MLB History: The Top Closers of All Time
On Monday, Francisco Rodriguez joined an elite club when he notched his 400th career save. Let’s look at the other five players in MLB history to reach that milestone.
With his one inning save on May 24, Francisco Rodriguez notched the 400th save of his career. With this save, Rodriguez joins the likes of Mariano Rivera, Trevor Hoffman, Lee Smith, John Franco, and Billy Wagner as the only six men in MLB history to accumulate 400 saves in a Major League career.
Rodriguez began his career in 2002 as a 20-year-old fill-in with the Los Angeles Angels. In his inaugural season, he would only get 5.2 innings of work. It would not be until his age 22 season, that he would establish himself as a major bullpen presence with the Angels. In that season, K-Rod was named to his first All Star Game. His All Star appearance was a result of his ERA of 1.82 with 123 strike outs in just 84 innings pitched. While, he was not the closer that he has become today, he gathered 12 saves in that season and established his place in a major league bull pen.
The next season saw the beginning of the legacy that is K-Rod. In the 2005 season, Rodriguez accumulated a league leading 45 saves along with 91 strikeouts and an ERA just over 2.00. Rodriguez would continue his march into the baseball history books by collecting a league leading 47 saves the next season, and then again in 2008 with 62.
Following the 2011 season, in which he was traded from the New York Mets to the Milwaukie Brewers, Rodriguez entered into a slump and lost his ability to shut down batters in late game situations like he had before. It wasn’t until the 2014 season that he would again hit his stride and finish a league leading, 66 games with 44 saves.
This season, Rodriguez is leading the league thus far with 13 saves.
The club that Rodriguez has joined with his 400 save is a clubs filled with the greatest closers in the history of the game. Let’s take some time and examine their careers and understand what they really while they were playing the game of baseball.
Next: The final 42