In baseball, a save is credited to a pitcher who finishes a game for the winning team under certain prescribed circumstances. Most commonly a pitcher earns a save by entering in the ninth inning of a game in which his team is winning by three or fewer runs and finishing the game by pitching one inning without losing the lead. The number of saves or percentage of save opportunities successfully converted are oft-cited statistics of relief pitchers, particularly those in the closer role. The save statistic was created by journalist Jerome Holtzman in 1959 to "measure the effectiveness of relief pitchers" and was adopted as an official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic in 1969. The save has been retroactively tabulated for pitchers before that date. Mariano Rivera is MLB's all-time leader in regular-season saves with 652, while Francisco Rodríguez earned the most saves in a single season with 62 in 2008.
In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher has been removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather delays or pinch hitter substitutions. Relief pitchers are further divided informally into various roles, such as closers, setup men, middle relief pitchers, left/right-handed specialists, and long relievers. Whereas starting pitchers usually throw so many pitches in a single game that they must rest several days before pitching in another, relief pitchers are expected to be more flexible and typically pitch in more games with a shorter time period between pitching appearances but with fewer innings pitched per appearance. A team's staff of relievers is normally referred to metonymically as a team's bullpen, which refers to the area where the relievers sit during games, and where they warm-up prior to entering the game.
In baseball, a setup man is a relief pitcher who regularly pitches before the closer. They commonly pitch the eighth inning, with the closer pitching the ninth.
Richard Michael "Goose" Gossage is an American former baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1972 and 1994. He pitched for nine different teams, spending his best years with the New York Yankees and San Diego Padres.
Matthew Olson Guerrier is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs.
Robert Scot Shields is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played his entire baseball career with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Major League Baseball (MLB). He was the last member of the Anaheim Angels' 2002 World Series Championship team remaining on the team's roster when he announced his retirement in 2011.
Octavio Eduardo Dotel Diaz is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. Dotel played for 13 major league teams, the second most teams played for by any player in the history of Major League Baseball (MLB), setting the mark when he pitched for the Detroit Tigers on April 7, 2012, breaking a record previously held by Mike Morgan, Matt Stairs, and Ron Villone. Edwin Jackson broke this record in 2019. Dotel's longest tenure with any one team was the five seasons he spent with the Houston Astros.
Carlos Agustín Mármol is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Miami Marlins. Carlos owns Recta 49, a successful restaurant/car wash in the Dominican Republic.
In Major League Baseball (MLB), the 300 save club is the group of pitchers who have recorded 300 or more regular-season saves in their careers. Most commonly a relief pitcher earns a save by being the final pitcher of a game in which his team is winning by three or fewer runs and pitching at least one inning without losing the lead. The final pitcher of a game can earn a save by getting at least one batter out to end the game with the winning run on base, at bat, or on deck, or by pitching the last three innings without relinquishing the lead, regardless of score. The statistic was created by Jerome Holtzman in 1959 to "measure the effectiveness of relief pitchers" and was adopted as an official statistic by MLB in 1969. The save has been retroactively measured for past pitchers where applicable. Hoyt Wilhelm retired in 1972 and recorded just 31 saves from 1969 onwards, for example, but holds 228 total career saves.
Joel Peralta Gutiérrez is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Kansas City Royals, Colorado Rockies, Washington Nationals, Tampa Bay Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Seattle Mariners and Chicago Cubs.
In baseball, a closing pitcher, more frequently referred to as a closer, is a relief pitcher who specializes in getting the final outs in a close game when his team is leading. The role is often assigned to a team's best reliever. Before the 1990s, pitchers in similar roles were referred to as a fireman, short reliever, and stopper. A small number of closers have won the Cy Young Award. Eight closers have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame: Dennis Eckersley, Rollie Fingers, Goose Gossage, Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, Lee Smith, Bruce Sutter and Hoyt Wilhelm.
David Alan Robertson, nicknamed "D-Rob", is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, and Miami Marlins.
Cody Edward Allen is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians from 2012 to 2018 and the Los Angeles Angels in 2019.
Thomas Ryan Pressly is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has also played in MLB for the Minnesota Twins.
Héctor Neris is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros. He was signed as a free agent by the Phillies in 2010, and made his MLB debut with them in 2014.
Edwin Orlando Díaz Laboy is a Puerto Rican professional baseball pitcher for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Seattle Mariners.
Wandy Luis Peralta Dominguez is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, and New York Yankees. Peralta signed with the Reds as an amateur free agent in 2010 and made his MLB debut in 2016.
Devin Terran Williams is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2019 and was named the National League's rookie of the year and relief pitcher of the year in 2020. He was an MLB All-Star in 2022 and 2023.
Camilo Doval is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He signed with the Giants as a free agent in 2015, and made his MLB debut with them in 2021. His fastball has reached 104.5 miles per hour (168.2 km/h).
