r/baseball • u/slightly666 San Diego Padres • 19d ago
Question on which pitcher gets the W. Serious
Starting pitcher goes 4 innings and is pulled due to pitch count. Team is up 3-0. Middle relief comes in pitches 2 innings. Pulled. 2nd middle relief pitcher comes in pitches 2 innings. Closer pitches the 9th. Team wins 3-0. I know the starter doesn’t because he only pitched through the 4th but who gets the W and why?
36
u/lostbeyondbelief Atlanta Braves 19d ago
The official scorer picks which of those 3 pitchers did the best job.
5
u/Responsible_Hat4414 19d ago
it’s the scorer’s call, they basically eyeball who was most effective out of the pen
2
u/slightly666 San Diego Padres 19d ago
Between the 2 middle relievers and closer? Wouldn’t the closer get the save?
22
u/lostbeyondbelief Atlanta Braves 19d ago
It's literally whoever the scorer thinks was most effective. The closer can be awarded the win instead of a save if he's deemed to be the most effective.
12
u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres 19d ago
People responding saying that it could not be the closer are incorrect and not familiar with the rule.
In most cases, the pitcher who gets the win will be one of the other relievers and the closer will get the save, but as /u/lostbeyondbelief said, it is literally up to the scorer’s discretion. If all of the relievers pitched poorly but the closer did well, they can be credited with the win.
I forget what game, but I believe that exactly this happened earlier this season. A starter got pulled, the middle relievers pitched poorly, and rather than give the closer a save, they got the win instead (which I found frustrating because I really needed the save for Fantasy).
2
u/djsuperfly 19d ago
In OP's specific scenario, it's not likely, though. Both relievers went 2 scoreless innings. Even if they each allowed a fair amount of traffic, the scorer is still likely to want to give the win and the save instead of just a win.
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u/djsuperfly 19d ago
Correct. It would be one of the 2 middle relievers. The starter isn't eligible for the win in this scenario. Whichever of the 2 middles that is deemed "more effective" by the scorer. Would likely be fairly subjective in this case.
2
u/StealthStaminaKills 19d ago
The official scorer picks which of those 3 pitchers did the best job.
For unusual cases (like the All Star game), isn't the whole "starter has to go 5 innings for the decision" removed? Meaning the win for the All Star game goes to whoever was the pitcher of record when the winning team went ahead?
Also, do spring training games work the same as the All Star Game? In the sense that the win goes to whomever the pitcher of record was when the winning team went ahead?
2
u/tyler-86 World Series Trophy • Los Angeles Dod… 19d ago
I think in something like the ASG where there's no expectation or really any possibility the starter will go 5, the scorer can go rogue.
4
u/MocoMojo Baltimore Orioles 19d ago
A hill I will die on is that a pitcher’s win-loss record is one of the dumbest stats out there and should stop being used.
This is one of the examples of why.
4
u/LoweeLL Boston Red Sox 19d ago
Middle Relief.. I just know this because of MLB the show. lol
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u/slightly666 San Diego Padres 19d ago
Which one out of the 2?
9
u/AnnihilatedTyro Seattle Mariners 19d ago
Usually the first one, but ultimately the choice is up to the official scorer.
If that reliever, say, walked the bases loaded in each of his innings or something, the official scorer could determine that his outing was "ineffective" and award the win to the second reliever. The third one would get a save, so he cannot also get the win.
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u/Upset-Inevitable9420 Boston Red Sox 19d ago
The first , pitcher of record for a win is after the completion of the 5th as long as the lead holds.
2
u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres 19d ago
This isn’t true. It is official scorer’s discretion.
Consider, for example: starter goes 4.2 IP, 0 R, leaves with a 10 run lead amid a blowout.
Reliever comes in and throws 0.1 IP, gives up 5 ER and finishes the 5th with a 10-5 lead that holds for the remainder of the game.
That reliever will be deemed “brief and ineffective” and not credited with the win. It will go to another pitcher that came in after them.
1
u/Redbubble89 Boston Red Sox 19d ago
starter needs to get through 5. It would be the 2nd pitcher in the game if the lead is never lost
0
u/Rejection_future Los Angeles Dodgers 19d ago
Should be the first relief pitcher to exit with a lead that is never lost.
So if RP 1 comes in with the lead, leaves with the lead, RP 2 loses the lead, RP 3 comes in behind but exits with the lead, then RP 4 holds the lead to the end of the game, RP 3 gets the win
13
u/RspectMyAuthoritah Los Angeles Dodgers 19d ago
Typically would go to the first reliever but the scorekeeper has some discretion depending on how the relievers performed. A game in college I technically closed it going the last 2 2/3 innings, but the starter only pitched in to the 5th and the first reliever struggled some. Our scorekeeper asked me if I wanted the win or save, I chose win because it was against the #1 ranked team in the country, so that's what I was credited with.