Dennis Eckersley

Hall of Fame pitcher known for his dominance as a closer and his pinpoint control.

Dennis Lee Eckersley (born October 3, 1954), nicknamed "Eck", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and color commentator. Between 1975 and 1998, he pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Oakland Athletics, and St. Louis Cardinals. Eckersley had success as a starter, but gained his greatest fame as a closer, becoming the first of two pitchers in major league history to have both a 20-win season and a 50-save season in a career. Eckersley was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2004 in his first year of eligibility. He previously worked with NESN as a part-time color commentator for Red Sox broadcasts, and has also worked for Turner Sports as a game analyst for their Sunday MLB Games and MLB postseason coverage on TBS. He retired from NESN in 2022.

Quick Facts

Position: Pitcher
Bats: Right
Born: 3 October 1954
Birthplace: Oakland, California, U.S.
Debutleague: MLB
Debutdate: April 12
Debutyear: 1975
Debutteam: Cleveland Indians

Lore & Background

Eckersley grew up in Fremont, California, rooting for both the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics. Two of his boyhood heroes were the Giants' Willie Mays and Juan Marichal, and he later adopted Marichal's high leg kick pitching delivery. He attended Washington High School in Fremont, playing quarterback for the football team until his senior year, when he gave up football to protect his throwing arm. He won 29 games as a pitcher at Washington, throwing a 90 mph fastball and a screwball. The Cleveland Indians selected him in the third round of the 1972 MLB draft. He made his major league debut on April 12, 1975. On May 30, 1977, he threw a no-hitter against the California Angels. He was traded to the Boston Red Sox in 1978, then to the Chicago Cubs in 1984. After struggling with alcoholism, he checked into a rehabilitation clinic in 1986. He was traded to the Oakland Athletics in 1987, where manager Tony La Russa moved him to the closer role. He won the American League MVP and Cy Young Award in 1992. He later played for the St. Louis Cardinals and returned to the Red Sox in 1998 before retiring.

Reader's Guide

Eckersley's unusual delivery utilized a high leg kick along with a long, pronounced sidearm throwing motion. He had pinpoint accuracy. As a starter, Eckersley threw four pitches, but as a reliever he narrowed his repertoire to two pitches: a sinker and a backdoor slider. Between August 7, 1989, and June 10, 1990, Eckersley appeared in 41 games without walking a single batter, setting a record which still stands and surpassing the previous mark set by Lew Burdette 23 years earlier. In his 1990 season, Eckersley became the first relief pitcher in baseball history to have more saves than baserunners allowed (48 saves, 41 hits, 4 walks, 0 hit by pitch). He had the same walks plus hits per inning pitched and ERA (rounded to three decimal places): both were 0.614.

Did You Know?

Eckersley coined the phrase "walk-off home run" to describe Kirk Gibson's 1988 World Series home run.
Eckersley retired with a career 197–171 record, a 3.50 ERA, and 390 saves. When he retired, he had appeared in more games (1,071) than any other pitcher in major league history.