Dennis Eckersley (2004)


Date of Birth: 10/3/1954
Birthplace: Oakland, California

Dennis Eckersley played both football and baseball in high school. As a pitcher, he had 29 wins in his high school career.

Cleveland Indians

Eckersley was drafted in 1972 by the Cleveland Indians. He played in the minor leagues from 1972 through 1974. In 1975, his first season in the major leagues, Eckersley won the Sporting News Rookie Pitcher of the Year award. That season he pitched in 34 games and he had a 13-7 record with 152 strikeouts to 90 walks and a 2.60 ERA. Two seasons later, he pitched a no-hitter on May 30, 1977.

Boston Red Sox

Less than a year after pitching a no-hitter, Eckersley was traded by the Indians to the Boston Red Sox. In 1978, his first season with Boston, he had 20 wins and 8 losses, 162 strikeouts to 71 walks, and a 2.99 ERA in 268.0 innings in 35 games. It was his best season with the Red Sox.

Eckersley had another good season with the Red Sox in 1979, again finishing with a 2.99 ERA. He had 17 wins and 10 losses and 150 strikeouts to 59 walks in 247.0 innings in 33 games.

Eckersley struggled in 1980 and 1981, finishing both seasons with a 4.27 ERA. He had 12 wins and 14 losses and 121 strikeouts to 44 walks in 198.0 innings in 30 games in 1980. In the strike shortened 1981 season, he had 9 wins and 8 losses and 79 strikeouts to 35 walks in 154.0 innings in 23 games.

Eckersley pitched better in 1982, finishing the season with 13 wins and 13 losses, 127 strikeouts to 43 walks, and a 3.73 ERA in 224.1 innings in 33 games. He struggled again in 1983, finishing with a 5.61 ERA. He had just 9 wins to 13 losses that year. In 176.1 innings in 28 games, he struck out 77 batters and walked 39.

Chicago Cubs

The Red Sox traded Eckersley to the Chicago Cubs in May, 1984. He finished the season with 14 wins and 12 losses, 114 strikeouts to 49 walks, and a 3.60 ERA in 9 games with Boston and 24 games with the Cubs.

Although he pitched in only 25 games in 1985, Eckersley had good numbers, finishing the season with a 3.08 ERA. He had 11 wins and 7 losses and 117 strikeouts to just 19 walks in 169.1 innings.

Eckersley struggled with alcoholism that affected his pitching in 1986. In 33 games, he had a 6-11 record with 137 strikeouts to 43 walks and an ERA of 4.57. A year later, the Cubs traded Eckersley to the Oakland Athletics. That trade ended his career as a starting pitcher and started a new one for him as a top relief pitcher.

Oakland Athletics

Eckersley became a closer when he moved to the Athletics in 1987 and he stayed in that position and with the team through 1996. During his time with the Athletics, Eckersley led the American League in saves twice.

Eckersley had a good first year with the Athletics, finishing the 1987 season, with 6 wins and 8 losses, 16 saves, 113 strikeouts to 17 walks, and a 3.03 ERA in 115.2 innings in 54 games. He followed that year with one of his best seasons.

In 1988, Eckersley led major league baseball in saves with 45. He struck out 70 batters and walked just 11. He finished the season with a 2.35 ERA in 72.2 innings in 60 games. He was named the AL Rolaids Relief Man for his achievements during the regular season. In the postseason, he continued to excel, winning the ALCS MVP award. That postseason he pitched 7.0 innings in 6 games and he gave up 3 hits and 2 runs and he had 4 saves and a 2.57 ERA. He struck out 7 batters and walked 3.

Eckersley had another strong season in 1989, finishing with 4 wins and no losses, 33 saves, 55 strikeouts to only 3 walks, and a 1.56 ERA in 57.2 innings in 51 games. The next year, he had a career low ERA of 0.61. He finished the 1990 season with 4 wins and 2 losses, 48 saves, and 73 strikeouts to 4 walks in 73.1 innings in 63 games.

Eckersley had his best season in 1992, winning the American League MVP and Cy Young awards, the AL Rolaids Relief Man award, the AL Sporting News Pitcher of the Year award, and the Players Choice Outstanding Player of the Year award. That season he played in a career high 69 games and he had a 7-1 record with a career high 51 saves, 93 strikeouts to 11 walks, and an ERA of 1.91 in 76.0 innings. He led all major league pitchers in saves that year.

Eckersley struggled from 1993 through 1995, finishing each season with an ERA over 4.00. He had 36 saves and a 4.16 ERA in 67.0 innings in 64 games in 1993. His strikeout to walks ratio was still high, with 80 strikeouts to just 13 walks. In 1994, he had just 19 saves and a 4.26 ERA in 44.1 innings in 45 games, and in 1995, his ERA went up to 4.83 with 29 saves in 50.1 innings in 52 games.

Final Years as a Player

In 1996, Eckersley moved with manager Tony LaRussa to the St. Louis Cardinals. After the 1997 season, he signed again with the Boston Red Sox and finished his major league career after one final season (1998) in Boston.

Awards and MLB Records

  • Sporting News Rookie Pitcher of the Year
  • ALCS MPV
  • AL Rolaids Relief Man award (2 times)
  • AL MVP
  • AL Cy Young award
  • Sporting News Pitcher of the Year
  • Players Choice Outstanding Player of the Year
  • Led MLB in saves (2 times)

Career Statistics

Statistics for Eckersley as a relief pitcher in 12 seasons (1987-1998) in the major leagues include:

  • 9 seasons with over 20 saves, with a high of 51 in 1992
  • 5 seasons with an ERA under 3.00, with a low of 0.61 in 1990

Career pitching statistics for Eckersley include:

  • 1,071 games played
  • 3,285.2 innings pitched
  • 197-171 win-loss record
  • 390 saves
  • 2,401 strikeouts to 738 walks
  • 3.50 ERA

Postseason statistics for Eckersley include:

  • 7 postseasons
  • 28 games played
  • 33.0 innings pitched
  • 1-3 win-loss record
  • 15 saves
  • 22 strikeouts to 3 walks
  • 3.27 ERA

Post Playing Career

After retiring as a major league pitcher, Eckersley worked as an analyst for the Boston Red Sox and NESN and for post-season play on TBS.

Eckersley was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2004 on the first ballot with 83.2% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Dennis Eckersley
ESPN - Dennis Eckersley
Baseball Reference - Dennis Eckersley

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