Fernando Rodney gained 1 first place vote when it came to the AL Cy Young this past week. Whether or not he deserved one or not, especially with him not being mentioned as a "finalist" in the first year of that adjustment, it cannot be denied how awesome of a season he had. He had (ERA wise) the best season a relief pitcher ever had. The great part of the story is how he was essentially washed up after a failed contract with the Los Angeles Angels which resulted in him losing the closing job in 2011 to Jordan Walden.
Of course, many compare his 2012 season to the 1990 season of Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley. Mainly because of the similarities and the fact that Eckersley had held the record for lowest ERA in a season (minimum of 50 IP). Since the ERAs were so close, could most of the other stats be so similar? Probably not, since they happened 22 years apart in non-exact relief eras. Or could they?
Rodney finished 2012 with a 2-2 record with a 0.60 ERA. Eckersley was 4-2, 0.61 in 1990. Rodney pitched in 76 games for the Rays, while Eckersley pitched in 63 games for the Athletics. Both pitchers finished with 48 saves, while Rodney had a 65-61 games finished advantage (less impressive since Rodney pitched in 13 more games). Rodney pitched in 74 2/3 innings while Eckersley pitched in 73 1/3. Rodney gave up 43 hits to Eckersley's 41. The biggest difference was walks, as Eckersley's 4 walks was the lowest ever considering the amount of innings he pitched. Rodney finished with a repsectable 15 for the season. The two had identical runs allowed (9), ER allowed (5) and HR allowed (2). Rodney had the edge in strikeouts 76-73 and batters faced 282-262. Because of the walk differential, Eckersley had the advantage in WHIP of 0.614- 0.777. Rodney had the higher ERA+ of 634 to his 603.
Crazy how similar the seasons were between the two though the position of closer has changed in the last 22 years. Closers pitched two innings a lot more often than they do now, as closers now seldomly pitch in the 8th inning at all. To be so close, not just in ERA, but to be even in saves, runs, ER and HR allowed is an amazing coincidence. Add the close races in IP, GF, hits allowed and Ks, it is obvious that Eckersley's 1990 season was nearly duplicated. And mark my words, this is a season that is unlikely to be approached again.
Crazy how similar the seasons were between the two though the position of closer has changed in the last 22 years. Closers pitched two innings a lot more often than they do now, as closers now seldomly pitch in the 8th inning at all. To be so close, not just in ERA, but to be even in saves, runs, ER and HR allowed is an amazing coincidence. Add the close races in IP, GF, hits allowed and Ks, it is obvious that Eckersley's 1990 season was nearly duplicated. And mark my words, this is a season that is unlikely to be approached again.
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