Editing Relief pitcher (section)

===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/>