How Relief Pitchers Win Games …
|
|
|
|
|
It occurred to me that readers would be interested in what cases a relief pitcher is deemed the winning pitcher in a game.
The Phils recently won a get-away game with the San Deigo Padres on by a 5-4 score thanks to Padres closer and losing pitcher Trevor Hoffman’s blown save and Bobby Abreu’s game-winning 2 run double.
The winning pitcher in this game emerged to be Phils reliever Geoff Geary who increased his won/loss record to 6-0 for the season with this win (Geary’s game-by game pitching line or the pitching line for any active hurler for the 2006 season and for the two previous seasons can be viewed on a page similar to Geary’s linked page). Geary is what baseball experts call a “middle reliever” as distinguished from the “closer.” The closer either has overpowering stuff, as Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, Billy Wagner or Jonathan Papelbon have or predecessors such as Bruce Sutter, Goose Gossage, Lee Smith, Rollie Fingers or Kent Tekulve had and who enters the game in a late inning to silence the opposition’s bats and to nail down, to save a win for his team.
The closer can also be crafty such as Tug McGraw with his “screwball” or an Elroy Face who possessed a nasty ”forkball” and who was an all-purpose reliever before the “closer” emerged with an indispenseable role.
A baseball Almanac search of “relief pitchers winning games” netted the explanation below;
4) The winning relief pitcher shall be the one who is the pitcher of record when his team assumes the lead and maintains it to the finish of the game.
which was found under “Baseball Almanac - Baseball Rules” which gave rules regarding who shall be deemed winning or losing pitcher;
WINNING AND LOSING PITCHER
10.19 (a) Credit the starting pitcher with a game won only if he has pitched at least five complete innings and his team not only is in the lead when he is replaced but remains in the lead the remainder of the game.
(b) The “must pitch five complete innings” rule in respect to the starting pitcher shall be in effect for all games of six or more innings. In a five inning game, credit the starting pitcher with a game won if he has pitched at least four complete innings and his team not only is in the lead when he is replaced but remains in the lead the remainder of the game.
(c) When the starting pitcher cannot be credited with the victory because of the provisions of 10.19 (a) or (b) and more than one relief pitcher is used, the victory shall be awarded on the following basis:
(1) When, during the tenure of the starting pitcher, the winning team assumes the lead and maintains it to the finish of the game, credit the victory to the relief pitcher judged by the scorer to have been the most effective;
(2) Whenever the score is tied the game becomes a new contest insofar as the winning and losing pitcher is concerned;
(3) Once the opposing team assumes the lead all pitchers who have pitched up to that point are excluded from being credited with the victory except that if the pitcher against whose pitching the opposing team gained the lead continues to pitch until his team regains the lead, which it holds to the finish of the game, that pitcher shall be the winning pitcher;
(4) The winning relief pitcher shall be the one who is the pitcher of record when his team assumes the lead and maintains it to the finish of the game.
EXCEPTION: Do not credit a victory to a relief pitcher who is ineffective in a brief appearance, when a succeeding relief pitcher pitches effectively in helping his team maintain the lead. In such cases, credit the succeeding relief pitcher with the victory.
(d) When a pitcher is removed for a substitute batter or substitute runner, all runs scored by his team during the inning in which he is removed shall be credited to his benefit in determining the pitcher of record when his team assumes the lead.
(e) Regardless of how many innings the first pitcher has pitched, he shall be charged with the loss of the game if he is replaced when his team is behind in the score, or falls behind because of runs charged to him after he is replaced, and his team thereafter fails either to tie the score or gain the lead.
For instance, how many times did the reliever or closer enter the game with his team in the lead or tied, only to let in runs resulting in the other team tying or taking the lead only to then benefit by the award of “the win” when his team subsequent took or regained the lead, thus winning the game?
A review of Elroy Face’s pitching line in the 1959 season, the year that he went 18-1 (as written about on this blog previously when he threatened Carl Hubbell’s all-time winning streak), shows that the above scenario happened occasionally. In Tug McGraw’s line in the 1980 Phillies Championship season, the above scenario happened very rarely.
Note: The game-by-game pitching line for any former hurler can be viewed on a page similar to Elroy Face’s linked page from Baseball Almanac by clicking on the number of games [designated in the column “G”] for the year desired.
The bottom line seems to be; how many wins a reliever accumulates is indicative of both how effective he is (i.e. not being blown out of a game to where the “EXCEPTION” kicks in) and/or if he is in the game at the right time, i.e. when his team’s offense rallies and takes the lead.
del.icio.us |
digg |
Furl |
Reddit |
YahooMyWeb |