Who is the best MLB pitcher over the last 35 years?

There has always been a discussion around the best pitcher that Major League Baseball has ever seen. However, this would be hard to compare due to totally different eras of the sport. In this article, we will be looking back to the last 35 or so years to determine who the best MLB pitcher has been.

The MLB pitchers that will be mentioned in this article are from 1988-present and only those who are qualified will be considered. We will say 1,000 innings or more would qualify.

MLB pitching leaders since 1988 by various statistics

Earned run average (ERA)

1. Clayton Kershaw – 2.48 ERA (2577.0 IP)
2. Jacob deGrom – 2.52 ERA (1326.0 IP)
3. Jose Rijo – 2.82 ERA (1379.2 IP)
4. Pedro Martinez – 2.95 ERA (2720.0 IP)
5. Chris Sale – 3.06 ERA (1582.2 IP)
6. Greg Maddux – 3.06 ERA (4821.1 IP)
7. Max Scherzer – 3.12 ERA (2663.0 IP)

These are hard to judge because of the difference in innings pitched, but you get a solid idea of which pitchers limit runs, nonetheless. With that being said, let’s dive deeper into this.

Strikeouts (K/9)

1. Chris Sale – 11.10 K/9 (1582.2 IP)
2. Jacob deGrom – 10.91 K/9 (1326.0 IP)
3. Yu Darvish – 10.81 K/9 (1488.0 IP)
4. Max Scherzer – 10.73 K/9 (2663.0 IP)
5. Randy Johnson – 10.57 K/9 (4103.0 IP)
6. Stephen Strasburg – 10.55 K/9 (1470.0 IP)
7. Gerrit Cole 10.53 K/9 (1650.1 IP)

While these pitchers generated lots of swings and misses, there are much more that goes into a pitcher than strikeouts. This does give you an idea of dominance, however.

Limiting the walks: Which pitcher had/has the most control (BB/9)

1. Bret Saberhagen – 1.60 BB/9 (1749.0 IP)
2. Brad Radke – 1.64 BB/9 (2448.0 IP)
3. Greg Maddux – 1.71 BB/9 (4821.2 IP)
4. Jon Lieber – 1.73 BB/9 (2086.2 IP)
5. David Wells – 1.79 BB/9 (3166.1 IP)
6. Curt Schilling – 1.85 BB/9 (3079.0 IP)
7. Roy Halladay – 1.88 BB/9 (2692.2 IP)