Over the last three-and-a-half years the top closers have posted an ERA of 2.51 when coming into the game in a save situation. These save situations represent about two-thirds of all their appearances. But what about the non-save situations?

The answer to the title question appears to be a clear-cut yes. This same group of closers had a respecitble 3.26 ERA in non-save situations, but that's three-quarters of a run higher than their ERA in save situations.

Here are the details:

Top Closers in Baseball
(Last 3 1/2 Years)

                 Appearances    ERA

Save Situations        2,426    2.51             
Non-Save Situations    1,126    3.26

Total                  3,552    2.75

Note: Top closers are defined as those with at least 30 saves in 2002, 2003, or 2004 plus pitchers with at least 13 saves in 2005, counting only their statistics in the years in which they qualify.