Who is the best pitcher of all time?

The Gnat · Joined: 23 Feb 2005 Posts: 34120 Location: Minneapolis

I am just curious as to whom people think this may be. I would have to say that I believe it is Walter Johnson. He is the all time leader in one run wins, one run losses, shutouts, and 1-0 games. He was a really dominant pitcher on a terrible offensive Washington Senators team.
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MNorona · Joined: 21 Feb 2005 Posts: 2324

nolan ryan
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2105 yards · Joined: 14 Feb 2005 Posts: 8415

Cy Young went 511-316 with a 2.63 ERA...I don't care what era it was in, 511 wins is the only baseball record set in stone for the rest of time.

BrettWolfe · Joined: 25 Apr 2005 Posts: 5485 Location: Cleveland, OH

Nolan Ryan. He dominated!!
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Lee121503 · Joined: 14 Mar 2005 Posts: 2639

Nolan Ryan didn't dominate by my definition of the word. He had a career .526 winning percentage, which is good, but not great. He lost almost 300 games (292) while only winning 324, that's not very dominating. Yes he had a lot of Ks, but the W-L record doesn't support the argument that he dominated.

Walter Johnson on the other hand had a .599 winning percentage and he also holds the record for most one run losses due to a bad team behind him. Imagine if he had had a decent team. He won 417 games while losing less then Ryan (279). Yes he played six years less, but he actually threw more innings. Johnson also had a career ERA of 2.17 as opposed to Ryan's 3.19.

The best pitcher ever though, is probably Cy Young. He had a career record of 511-316. The 511 wins won't ever have anyone come close to it. His career winning percentage is .618 and his career ERA is 2.63. It is a tough call between Cy and Walter, and without ever seeing them pitch I don't know for sure.

A special mention should be made to Roger Clemens. He has a career winning percentage of .667 with a record of 328-164. Pretty dang good. He also has a career ERA of 3.18 which is amazing consider the era he has played in. These numbers were coming into this year and at 41 he has a 1.40 ERA or something close to that. He is amazing and a pretty strong case can be made that we're currently watching the best pitcher ever.
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TheFridge85 · Joined: 22 May 2005 Posts: 421

Nolan Ryan.
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Big7BenMVP · Joined: 23 Nov 2004 Posts: 94160 Location: Camarillo, CA

It was Sandy Koufax. He was 165-87 for his career, but for anyone who saw him or tapes of him, he was the most dominant left-hander in MLB history. In 2324 career Innings Pitched, he struck out 2396 batters. He had a career 1.11 WHIP and a career 2.76 ERA. He threw 137 Complete Games along with 40 Shutouts. He actually averaged 9.28 Ks Per 9. He also had three years where he won 20+ games.

1963 = 25-5, 1.88 ERA, 20 Complete Games, 11 Shutouts, 216 Ks

1965 = 26-8, 2.04 ERA, 27 Complete Games, 8 Shutouts, 382 Ks

1966 = 27-9, 1.73 ERA, 27 Complete Games, 5 Shutouts, 317 Ks

The amazing thing, is that as he got later into his career, he was better. After he was 25, his record was 129-47 with a 2.24 ERA. That was from when he was 25 to when he was 30. He retired after he was 30. Just think of how great he really could have been.

My vote goes to Sandy Koufax.
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2105 yards · Joined: 14 Feb 2005 Posts: 8415

ronniebrown · Joined: 24 Jan 2005 Posts: 7332 Location: H-Town

you guys have forgotten the best Pitchere of all time satchel paige. The man was in his 40-50 while playing in the Majors had he been allowed to pitch inn his prime there would be no argument in this thread.

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Vikefan79 · Joined: 05 Apr 2005 Posts: 25122 Location: Atlanta

Yankees05 · Joined: 21 Mar 2005 Posts: 7119

I have to go with Roger Clemens. First of all, in a huge hitters' era, he has dominated year in and year out. His career ERA is 3.13, which is very elite in this half-century. He is the definition of a power pitcher, with a total of 4436 K's in his career, 2nd of all time to Nolan Ryan. K's are a little overrated, especially when Ryan had nearly half the walks as K's. Clemens also has a record 7 Cy Young awards, which means he was the best pitcher in his league for 7 seasons. He is also high on the all-time wins list, with a huge total of 335, and has a career OBA of .229. I know many disagree, but I feel he is the best of all-time.

NateDawg · Joined: 03 Apr 2005 Posts: 14769 Location: Hilliard

Bob Gibson...huge intimidator, probably the biggest intimadator in baseball history, including Randy Johnson. I would also consider Sandy Koufax a reputable nomination, but I really don't think Ryan is the best pitcher, he didn't have a good enough win percentage or ERA for me...although I think he was a great pitcher. He also has allowed the most homeruns of all time. Not saying that is how you determine how good a pitcher is, but I will also throw Clemens onto the list. His ERA lifetime is amazing. He has the strikeouts, he is a big game pitcher, and he has won a lot of games, including World Series titles.
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jeffrizzle51 · Joined: 01 Mar 2005 Posts: 5860

Canada · Joined: 12 Oct 2004 Posts: 780 Location: burpin and fartin

I'll vote for Cy Young.

511 wins.

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