Mariano Rivera’s claim as the greatest closer of all-time is one of the safest arguments in baseball. 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. Even though others have won Cy Young awards (and even regular season MVPs), Rivera was as close as you’ll find to a perfect closer, and he did this all with just the legendary cutter. So it was no real surprise that Rivera earned 100 percent support from the BBWAA in his election to the Hall of Fame in 2019.

But who’s the second best relief pitcher ever? I attempted to rank the 10 best ever. To start, there are only eight primary relievers in Cooperstown; Rivera, Dennis Eckersley, Hoyt Wilhelm, Goose Gossage, Rollie Fingers, Bruce Sutter, Lee Smith, and Trevor Hoffman. Along with those pitchers, I’ll evaluate others with a case to be considered among the 10 best ever, which can be broken into categories of the modern (Craig Kimbrel, Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen, Francisco Rodriguez, Billy Wagner, and Joe Nathan), and the throwbacks (Sparky Lyle and Dan Quisenberry).

Comparing across eras isn’t easy, as the role of a relief pitcher has changed drastically over the years. It barely existed when Babe Ruth and Ted Williams played, as starters would routinely pitch complete games. 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. In today’s 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.

These are the primary factors I used in my evaluations:

• accolades – All-Star appearances, Cy Young awards, MVP awards, and World Series MVP awards
• traditional stats – saves, ERA, strikeout-to-walk ratio
• sabermetric stats – adjusted ERA (ERA+), Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP), Wins Above Replacement (WAR)
• longevity – how many years of dominance did this pitcher provide? For a three-year run, Eric Gagne holds up against any pitcher who ever lived, but it’s just not enough to earn the No. 2 spot all-time.

 

The top 10 rankings:

10. 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

Only John Smoltz and Dennis Eckersley can say they were multi-time All-Star starting pitchers and then became dominant closers afterwards. Eck didn’t become a reliever until his age-32 season but still appeared in enough games to retire first on the game’s all-time list (1,070). 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.

Curiously enough, Eckersley didn’t 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. He was a major factor in Oakland’s stretch of three straight pennants, winning the 1988 ALCS MVP award. He was less than stellar in the World Series though, famously giving up Kirk Gibson’s home run and allowing a 5.79 ERA in six career Fall Classic appearances.

Based strictly on peak performance, Eckersley would rank in the top five of relievers. 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.

 

9. Aroldis Chapman, 2010-2019

Stats: 273 saves, 2.23 ERA, 1.023 WHIP, 3.56 K:BB, 184 ERA+

Accolades: 6 All-Star appearances, 1 World Series ring

There’s no one since Randy Johnson who puts fear into batters like Aroldis Chapman does. He regularly hits 100 miles per hour on his fastballs and holds the all-time record by registering 105.1 on a pitch (twice).

Chapman’s statistics look mind-boggling, even when you account for the fact that every reliever strikes out a ton of hitters. Chapman won’t qualify on any official leaderboard because he’s only at 535.2 innings, but if you look at all pitchers with 500+ innings, he’s first all-time at 14.84 K/9 and a 2.01 FIP. Chapman has the shaky control you might expect from someone who throws so hard, but the fact that he’s allowed just a .233 career slugging percentage is unfathomable.

When you compare Chapman to all-time relievers, his relatively low numbers of innings pale in comparison to others. That’s three seasons for workhorse Mike Marshall from the 1970s. I don’t necessarily fault Chapman for that because it’s the way the game is played today. Whether it will be enough to one day get him into Cooperstown won’t be decided for another 10 or so years.

 

8. Craig Kimbrel, 2010-2019

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

Craig Kimbrel’s ranks among post-1900 pitchers with at least 500 innings pitched:

Opponents’ batting average allowed: .158, H/9: 4.98 (1^st)

ERA+: 195, K/9: 14.61, opponents’ slugging percentage allowed: .257 (2^nd)

FIP: 2.19 (5^th)

ERA: 2.08 (6^th)

He’s unlike any relief pitcher we’ve seen to date, allowing fewer hits per nine innings than Aroldis Chapman and striking out more batters per nine innings than Billy Wagner. Kimbrel is the only closer in history with as many as 200 saves and a save percentage over 90, and he’s sitting comfortably at first on the active leaderboard at 346 saves.

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. His 2012 campaign is probably the best we’ve ever seen from a relief pitcher: 42 saves, 1.01 ERA, 116 strikeouts to just 36 baserunners allowed, and a 0.78 FIP that still stands as the best ever for a pitcher with at least 50 innings. He’s insanely dominant against both righties and lefties as well.

Kimbrel still hasn’t hit the decline phase of his career, unless 2019 was the beginning of the end and not just an aberration. If that’s the case, Kimbrel probably won’t move down these rankings at all – but he also won’t move any higher.

 

7. Jonathan Papelbon, 2005-2016

Stats: 368 saves, 2.44 ERA, 1.043 WHIP, 4.37 K:BB, 177 ERA+

Accolades: 6 All-Star appearances, 1 World Series ring

Even if you don’t like him (hand raised here), Jonathan Papelbon was Hall of Fame worthy dominant for his career. He was the fastest relief pitcher ever reach 200 career saves, he was the first closer ever to rack up at least 25 saves in each of his first five seasons, and he’s the all-time leader in saves for two different franchises – Boston and Philadelphia.

In the postseason, Papelbon started his career with 25 consecutive scoreless innings in October, including 4.1 of those innings in the 2007 World Series. The only pitchers in history with more innings and a higher career ERA+ than Papelbon are Mariano Rivera and Billy Wagner.

 

6. Billy Wagner, 1995-2010

Stats: 422 saves, 2.31 ERA, 0.998 WHIP, 3.99 K:BB, 187ERA+

Accolades: 7 All-Star appearances

Recent history doesn’t recognize Billy Wagner for how dominant he was. He got just 10.5 percent of the Hall of Fame voting in 2016, his first year of eligibility, and was still only at 31.7 percent at last year. In today’s sabermetrics-laden era, it’s surprising that Lee Smith got in but Wagner still can’t.

There are strong HOF arguments for and against Wagner. His dominance was evident with every 100 MPH fastball he threw. His 187 career ERA+ is second among retired relief pitchers to only Mariano Rivera. His 11.9 K/9 rate is tops of all retired relievers (tied with Brad Lidge). And his .187 batting average allowed is the lowest of any retired relief pitcher. He really was unhittable. Here’s 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. Wagner had three of them, and they came in three consecutive years (1997, 1998, and 1999).

The knock against Wagner is that he got some easy saves throughout his career. Wagner is sixth on the all-time list with 422 saves (a number that could have been much higher if he didn’t retire after arguably his best year).

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. 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. He would also be the only pitcher in the Hall of Fame not to exceed 1,000 career innings pitched, which is a testament to the unique specialty role of being a modern closer. And it’s tough to ignore a frightening 10.13 ERA in the postseason.

In an era when everyone posts gaudy relief statistics, the trick is figuring out how rare and special Wagner really was.

 

5. Hoyt Wilhelm, 1952-1972

Stats (as reliever): 228 saves, 2.51 ERA, 1.131 WHIP, 2.04 K:BB, 147 ERA+

Accolades (as reliever): 6 All-Star appearances, 1 World Series ring, Baseball Hall of Fame

History doesn’t remember Hoyt Wilhelm the way it should. Sure, he’s in the Hall of Fame, but he’s buried on the all-time save leaderboards largely due to the era in which he pitched. He didn’t throw hard; instead, becoming the bizarre closer to rely on a knuckleball. He barely played in the postseason. And he never got a single Cy Young vote.

But he was so good at his craft. He didn’t 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). 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). His 2.52 career ERA was the lowest by a pitcher with at least 2,000 innings pitched since Walter Johnson.

Pitching multiple innings per relief appearance was Wilhelm’s trademark. Wilhelm posted a sub-2.00 ERA for five consecutive seasons in his 40s, and he did so while averaging 108 innings pitched per year. He holds the all-time record for relief appearances with at least two innings (486) and three innings (197). One time, Wilhelm entered a tie game in the eighth inning and pitched through the 18^th, allowing just two hits and no runs.

 

4. Rollie Fingers, 1968-1985

Stats: 341 saves, 2.90 ERA, 1.156 WHIP, 2.64 K:BB, 120 ERA+

Accolades: 7 All-Star appearances, 1 MVP, 1 Cy Young award, 3 World Series rings, 1 World Series MVP, Baseball Hall of Fame

Rollie Fingers may be the most decorated relief pitcher in baseball history, and that list includes Mariano Rivera. Fingers won a league MVP, a Cy Young award, played an integral part in baseball’s only non-New York Yankees three-peat ever, and even won World Series MVP once. And interestingly enough, he’s probably more known for his handlebar mustache than what he did on the field.

Fingers helped revolutionize the closer position, setting a trend later followed by Rivera and John Smoltz in becoming a failed starter-turned-closer. He held the career record in saves when he retired (341). Fingers wasn’t just a one-inning closer either; he holds the all-time record with 135 multi-inning saves. 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.

Fingers’ career ERA+ of 120 is lower than you’d expect (24^th among 30 closers with at least 300+ saves). But keep in mind that he wasn’t used in nearly as much of a specialized role as modern closers are. It’s much easier to pitch one scoreless inning than to face the full lineup once or even twice. Arguably Fingers’ most impressive statistic is his percentage of career saves that were clean saves – Fingers is at 15 percent, the lowest of any Hall of Fame closer. That means he entered the game in jams, and usually got out of those jams.

 

3. Trevor Hoffman, 1993-2010

Stats: 601 saves, 2.87 ERA, 1.058 WHIP, 3.69 K:BB, 141 ERA+

Accolades: 7 All-Star appearances, Baseball Hall of Fame

Being a relief pitcher often means you take an unconventional route. Mariano Rivera was a failed starter. Dennis Eckersley was a starter-turned-reliever. But Trevor Hoffman may have the most unique path, going from a failed minor league shortstop to one of the all-time great closers.

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. When he retired, no one had surpassed his 601 saves; now, only Mariano Rivera has done so. Hoffman never won a Cy Young but finished second twice. Most impressively, he did all this without possessing a strong fastball, instead relying on one of the best changeups ever.

Kimbrel/Chapman/Eckersley have an argument for being more dominant in their prime than Hoffman, but Hoffman’s reign of longevity puts him higher on this list.

 

2. Goose Gossage, 1972-1994

Stats: 310 saves, 3.01 ERA, 1.232 WHIP, 2.05 K:BB, 126 ERA+

Accolades: 9 All-Star appearances, 1 World Series ring, Baseball Hall of Fame

Being the second best ever to Mariano Rivera is a pretty strong accomplishment, and Goose Gossage did it the hard way.

It’s commonplace in today’s game for a manager to turn to the bullpen as early as the sixth inning. There are seventh inning guys, lefty specialists, setup men, long relievers, and traditional closers. In Gossage’s day, he did all of that. He was a fireballing closer who actually registered more multi-inning saves in his career than one inning saves.

Gossage’s 1975 season is still the greatest in baseball history by a relief pitcher in terms of WAR (8.2); he had a 1.84 ERA, a league-leading 26 saves, and an absurd 141.2 innings in 62 relief appearances. 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.

The knock on Gossage is his high blown save total – his 112 are the most in baseball history. Then again, you typically don’t get to 112 blown saves without being a great closer. Cy Young is the game’s career leader in losses. Reggie Jackson struck out the most times. Brett Favre threw the most interceptions and the late Kobe Bryant missed the most shots. All are in or will be in their respective sport’s Hall of Fame. If you put Gossage in a traditional one inning relief pitcher role, those blown saves assuredly go way down.

 

1. Mariano Rivera, 1995-2013

Stats: 652 saves, 2.21 ERA, 1.000 WHIP, 4.10 K:BB, 205 ERA+

Accolades: 9 All-Star appearances, 1 World Series ring, Baseball Hall of Fame

There’s no debate on who the greatest relief pitcher is of all-time. Literally, it’s very difficult to make an argument for any other pitcher. 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.

Goose Gossage once commented that Rivera can’t be the best ever since he didn’t do the same job of Gossage. It’s a valid point, but also probably worth mentioning that Rivera dominated the closers of his era much more than Gossage dominated the closers of his era. 

Rivera was literally dominant for close to two decades in a row. He is first all-time in saves (652) and ERA+ (205). His 1.000 WHIP is the lowest among qualified pitchers in the live ball era. He had a 1.80 ERA after the age of 38. He racked up 126 saves in his 40s. 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.

And that’s just the regular season.

Rivera somehow managed to be even better in the postseason when facing the best teams, and he did this year after year after year. He had a 0.70 career ERA in the playoffs. It was 0.32 in the ALDS, 0.92 in the ALCS, and 0.99 in the World Series. He allowed just two home runs to 527 batters in the playoffs. He threw 33 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings in October ball.

He wasn’t perfect – think of the Luis Gonzalez walkoff single in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. Or the Dave Roberts steal in Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS. But even Michael Jordan missed game-winning shots. Tom Brady lost three Super Bowls. And Muhammad Ali lost five fights.

Rivera allowed zero runs in 22 of his 32 postseason series. He was as automatic as you’ll ever find for a closer. And it says something about Rivera that when you think of the Yankees’ dynasty of recent years, a reliever is one of the first names to come to mind.

 

 

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