Editing Relief pitcher (section)

== History ==

===Pre-bullpen===
In the early days of [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB), substituting a player was not allowed except for sickness or injury. An ineffective pitcher would switch positions with another player on the field. The first relief appearance in the major leagues was in 1876 with [[Boston Red Caps]] outfielder [[Jack Manning (baseball)|Jack Manning]] switching positions with pitcher [[Joe Borden]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Fireman: The Evolution of the Closer in Baseball|first=Fran|last=Zimniuch|page=[https://archive.org/details/firemanevolution0000zimn/page/6 6]|publisher=[[Triumph Books]]|location=Chicago|year=2010|isbn=978-1-60078-312-8|ref=zimniuch|url=https://archive.org/details/firemanevolution0000zimn/page/6}}</ref> In this early era, relief pitchers changing from a position role to the pitcher's box in this way were often called "change" pitchers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.americanheritage.com/content/baseball%E2%80%99s-greatest-pitcher|title=Baseball's Greatest Pitcher|first=Andrew|last=Kull|work=[[American Heritage (magazine)|American Heritage]]|date=April 1985|access-date=October 20, 2016}}</ref> This strategy of switching players between the mound and the outfield is still occasionally employed in modern baseball, sometimes in long extra inning games where a team is running out of players.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/cut4/three-cubs-pitchers-play-left-field-in-cubs-15-inning-win-over-the-reds-c1868355|title=It's a Maddon world: Three pitchers played left field for the Cubs, and it worked|first=Adrian|last=Garro|work=[[MLB.com]]|date=June 28, 2016|access-date=October 21, 2016}}</ref>  In 1889, the first bullpen appearance occurred after rules were changed to allow a player substitution at any time.<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], p. 7.</ref> Early relief pitchers were normally starting pitchers pitching one or two innings in between starts.<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], pp. 10, 15.</ref> In 1903, during the second game of the inaugural [[1903 World Series|World Series]], [[Pittsburgh Pirates|Pittsburgh]]'s [[Bucky Veil]] became the first relief pitcher in World Series history.

===Early modern relievers/"firemen"===
[[File:Hoyt Wilhelm 1959.png|thumb|upright|[[Hoyt Wilhelm]] won 124 games in relief, the major league record, and was the first pitcher to reach 200 [[save (baseball)|saves]] and the first to appear in 1,000 games.]]
[[Firpo Marberry]] is credited with being the first prominent reliever.  From 1923 to 1935, he pitched in 551 [[games pitched|games]], 364 of which were in relief. Baseball historian [[Bill James]] wrote that Marberry was "a modern reliever—a hard throwing young kid who worked strictly in relief, worked often, and was used to nail down victories".<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], pp. 21–22.</ref> Another reliever, [[Johnny Murphy]], became known as "Fireman" for his effectiveness when inserted into difficult situations ("put out fires") in relief.<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], pp. 22–23.</ref>

Nonetheless, the full-time reliever who was entrusted with important situations was more the exception than the rule at this point.  Often, a team's [[ace (baseball)|ace]] starting pitcher was used in between his starts to "close" games.  Later research would reveal that [[Lefty Grove]] would have been in his league's top three in [[save (baseball)|saves]] in four different seasons, had that stat been invented at the time.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/g/grovele01.shtml|title=Lefty Grove Stats - Baseball-Reference.com|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref>

Gradually after World War II, full-time relievers became more acceptable and standard.<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], p. 33.</ref> The relievers were usually pitchers that were not good enough to be starters.<ref name=zimniuch_p34>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], p. 34.</ref> Relievers in the 1950s started to develop oddball pitches to distinguish them from starters.<ref name=zimniuch_p34/> For example, [[Hoyt Wilhelm]] threw a [[knuckleball]], and [[Elroy Face]] threw a [[forkball]].<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], pp. 38–45.</ref>

In 1969, the [[pitcher's mound]] was lowered and umpires were encouraged to call fewer [[strike (baseball)|strikes]] to give [[batter (baseball)|batters]] an advantage. Relief specialists were used to counter the increase in offense.<ref name=zimniuch_p80/>

===Closer era===
[[File:Red_Sox_Bullpen_Cart_(7224550882).jpg|right|thumb|The [[bullpen car]] used by the [[Boston Red Sox]] to cart relievers into games]]
Relievers became more respected in the 1970s, and their pay increased due to [[free agency]]. All teams began having a [[closer (baseball)|closer]].<ref name=zimniuch_p80>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], p. 80.</ref> The 1980s were the first time in MLB that the number of saves outnumbered [[complete game]]s. In 1995, there were nearly four saves for every complete game.<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], p. 129.</ref> It is unclear whether the specialization and reliance on relief pitchers led to [[pitch count]]s and fewer complete games, or whether pitch counts led to greater use of relievers.<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], p. 78.</ref>

As closers were reduced to one-inning specialists, [[setup pitcher|setup men]] and [[middle reliever]]s became more prominent.<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], pp. 168–9.</ref>

In past decades, the relief pitcher was merely an ex-starter who came into a game upon the injury, ineffectiveness, or fatigue of the starting pitcher. The [[bullpen]] was for old starters who had lost the ability to throw effectively. Many of these pitchers would be able to flourish in this diminished role. Those such as [[Dennis Eckersley]], as with many others, actually prolonged their tapering careers and often sparked them to new life. The added rest to their arms as well as the lessened exposure of their abilities became an advantage many would learn to capitalize on. Because these pitchers only faced some batters once a season, the opposing side would have greater difficulty preparing to face relief pitchers.

Recently, being a relief pitcher has become more of a career, rather than a reduced position. Many of today's top prospects are considered mainly for their relief pitching skills.<ref>[[#zimniuch|Zimniuch 2010]], p. 161.</ref> In the quest for a managerial edge, managers as time goes on have carried more pitchers in the bullpen, and used them in more specialized situations.  Acknowledgment of the [[platoon system|platoon]] edge has prompted managers to ensure that opposing lefty hitters face as many lefty pitchers as possible, and that the same occur with respect to righty hitters and pitchers.  [[Tony La Russa]] was particularly well known for making frequent pitching changes on this basis.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/tom_verducci/10/31/tony.la.russa.retires/index.html |title=Tony la Russa changed the game and now he leaves it on top - Tom Verducci - SI.com |access-date=October 25, 2012 |archive-date=October 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006065856/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/tom_verducci/10/31/tony.la.russa.retires/index.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

When [[Mike Marshall (pitcher)|Mike Marshall]] set the all-time record with 106 games pitched in 1974, he threw 208.1 [[inning]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/marshmi01.shtml|title=Mike Marshall Stats - Baseball-Reference.com|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref>  Currently, although some relievers still do appear in a large number of games per season, the workload for each individual pitcher has been much reduced.  Since 2008, [[Pedro Feliciano]] has three of the top four seasons in games pitched, with 92, 88 and 86.  However, Feliciano only averaged 58 innings pitched during those seasons.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/RZ1bT|title=For single seasons, From 2008 to 2012, sorted by greatest Games Played: Results - Baseball-Reference.com|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> The last pitcher to throw 100 or more innings in a season without starting a game was [[Scott Proctor]] in 2006.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/hlV6i|title=For single seasons, From 2006 to 2012, (requiring IP≥100 and At least 100% games in relief), sorted by greatest Games Played: Results - Baseball-Reference.com|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref>

From the mid-2010s onward, MLB teams have given relievers an increasing number of innings at the expense of starters, due to the baseball game moving towards higher variance, and a flexible bullpen does give the manager more options of defending against high risk offensive strategies. In response, some teams have allocated funds and made trades to create a "super bullpen", nonetheless this is no guarantee of success since the performance of relief pitchers has been shown to fluctuate much more wildly than starting pitchers. For instance the 2016 and 2017 [[Cleveland Indians]] had the strongest bullpen in the league, however their bullpen in 2018 struggled and the Indians won their division thanks to the strength of their starting rotation.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/23781702/the-cleveland-indians-bullpen-proves-baseball-gods-cruel |title = Cleveland's bullpen proves the baseball gods are cruel|date = July 11, 2018}}</ref> Similarly the 2019 [[Washington Nationals]] won the [[2019 World Series]] in spite of their relief pitching staff having the worst ERA (5.66) that season.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/mlb/washington-nationals-world-series-three-lessons-not-draw/ |title = Three lessons not to draw from Nationals' remarkable 2019 World Series win - Sportsnet.ca}}</ref>