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Closer (baseball)

February 11, 2023

In baseball, a closing pitcher, more frequently referred to as a closer (abbreviated CL), is a relief pitcher who specializes in getting the final outs in a close game when his team is leading. The role is often assigned to a team's best reliever. Before the 1990s, pitchers in similar roles were referred to as a fireman, short reliever, and stopper. A small number of closers have won the Cy Young Award. Eight closers have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame: Dennis Eckersley, Rollie Fingers, Goose Gossage, Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, Lee Smith, Bruce Sutter and Hoyt Wilhelm.

Former Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, one of the most prominent closers in baseball history, has the most career saves of any MLB pitcher (652).

Usage

A closer is generally a team's best reliever and designated to pitch the last few outs of games when his team is leading by a margin of three runs or fewer. Rarely does a closer enter with his team losing or in a tie game.[1] A closer's effectiveness has traditionally been measured by the save, an official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1969.[2][3] Over time, closers have become one-inning specialists typically brought in at the beginning of the ninth inning in save situations. The pressure of the last three outs of the game is often cited for the importance attributed to the ninth inning.[2][4]

Closers are often the highest paid relievers on their teams, making money on par with starting pitchers.[2][5] In the rare cases where a team does not have one primary pitcher dedicated to this role, the team is said to have a closer by committee.[6]

History

 
Bruce Sutter was the first pitcher to start the ninth inning in 20 percent of his career appearances.

New York Giants manager John McGraw in 1905 was one of the first to use a relief pitcher to save games. He pitched Claude Elliott in relief eight times in his ten appearances. Though saves were not an official statistic until 1969, Elliot was retroactively credited with six saves that season, a record at that time.[7][8] In 1977, Chicago Cubs manager Herman Franks used Bruce Sutter almost exclusively in the eighth or ninth innings in save situations.[6][9] While relievers such as Rollie Fingers and Goose Gossage were already being used mostly in save situations, Franks's use of Sutter represented an incremental change.[9] Sutter was the first pitcher to start the ninth inning in 20 percent of his career appearances. Clay Carroll in 1972 was the first pitcher to make a third of his season's appearances in the beginning of the ninth inning, which would not be repeated until Fingers in 1982. John Franco in 1987 was the first to be used over 50 percent of the time in the beginning of the ninth in a season;[10] he had a then-record 24 one-inning saves.[11] Lee Smith in 1994 was the first to be used over 75 percent of the time in that situation.[10] Using the save leader from each team in the league, the average closer made his appearances in the beginning of the ninth inning 10 percent of the time in the 1970s to almost 2⁄3 of the time by 2004.[12]

 
Lee Smith in 1994 was the first pitcher to start the ninth inning in over 75 percent of his appearances.

Tony La Russa while with the Oakland Athletics is frequently named as the innovator of the position, making Dennis Eckersley the first player to be used almost exclusively in ninth inning situations.[1][13][14] La Russa explained that "[the Oakland A's would] be ahead a large number of games every week ... That's a lot of work for somebody throwing more than one inning ... Also, there was the added advantage of [Eckersley] not getting overexposed. We tried to get [him] to only face three or four batters an outing."[2] Baseball teams often copy one another, following a strategy based on one team's success.[15] In 1990, Bobby Thigpen set a record with 57 saves while breaking Franco's one-inning saves record with 41. Francisco Rodríguez set the current record with 54 one-inning saves in 2008.[11]

As late as 1989, a team's ace reliever was called a fireman,[16] coming to the rescue to "put out the fire", baseball terminology for stopping an offensive rally with runners on base.[2][17][18] They were occasionally referred to as short relievers, stoppers and closers. By the early 1990s, the top late-inning reliever was called a closer.[16] The firemen came in whenever leads were in jeopardy, usually with men on base, and regardless of the inning and often pitching two or three innings while finishing the game.[2][19][20] An example of this is that Goose Gossage had 17 games where he recorded at least 10 outs in his first season as a closer, including three games where he went seven innings. He pitched over 130 innings as a reliever in three different seasons.[19] For their careers, Sutter and Gossage had more saves of at least two innings than saves where they pitched one inning or less. Fingers was the only pitcher who pitched at least three innings in more than 10 percent of his saves.[21] The game evolved to where the best reliever was reserved for games where the team had a lead of three runs or less in the ninth inning.[12] Mariano Rivera, considered one of the greatest closers of all time,[22] earned only one save of seven-plus outs in his career, while Gossage logged 53.[23] "Don't tell me [Rivera's] the best relief pitcher of all-time until he can do the same job I did. He may be the best modern closer, but you have to compare apples to apples. Do what we did", said Gossage.[24]

Strategy

 
By relegating Dennis Eckersley to mostly one-inning save situations, manager Tony La Russa (pictured) was instrumental in the development of the modern closer.

ESPN.com writer Jim Caple wrote that closers' saves in the ninth "merely conclude what is usually a foregone conclusion."[19] Dave Smith of Retrosheet researched the seasons 1930–2003 and found that the winning percentage for teams who enter the ninth inning with a lead has remained virtually unchanged over the decades. One-run leads after eight innings have been won roughly 85 percent of the time, two-run leads 94 percent of the time, and three-run leads about 96 percent of the time.[19] Baseball Prospectus projects that teams could gain as much as four extra wins a year by focusing on bringing their ace reliever into the game earlier in more critical situations with runners on base instead of holding them out to accumulate easier ninth inning saves.[25] In The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball, Tom Tango et al. wrote that there was more value to having the ace reliever enter in the eighth inning with a one- or a two-run lead instead of the ninth with a three-run lead.[26] "Managers feel the need to please their closers—and their closers' agents—by getting them cheap saves to pad their stats and their bank accounts", wrote Caple.[19] Tango et al. projected that using a great reliever over an average one to start the ninth with a three-run lead resulted in a two percent increase in wins, versus four percent for a two-run lead or six percent for a one-run lead.[27] Former Baltimore Orioles manager Johnny Oates once told Jerome Holtzman, the inventor of the save statistic, that he created the ninth-inning pitcher by inventing the save. Holtzman disagreed, saying it was baseball managers who were responsible for not bringing in their top reliever when the game was on the line, in the seventh or eighth inning, which had been the practice in the past.[28] He noted that managers' usage of closers can "abuse the pitching save ... to favor the closer."[29]

La Russa says it is important that relievers know their roles and the situations which they will be called into a game. He added, "Sure, games can get away from you in the seventh and eighth, but those last three outs in the ninth are the toughest. You want the guy who can handle that pressure. That, to me, is most important."[2] Oakland general manager Billy Beane said there would be too much media criticism if a pitcher other than the closer lost the game in the ninth."[19] Managerial moves are immediately questioned with millions of fans having access to ESPN, the MLB Network, and other cable channels.[30] Former manager Jim Fregosi said managers do not like to be second-guessed.[31] "Even if you know the odds, it's more comfortable being wrong when you go to the closer", said Beane. He noted the incremental increase gained by a closer in a three-run save situation "is worth it because losing is so painful in that situation."[19] Baseball announcer Chris Wheeler noted that there is pressure on managers to pitch closers in the ninth inning when they were paid big money to pitch in that role.[32] Former general manager Pat Gillick said closers become one-inning pitchers as managers began copying the practice of having setup pitchers enter before closers. "There are just too many specialists, guys who can only pitch one inning and only pitch certain innings and throw only 20 pitches. I think most pitchers are capable of pitching more", said Gillick.[33]

Criticism

La Russa noted that losing clubs risk their closer being under-worked, if they stick to the strategy of saving them for ninth inning situations where the team is ahead.[2] An instance of this was Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel, who did not call upon closer Jonathan Papelbon in high leverage situations during the 2012 season, including six games where the score was tied during the late innings, which may have cost the team seven wins by midseason. Jonah Keri suggested "fear of using pitchers in anything but the most predictable circumstances, or simple inertia, closers get used far more often in easy-to-manage, up-two, bases-empty, ninth-inning situations than they do in tie games with runners on and the game actually on the line" and said of Papelbon "unless the Phillies start using him in situations where he’s actually needed, rather than almost exclusively in spots that nearly any pitcher with a pulse can handle successfully 85–90 percent of the time, Papelbon will remain the $200,000 Aston Martin that never leaves the garage".[34][35]

Some critics have noted that the 9th inning closer strategy is illogical during playoff games, especially when the club is facing elimination. During Games 4 and 6 of the 2010 NLCS, each a late-inning situation with the score tied, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel did not call upon closer Brad Lidge and both times the selected relief pitcher surrendered the game-winning run.[36] Similarly in Games 3 and 6 of the 2010 ALCS, each where the New York Yankees were trailing by two runs during a crucial inning, manager Joe Girardi did not go to Mariano Rivera, and both times the chosen relief pitcher gave up several runs which put the game out of reach for the Yankees; ESPN's Matthew Wallace lamented that "Girardi used Rivera in the ninth inning of Game 6, with the Yankees trailing 6–1, their ship long sailed to sea".[37]

Hall of Fame

Eight pitchers who were primarily relievers have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Hoyt Wilhelm was the first to be elected in 1985,[38] followed by Rollie Fingers, Dennis Eckersley, Bruce Sutter, Goose Gossage, Trevor Hoffman, Lee Smith, and Mariano Rivera.[a] Eckersley was the first closer in the one-inning save era to be inducted. He believed that he was inducted because he was both a starter and a reliever.[41] "If I came up today as a closer and played 20 years, would I have made it [into the Hall of Fame]? These pitchers did the job they were supposed to do for 20 years. What else are they supposed to do?" said Eckersley.[42] Rivera was elected in 2019 and was the first player in MLB history to be elected unanimously by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, appearing on all 425 ballots.[43]

Major awards and honors won by closers

Major League Baseball

Award Closer Team Year
MVP Dennis Eckersley * Oakland Athletics 1992 (AL)
Willie Hernández * Detroit Tigers 1984 (AL)
Rollie Fingers * Milwaukee Brewers 1981 (AL)
Jim Konstanty Philadelphia Phillies 1950 (NL)
WS MVP Mariano Rivera New York Yankees 1999
John Wetteland New York Yankees 1996
Rollie Fingers Oakland Athletics 1974
Larry Sherry Los Angeles Dodgers 1959
ROY Craig Kimbrel Atlanta Braves 2011 (NL)
Neftalí Feliz Texas Rangers 2010 (AL)
Andrew Bailey Oakland Athletics 2009 (AL)
Huston Street Oakland Athletics 2005 (AL)
Kazuhiro Sasaki Seattle Mariners 2000 (AL)
Scott Williamson Cincinnati Reds 1999 (NL)
Gregg Olson Baltimore Orioles 1989 (AL)
Todd Worrell St. Louis Cardinals 1986 (NL)
Steve Howe Los Angeles Dodgers 1980 (NL)
Butch Metzger San Diego Padres 1976 (NL)
Joe Black Los Angeles Dodgers 1952 (NL)
LCS MVP Koji Uehara Boston Red Sox 2013 (AL)[44]
Andrew Miller Cleveland Indians 2016 (AL)
Mariano Rivera New York Yankees 2003 (AL)
Rob Dibble, Randy Myers Cincinnati Reds 1990 (NL)
Dennis Eckersley Oakland Athletics 1988 (AL)
ASG MVP Mariano Rivera New York Yankees 2013

* Won both the league Cy Young Award and league Most Valuable Player Award in the same year

Nippon Professional Baseball

Award Closer Team Year
Meikyukai Kazuhiro Sasaki Whales/BayStars 2000
Shingo Takatsu Swallows 2003
Hitoki Iwase Dragons 2010
MVP Kazuhiro Sasaki BayStars 1998 (Central)
Genji Kaku Dragons 1988 (Central)
Yutaka Enatsu Fighters 1981 (Pacific)
Yutaka Enatsu Carp 1979 (Central)

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Hall of Famer John Smoltz was a closer for four seasons, but is considered to have primarily been a starter.[39][40]

References

  1. ^ a b Zimniuch 2010, p.169
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Jenkins, Chris (September 25, 2006). . The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011.
  3. ^ Jack Moore "On the Closer Position: The Save and RP Usage" Fangraphs, December 30, 2009 "On the Closer Position: The Save and RP Usage". December 30, 2009. from the original on January 8, 2010. Retrieved May 6, 2010.
  4. ^ Couch, Greg (August 2004). "Last three outs require mental toughness on the part of a closer". Baseball Digest. 63 (8): 54–57. ISSN 0005-609X.
  5. ^ Zimniuch, Fran (2010). Fireman: The Evolution of the Closer in Baseball. Chicago: Triumph Books. p. 143. ISBN 978-1-60078-312-8.
  6. ^ a b Dickson, Paul (2011). The Dickson Baseball Dictionary. W. W. Norton & Company. p. 195. ISBN 978-0-393-34008-2. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  7. ^ Morris, Peter (2006). A Game of Inches: The Game on the Field. Ivan R. Dee. p. 318. ISBN 1-56663-677-9.
  8. ^ McNeil 2006, p.53
  9. ^ a b Marchman, Tim (January 11, 2006). "Mr. Sutter Goes To Cooperstown..." The New York Sun. from the original on February 15, 2015. Retrieved December 20, 2011. Pitchers like Goose Gossage and Rollie Fingers were being used largely in save situations while Sutter was still in the minors; Sutter being used almost exclusively that way was an incremental change.
  10. ^ a b Baseball Prospectus Team of Experts (2007). Baseball Between the Numbers: Why Everything You Know About the Game Is Wrong. New York: Basic Books. p. 59. ISBN 978-0-465-00547-5. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  11. ^ a b Posnanski, Joe (September 14, 2011). . SI.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2012.
  12. ^ a b Baseball Prospectus 2007, p.60
  13. ^ . Archived from the original on March 10, 2016. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
  14. ^ Kornheiser, Tony (February 20, 2017). Pardon the Interruption. ESPN. Tony La Russa changed the game of baseball. Tony La Russa invented the closer with Dennis Eckersley. Handed him the ball the beginning of the ninth—didn't bring him in the eighth, didn't bring him in the seventh—Goose Gossage, 'cause I covered him, pitched a lot of two- or three-inning relief situations. If he got around the lineup once, he got hit the second time. A lot of guys get hit the second time ... They are not comparable positions.
  15. ^ Zimniuch 2010, p.143
  16. ^ a b McNeil, William (2006). The Evolution of Pitching in Major League Baseball. McFarland & Company. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-7864-2468-9. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  17. ^ Dickson, Paul (1999). The new Dickson baseball dictionary. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 194. ISBN 978-0-15-600580-7. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  18. ^ Dickson 1999, p.396
  19. ^ a b c d e f g Caple, Jim (August 5, 2008). . ESPN.com. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011.
  20. ^ Zimniuch 2010, pp.xx,81
  21. ^ Schecter, Gabriel (January 18, 2006). . National Baseball Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 8, 2007. Gossage and Fingers weren't far behind, with Fingers the only pitcher who pitched at least three innings in more than 10% of his saves. Sutter and Gossage had more saves where they logged at least two innings than saves where they pitched an inning or less.
  22. ^ Red, Christian (March 13, 2010). "Modern Yankee Heroes: From humble beginnings, Mariano Rivera becomes the greatest closer in MLB history". Daily News. from the original on March 10, 2012. Retrieved December 2, 2011.
  23. ^ Rosen, Charlie (2011). Bullpen Diaries: Mariano Rivera, Bronx Dreams, Pinstripe Legends, and the Future of the New York Yankees. HarperCollins Publishers. p. 213. ISBN 978-0-06-200598-4.
  24. ^ Zimniuch 2010, p.97
  25. ^ Baseball Prospectus 2007, pp.72–73
  26. ^ Tango, Tom; Lichtman, Mitchel; Dolphin, Andrew; Palmer, Pete (2007). The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. Potomac Books Inc. p. 221. ISBN 978-1-59797-129-4.
  27. ^ Tango et al. 2007, pp.215–16
  28. ^ Holtzman, Jerome (May 2002). "Where did save rule come from? Baseball historian recalls how he helped develop statistic that measures reliever's effectiveness". Baseball Digest. Archived from the original on July 8, 2012. Retrieved February 25, 2011. I told him it was the managers who did it, not me. Instead of bringing in their best reliever when the game was on the line, in the seventh or eighth inning, which had been the practice in the past, they saved him for the ninth.
  29. ^ Holtzman, Jerome (June 18, 1989). . Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014.
  30. ^ Zimniuch 2010, pp.72,156
  31. ^ Zimniuch 2010, pp.155–6
  32. ^ Zimniuch 2010, p.161
  33. ^ Zimniuch 2010, pp.166–8
  34. ^ Keri, Jonah (February 11, 2013). "The 15 Worst Contracts in Baseball". grantland.com. from the original on March 20, 2016. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  35. ^ . crashburnalley.com. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  36. ^ "Giants just good enough, which is plenty - SweetSpot- ESPN". October 24, 2010. from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.]["2010 NLCS: San Francisco Giants vs. Philadelphia Phillies - MLB Playoffs - ESPN". from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  37. ^ "Matthews: Girardi sank season in fifth inning". ESPN.com. October 23, 2010. from the original on October 6, 2016. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  38. ^ Lueck, Thomas J. (August 25, 2002). . The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 25, 2018. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
  39. ^ . Boston Herald. Associated Press. January 7, 2015. Archived from the original on January 10, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  40. ^ Sarris, Eno (January 7, 2015). . Fangraphs.com. Archived from the original on January 9, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  41. ^ Zimniuch 2010, p.227
  42. ^ Zimniuch 2010, p.229
  43. ^ Schoenfield, David (January 22, 2019). "Mariano Rivera, Edgar Martinez, Roy Halladay and Mike Mussina joining Hall of Fame". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  44. ^ "Boston Red Sox closer Koji Uehara nets ALCS MVP honors". MLB.com. from the original on July 3, 2014. Retrieved May 7, 2018.

External links

  • Major League Baseball Career Saves Leaders
  • Major League Baseball Single Season Saves Leaders
  • Major League Baseball Active Saves Leaders

February 11, 2023
closer, baseball, baseball, closing, pitcher, more, frequently, referred, closer, abbreviated, relief, pitcher, specializes, getting, final, outs, close, game, when, team, leading, role, often, assigned, team, best, reliever, before, 1990s, pitchers, similar, . In baseball a closing pitcher more frequently referred to as a closer abbreviated CL is a relief pitcher who specializes in getting the final outs in a close game when his team is leading The role is often assigned to a team s best reliever Before the 1990s pitchers in similar roles were referred to as a fireman short reliever and stopper A small number of closers have won the Cy Young Award Eight closers have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame Dennis Eckersley Rollie Fingers Goose Gossage Trevor Hoffman Mariano Rivera Lee Smith Bruce Sutter and Hoyt Wilhelm Former Yankees closer Mariano Rivera one of the most prominent closers in baseball history has the most career saves of any MLB pitcher 652 Contents 1 Usage 2 History 3 Strategy 3 1 Criticism 4 Hall of Fame 5 Major awards and honors won by closers 5 1 Major League Baseball 5 2 Nippon Professional Baseball 6 See also 7 Notes 8 References 9 External linksUsage EditA closer is generally a team s best reliever and designated to pitch the last few outs of games when his team is leading by a margin of three runs or fewer Rarely does a closer enter with his team losing or in a tie game 1 A closer s effectiveness has traditionally been measured by the save an official Major League Baseball MLB statistic since 1969 2 3 Over time closers have become one inning specialists typically brought in at the beginning of the ninth inning in save situations The pressure of the last three outs of the game is often cited for the importance attributed to the ninth inning 2 4 Closers are often the highest paid relievers on their teams making money on par with starting pitchers 2 5 In the rare cases where a team does not have one primary pitcher dedicated to this role the team is said to have a closer by committee 6 History Edit Bruce Sutter was the first pitcher to start the ninth inning in 20 percent of his career appearances New York Giants manager John McGraw in 1905 was one of the first to use a relief pitcher to save games He pitched Claude Elliott in relief eight times in his ten appearances Though saves were not an official statistic until 1969 Elliot was retroactively credited with six saves that season a record at that time 7 8 In 1977 Chicago Cubs manager Herman Franks used Bruce Sutter almost exclusively in the eighth or ninth innings in save situations 6 9 While relievers such as Rollie Fingers and Goose Gossage were already being used mostly in save situations Franks s use of Sutter represented an incremental change 9 Sutter was the first pitcher to start the ninth inning in 20 percent of his career appearances Clay Carroll in 1972 was the first pitcher to make a third of his season s appearances in the beginning of the ninth inning which would not be repeated until Fingers in 1982 John Franco in 1987 was the first to be used over 50 percent of the time in the beginning of the ninth in a season 10 he had a then record 24 one inning saves 11 Lee Smith in 1994 was the first to be used over 75 percent of the time in that situation 10 Using the save leader from each team in the league the average closer made his appearances in the beginning of the ninth inning 10 percent of the time in the 1970s to almost 2 3 of the time by 2004 12 Lee Smith in 1994 was the first pitcher to start the ninth inning in over 75 percent of his appearances Tony La Russa while with the Oakland Athletics is frequently named as the innovator of the position making Dennis Eckersley the first player to be used almost exclusively in ninth inning situations 1 13 14 La Russa explained that the Oakland A s would be ahead a large number of games every week That s a lot of work for somebody throwing more than one inning Also there was the added advantage of Eckersley not getting overexposed We tried to get him to only face three or four batters an outing 2 Baseball teams often copy one another following a strategy based on one team s success 15 In 1990 Bobby Thigpen set a record with 57 saves while breaking Franco s one inning saves record with 41 Francisco Rodriguez set the current record with 54 one inning saves in 2008 11 As late as 1989 a team s ace reliever was called a fireman 16 coming to the rescue to put out the fire baseball terminology for stopping an offensive rally with runners on base 2 17 18 They were occasionally referred to as short relievers stoppers and closers By the early 1990s the top late inning reliever was called a closer 16 The firemen came in whenever leads were in jeopardy usually with men on base and regardless of the inning and often pitching two or three innings while finishing the game 2 19 20 An example of this is that Goose Gossage had 17 games where he recorded at least 10 outs in his first season as a closer including three games where he went seven innings He pitched over 130 innings as a reliever in three different seasons 19 For their careers Sutter and Gossage had more saves of at least two innings than saves where they pitched one inning or less Fingers was the only pitcher who pitched at least three innings in more than 10 percent of his saves 21 The game evolved to where the best reliever was reserved for games where the team had a lead of three runs or less in the ninth inning 12 Mariano Rivera considered one of the greatest closers of all time 22 earned only one save of seven plus outs in his career while Gossage logged 53 23 Don t tell me Rivera s the best relief pitcher of all time until he can do the same job I did He may be the best modern closer but you have to compare apples to apples Do what we did said Gossage 24 Strategy Edit By relegating Dennis Eckersley to mostly one inning save situations manager Tony La Russa pictured was instrumental in the development of the modern closer ESPN com writer Jim Caple wrote that closers saves in the ninth merely conclude what is usually a foregone conclusion 19 Dave Smith of Retrosheet researched the seasons 1930 2003 and found that the winning percentage for teams who enter the ninth inning with a lead has remained virtually unchanged over the decades One run leads after eight innings have been won roughly 85 percent of the time two run leads 94 percent of the time and three run leads about 96 percent of the time 19 Baseball Prospectus projects that teams could gain as much as four extra wins a year by focusing on bringing their ace reliever into the game earlier in more critical situations with runners on base instead of holding them out to accumulate easier ninth inning saves 25 In The Book Playing the Percentages in Baseball Tom Tango et al wrote that there was more value to having the ace reliever enter in the eighth inning with a one or a two run lead instead of the ninth with a three run lead 26 Managers feel the need to please their closers and their closers agents by getting them cheap saves to pad their stats and their bank accounts wrote Caple 19 Tango et al projected that using a great reliever over an average one to start the ninth with a three run lead resulted in a two percent increase in wins versus four percent for a two run lead or six percent for a one run lead 27 Former Baltimore Orioles manager Johnny Oates once told Jerome Holtzman the inventor of the save statistic that he created the ninth inning pitcher by inventing the save Holtzman disagreed saying it was baseball managers who were responsible for not bringing in their top reliever when the game was on the line in the seventh or eighth inning which had been the practice in the past 28 He noted that managers usage of closers can abuse the pitching save to favor the closer 29 La Russa says it is important that relievers know their roles and the situations which they will be called into a game He added Sure games can get away from you in the seventh and eighth but those last three outs in the ninth are the toughest You want the guy who can handle that pressure That to me is most important 2 Oakland general manager Billy Beane said there would be too much media criticism if a pitcher other than the closer lost the game in the ninth 19 Managerial moves are immediately questioned with millions of fans having access to ESPN the MLB Network and other cable channels 30 Former manager Jim Fregosi said managers do not like to be second guessed 31 Even if you know the odds it s more comfortable being wrong when you go to the closer said Beane He noted the incremental increase gained by a closer in a three run save situation is worth it because losing is so painful in that situation 19 Baseball announcer Chris Wheeler noted that there is pressure on managers to pitch closers in the ninth inning when they were paid big money to pitch in that role 32 Former general manager Pat Gillick said closers become one inning pitchers as managers began copying the practice of having setup pitchers enter before closers There are just too many specialists guys who can only pitch one inning and only pitch certain innings and throw only 20 pitches I think most pitchers are capable of pitching more said Gillick 33 Criticism Edit La Russa noted that losing clubs risk their closer being under worked if they stick to the strategy of saving them for ninth inning situations where the team is ahead 2 An instance of this was Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel who did not call upon closer Jonathan Papelbon in high leverage situations during the 2012 season including six games where the score was tied during the late innings which may have cost the team seven wins by midseason Jonah Keri suggested fear of using pitchers in anything but the most predictable circumstances or simple inertia closers get used far more often in easy to manage up two bases empty ninth inning situations than they do in tie games with runners on and the game actually on the line and said of Papelbon unless the Phillies start using him in situations where he s actually needed rather than almost exclusively in spots that nearly any pitcher with a pulse can handle successfully 85 90 percent of the time Papelbon will remain the 200 000 Aston Martin that never leaves the garage 34 35 Some critics have noted that the 9th inning closer strategy is illogical during playoff games especially when the club is facing elimination During Games 4 and 6 of the 2010 NLCS each a late inning situation with the score tied Phillies manager Charlie Manuel did not call upon closer Brad Lidge and both times the selected relief pitcher surrendered the game winning run 36 Similarly in Games 3 and 6 of the 2010 ALCS each where the New York Yankees were trailing by two runs during a crucial inning manager Joe Girardi did not go to Mariano Rivera and both times the chosen relief pitcher gave up several runs which put the game out of reach for the Yankees ESPN s Matthew Wallace lamented that Girardi used Rivera in the ninth inning of Game 6 with the Yankees trailing 6 1 their ship long sailed to sea 37 Hall of Fame EditEight pitchers who were primarily relievers have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame Hoyt Wilhelm was the first to be elected in 1985 38 followed by Rollie Fingers Dennis Eckersley Bruce Sutter Goose Gossage Trevor Hoffman Lee Smith and Mariano Rivera a Eckersley was the first closer in the one inning save era to be inducted He believed that he was inducted because he was both a starter and a reliever 41 If I came up today as a closer and played 20 years would I have made it into the Hall of Fame These pitchers did the job they were supposed to do for 20 years What else are they supposed to do said Eckersley 42 Rivera was elected in 2019 and was the first player in MLB history to be elected unanimously by the Baseball Writers Association of America appearing on all 425 ballots 43 Major awards and honors won by closers EditMajor League Baseball Edit Award Closer Team YearHall of Fame Mariano Rivera New York Yankees 2019Lee Smith Chicago CubsTrevor Hoffman San Diego Padres 2018Goose Gossage New York Yankees 2008Bruce Sutter St Louis Cardinals 2006Dennis Eckersley Oakland Athletics 2004Rollie Fingers Oakland Athletics 1992Hoyt Wilhelm New York Giants 1985Cy Young Eric Gagne Los Angeles Dodgers 2003 NL Dennis Eckersley Oakland Athletics 1992 AL Mark Davis San Diego Padres 1989 NL Steve Bedrosian Philadelphia Phillies 1987 NL Willie Hernandez Detroit Tigers 1984 AL Rollie Fingers Milwaukee Brewers 1981 AL Bruce Sutter Chicago Cubs 1979 NL Sparky Lyle New York Yankees 1977 AL Mike Marshall Los Angeles Dodgers 1974 NL Award Closer Team YearMVP Dennis Eckersley Oakland Athletics 1992 AL Willie Hernandez Detroit Tigers 1984 AL Rollie Fingers Milwaukee Brewers 1981 AL Jim Konstanty Philadelphia Phillies 1950 NL WS MVP Mariano Rivera New York Yankees 1999John Wetteland New York Yankees 1996Rollie Fingers Oakland Athletics 1974Larry Sherry Los Angeles Dodgers 1959ROY Craig Kimbrel Atlanta Braves 2011 NL Neftali Feliz Texas Rangers 2010 AL Andrew Bailey Oakland Athletics 2009 AL Huston Street Oakland Athletics 2005 AL Kazuhiro Sasaki Seattle Mariners 2000 AL Scott Williamson Cincinnati Reds 1999 NL Gregg Olson Baltimore Orioles 1989 AL Todd Worrell St Louis Cardinals 1986 NL Steve Howe Los Angeles Dodgers 1980 NL Butch Metzger San Diego Padres 1976 NL Joe Black Los Angeles Dodgers 1952 NL LCS MVP Koji Uehara Boston Red Sox 2013 AL 44 Andrew Miller Cleveland Indians 2016 AL Mariano Rivera New York Yankees 2003 AL Rob Dibble Randy Myers Cincinnati Reds 1990 NL Dennis Eckersley Oakland Athletics 1988 AL ASG MVP Mariano Rivera New York Yankees 2013 Won both the league Cy Young Award and league Most Valuable Player Award in the same year Nippon Professional Baseball Edit Award Closer Team YearMeikyukai Kazuhiro Sasaki Whales BayStars 2000Shingo Takatsu Swallows 2003Hitoki Iwase Dragons 2010MVP Kazuhiro Sasaki BayStars 1998 Central Genji Kaku Dragons 1988 Central Yutaka Enatsu Fighters 1981 Pacific Yutaka Enatsu Carp 1979 Central See also EditBaseball awards Japan Baseball awards United StatesNotes Edit Hall of Famer John Smoltz was a closer for four seasons but is considered to have primarily been a starter 39 40 References Edit a b Zimniuch 2010 p 169 a b c d e f g h Jenkins Chris September 25 2006 Where s the fire The San Diego Union Tribune Archived from the original on June 28 2011 Jack Moore On the Closer Position The Save and RP Usage Fangraphs December 30 2009 On the Closer Position The Save and RP Usage December 30 2009 Archived from the original on January 8 2010 Retrieved May 6 2010 Couch Greg August 2004 Last three outs require mental toughness on the part of a closer Baseball Digest 63 8 54 57 ISSN 0005 609X Zimniuch Fran 2010 Fireman The Evolution of the Closer in Baseball Chicago Triumph Books p 143 ISBN 978 1 60078 312 8 a b Dickson Paul 2011 The Dickson Baseball Dictionary W W Norton amp Company p 195 ISBN 978 0 393 34008 2 Retrieved December 30 2011 Morris Peter 2006 A Game of Inches The Game on the Field Ivan R Dee p 318 ISBN 1 56663 677 9 McNeil 2006 p 53 a b Marchman Tim January 11 2006 Mr Sutter Goes To Cooperstown The New York Sun Archived from the original on February 15 2015 Retrieved December 20 2011 Pitchers like Goose Gossage and Rollie Fingers were being used largely in save situations while Sutter was still in the minors Sutter being used almost exclusively that way was an incremental change a b Baseball Prospectus Team of Experts 2007 Baseball Between the Numbers Why Everything You Know About the Game Is Wrong New York Basic Books p 59 ISBN 978 0 465 00547 5 Retrieved February 23 2011 a b Posnanski Joe September 14 2011 The Meaning of Mariano SI com Archived from the original on January 4 2012 a b Baseball Prospectus 2007 p 60 Should managers play Scrabble with relievers MLB Yahoo Canada Sports Archived from the original on March 10 2016 Retrieved March 25 2018 Kornheiser Tony February 20 2017 Pardon the Interruption ESPN Tony La Russa changed the game of baseball Tony La Russa invented the closer with Dennis Eckersley Handed him the ball the beginning of the ninth didn t bring him in the eighth didn t bring him in the seventh Goose Gossage cause I covered him pitched a lot of two or three inning relief situations If he got around the lineup once he got hit the second time A lot of guys get hit the second time They are not comparable positions Zimniuch 2010 p 143 a b McNeil William 2006 The Evolution of Pitching in Major League Baseball McFarland amp Company p 98 ISBN 978 0 7864 2468 9 Retrieved December 30 2011 Dickson Paul 1999 The new Dickson baseball dictionary Houghton Mifflin Harcourt p 194 ISBN 978 0 15 600580 7 Retrieved February 27 2011 Dickson 1999 p 396 a b c d e f g Caple Jim August 5 2008 The most overrated position in sports ESPN com Archived from the original on June 29 2011 Zimniuch 2010 pp xx 81 Schecter Gabriel January 18 2006 The Evolution of the Closer National Baseball Hall of Fame Archived from the original on June 8 2007 Gossage and Fingers weren t far behind with Fingers the only pitcher who pitched at least three innings in more than 10 of his saves Sutter and Gossage had more saves where they logged at least two innings than saves where they pitched an inning or less Red Christian March 13 2010 Modern Yankee Heroes From humble beginnings Mariano Rivera becomes the greatest closer in MLB history Daily News Archived from the original on March 10 2012 Retrieved December 2 2011 Rosen Charlie 2011 Bullpen Diaries Mariano Rivera Bronx Dreams Pinstripe Legends and the Future of the New York Yankees HarperCollins Publishers p 213 ISBN 978 0 06 200598 4 Zimniuch 2010 p 97 Baseball Prospectus 2007 pp 72 73 Tango Tom Lichtman Mitchel Dolphin Andrew Palmer Pete 2007 The Book Playing the Percentages in Baseball Potomac Books Inc p 221 ISBN 978 1 59797 129 4 Tango et al 2007 pp 215 16 Holtzman Jerome May 2002 Where did save rule come from Baseball historian recalls how he helped develop statistic that measures reliever s effectiveness Baseball Digest Archived from the original on July 8 2012 Retrieved February 25 2011 I told him it was the managers who did it not me Instead of bringing in their best reliever when the game was on the line in the seventh or eighth inning which had been the practice in the past they saved him for the ninth Holtzman Jerome June 18 1989 Pitching Keeps Cubs Armed And Ready After Getting Past Challenging Stretch Chicago Tribune Archived from the original on July 14 2014 Zimniuch 2010 pp 72 156 Zimniuch 2010 pp 155 6 Zimniuch 2010 p 161 Zimniuch 2010 pp 166 8 Keri Jonah February 11 2013 The 15 Worst Contracts in Baseball grantland com Archived from the original on March 20 2016 Retrieved May 7 2018 Crashburn Alley Not Again crashburnalley com Archived from the original on March 12 2016 Retrieved May 7 2018 Giants just good enough which is plenty SweetSpot ESPN October 24 2010 Archived from the original on March 12 2016 Retrieved March 11 2016 2010 NLCS San Francisco Giants vs Philadelphia Phillies MLB Playoffs ESPN Archived from the original on March 3 2016 Retrieved March 11 2016 Matthews Girardi sank season in fifth inning ESPN com October 23 2010 Archived from the original on October 6 2016 Retrieved May 7 2018 Lueck Thomas J August 25 2002 Hoyt Wilhelm First Reliever in the Hall of Fame Dies The New York Times Archived from the original on January 25 2018 Retrieved February 18 2017 Hall focus next year turns to Ken Griffey Jr Trevor Hoffman and Billy Wagner Boston Herald Associated Press January 7 2015 Archived from the original on January 10 2015 Retrieved January 10 2015 Sarris Eno January 7 2015 John Smoltz Two Half Hall of Famers Fangraphs com Archived from the original on January 9 2015 Retrieved January 10 2015 Zimniuch 2010 p 227 Zimniuch 2010 p 229 Schoenfield David January 22 2019 Mariano Rivera Edgar Martinez Roy Halladay and Mike Mussina joining Hall of Fame ESPN com Retrieved November 3 2019 Boston Red Sox closer Koji Uehara nets ALCS MVP honors MLB com Archived from the original on July 3 2014 Retrieved May 7 2018 External links Edit Baseball portalMajor League Baseball Career Saves Leaders Major League Baseball Single Season Saves Leaders Major League Baseball Active Saves Leaders Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Closer baseball amp oldid 1123383043, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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