Sport | Baseball |
---|---|
League | Major League Baseball |
Awarded for | Best relief pitcher in the American League and National League |
Sponsored by | The Hartford (2017–2020) |
Country | United States, Canada |
Presented by | Major League Baseball |
History | |
First award | 2017 |
Most wins | Edwin Díaz (8) |
Most recent |
|
Major League Baseball (MLB) honors its best relief pitchers with a Reliever of the Month Award for one pitcher in the American League (AL) and one in the National League (NL) during each month of the regular season. These awards have been issued since 2017. From 2005 to 2013, MLB honored a single relief pitcher across both leagues with the Delivery Man of the Month Award during each month of the regular season.
MLB previously introduced a Reliever of the Year Award in 2014, awarded to one reliever in the American League and one in the National League. [1] In 2017, MLB added a monthly award, also given to one reliever in each league, [2] for each month of the regular season. [3] The award was sponsored by The Hartford, a Connecticut-based investment and insurance company, from inception through the 2020 season. [2] [4]
The below table lists monthly winners; a number in parentheses indicates the instance of winning the award, for players who have previously won.
The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL). The award was introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young, who died in 1955. The award was originally given to the single best pitcher in the major leagues, but in 1967, after the retirement of Frick, the award was given to one pitcher in each league.
Sporting News established the Pitcher of the Year Award in 1944 to recognize the most outstanding pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB). It was given annually to one pitcher each in the American League and National League. In 2013, the Pitcher of the Year Award was split into the Starting Pitcher of the Year Award and Relief Pitcher of the Year Award, which are given annually to a starting pitcher and relief pitchers in each league, as judged by Sporting News baseball experts.
Major League Baseball (MLB) annually honors its best relief pitchers in the American League (AL) and National League (NL) with the Mariano Rivera AL Reliever of the Year Award and Trevor Hoffman NL Reliever of the Year Award, respectively. The awards are named after former relievers Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman, who played their entire careers in the respective leagues. First issued in 2014, the awards replaced the Delivery Man of the Year Award, which had been presented since 2005.
Sean Robert Doolittle is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Cincinnati Reds, Seattle Mariners and Washington Nationals. He won the 2019 World Series with the Nationals, earning a save in game one.
Mark David Melancon is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Houston Astros, Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Washington Nationals, San Francisco Giants, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, and Arizona Diamondbacks. Melancon was drafted by the New York Yankees in the ninth round of the 2006 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut in 2009. He led the National League in saves in 2015, and won the Trevor Hoffman Award that year. Melancon was an MLB All-Star in 2013, 2015, 2016, and 2021.
Below is a partial list of minor league baseball players in the Colorado Rockies system and rosters of their minor league affiliates:
Liam Johnson Hendriks is an Australian professional baseball closing pitcher for the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Minnesota Twins, Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics and Chicago White Sox. He has been an All-Star three times and was the American League's Reliever of the Year in 2020 and 2021. His most recent accomplishment is winning the AL MLB Comeback Player of the Year Award for the 2023 season.
Craig Michael Kimbrel is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Philadelphia Phillies. He is a nine-time All-Star, two-time Reliever of the Year, and a 2018 World Series champion.
Major League Baseball (MLB) annually honored its best relief pitcher with the Major League Baseball Delivery Man of the Year Award from 2005 through 2013. It was initially part of a sponsorship agreement between MLB and package delivery company DHL Express; DHL's sponsorship ran from 2005 to 2010. There was also a Delivery Man of the Month Award. From its inception in 2005 through 2008, the award was given to a single reliever who was selected online by fans from a group of 10 finalists chosen by an MLB panel. The panel took sole responsibility to select the annual winner starting in 2009.
Joshua Ronald Hader is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres. Hader is a five-time All-Star and three-time winner of the National League Reliever of the Year Award.
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.
Emmanuel Clase is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball (MLB). He signed with the San Diego Padres as an international free agent in 2015. He made his MLB debut in 2019 with the Texas Rangers.
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.
The 2021 Chicago White Sox season was the club's 122nd season in Chicago and 121st in the American League, and their first under returning manager Tony La Russa since 1986. The White Sox played their home games at Guaranteed Rate Field. On September 23, after a win against the Cleveland Indians, the White Sox clinched the American League Central for the first time since the 2008 season and became the first Major League team of the 2021 season to clinch their division. They finished the regular season with 93 wins, the third most in the American League and their most wins as a franchise since the 2005 season. By winning the American League Central, it secured the team their first back-to-back postseason appearance in franchise history after having clinched a wild card berth in the previous season. They lost to the Houston Astros in the 2021 American League Division Series.
The 2021 Houston Astros season was the 60th season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise in Houston, Texas, their 57th as the Astros, ninth in both the American League and American League West, and 22nd at Minute Maid Park.
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).
Major League Baseball (MLB) honored its best relief pitchers with a Delivery Man of the Month Award for one pitcher during each month of the regular season from 2005 through 2013. The awards were initially part of a sponsorship agreement between MLB and package delivery company DHL Express; DHL's sponsorship ran from 2005 to 2010. There was also a Delivery Man of the Year Award; all of the Delivery Man awards were discontinued after 2013. A new Reliever of the Month Award was first awarded in 2017.
Jacob Timothy Bird is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played college baseball for the UCLA Bruins, and led the Pac-12 Conference in earned run average in 2018. He was selected by the Rockies in the fifth round of the 2018 MLB draft and made his MLB debut in 2022.
The 2022 Chicago White Sox season was the club's 123rd season in Chicago, their 122nd in the American League and their 32nd at Guaranteed Rate Field.