@jacksauer2

3mo

The Most Useless Stat in Baseball: The Save

Picture these two scenarios: Scenario A: You're up 5-2 heading into the ninth. Your closer comes in to lock down the opposing offense. Immediately he gives up 2 home runs. He finally settles in and gets 2 outs, but then the jitters strike again. he walks 3 batters. Bases loaded. The next batter comes up, and rips a ball into the center field gap. It looks like its game over, but the center fielder lays out for a superhuman dive to save the game, and you win. Scenario B: You come into the 9th up 5-4. Your regular closer struggles, and allows the opposing team to load the bases. The manager decides that's enough, and brings in a new reliever. He immediately gets all 3 guys out, somehow holding on to win the game. Now who pitched better? Its Player B, by a mile. Yet those two games count exactly the same in their statsheet. They both get a save. Yet MLB fans continue to worship the save as the one stat that marks a reliever's worth. Take John Franco for example. He is 7th all time on the saves leaderboard. But if you really dive deep into it, he's no more than an above average relief pitcher that got lucky on good teams throughout his career. He had a career ERA of 2.89 and a WAR of 23 in 21 years. Sure, he had the longevity, but theres at least 100 all time relievers I'd rather have as my closer than him. The only reason he reached such high save numbers is because he stuck around in the league 5 years longer than he should've just to try and climb the leaderboard.

MLB

Replies:

Max Max Muncy Muncy

Please take a moment to look at the picture up above. Yes, that is true. Though it seems like a glitch in the matrix it’s not. These two individuals share the exact same name, same profession, some position, drafted by the same team, mostly hit towards the bottom of the order, and don’t even know each other. Completely unrelated too! I’d love to see these two on the same team one day.

@Landon

4.1

Mookie Betts Number 300!

Mookie Betts hits his 300th home run against the Minnesota Twins on June 24, 2026. Mookie has been struggling this year but looks to bounce back and get back to the form we all know he can play at. Mookie is the 167th MLB player to have 300 or more home runs in his career.

@ChuckieHussy

500 / 500 Club, Membership of One

On June 23rd, 2003 In a dramatic extra inning game at Pac Bell Park (now Oracle Park) against the division-rival Los Angeles Dodgers, Bonds delivered one of the signature moments of his career. In the bottom of the 11th inning of a 2-2 tie, he reached base and then swiped second against prime-time closer Éric Gagné (one of the most dominant relievers of that era). That theft was his 500th career stolen base. He famously pulled the base out of the ground, hoisted it onto his shoulder, and carried it off the field as the crowd erupted. The Giants went on to win 3-2 in walk-off fashion, with Bonds scoring the winning run later in the inning. This moment capped an incredible stretch for Bonds. In 2003, despite playing only 130 games, he hit .341 with 45 HR, slugged .749, and posted a .529 on-base percentage — walking 148 times. en.wikipedia.org Love him or hate him (and the era's PED controversies fuel plenty of debate), the 500-500 club remains a club of one more than two decades later. It perfectly symbolizes the rare blend of power, speed, plate discipline, and longevity that defined Bonds at his peak. No one else has come close. This moment capped an incredible stretch for Bonds. In 2003, despite playing only 130 games, he hit .341 with 45 HR, slugged .749, and posted a .529 on-base percentage — walking 148 times. Love him or hate him (and the era's PED controversies fuel plenty of debate), the 500-500 club remains a club of one more than two decades later. It perfectly symbolizes the rare blend of power, speed, plate discipline, and longevity that defined Bonds at his peak. No one else has come close.