25 Best Starting Pitchers of All Time
As with every position on the diamond, determining the top 25 starting pitchers in MLB history is a difficult task. Much of that difficulty comes with comparing pitchers between eras. For decades, pitcher wins was a heavily relied upon stat. Today it is openly mocked in some circles as useless and irrelevant.
Of course, baseball itself has evolved throughout its history, and the role of pitcher is much different than it was a century ago. In its earliest days, a win was almost always directly tied to a pitcher’s performance. Starters pitched roughly half of their team’s games. However, over time, the need to give pitchers more rest between starts became obvious. Relievers also made a greater impact, and eventually pitching staffs grew to the current models, including a five-man starting rotation, long relievers, left-handed specialists, setup men and closers.
In addition to the changes in pitching, coming up with the top 25 of all-time was difficult simply due to the overwhelming number of pitchers. In the end, the goal became to identify the 25 best starting pitchers based on both their overall career performance, as well as the dominance displayed during their primes.
Despite their impressive standing on the all-time WAR leaderboard, some old-timers that narrowly missed the cut include Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown, Ed Walsh, John Clarkson, Tim Keefe, and Pud Galvin. Others that couldn’t crack the top 25 include fellow Hall of Famers Dizzy Dean, Robin Roberts, Fergie Jenkins and Tom Glavine, as well as two guys currently on the ballot for induction, Mike Mussina and Curt Schilling, who each make strong cases using modern metrics. Additionally, some current stars that could potentially crack this list are Felix Hernandez, Justin Verlander and Madison Bumgarner – but they’re not there yet.
— Rankings by Nicholas Ian Allen, who is part of the Athlon Contributor Network. Allen's work can also be found on SaturdayDownSouth.com, SaturdayBlitz.com and FanSided.com. Follow him on Twitter @NicholasIAllen.
(Photo courtesy of National Baseball Hall of Fame Web site, baseballhall.org)
25. Dazzy Vance
Pittsburgh Pirates, 1915; New York Yankees, 1915, ’18; Brooklyn Dodgers, 1922-32, ’35; St. Louis Cardinals, 1933-34; Cincinnati Reds, 1934
1934 World Series Champion (Cardinals)
1924 NL MVP
Key stats: 197-140, 3.24 ERA, 217 CG, 2,045 K, 62.5 WAR
Baseball Hall of Fame, Class of 1955
Most of the pitchers on our list had established the foundation of a future Hall of Fame career by the time they hit the age of 30. Vance was an exception. He debuted with the Pittsburgh Pirates as a 24-year-old in 1915, but aside from a total of 11 major league appearances through 1918, wandered through the minor leagues until he finally caught the attention of the Brooklyn Dodgers. In 1922, at the age of 31, Vance pitched his first full big league season. He led the National League with 134 strikeouts, which was the first of seven straight strikeout titles. Vance won the pitching Triple Crown in 1924 with 28 wins, a 2.16 ERA and 262 Ks, which helped him earn the NL MVP Award. The right-hander would go on to win a total of three ERA titles, he led the NL in FIP seven times, and he still ranks among the top 50 all-time in WAR for pitchers (62.5).
(Photo courtesy of National Baseball Hall of Fame Web site, baseballhall.org)
24. Bob Feller
Cleveland Indians, 1936-41, ’45-56
8-time All-Star
1948 World Series Champion (Indians)
Key stats: 266-162, 3.25 ERA, 279 CG, 2,581 K, 63.6 WAR
Baseball Hall of Fame, Class of 1962
Feller debuted with the Cleveland Indians in 1936 at the age of 17. By 1938 he was an All-Star, and began a string of four consecutive strikeout titles, which also included the ‘40 ERA crown and three seasons of 24 wins or more. Feller also finished in the top three of the AL MVP voting three times. Then, World War II hit, and Feller lost three full seasons to military service. After the war, Feller returned as one of baseball’s top strikeout pitchers and tossed two of his three career no-hitters, but we can only guess at the numbers he would have produced if his career hadn’t been interrupted.
23. Clayton Kershaw
Los Angeles Dodgers, 2008-Present
6-time All-Star
2011 Gold Glove recipient
2011, ’13, ’14 NL Cy Young Award
2014 NL MVP
*Key stats (through 2016 season): 126-60, 2.37 ERA, 1,918 K, 1.007 WHIP, 54.4 WAR
Kershaw is only entering his age 29 season, and his 54.4 career WAR doesn’t yet stack up with some of the legends on this list, but there’s little debate that he is one of the greatest pitchers of his generation. Furthermore, he appears destined to make a run for the title of best left-hander in history.
Through nine big league seasons, Kershaw has won an MVP Award, three Cy Young trophies, four ERA titles, three strikeout crowns and a Gold Glove. Kershaw also won the 2011 pitching Triple Crown in the National League, and is the active leader with a 2.37 ERA, 15 career shutouts, a 1.007 WHIP and 6.622 hits allowed per nine innings. He currently ranks second on the all-time list with a 159 career adjusted ERA+.
22. Carl Hubbell
New York Giants, 1928-43
9-time All-Star
1933, ’36 NL MVP
1933 World Series Champion (Giants)
Key stats: 253-154, 2.98 ERA, 260 CG, 1,677 K, 67.5 WAR
Baseball Hall of Fame, Class of 1947
Famous for his screwball, Hubbell was one of the best left-handed pitchers of all-time. Though he didn’t become an All-Star until he was 30, Hubbard blossomed into a dominant force in 1933, when he posted a 23-12 record while leading the majors with a 1.66 ERA and 10 shutouts, earning him the National League MVP Award. Hubbell also led all of baseball in ERA+ (193), FIP (2.53) and WHIP (0.982) to help the Giants win the World Series. In the Fall Classic, he was 2-0 in two starts and struck out 15 hitters in 20 innings. Hubbell also won MVP honors in 1936 after leading the majors with a 2.31 ERA – his third ERA title.
21. Jim Palmer
Baltimore Orioles, 1965-84
6-time All-Star
1973, ’75, ’76 Cy Young Award
1966, ’70, ’83 World Series Champion (Orioles)
Key stats: 268-152, 2.86 ERA, 211 CG, 53 SHO, 2,212 K, 69.4 WAR
Baseball Hall of Fame, Class of 1990
In terms of raw stats like WAR and strikeouts, Palmer doesn’t stack up with the greatest pitchers of all-time. However, Palmer was a consistent – often dominant – pitcher that won three Cy Young Awards and helped lead the Baltimore Orioles to three World Series titles. In fact, Palmer and Sandy Koufax are the only two players in history to win three Cy Youngs and three world championships. A two-time ERA champion, Palmer won 20 or more games eight times. He also pitched 211 complete games, including 53 shutouts.
20. Kid Nichols
Boston Beaneaters, 1890-1901; St. Louis Cardinals, 1904-05; Philadelphia Phillies, 1905-06
Key stats: 361-208, 2.96 ERA, 532 CG, 48 SHO, 1,881 K, 116.4 WAR
Baseball Hall of Fame, Class of 1949
A perfect example of the daunting workload expected of pitchers in the 19th and early 20th Centuries, Nichols started 562 career games across 15 big league seasons, and surpassed 300 innings in 12 of them (and 400 in five). Nichols never led the National League in ERA, but posted an NL-best 2.98 FIP as a rookie, and repeated the feat with a 2.71 FIP the following season. He also won 30 or more games seven times, and led the league in wins on three occasions. Nichols earned his 300th win at the age of 30, making him the youngest in baseball history to earn search an honor, and also giving him a record that is unlikely to ever be broken.
19. Eddie Plank
Philadelphia Athletics, 1901-14; St. Louis Terriers (Federal League), 1915; St. Louis Browns, 1916-17
1911, ’13 World Series Champion (A’s)
Key stats: 326-194, 2.35 ERA, 410 CG, 69 SHO, 2,246 K, 89.9 WAR
Baseball Hall of Fame, Class of 1946
Plank was one of the early pitching stars of the American League. The ace of the Philadelphia Athletics for more than a decade, Plank helped guide the A’s to five AL pennants and two world championships during his career. The first left-hander to win both 200 and 300 games, Plank also posted an ERA of 3.31 or better in each of his 17 major league seasons, including 14 with a mark of 2.38 or lower. Remarkably, Plank never won an ERA title and never led the league in strikeouts. But, he still ranks fifth on the all-time leaderboard (and first among lefties) with 69 career shutouts.
(Photo courtesy of National Baseball Hall of Fame Web site, baseballhall.org)
18. Phil Niekro
Milwaukee Braves, 1964-65; Atlanta Braves, 1966-83, ’87; New York Yankees, 1984-85; Cleveland Indians, 1986-87; Toronto Blue Jays, 1987
5-time All-Star
5-time Gold Glove recipient
Key stats: 318-274, 3.35 ERA, 245 CG, 45 SHO, 3,342 K, 96.6 WAR
Baseball Hall of Fame, Class of 1997