Seattle Mariners and the death of the traditional closer
Chris Phillips
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Does Utilizing Multiple Closers Work?
Do MLB teams still need one guy to lock down the saves in order for the team to have success? The simple answer is no. A more in-depth look reveals more data to back up this claim. Over the last three years, there are 11 teams who had more than one reliever earn double-digit saves.
Of those 11 teams, only four of them missed the playoffs. The 2019 Arizona Diamondbacks and 2021 Seattle Mariners are the only winning teams to miss the playoffs while the other two teams finished below .500.
Last year’s Seattle Mariners were the only team to save 50 games on the year and NOT make the playoffs. The other three, St. Louis, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Francisco went on to make the playoffs. Interestingly, the Dodgers were the only team, of this bunch, who had one relief pitcher get double-digit saves. Consequently, they were the team who had the most relief pitchers get a save though.
Something that is coming out of all of this is the rise of the “fireman”. The fireman is the term I use to describe the relief pitcher who can come into any high-leverage situation and get out of it unscathed. For example, the opponent has a runner or two in scoring position with one out or less and his team up only one or two runs. Not every reliever can come through in the clutch.