Via Baseball Reference:
Mariano Rivera is 40 years old, still pitching extremely well, and is first in baseball history in ERA+. Among active pitchers, he’s ranked first in ERA, WHIP, H/9IP, K/BB, HR/9IP, WPA, and fielding percentage. (Go ahead and carefully re-read that last sentence.)
He’s an 11-time All-Star, finished in the top five for the Cy Young five times, and received MVP votes in nine different seasons.
He’s also the career leader in postseason ERA (despite having more IP than every other pitcher in the top 10) and has been a part of five World Series championship teams.
To me, it’s impossible to say with any authority whether or not Rivera is or isn’t the best pitcher ever. Though after reading that piece, it is hard to deny that he’s one of the elite pitchers of all time. Not just relievers, but starters as well.
So, what do you think, is Rivera the best pitcher of all time? Vote in our poll and let us know what you think in the comments section.
To help you decide, here are Mariano’s stats:
| Year | W | L | ERA | G | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | ERA+ | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 5 | 3 | 5.51 | 19 | 0 | 67.0 | 71 | 43 | 41 | 11 | 30 | 51 | 84 | 1.507 |
| 1996 | 8 | 3 | 2.09 | 61 | 5 | 107.2 | 73 | 25 | 25 | 1 | 34 | 130 | 240 | 0.994 |
| 1997 | 6 | 4 | 1.88 | 66 | 43 | 71.2 | 65 | 17 | 15 | 5 | 20 | 68 | 239 | 1.186 |
| 1998 | 3 | 0 | 1.91 | 54 | 36 | 61.1 | 48 | 13 | 13 | 3 | 17 | 36 | 233 | 1.060 |
| 1999 | 4 | 3 | 1.83 | 66 | 45 | 69.0 | 43 | 15 | 14 | 2 | 18 | 52 | 260 | 0.884 |
| 2000 | 7 | 4 | 2.85 | 66 | 36 | 75.2 | 58 | 26 | 24 | 4 | 25 | 58 | 170 | 1.097 |
| 2001 | 4 | 6 | 2.34 | 71 | 50 | 80.2 | 61 | 24 | 21 | 5 | 12 | 83 | 192 | 0.905 |
| 2002 | 1 | 4 | 2.74 | 45 | 28 | 46.0 | 35 | 16 | 14 | 3 | 11 | 41 | 163 | 1.000 |
| 2003 | 5 | 2 | 1.66 | 64 | 40 | 70.2 | 61 | 15 | 13 | 3 | 10 | 63 | 267 | 1.005 |
| 2004 | 4 | 2 | 1.94 | 74 | 53 | 78.2 | 65 | 17 | 17 | 3 | 20 | 66 | 232 | 1.081 |
| 2005 | 7 | 4 | 1.38 | 71 | 43 | 78.1 | 50 | 18 | 12 | 2 | 18 | 80 | 308 | 0.868 |
| 2006 | 5 | 5 | 1.80 | 63 | 34 | 75.0 | 61 | 16 | 15 | 3 | 11 | 55 | 252 | 0.960 |
| 2007 | 3 | 4 | 3.15 | 67 | 30 | 71.1 | 68 | 25 | 25 | 4 | 12 | 74 | 144 | 1.121 |
| 2008 | 6 | 5 | 1.40 | 64 | 39 | 70.2 | 41 | 11 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 77 | 319 | 0.665 |
| 2009 | 3 | 3 | 1.76 | 66 | 44 | 66.1 | 48 | 14 | 13 | 7 | 12 | 72 | 244 | 0.905 |
| 2010 | 3 | 2 | 1.06 | 44 | 24 | 42.1 | 23 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 36 | 379 | 0.709 |
| 16 Seasons | 74 | 54 | 2.21 | 961 | 550 | 1132.1 | 871 | 302 | 278 | 61 | 263 | 1042 | *206* | 1.001 |
| 162 Game Avg. | 5 | 4 | 2.21 | 67 | 39 | 79 | 61 | 21 | 19 | 4 | 18 | 73 | 206 | 1.001 |
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