Greatest LHPs in MLB history: 5. Warren Spahn
- 2,583 strikeouts
- 3.09 career ERA
- 100.1 career WAR
This is where it gets fun. Really, the top six on this list are in a league of their own and can be rearranged by anyone depending on what they value in the rankings. While it is fair to say that Grove is not the best southpaw of all-time, anyone in the top-five can lay stake to that claim. Including Warren Spahn.
Spahn’s career was remarkable and traversed across three different decades. Spahn made his MLB debut in 1942 and pitched all the way until 1965. What is even more remarkable when you look at his numbers is the fact that he really did not start his big-league career until 25 because of World War II.
Spahn’s age 25 season in 1946 was his first full season and he pitched until he was 44 and for most of those seasons, he was one of the best pitchers in baseball.
Spahn led the league in ERA three times, led in complete games nine times (he has 382 in his career) and led in strikeouts four times. He has the ninth-most strikeouts on this list and the seventh-lowest ERA.
Most incredibly, Spahn has 17 all-star nods to his name (14 different seasons, as some years there were two all-star games played). That is the most in MLB history for a pitcher.
There is a reason why he is fifth, though. He only (and it feels weird saying only to this) won one Cy Young award and he does not rank in the top five in either strikeouts or ERA, which hurts his case as the southpaw GOAT.