Top 10 seasons in various stats for closers plus career leaders

The criteria for being a closer was 40+ games finished in a season and at least 80% of their games had to be a game finished. All data from Baseball Reference and Stathead. The idea for this post from fellow SABR member Kerry Keene.

The link below has all the stats that I have below for pitchers with 400+ career games finished.

Career stats for all pitchers with 400+ games finished. 

That lists includes all data from each guy, including when they started. I also found all the guys with 400+ games finished using Stathead's split finder that allows us to get only their stats for when the pitched in relief. But then it does not show all the stats I look at here like WAR and FIP ERA, for example.

Relief only stats.

Now all the seasonal top 10s. Some great seasons don't make these lists since I used the 80% cutoff. Rich Gossage 1975, for example, came in at 79%.

WHIP
Dennis Eckersley  0.607  1989
Dennis Eckersley  0.614  1990
Craig Kimbrel  0.654  2012
Mariano Rivera  0.665  2008
Kenley Jansen  0.67  2016
Eric Gagne  0.692  2003
J.J. Putz  0.698  2007
Takashi Saito  0.715  2007
Emmanuel Clase  0.729  2022
Liam Hendriks  0.732  2021


ERA
Zack Britton    0.54    2016
Fernando Rodney  0.6  2012
Den Eckersley  0.61  1990
Blake Treinen  0.78  2018
Jon Papelbon  0.92  2006
Craig Kimbrel  1.01  2012
Rollie Fingers  1.04  1981
John Smoltz  1.12  2003
José Mesa  1.13  1995
Kirby Yates  1.19  2019


Saves
Francisco Rodríguez  62  2008
Bobby Thigpen  57  1990
Edwin Díaz  57  2018
John Smoltz  55  2002
Eric Gagné  55  2003
Randy Myers  53  1993
Mariano Rivera  53  2004
Trevor Hoffman  53  1998
Eric Gagné  52  2002
Den Eckersley  51  1992
Jim Johnson  51  2012
Rod Beck  51  1998
Jeurys Familia  51  2016
Mark Melancon  51  2015

H/9IP
Aroldis Chapman  3.5  2014
Craig Kimbrel  3.9  2012
Eric Gagné  4  2003
Billy Wagner  4.2  1999
Craig Kimbrel  4.4  2014
Craig Kimbrel  4.5  2018
J.J. Putz  4.6  2007
Carlos Mármol  4.6  2010
Jonathan Papelbon  4.6  2007
Armando Benítez  4.6  2000
Kenley Jansen  4.6  2016
Takashi Saito  4.6  2007
Troy Percival  4.6  1996

BB/9IP
Dennis Eckersley  0.5  1990
Dennis Eckersley  0.5  1989
Dan Quisenberry  0.7  1983
Dan Quisenberry  0.8  1982
Mariano Rivera  0.8  2008
Dan Quisenberry  0.8  1984
Kenley Jansen  0.9  2017
Dennis Eckersley  0.9  1996
Liam Hendriks  0.9  2021
Doug Jones  1  1997
Jonathan Papelbon  1  2008
Rod Beck  1  1997
Doug Jones  1  1994

K/9IP
Aroldis Chapman  17.7  2014
Edwin Díaz  17.1  2022
Craig Kimbrel  16.7  2012
Carlos Mármol  16  2010
Aroldis Chapman  15.8  2013
Aroldis Chapman  15.7  2015
Edwin Díaz  15.2  2018
Eric Gagné  15  2003
Kirby Yates  15  2019
Billy Wagner  14.9  1999

Save%
Rod Beck  100  1994
José Valverde  100  2011
Zack Britton  100  2016
Gordon Maltzberger  100  1944
Mike González  100  2006
Eric Gagné  100  2003
Brad Lidge  100  2008
Al McBean  100  1964
Trevor Hoffman  98.1  1998
Tom Gordon  97.9  1998

WAR
John Hiller  7.9  1973
Ted Abernathy  6.2  1967
Dick Radatz  6.1  1964
Jim Kern  6.1  1979
Dick Radatz  5.7  1963
Doug Corbett  5.7  1980
Dan Quisenberry  5.5  1983
Dick Radatz  5.5  1962
Greg Minton  5.4  1982
Aurelio Lopez  5.3  1979

ERA+
Zack Britton  803  2016
Fernando Rodney  641  2012
Dennis Eckersley  603  1990
Blake Treinen  531  2018
Jonathan Papelbon  517  2006
José Mesa  418  1995
Craig Kimbrel  399  2012
John Smoltz  385  2003
Kirby Yates  354  2019
Greg Holland  342  2013

FIP ERA
Craig Kimbrel  0.78  2012
Eric Gagné  0.86  2003
Aroldis Chapman  0.89  2014
Edwin Díaz  0.9  2022
Kirby Yates  1.3  2019
Kenley Jansen  1.31  2017
Dennis Eckersley  1.34  1990
Greg Holland  1.36  2013
Aroldis Chapman  1.42  2016
Kenley Jansen  1.44  2016