Hall of Fame Debate
Mussina's candidacy for the Hall of Fame has come under recent debate. "Do I compare to some guys who are in? I think I do," Mussina told USA Today in 2006. The only other pitchers to match Mussina's 17 seasons of 10 or more victories are Greg Maddux, Warren Spahn, Cy Young, Don Sutton, and Steve Carlton; all are Hall of Famers except Maddux, who also retired after the 2008 season and thus is not yet eligible. Of the 23 eligible pitchers who have at least 265 wins and an ERA of 3.69 or less, 20 are in the Hall of Fame, although if Mussina was elected, his ERA would be 3rd highest ahead of Bobby Wallace and Red Ruffing. Mussina's consistency is often overshadowed by the dominant peaks of contemporaries like Pedro Martínez and Randy Johnson.
His numbers are often compared to those of Jim Palmer. Mussina has two more wins and one more loss than Palmer, (both finished with a .638 winning percentage,) while Palmer's ERA is .82 lower. Mussina finished his career with 601 more strikeouts than Palmer. Baseball writer Tim Kurkjian stated on the August 3, 2008, edition of Baseball Tonight: "He's a Hall of Famer. I've looked at the numbers and he's in."
Mussina's ERA may have suffered from playing at a time when hitters dominated. Mussina's career adjusted ERA+, which takes into account the league's average ERA and the parks in which the pitcher plays, is 123 — better than Hall-of-Famers Nolan Ryan, Ted Lyons, Jim Bunning, and Bob Lemon, among others.
He is the oldest pitcher to ever win 20 games in a season for the first time at the age of 39 in 2008. He never won the Cy Young Award, but finished in the top six of Cy Young voting nine times. Mussina also came tantalizingly close to pitching a perfect game and winning a World Series, having lost chances at achieving both in the 9th inning in 2001.
Only five pitchers in the history of major league baseball have as many victories as Mussina and a better winning percentage: Lefty Grove, Christy Mathewson, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Roger Clemens, and Randy Johnson.
Mussina won seven Gold Gloves during his career.
All pitchers with 100 more wins than losses who have been eligible have been inducted to the Hall of Fame. With a record of 270-153, Mussina fits that criterion.
Mussina was inducted into the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame on August 25, 2012.
Read more about this topic: Mike Mussina
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