Cliff Lee and the 10 Most Dominant Postseason Pitchers Ever

Cliff Lee battles the Yankees in Game 3 of the ALCS tonight.

Texas couldn't have a better ace on the mound tonight, as the Rangers look to take a commanding 2-1 lead and move one step closer to their first World Series.

Lee was absolutely dominant in his two starts against Tampa Bay in the ALDS: iIn 16 innings he allowed 11 hits, two earned runs, walked zero and struck out 21.

And last year he was just as good for the Phillies: He won all four of his decisions, allowed just seven ER in 40.1 innings and his strikeout to walk ration was 33-6.

That's been one of the best postseason stretches in recent memory.

But does he rank as one of the 10 greatest postseason pitchers? Check out this list to find out.

No. 10: Mariano Rivera

Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

PHILADELPHIA - OCTOBER 31: Mariano Rivera #42 of the New York Yankees pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game Three of the 2009 MLB World Series at Citizens Bank Park on October 31, 2009 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky

Career Post Season Stats

37 games, 8-1, 0.72 ERA, 42 saves, 43 K, 5 World Series Titles

For a reliever, even a closer, to be considered one of the all-time greats, he'd have to be unbelievably dominant.

Rivera has been.

What made the Diamondbacks' Game 7 win in the 2001 World Series so amazing was the fact that Rivera hadn't blown a postseason save in seven years.

And when the Red Sox did the same to Rivera in Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS it was just as hard to believe.

Aside from those two high-profile errors, Rivera has been lights out.

No. 9: Dave Stewart

Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images

OAKLAND, CA - CIRCA 1990: Dave Stewart #34 of the Oakland Athletics looks on during an MLB game circa 1990 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr./Getty Images)

Combined Career Post Season Stats

18 starts, 10-6, 2.77 ERA, 73 K, 2 World Series Titles

Among contemporaries like Roger Clemens, Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Curt Schilling, Stewart is often forgotten.

But from 1988-93, Stewart was baseball's premier postseason pitcher.

On paper, his World Series record (2-4) isn't great, although he did win both starts when the A's swept the Giants in 1989. But those numbers are misleading: In both losses to the Reds during the 1990 Series, Stewart allowed just four earned runs.

But it is what he did in the League Championship Series that warrants a spot on this list.

In 10 ALCS starts with the A's and Toronto Blue Jays, he was 8-0 with a 2.03 ERA.

That is dominant.

No. 8: Orel Hershiser

Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

11 Oct 1997: Pitcher Orel Hershiser of the Cleveland Indians throws a pitch during game three of the American League Championship against the Baltimore Orioles at Jacobs Field in Cleveland, Ohio. The Indians won the game 2-1.

Career Post Season Stats

18 starts, 8-3, 2.59, 4 CG, 2 Shutouts, 97 K, 1 World Series Title

Hershiser didn't get nearly as many opportunities to pitch in the postseason as the Braves and Yankees starters that would follow him in the 1990s and 2000s. But the Bulldog was stellar when he did make it to the playoffs.

He capped an incredible 1988 season with two World Series wins, both complete games. Naturally he won the World Series MVP, as the Dodgers overwhelmed the heavy-favorite Oakland A's.

And when he resurrected his career with Cleveland in 1995, he led the Indians to their first World Series in 41 years. Hershiser won that year's ALCS MVP thanks to a 2-0 record and allowed just four earned runs in two World Series starts.

He was nearly as dominant two years later when the Indians returned to the Series....until the 38-year-old was hammered in two starts against the Marlins.

No. 7: Christy Mathewson

Career Post Season Stats

11 starts, 5-5, 0.97 ERA, 10 CG, 4 Shutouts, 48 K, 1 World Series Title

Certainly it was a different type of game back when Mathewson played during the early 1900s: How else do you lose five games when you surrender a grand total of 12 earned runs?

But what Mathewson did is remarkable—especially his performance in the 1905 Series. That year he won all three starts, each a complete game shutout, and allowed 13 hits total in those 27 innings.

No. 6: Curt Schilling (Tie)

Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

BOSTON - OCTOBER 24: Curt Schilling #38 of the Boston Red Sox pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during game two of the 2004 World Series on October 24, 2004 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Career Post Season Stats

19 starts, 11-2, 2.23 ERA, 120 K, 2 World Series Titles

Schilling has won World Series starts for three different teams (Philadelphia, Boston, and Arizona).

What he did for the Diamondbacks in 2001 was incredible. He allowed just five earned runs in six starts on the way to a World Series title. And in that year's Game 7 he dominated, allowing just two runs in seven innings.

Of course it was 2004 when he cemented his legacy: The bloody sock made the headlines, but he won Game 6 of the ALCS and then didn't surrender an earned run in six innings during Game 2 of the World Series.

To do what he did in the 2001 and 2004 postseasons (during the peak of the steroid era) makes his one of the most incredible pitching performances of all time.

No. 6: Lefty Grove (Tie)

Career Post Season Stats

5 starts, 8 appearances, 4-2 record, 1.75 ERA, 4 CG, 36 K, 2 World Series Titles

Grove can almost be considered the forerunner to Curt Schilling.

He was an unbelievably dominant starting pitcher in two different postseasons during a time of incredible offense.

Players in the late 1920s and early 1930s weren't taking steroids (we think), but home run totals were off the charts as were RBI, batting average and every offensive stat.

So for Grove to dominate, especially in the 1930 and 1931 World Series, was a great achievement in its day.

No. 5: John Smoltz

Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

13 Oct 1999: John Smoltz #29 of the Atlanta Braves celebrates at the mound during the National League Conference Series game two against the New York Mets at Turner Field in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves defeated the Mets 4-3.

Career Post Season Stats

41 games, 27 starts, 15-4, 2.67 ERA, 58 K, 4 saves, 1 World Series Title

Smoltz was by far the most consistent pitcher of the Atlanta Braves' dynasty.

He usually didn't start Games 1 or 2 of a playoff series because of Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine, but he was more dominant than either of his longtime Cy Young-winning teammates.

The righthander was at his best on the biggest stage, as evidenced by his performance in Game 7 of the 1991 World Series. On the road at the Metrodome, Smoltz pitched seven shutout innings only to see his team lose the game and the series because Jack Morris was just a bit better that day.

No. 4: Andy Pettitte

Elsa/Getty Images

MINNEAPOLIS - OCTOBER 07: Andy Pettitte #46 of the New York Yankees delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins during game two of the ALDS on October 7, 2010 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Career Post Season Stats

41 starts, 19-9, 3.63, 59 K, 5 World Series Titles

Petite's overall ERA might not be as impressive as some of his contemporaries, but his 19-9 record in 41 starts is incredible. As is the fact that he's been a postseason starting pitcher nearly every season since 1996.

Petite's greatest postseason game may have been the World Series clincher in 1998. That year in Game 4, he didn't allow a single run in 7.1 innings as the Yanks defeated San Diego to win the first of three consecutive championships.

No. 3: Whitey Ford

Career Post Season Stats

22 starts, 10-8, 2.71 ERA, 7 CG, 3 Shutouts, 94 K, 6 World Series Titles

Even without his amazing stats, Ford might be considered the greatest postseason pitcher of all time. For nearly a decade-and-a-half, he was the best pitcher for the most dominant dynasty in baseball history.

His 10-8 record in the postseason is a bit misleading since there was no "postseason" to speak of in his day, just the World Series. 

Considering how great the Yankees were and how long he pitched for, it's a safe bet to assume his win total in the playoffs would eclipse the record, which is also held by a Yankee lefty, Andy Petite.

And his record of 32 consecutive scoreless World Series innings has yet to be even approached since it was set in 1961.

No. 2: Bob Gibson

Career Post Season Stats

9 starts, 7-2 record, 1.89 ERA, 8 complete games, 2 shutouts, 92 K, 2 World Series Titles

Sixty-two years-—and thousands of home runs-—after Christy Mathewson set the standard for World Series dominance, Gibson matched it.

In the 1967 World Series, Gibson went 3-0, allowed just 14 hits and three earned runs in three complete games, while striking out 26. He also hit a home run in the Game 7 win over Boston, earning his second Game 7 victory in the span of four seasons. 

He followed that incredible performance with a 17-strike out, complete game shutout in Game 1 of the next year's World Series and then a one-run complete game effort in Game 4.

No. 1: Sandy Koufax

Career Post Season Stats

7 starts, 4-3 record, 0.95 ERA, 4 CG, 2 shutouts, 61 K, 2 World Series Titles

It's tough to say that anyone was a better postseason pitcher than Bob Gibson or Whitey Ford—and Koufax's raw totals aren't as overpowering as those two titans' of the semi-modern era.

But what Koufax did in his seven World Series starts is mind-blowing.

When you look at Koufax's game-by-game stats, it's not unreasonable to say he could have been 7-0 in the World Series.

In each of his three losses, Koufax allowed exactly one run. Each time the Dodgers just couldn't score runs for him.

So, to summarize: Seven times, the Dodgers gave Koufax the ball to start a World Series game. In one start he allowed two runs, in four starts he allowed one run, and in the remaining two starts he allowed no runs.

There has never been a more dominant pitcher in postseason history, and Koufax accomplished that all in the World Series without a very good offense.