List of Major League Baseball career assists as a pitcher leaders
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/66/Cy_Young_by_Conlon%2C_1911-crop.jpg/200px-Cy_Young_by_Conlon%2C_1911-crop.jpg)
In baseball, an assist (denoted by A) is a defensive statistic, baseball being one of the few sports in which the defensive team controls the ball. An assist is credited to every defensive player who fields or touches the ball (after it has been hit by the batter) before the recording of a putout, even if the contact was unintentional. For example, if a ball strikes a player's leg and bounces off him to another fielder, who tags the baserunner, the first player is credited with an assist. A fielder can receive a maximum of one assist per out recorded. An assist is also credited if a putout would have occurred, had another fielder not committed an error. For example, a shortstop might field a ground ball cleanly, but the first baseman might drop his throw. In this case, an error would be charged to the first baseman, and the shortstop would be credited with an assist.
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who pitches the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the pitcher is assigned the number 1. The pitcher is often considered the most important player on the defensive side of the game, and as such is situated at the right end of the defensive spectrum. There are many different types of pitchers, such as the starting pitcher, relief pitcher, middle reliever, lefty specialist, setup man, and closer.
Traditionally, the pitcher also bats. Starting in 1973 with the American League and spreading to further leagues throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the hitting duties of the pitcher have generally been given over to the position of designated hitter, a cause of some controversy. The National League in Major League Baseball, although it was adopted for the 2020 season, and the Japanese Central League are among the remaining leagues that have not adopted the designated hitter position.
Cy Young[1][2][3] is the all-time leader in career assists as a pitcher with 2,014. Young is the only pitcher with more than 2,000 career assists.
Key[]
Rank | Rank amongst leaders in career assists. A blank field indicates a tie. |
Player (2021 As) | Number of recorded assists during the 2021 Major League Baseball season. |
A | Total career assists. |
* | Denotes elected to National Baseball Hall of Fame. |
---|---|
Bold | Denotes active player.[a] |
List[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/T205MathewsonLOC.jpg/200px-T205MathewsonLOC.jpg)
- Stats updated as of the end of the 2021 season.
Rank | Player (2021 As) | A as P |
---|---|---|
1 | Cy Young * | 2,014 |
2 | Christy Mathewson * | 1,503 |
3 | Pete Alexander * | 1,419 |
4 | Pud Galvin * | 1,404 |
5 | Walter Johnson * | 1,351 |
6 | Burleigh Grimes * | 1,252 |
7 | George Mullin | 1,244 |
8 | Jack Quinn | 1,240 |
9 | Ed Walsh * | 1,207 |
10 | Eppa Rixey * | 1,195 |
11 | Greg Maddux * | 1,194 |
12 | John Clarkson * | 1,143 |
13 | Carl Mays | 1,138 |
14 | Hooks Dauss | 1,128 |
15 | Vic Willis * | 1,124 |
16 | Red Faber * | 1,108 |
Eddie Plank * | 1,108 | |
18 | Tim Keefe * | 1,060 |
19 | Tony Mullane | 1,041 |
20 | Kid Nichols * | 1,031 |
21 | Tommy John | 1,028 |
22 | Red Ames | 1,000 |
23 | Warren Spahn * | 999 |
24 | Eddie Cicotte | 998 |
25 | Jack Powell | 967 |
26 | Doc White | 966 |
27 | Harry Howell | 965 |
28 | Al Orth | 957 |
29 | Ted Lyons * | 943 |
30 | Freddie Fitzsimmons | 942 |
Old Hoss Radbourn * | 942 | |
32 | Chick Fraser | 939 |
33 | Bill Doak | 934 |
34 | Joe McGinnity * | 929 |
35 | Jim McCormick | 922 |
36 | Red Donahue | 903 |
37 | Tommy Bond | 896 |
38 | Phil Niekro * | |
39 | Gaylord Perry * | 877 |
40 | Sad Sam Jones | 874 |
Amos Rusie * | 874 | |
42 | Clark Griffith * | 863 |
43 | Tom Glavine * | 856 |
44 | Howard Ehmke | 853 |
45 | Charlie Buffinton | 851 |
Stan Coveleski * | 851 | |
47 | Lee Meadows | 850 |
48 | Addie Joss * | 846 |
49 | Mordecai Brown * | 843 |
50 | Waite Hoyt * | 842 |
Rank | Player (2021 As) | A as P |
---|---|---|
51 | Jesse Tannehill | 840 |
52 | Bullet Joe Bush | 839 |
53 | Jack Chesbro * | 836 |
54 | Carl Hubbell * | 824 |
Herb Pennock * | 824 | |
56 | Ed Reulbach | 814 |
57 | Eddie Rommel | 810 |
58 | Charles Bender * | 808 |
59 | Bill Dinneen | 800 |
60 | Bobby Mathews | 791 |
61 | Dolf Luque | 786 |
62 | Wilbur Cooper | 785 |
63 | Frank Smith | 782 |
64 | Tom Zachary | 773 |
65 | Brickyard Kennedy | 769 |
Jim Whitney | 769 | |
67 | Dennis Martinez | 763 |
68 | Willie Sudhoff | 762 |
69 | Art Nehf | 749 |
70 | Jesse Barnes | 748 |
71 | Bucky Walters | 746 |
72 | Gus Weyhing | 745 |
73 | Jim Kaat * | 744 |
74 | Kenny Rogers | 743 |
75 | Hippo Vaughn | 740 |
Rube Waddell * | 740 | |
77 | Jack Taylor | 738 |
78 | Mel Harder | 734 |
Willis Hudlin | 734 | |
80 | Cy Falkenberg | 728 |
81 | Steve Carlton * | 724 |
Claude Hendrix | 724 | |
83 | Lefty Grove * | 722 |
Adonis Terry | 722 | |
85 | Dutch Leonard | 719 |
86 | Will White | 715 |
87 | Bob Lemon * | 709 |
88 | Mickey Welch * | 705 |
89 | Earl Whitehill | 701 |
90 | Claude Osteen | 699 |
91 | Rube Marquard * | 697 |
Bob Shawkey | 697 | |
93 | Ed Willett | 692 |
94 | Theodore Breitenstein | 692 |
Tom Seaver * | 692 | |
96 | Pink Hawley | 688 |
97 | Don Drysdale * | 686 |
Sherry Smith | 686 | |
99 | Bob Groom | 682 |
100 | Rube Benton | 680 |
Notes[]
- ^ A player is considered inactive if he has announced his retirement or not played for a full season.
References[]
- ^ "Cy Young Career Stats". Baseball Reference. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
- ^ Nowlin - Southwick, Bill - David. "Cy Young Bio". Society For American Baseball Research. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
- ^ "Cy Young Hall of Fame Profile". National Baseball Hall of Fame. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
External links[]
- "Career Leaders & Records for Assists as P". Baseball-Reference.com.
- Major League Baseball statistics
- Major League Baseball lists