Quote:
Originally Posted by frankbmd
Granted modern closers usually start the ninth inning with the bases empty.
But remember that inherited runners do not impact the ERA of the "closer" or whoever is on the mound when the inherited runner scores. For this reason, relief pitchers who are not really that good can have deceptively lowered ERAs.
Lee Smith had the saves, but in the eighties he was not strictly a ninth inning closer. Evaluation of his ERA vs the modern "closer" is problematic in my opinion.
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Franco's career nearly overlaps Smith's almost exactly and they pitched almost exactly the same amount of innings in the same role, but Franco's ERA is considerably lower at 2.89 vs 3.03 and Franco has a winning record compared to Smith's losing record. Almost no one considers Franco to be dominant though.