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Ten-Second Column

By Bill James
June 9, 2008

            I had an idea for a new statistic:  GTC.   Got to Closer.   The stat had a half-life of about twenty seconds.  

            My idea was that, while Complete Games are virtually extinct, we could count something close to complete games by counting how often the starting pitcher got the ball to the closer.   Have to define what’s a “closer”, but. .. we can deal with that.

            But then I checked how many of these there actually were.   Full schedule of games on Sunday (June 8), no complete games.   You know how many starting pitchers got the ball to the closer?

            Zero.

            Oh, well. . .

 

 

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COMMENTS (11 Comments, most recent shown first)

Smueller
Which means that while the complete game (CG) has become a far more rare statistic, perhaps the got to closer (GTC) would be a more comparable statistic in todays league to what the CG used to be. If for the purpose of GTC the closer was defined in that particular scenario as the player who then recorded a save, GTC would be more narrow defined. A pitcher would record a GTC when they started the game and pitched all innings except those which the pitcher who recorded the save did (and 3+ innings saves would not be counted). That would solve the problem of defining the position of closer in a more general context. Some sort of stat to show both CG and GTC would also be interesting, since only the 'closing' pitcher was used to get the final outs, that would be a good indication of how often a pitcher was able to start a game and the 'normal' bullpen (the 'closing' pitcher, however you choose to define that, I am not including in 'normal' bullpen) was able to rest.
5:38 PM Aug 3rd
 
RedSoxRule1918
a bit unrelated but i like the QUALITY START stat, maybe a GREAT START or something which would involve the pitcher going deeper
12:37 AM Jul 1st
 
doncoffin
Well, in a world in which starting pitchers seem to be averaging about 6 innings per start (as this year), the number of "got-to-closer" situations is almost bound to be vanishingly small. Maybe 10 (15?) years ago this tool mght have told us something. The game sometimes changes faster than our perception of it.
8:06 PM Jun 23rd
 
bgorden
I think the game of baseball is being destroyed by over-reliance on pitch counts. Is there any evidence at all that there are fewer pitching injuries today because pitchers are removed from the game after 90-100 pitches even when they are pitching well?
1:54 AM Jun 14th
 
mission27
Andy Pettite did this a day or two ago. It happens.
10:51 PM Jun 13th
 
nettles9
Is all this nursing the pitchers and the 100 pitch limit working? Is it keeping pitchers healthy and productive? Do pitchers throw more pitches per inning than they used to, thereby causing them to pitch fewer innings? Are batters still getting too many advantages at the plate? Is the inside pitch still allowed or do the batters own the inside part of the plate? Do they own the outside part, too? Is it all worth it, actually doing something, or is it a case of everyone doing it because everyone else is doing it, and no one wants to stray from the herd? I haven't done any studies or looked at any research because I know (and hope) that people will reply to my questions and tell me how it is. My gut feeling? Overkill. There are probably plenty of pitchers who could complete games but the managers don't let them do it. You don't really need 13-men pitching staffs. Then again, maybe you do if down on the farm the pitchers are being bred to go only to 100 pitches or five-to-six innings. Raise the mound, give back the inside strike, change the bats.... for those who are addicted the lefty-righty square dance that goes on with pitching right now, I think, in quite a few cases, it's all a waste of time and resources and roster space.

Now, everyone, tell me where I am wrong, what I am missing, why I should embrace this way of pitching life. I stand ready for your onslaught. Thank you.
9:34 PM Jun 11th
 
wovenstrap
It seems to me that the stat "got to optimal bullpen scenario" = "got to the 7th-inning guy the team would want" is almost a distinction without a difference. Why not just count, "starts in which your team got credited with a hold or a save"? That would almost do it. There's a variation in here that would correlate to, the team was ahead and primed to win because you outpitched the competition, but would subtract all of the lost vultured losses.
8:54 PM Jun 11th
 
DiamondDog
I believe the arbitrary statistic "Quality Start" was meant to be the CG of the modern era. If we get too many stats, we border on rendering them all less meaningful like ribbons for 10th place.
3:59 PM Jun 10th
 
Richie
If you think 'the closer automatically comes in in a save situation', you'll also think 'the setup guy automatically comes in in a setup situation'. Only GTCs you'll see are when the setup guy's unavailable, or the GTCing team first takes the lead in the bottom-of-8th/top-of-9th. Can't see where keeping track of stuff like that serves any purpose.
12:08 PM Jun 10th
 
benhurwitz
Well, an even simpler stat would be "pitched 8+ innings in a start", or, if you prefer for some reason, "pitched 8+ innings in a start, and left with the lead". Sometimes the closer comes in in the 8th inning, but that's usually because the set-up guy let too many men get on base or score.
9:51 AM Jun 10th
 
shaneyfelt
My how things have changed.
4:37 AM Jun 10th
 
 
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