the results here of the survey over the next week or so, going position by position. He isnt the first Pittsburgh pitcher on this list. Cooper may be the best pitcher in Pirates history. It also includes "Black" Sox pitcher Eddie Cicotte who is banned from baseball, and not eligible for the HOF. Its a valid point, but also probably worth mentioning that Rivera dominated the closers of his era much more than Gossage dominated the closers ofhisera. McMahon pitched 18 seasons between 1957 and 1974 and was named to the 1958 All-Star team in his second big league season. 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). The players had withstood enough abuse by 1890 and formed their own league. There are seventh inning guys, lefty specialists, setup men, long relievers, and traditional closers. 9 David Cone 4.3 What if Milt Pappas had not been traded to Cincinnati? He never received a vote. Brett Favre threw the most interceptions and the late Kobe Bryant missed the most shots. 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. The top ten pitchers eligible but not in the HoF, by rWAR/200 IP, minimum 2000 IP: 1 Roger Clemens 5.7 Pierce got his chance to test his grit in postseason action in 62 for the Giants. 10 Kevin Appier 4.2. 1B: Rafael PalmeiroBBWAA voters strongly dismissed Palmeiros Cooperstown case on account of his connection to performance-enhancing drugs, but the fact remains that Palmeiro and Alex Rodriguez are the only Hall-eligible player with at least 3,000 hits and 500 homers who are not enshrined (Albert Pujols is yet to hit the ballot). He finished second in the MVP balloting. But Beltrn gets the slight edge, given his enviable combination of power (435 homers), speed (312 steals), defense (three Gold Gloves) and postseason heroics. 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