Not as simple as 1-2-3
There has been a lot of discussions of late about the brilliant Mets starting pitching and concern about the Mets bullpen, particularly closer Frank Francisco who last night walked in a run before notching his 17th save in 20 tries as the Mets topped the Orioles, 4-3, to complete a three-game sweep.
Fans have still not gotten used to the anxiety produced each time Francisco takes the hill. In the 25 appearances this season in which Francisco has pitched at least one inning, he has retired the opposition in order just seven times.
Here are the leaders in the category of relievers who pitched at least one inning:
| Rk | Player | #Matching | SV | IP | H | BB | SO | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Francisco Rodriguez | 30 | Ind. Games | 0 | 30.0 | 33 | 8 | 28 | 1.37 |
| 2 | Grant Balfour | 30 | Ind. Games | 7 | 33.0 | 16 | 11 | 24 | 0.82 |
| 3 | Alfredo Aceves | 30 | Ind. Games | 17 | 34.2 | 25 | 9 | 39 | 0.98 |
| 4 | Kenley Jansen | 29 | Ind. Games | 11 | 30.1 | 15 | 10 | 48 | 0.82 |
| 5 | Tyler Clippard | 29 | Ind. Games | 8 | 29.0 | 15 | 14 | 36 | 1.00 |
| 6 | Tom Wilhelmsen | 28 | Ind. Games | 5 | 34.0 | 27 | 9 | 40 | 1.06 |
| 7 | Joe Nathan | 28 | Ind. Games | 14 | 28.0 | 23 | 2 | 34 | 0.89 |
| 8 | Brandon League | 28 | Ind. Games | 9 | 29.1 | 29 | 10 | 17 | 1.33 |
| 9 | David Hernandez | 28 | Ind. Games | 1 | 28.1 | 17 | 7 | 44 | 0.85 |
| 10 | Aroldis Chapman | 28 | Ind. Games | 8 | 33.1 | 12 | 10 | 58 | 0.66 |
| 11 | Joaquin Benoit | 28 | Ind. Games | 1 | 30.0 | 24 | 10 | 41 | 1.13 |
| 12 | Josh Roenicke | 27 | Ind. Games | 0 | 39.1 | 34 | 23 | 26 | 1.45 |
| 13 | Fernando Rodney | 27 | Ind. Games | 16 | 29.1 | 18 | 3 | 29 | 0.72 |
| 14 | Jason Motte | 27 | Ind. Games | 14 | 31.0 | 20 | 9 | 30 | 0.94 |
| 15 | Josh Lindblom | 27 | Ind. Games | 0 | 31.2 | 17 | 10 | 28 | 0.85 |
| 16 | Jonathan Broxton | 27 | Ind. Games | 18 | 28.0 | 27 | 8 | 21 | 1.25 |
Now, here are the leaders in the category of relievers who pitched at least one inning without allowing a baserunner.
Fernando Rodney is the only one of the leaders who has had at least 50% of his appearances go 1-2-3 :
| Rk | Player | #Matching | SV | IP | SO | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fernando Rodney | 14 | Ind. Games | 10 | 14.1 | 18 |
| 2 | Alfredo Aceves | 13 | Ind. Games | 9 | 13.1 | 15 |
| 3 | Chris Perez | 12 | Ind. Games | 8 | 12.0 | 14 |
| 4 | Craig Kimbrel | 12 | Ind. Games | 10 | 12.0 | 22 |
| 5 | Jim Johnson | 12 | Ind. Games | 8 | 12.0 | 7 |
| 6 | Kenley Jansen | 12 | Ind. Games | 6 | 13.0 | 16 |
| 7 | David Hernandez | 12 | Ind. Games | 0 | 12.0 | 23 |
| 8 | Aroldis Chapman | 12 | Ind. Games | 2 | 12.1 | 24 |
| 9 | Rafael Betancourt | 12 | Ind. Games | 5 | 12.0 | 13 |
| 10 | Joel Peralta | 11 | Ind. Games | 1 | 12.1 | 15 |
| 11 | Joe Nathan | 11 | Ind. Games | 8 | 11.0 | 15 |
| 12 | Edward Mujica | 11 | Ind. Games | 0 | 13.2 | 6 |
| 13 | Aaron Crow | 11 | Ind. Games | 1 | 11.2 | 12 |
| 14 | Jared Burton | 11 | Ind. Games | 0 | 12.0 | 16 |
| 15 | Jose Arredondo | 11 | Ind. Games | 0 | 12.0 | 15 |
