Future Hall of Fame Pitchers

By Brendon Rosenau
Love of Sports Correspondent

The recent rumblings of Curt Schilling’s retirement got me thinking. Is this guy a Hall of Famer?

I guess you could call me “Old School,” in the sense that I still hold the Hall in high regard and enjoy debating the merits of players.

I talked about the top positional players in the game the other day. Now it’s time to look at the pitchers around the league.

Below are guys who I think are locks and ones who should get strong consideration. I’ll also take a look at players who are rising stars (or already stars), but who still have a long way to go before Cooperstwon becomes a final destination.

Feel free to disagree or agree. Note that these players must be on current rosters and stats are as of Friday.

HALL OF FAME LOCKS (PITCHERS)

1. Mariano Rivera (New York Yankees)

Hands down, the best closer of all-time. Rivera’s now in his 14th year, and only two players have more saves than Mo’s 460-plus. His cut fastball might be one of the game’s most difficult pitches to hit and has been for more than a decade. If there was a stat for broken bats, Rivera would be on top.

Rivera’s led the league in saves three times and has saved more than 40 games on six occasions. His 690 finished games is sixth all-time.

Of course, Rivera’s legacy was born in his unparalleled production in the postseason. He’s made 76 playoffs appearances, converted 34 saves and has a 0.77 ERA, all of which are MLB records.

Other records he holds: 34 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings, 23 consecutive saves, nine World Series saves and he was the only pitcher to close out three World Series. He’s also the only reliever to be a World Series and an LCS MVP.

Rivera’s made eight All-Star teams and has finished in the Top 3 in Cy Young voting three times. In the age of one-inning closers, he also holds the record with 12 two-inning saves.

2. John Smoltz (Atlanta)

Smoltz, one of the fabled members of the dominant Braves staffs in the ‘90s, is the only pitcher in baseball history to win at least 200 games (210) and save 150 (154) in a career. Along with that unique distinction, he became the 16th pitcher to get 3,000 K’s and has a career ERA of 3.26.

Smoltz has spent the majority of his career as a starter, but was equally lights out in his three-and-a-half years as a closer. In his three full seasons as a fireman, he saved 55, 45 and 44 games. In 2002, when he saved 55 of them, he became just the second pitcher to win 20 games in a season and save 50 in another.

He won 24 games in ’96, the same year he won his only Cy Young award and has won at least 11 games 13 times in his career, having finished in the Top 10 in ERA seven times.

While the above warrants Smoltz serious consideration, his October numbers make him a lock. He has more playoff wins (15) and strikeouts (194) than any other pitcher in history. He’s started 27 playoff games and appeared in 13 others, going 15-4 with a 2.65 ERA and four saves. In 207 innings of work, he has 194 strikeouts. In eight World Series starts, he has a 2.47 ERA and a 2-2 record, putting him on the short list of present day October stalwarts.

3. Tom Glavine (Atlanta, New York Mets)

Glavine’s just one of four lefthanders to win 300 games and is tops among active southpaws. The 22-year veteran has spent his entire career in the N.L. East and has won 20 games five times, leading the league each time he’s done so.

From ‘91-’93, Glavine went 62-25, won a Cy Young and finished second and third on oher occasions. He made the All-Star Game all three years, earning the start the first two. In ’98, Glavine picked up his second Cy with a 20-6 record and recorded one of his six seasons with an ERA under 3.00

The old lefty’s made 10 All-Star teams, won four silver sluggers and was the MVP of the 1995 World Series. He’s finished in the Top 10 in wins and innings pitched a remarkable 11 times. Glavine’s won 14 October games and made 35 starts.

4. Pedro Martinez (LAD, Montreal, Boston, New York Mets)

At his best, Pedro could have been the greatest pitcher of all time. He has a career .694 winning percentage (211-93), which is better than all but two pitchers who ever played the game. His 1.034 WHIP is third-best all-time, and he has the second-best ERA among active pitchers (2.82).

Martinez was beyond dominant from 1997-02, as he dominated in his appearances in both the National and American League.

In that time, Martinez won three Cy Young awards, finished second twice and third once. The only year he was out of the running was an injury shortened 2001 where he was well on his way to earning another Cy before being before lost for the year.

In ‘97, Pedro was 17-8 with a 1.90 ERA, 13 complete games, four shutouts and 305 strikeouts. Had he not played for the lowly Expos that season, he would’ve won at least 20 games.

Two years later, he won his second Cy, this time with the Red Sox, going 23-4 with 313 K’s and a 2.07 ERA. He followed that up with another award winning year, putting up 18 wins, 284 K’s and a 0.737 WHIP. Those are incomparable numbers in this decade.

Martinez has led the league in ERA five times, twice finishing with an ERA under 2.00. Six times he’s had a WHIP under 1.00 and nine times he’s ended the year with 200 or more strikeouts. For his career, he’s third all-time in hits per nine innings (6.93) and strikeouts per inning (10.16). He also carries a 4.27 walk to strikeout ratio. Not bad for a man who couldn’t tip 180 pounds if he was submerged in water for an hour.

Pedro has a flair for the dramatic, too. In ’99, he was the All-Star Game MVP after striking out the first four batters of the game in front of a frenzied Fenway Park moments after baseball honored its All-Century Team.

In the playoffs that year, after injuring himself in the first game, he pitched six hitless innings in relief in the LDS-clinching win over Cleveland (the Sox had trailed the best-of-five series 2-0). Then, he struck out 12 Yankees in the ALCS against Roger Clemens.  In his only World Series start, Pedro pitched seven scoreless innings with six strikeouts and allowed only three hits.

5. Randy Johnson (Montreal, Seattle, Houston, Arizona, New York Yankees)

The Big Unit is one of the most physically imposing and intimidating pitchers to walk the diamond. Just ask John Kruk.

In 21 years, Johnson’s punched out over 4,600 hitters (second all-time and most as a lefthander) and won 288 games.

Johnson’s won five Cy Young Awards and four straight N.L. Cys from ‘99-02. His senior league dominance began in ’98 when he went 10-1 in 11 starts from the Astros, with a 1.28 ERA and 116 strikeouts. After going to the Diamondbacks, he went 17-9, 19-7, 21-6 and 24-5 in four seasons. His strikeout total was unreal as well: 364, 347, 372 and 334.

He also won the World Series MVP in 2001, going 3-0 and posting a 1.04 ERA with 19 K’s. Johnson threw a shutout in Game 2, threw seven innings in Game 6 and then the following night recorded the final four outs in an epic Game 7 to close the series out.

The strikeout machine has K’d 10.73 batters per nine innings, which ranks No. 1 all-time, and has six 300-strikeout seasons.

6. Greg Maddux (Chicago Cubs, Atlanta, LAD, San Diego)

Where do you start with Maddux? The guy’s in a league of his own. Never a power pitcher, he’s relied on unparalleled intelligence and control.

Look at the following facts:

-Has an MLB record 17 consecutive 15-win seasons; is the first pitcher to win four straight Cy Youngs, has an MLB record 17 Gold Gloves, 350 career wins, 3,322 strikeouts, 4,911 innings and 109 complete games.

-Dominance started in 1992 when he won his first Cy. For the next four years, he won 75 games and had an ERA of 1.98. Went 19-2 with a 1.63 ERA and a WHIP of .811 in 1995. It was the second straight year he had a sub-2.00 ERA.

-Has made eight All-Star teams and finished in the Top 10 in wins 18 times, in ERA 12 times, in walks per nine innings and innings pitched 17 times each, including leading the league from ‘91-‘95. The combination of longevity and production is staggering.

-Has 11 postseason wins and a 2.09 ERA in eight World Series starts.

7. Trevor Hoffman (Florida, San Diego)

Hoffman’s the most prolific closer in baseball history. He’s saved over 535 games and is still going strong. In his 16 seasons, he has nine 40 save seasons and has saved 30 games every year since 1995 except one (nine games in 2003). He holds almost every save record, including most consecutive seasons with 30 saves (12) and most 40 save seasons.

From 1998-01, Hoffman had a historic stretch where he saved 179 games and had an ERA of 2.39. In his career, he’s converted 89.5% of his save opportunities and has blown just 61 saves in 16 years. Incredible.

His high velocity and devastating changeup have led to other strong numbers. He has a 2.77 career ERA and 1.052 WHIP. Six times he’s finished the season with a WHIP below 1.00 and five times has had an ERA below 2.50.

Hoffman’s appeared in six All-Star Games and has finished second in the Cy Young voting twice, having made all but 28 of his appearances with the Padres. He’s finished over 750 games in his career, placing him third on the all-time list.

8. Curt Schilling (Baltimore, Houston, Philadelphia, Arizona, Boston)

Is there a better big game pitcher in this generation? The answer to the question may tip the scales in Schilling’s favor in his hopes for residence in Cooperstown. His regular season numbers are impressive, but certainly not extraordinary. It’s his body of work in the postseason that’ll gain him baseball immortality.

Schilling’s pitched in four World Series, won three of them, and was Co-MVP of the ‘01 Series and NLCS MVP in ‘93.

He’s 3-1 with a 2.06 ERA in seven World Series starts and 11-2 with a 2.23 ERA in 19 postseason starts. He’s also thrown four complete games, which all came in consecutive starts, starting with Game 5 of the ’93 World Series and ending in Game 1 of the ’01 World Series (a game he won 9-1).

In 133 1/3 innings of postseason work, he has 120 strikeouts and a WHIP of 0.97. He has the 10th-best winning percentage in postseason history (more innings and starts than anyone on that list) and is eighth all-time in postseason innings and strikeouts.

His detractors will point out his low win total and the fact he never won a Cy Young. His current record is 216-146 (.597), and he’s won 20 games three times and 10 games or more 10 times. He’s amassed 3,116 strikeouts (14th all-time) and has three seasons of 300-plus K’s. He’s blended a potent mix of power and control giving him a career walk to strikeout ratio of 4.38:1.

9. Mike Mussina (Baltimore, New York Yankees)

“The Moose” is another intriguing Cooperstown question mark. He just passed 260 wins in his career and has now won 10 games for 17 straight years. In a time where overall pitching numbers are down, he might be the generation’s last hurler to challenge 300 wins.

He’s compiled a .636 winning percentage (260-149) and is 21st on the all-time strikeout list, with 2,713 K’s.

Mussina’s never won a Cy Young or 20 games in his career, but he’s been extremely consistent. He’s won at least 15 games in a season 10 times, including back-to-back 19-win seasons in ‘95 and ‘96. He’s a five-time All-Star and has won six Gold Gloves.

Among active pitchers, Mussina’s fourth in wins, sixth in strikeouts and fourth in complete games.

10. Billy Wagner (Hou, Phi, NY)

Through 14 years, Wagner may be the most dominant closer you never hear of. He’s currently sixth on the all-time save list, with over 370, and will likely become just the fifth pitcher to notch 400. He’s struck out 1,052 hitters in just 804 innings of work. He’s never saved more than 44 games, but he’s been remarkably reliable. He has a career WHIP of 1.014 and has finished the year with a WHIP below 1.00 on seven different occasions. He’s converted over 85% of his save chances and has been the closer on five playoff teams.