Relievers Tables Guide

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Table Name

Full Name

Explanation

Rank

Position Rank

Pitcher's rank by Win Shares Quotient (see below).

Name

Pitcher Name

Bolded name indicates membership in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

HOF

Hall of Fame

BBW indicates pitcher was elected by the Baseball Writers Association of America.

Vet indicates pitcher was elected by the Veterans Committee.

Other indicates pitcher was elected as a manager, executive or other role.

Ban indicates pitcher who should be in the Hall of Fame, but is excluded for cause

detrimental to baseball.

MVP

Most Valuable Player

Rank in league's MVP voting. Shaded area indicates award was not given that season.

Cy Young Award

Rank in league's Cy Young Award voting. Shaded area indicates award was not given that

season.

All-Star

All-Star game status for specified pitcher. "A" indicates starter. "a" indicates spot on

All-Star roster. "A-inj" and "a-inj" indicate All-Star selection, but withdrew due to

injury. "A-out" and "a-out" indicate All-Star selection, but withdrew for reasons other

than injury. "A-rep" and "a-rep" indicate replacement of All-Star player unable to play.

"A*" and "a*" indicate All-Star Game was not played that season due to World War II.

Shaded area indicates All-Star Game was not played that season.

Rookie

Rookie (of the Year)

R indicates rookie status. R-number indicates rank in league's Rookie of the Year voting.

Number only indicates rank in league's Rookie of the Year voting, the votes made in error

as the pitcher no longer had rookie status.

Team

Team(s) pitcher pitched for as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Stdg

Standing

Team standing(s) for team(s) pitched for. Bold indicates winner of final post-season

championship series (World Series since 1903). Italics indicates loser of final post-

season championship series. Both indicate tie of final post-season championship series.

Throws

Pitching side. R - Right, L - Left, U - Unknown.

Age

Pitcher's age

Pitcher's age as of June 30 for that season. Blank indicates unknown age.

Other Pos

Other Positions

All other positions pitcher qualified for in all leagues during specified season.

Relief Appearances

Games relieved in specified league during specified season. Minimum qualification for table

are based on a two step process. Relievers are tested first for qualification for the

closer table. If he qualifies as a closer, he is then disqualified for the middle reliever

table. Relievers not qualified as closers are then tested to qualify for the middle

reliever table.

Pitchers can qualify only as a closer or a middle reliever in specifed league during

specified season. Unlike all other positions, where players can qualify for multiple

positions, closers and middle relievers are considered as mutually exclusive. Note that

closers and middle relievers can qualify as starting pitchers and at any batting position.

Relievers can go back and forth from closers to middle relievers from year to year

depending on which position they qualify for in a given season.

The minimum qualifications for closers are based on save opportunities. The closer tables

begin in 1889, the first season closers qualified in sufficient numbers worth producing

tables for. As closers gained prominence over the years, the qualifying standards are

raised to meet a reasonable expectation of closer qualification.

The closer standards are:

1889-1905 2 saves 1947-1955 5 saves

1906-1926 3 saves 1956 7 saves

1927-1946 4 saves 1957-present 10 save opportunities (saves plus blown saves)

Note that blown saves data is available only from 1957 to the present.

The minimum qualifications for middle relievers are based on relief appearances. The middle

relievers tables begin in 1913, the first season middle relievers qualified in sufficient

numbers worth producing tables for. As middle relievers gained prominence over the years,

the qualifying standards are raised to meet a reasonable expectation of middle reliever

qualification.

The middle reliever standards are:

1913-1955 20 relief appearances

1956-1961 25 relief appearances

1962-1990 30 relief appearances

1991-present 40 relief appearances

Games Finished

Games Finished in specified league during specified season.

Wins

Wins earned as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Losses

Losses earned as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Svs

Saves

Saves earned in specified league during specified season.

B Svs

Blown Saves

Blown Saves earned in specified league during specified season.

Sv%

Save Percentage

Saves divided by saves plus blown saves.

Innings

Innings pitched as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Innings are pro-rated estimates for 1876-1953 and are actual figures for 1954 on.

Hits

Hits given up as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Hits are pro-rated estimates for 1876-1953 and are actual figures for 1954 on.

Home Runs

Home runs given up as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Home runs are pro-rated estimates for 1876-1953 and are actual figures for 1954 on.

Runs

Runs given up as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Runs are pro-rated estimates for 1876-1953 and are actual figures for 1954 on.

Earned Runs

Earned runs given up as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Earned runs are pro-rated estimates for 1876-1953 and are actual figures for 1954 on.

Strikeouts

Strikeouts made as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Strikeouts are pro-rated estimates for 1876-1953 and are actual figures for 1954 on.

SO/WH

Strikeouts/(Walks + Hits)

Strikeouts/(hits + walks) made as a reliever in specified league during specified

season. Ratio is based on pro-rated estimates for 1876-1953 and is based on actual figures

for 1954 on.

This ratio is a combination of two ratios, both measuring pitching effectiveness.

Strikeouts per inning measures strikeout effectiveness, a higher figure being more

effective. Walks plus hits per inning (WHIP) measures the ability to give up as few

baserunners as possible, a lower figure being more effective.

Combining these two ratios results in SO/WH, in which a higher figure measures a greater

ability to strike out batters while effectively keeping runners off base. While some

pitchers may strike out many batters per inning, they're not effective in keeping runners

off base. The SO/WH ratio measures the best of both abilities. The A.L. and N.L. SO/WH

leader lists spotlight many of the greatest pitchers in major league history.

ERA

Earned Run Average

Earned run average made as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

Earned run averages are based on pro-rated estimates for 1876-1953 and on actual figures

for 1954 on.

Win Shares

Win Shares earned as a reliever in specified league during specified season. Note that,

unlike the hitting positions, no Win Shares are allocated for hitting or fielding

performance as a reliever.

WS/G

Win Shares per Game

Win Shares earned as a reliever in specified league during specified season divided by

games pitched as a reliever in specified league during specified season.

WSQ

Win Shares Quotient

The final calculation used to rate pitchers, the reliever's Win Shares times the factor

of the square root of his Win Shares per game divided by the league average Win Shares

per game (see below). This quotient thus accounts for both total production (Win Shares)

and pro-rated production (Win Shares per game). The square root is used to modify the Win

Shares per game factor, ensuring that Win Shares carries the heavier weight in the

calculation.

League Average Age

Age per game as calculated by weighted average of pitcher's ages times games started

divided by games started.

League Average per 50

Average of reliever game statistics per 50 games pitched. Save percentage is calculated

Appearances

on the sum of all saves plus blown saves.

League Average per 75 Innings

Average of reliever pitching results per 75 innings. The SO/WH ratio and ERA are cal-

culated on the sum of all innings pitched.

League Avg WS/G

Average of Win Shares per game based on the sum of Win Shares.

Average WS/Team

Sum of Win Shares divided by number of teams in league for specified season. Note that due

to the various save opportunity requirements for closers and relief appearance requirements

for middle relievers, this figure does not represent all of the Win Shares earned for that

position, but rather the Win Shares earned by those pitchers who qualified for the table.

Sources:

All-Time Major League Handbook

Win Shares Digital Update

baseball-reference.com

ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia