Relief Pitcher Research Paper

Starting Pitchers vs. Relief Pitchers
American baseball player Wes Westrum once stated that “Baseball is like church: many attend, but few understand.” The game of baseball requires patience, and above all precision. The biggest component of precision is the pitcher. Pitchers are generally the most important player in the game. Most do not understand the enormity of the role that a pitcher has. They control the tempo of the game, the number of hits, and are there to prevent the opponent from getting a run. In a game, there are two types of pitchers: the starting pitcher and the relief pitcher. The major differences between these players are stress on the players, arm care, rest, and the financial gain.
Starting pitchers in the MLB are generally
They must be able to pitch the length of a major league game, which is nine innings. They have more strikeouts and innings pitched than a relief pitcher and do not throw as hard as a relief pitcher. Relief pitchers are very temperamental and are not as consistent as starting pitchers. They do however undergo more pressure than a starting pitcher because of the fact that the only reason a relief pitcher would go in to a game would be to make up for the starting pitcher's mistakes. A starting pitcher makes a lot more money than a relief pitcher because a starter is expected to throw more innings but in fewer games. A reliever is expected to throw in consecutive games with little to no rest. A starter acquires up to 5 days rest before pitching his next game. Relievers are expected to do a certain job, against certain types of hitters. A starting pitcher should be able to throw to all hitters and be able to challenge
The starter is the second hardest throwing person, and the reliever is the last hardest throwing. The reliever also is someone who wastes time to get his team’s bullpen warmed up so that someone better than him may come in to the game and replace him. The starter has the lowest ERA on the team meaning, earned runs allowed. This means that he does not give up as many runs, while a relief pitcher’s ERA is a whole lot higher because of the fact that he does no to pitch a large amount of innings. The most amounts of innings a relief pitcher would pitch is about 4 to 5 innings in one game. A starter of course throws up to a full 9 innings, and some cases throws over that limit if in a close ball game. There have been some cases where pitchers have started a game and thrown 14 innings straight. The relief pitcher comes in after a starting pitcher has reached his maximum pitch count, which is set pretty high. Starting pitchers usually have shorter careers due to risk of injury, therefore the high pay that they receive. A relief pitcher is expected to have a prolonged career, pitching for over 15 seasons. That is why they are not paid as well and high as a starting pitcher. It all has to do with risk and reward. Starting pitchers have a lot more arm care therapy than relief pitchers do, to prevent from injury. This includes visits to the athletic trainer for a stretch out, arm bands, and extensive running and