Mariano Rivera: Greatest Pitcher Ever?

Via Baseball Reference:

"

Mariano Rivera is 40 years old, still pitching extremely well, and is first in baseball history in ERA+. Among active pitchers, he’s ranked first in ERA, WHIP, H/9IP, K/BB, HR/9IP, WPA, and fielding percentage. (Go ahead and carefully re-read that last sentence.)

He’s an 11-time All-Star, finished in the top five for the Cy Young five times, and received MVP votes in nine different seasons.

He’s also the career leader in postseason ERA (despite having more IP than every other pitcher in the top 10) and has been a part of five World Series championship teams.

"

To me, it’s impossible to say with any authority whether or not Rivera is or isn’t the best pitcher ever. Though after reading that piece, it is hard to deny that he’s one of the elite pitchers of all time. Not just relievers, but starters as well.

So, what do you think, is Rivera the best pitcher of all time? Vote in our poll and let us know what you think in the comments section.

To help you decide, here are Mariano’s stats:

Year	W	L	ERA	G	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA+	WHIP
1995	5	3	5.51	19	0	67.0	71	43	41	11	30	51	84	1.507
1996	8	3	2.09	61	5	107.2	73	25	25	1	34	130	240	0.994
1997	6	4	1.88	66	43	71.2	65	17	15	5	20	68	239	1.186
1998	3	0	1.91	54	36	61.1	48	13	13	3	17	36	233	1.060
1999	4	3	1.83	66	45	69.0	43	15	14	2	18	52	260	0.884
2000	7	4	2.85	66	36	75.2	58	26	24	4	25	58	170	1.097
2001	4	6	2.34	71	50	80.2	61	24	21	5	12	83	192	0.905
2002	1	4	2.74	45	28	46.0	35	16	14	3	11	41	163	1.000
2003	5	2	1.66	64	40	70.2	61	15	13	3	10	63	267	1.005
2004	4	2	1.94	74	53	78.2	65	17	17	3	20	66	232	1.081
2005	7	4	1.38	71	43	78.1	50	18	12	2	18	80	308	0.868
2006	5	5	1.80	63	34	75.0	61	16	15	3	11	55	252	0.960
2007	3	4	3.15	67	30	71.1	68	25	25	4	12	74	144	1.121
2008	6	5	1.40	64	39	70.2	41	11	11	4	6	77	319	0.665
2009	3	3	1.76	66	44	66.1	48	14	13	7	12	72	244	0.905
2010	3	2	1.06	44	24	42.1	23	7	5	1	7	36	379	0.709
16 Seasons	74	54	2.21	961	550	1132.1	871	302	278	61	263	1042	*206*	1.001
162 Game Avg.	5	4	2.21	67	39	79	61	21	19	4	18	73	206	1.001

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 8/13/2010.

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