Pittsburgh Pirates: Five Best Relief Pitchers in Franchise History

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LOS ANGELES, CA – MAY 30: Closer Jason Grilli #39 of the Pittsburgh Pirates reacts afrer getting a strikeout for the final out and the save against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on May 30, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. The Pirates won 2-1. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images) /

Over the course of franchise history the Pittsburgh Pirates have had many deep, talented position groups. One of these groups is the bullpen.

In our last top five list, we looked at what is the deepest position in Pittsburgh Pirates history – left field. Arguably the second deepest position in franchise history is the bullpen, which is the group today’s top five list will discuss.

Although the Pittsburgh Pirates do not have a Mariano Rivera or Trevor Hoffman in their history, that does not mean they did not have some really impressive relief pitchers in their pen during their time as a franchise. Most of which have flown under the radar.

Some of the best teams in Pirate franchise history was powered by a strong bullpen. This includes some of the team’s recent postseason teams from 2013 – 2015. So, it goes without saying that a strong bullpen is vital to a baseball team.

Like with wRC+ and OPS+, there is era adjusted stats for pitchers like ERA+/-, and FIP-. I’ll also take into consideration time played. If a pitcher has more innings pitched with the Pittsburgh Pirates, then they’ll be weighed heavier than one with fewer innings pitched.

So, without further ado, let’s get into number five.

FORT MYERS, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 29: A general view during the spring training game between the Minnesota Twins and the Pittsburgh Pirates at Century Link Sports Complex on February 29, 2020 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

Ramon Hernandez

I consider lefty set-up man Ramon Hernandez one of the most underrated relief pitchers in Pittsburgh Pirates history. From 1971 up through his final season with the club, which ended part way through 1976, Hernandez served as an outstanding 8th inning man to another name we’ll talk about later.

Hernandez has a career 2.51 ERA, 2.53 FIP, and 1.18 WHIP in his 347 innings pitched with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Hernandez was outstanding at control. He walked just 2.87 batters per 9 innings, and had a 7.7% walk rate. But his greatest strength with the Pirates was limiting home runs.

With the Pirates, Ramon let 14 baseballs leave the ballpark, including a 64 inning run in 1975 where he let up none. His 0.36 HR/9 is the 4th best in Pirates history of relief pitchers (min. 150 IP).

Hernandez also pitched 8.1 innings of postseason play with the Pirates. In these 8.1 innings of work he allowed 3 earned runs on seven hits, a walk, a home run, and five strikeouts.

Overall, Hernandez had a 71 ERA- and 83 FIP-, showing he was an extremely reliable pitcher for the era. He also had a 139 ERA+ according to Baseball Reference.

Dave Giusti

Who was Hernandez setting up in the 1970s? well it was the pitcher in our number four spot – Dave Giusti.

Giusti was the Pittsburgh Pirates closer from 1970 to 1976. The right-hander was originally a starter with the Houston Astros and St. Louis Cardinals where, overall, he did fairly well. But it would be as the 9th inning man for the Pirates in the 70s where he would thrive.

From ‘70-’76, Dave Giusti had a 2.98 ERA, 3.23 FIP and 1.30 WHIP across 604 innings as a relief pitcher. He did have three starts sprinkled in those seven seasons, but these were the innings he worked solely as a relief pitcher.

Giusti didn’t have big strikeout, or walk numbers. He had a 16.6% strikeout rate and 9.2% walk rate. However, he was great at keeping the ball in the yard. Giusti allowed a HR/9 of just 0.51. That’s the 12th lowest among all Pirates relief pitchers with at least 150 innings pitched.

The closer wasn’t just good because of the era. He had an 83 ERA-, a 123 ERA+, and 92 FIP-. Those are all above the league averages of the time. Overall, Giusti had 133 saves with the Pittsburgh Pirates, the 4th most in franchise history.

Roy Face

Roy Face was the original closer in Pittsburgh Pirates history. He was the second Pirate ever to record double digits in saves, that being in 1957. Face is the leader in innings pitched out of the bullpen in Bucco history, and is one of just two relief pitchers with 1,000 innings pitched out of the bullpen. We’ll get into the other one later on.

Face owned a career 3.15 ERA, 3.21 FIP and 1.22 WHIP across 1,195.2 innings pitched with the Pirates. Overall, his strikeout numbers do not look overly impressive. With the Pirates, Face had a 5.92 K/9 rate and 16% strikeout rate. However, during his 15 year run with the Pirates, he only dipped below the league average in a season three times. He was also consistently above the league average in walk rate. In his career, Face has a 2.49 BB/9 and 6.4% walk rate. His walk rate is the sixth lowest in Pirate history as well.

In 1960, he pitched 114.2 innings and posted 2.90 ERA while recording 24 saves. That postseason, he pitched 10.1 innings while helping the Pirates capture a World Series Championship.

Throughout his career, Face is considered an above average relief pitcher. From 1956 to 1967, Face had an 83 ERA-, 90 FIP- and 110 ERA+.

Mark Melancon

If Mark Melancon had 400 innings pitched with the Pittsburgh Pirates, he probably would have been number one of this list. Melancon was easily a top three relief pitcher in Pirate history, and for a good reason. Melancon spent three and a half years in a Pirate uniform, and was beyond outstanding in each of the seasons.

From 2013 up until the 2016 trade deadline, Melancon had a 1.80 ERA, 2.27 FIP and 0.93 WHIP. He is the only Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher to have a WHIP below 1.00, and ERA below 2,00. Since the stat started being recorded, Melancon has the lowest SIERA for a reliever in franchise history at 2.39.

In terms of peripherals, you ca not get much better than Melancon. He might not have been a huge strikeout pitcher during his Pirates tenure, but he still posted a solid 8.3 K/9 and 23.3% strikeout rate. But what’s even more impressive is his 1.43 BB/9 and 4.2% walk rate. Both of which are the best in Pirate history, yet again.

During his time in Pittsburgh, Melancon allowed just nine home runs in 260 innings. That was good for a 0.31 HR/9 which, you guessed it, was the lowest in franchise history. ERA- placed him at 48 while FIP- put him at 60. However, ERA+ puts him in the best light. With a 210 ERA+, Melancon was 110% better than the average relief pitcher during his time in Pittsburgh.

Kent Tekulve

Kent “Teke” Tekulve spent 12 years in a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform. During these 12 seasons, the unorthodox right-hander just might have solidifed himself as the best Pirates’ relief pitcher of all-time taking into account innings pitched. Teke pitched 100+ innings a season regularly. He reached that plateau five different times in his career, including 1978 when he pitched 135 and a third total innings. His ability to consistently log innings in mass earned him his other nickname – The Rubberband Man.

In comparison to 2019, the average number of innings pitched in 30 starts was 160. With a grand total of 1436.2 innings in his career out of the pen, he has the most innings pitched for any pitcher that never started a single game.

Kent Tekulve was not only durable, but extremely effective. He posted a 2.68 ERA, 3.25 FIP and 1.25 WHIP across 1017.1 innings pitched. Tekulve may not have been a big strikeout machine, only getting 552 batters on strike-three, but he was fairly good at preventing walks. Teke’s walk percentage with the Pirates was only 8.7%.

However, Tekulve’s strongest asset was limiting home runs. Throughout his Pirates’ tenure, the side-armer allowed just 41 home runs. He ties himself with the aforementioned Ramon Hernandez for the third lowest HR/9 rate in Pirates history among players with at least 200 innings out of the pen.

Tekulve wasn’t just great because of the era he played in. That’s reflected in his era adjusted stats. Teke had a 139 ERA+, 72 ERA- and 89 FIP-. To this day, Teke remains an active member of the Pirate community and a fan favorite.

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