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^{What makes a truly great pitcher?  Is it a blazing 98 mile per hour fastball?  Is it a looping curve ball that drops six inches in front of the plate?  Or is it a biting slider that just that dives in on the batter’s hands at the last minute?}

^{UMM Magazine sat down with Rogers Sportsnet’s new Toronto Blue Jay play-by-play man Buck Martinez to discuss the best pitchers of the last ten years.  Martinez has over 40 years of experience as a catcher, a broadcaster and a manager and he knows what makes a great hurler.} 

^{He breaks down the top ten pitchers of the past decade analyzing win totals, all-star appearances, awards, World Series rings and overall dominance over batters.  His list includes nine players still active, at least three sure-fire first ballot Hall-of-Famers and two of the finest closers in the history of the sport.}

Randy Johnson ^{143-78 /3.34 ERA/5 all-star appearances}

^{The most dominating pitcher of his generation, 6 foot 10 Randy Johnson was a late bloomer, never winning more than 10 games in a season until he was 26 years old.  He went on to win four consecutive Cy Young Awards from 1999 through 2002.  He had an intimidating delivery with an impossible arm angle for hitters to pick up.  He combined a devastating slider with an explosive fastball.  In his 40s, he added a split finger fastball to his repertoire to help him to 34 wins over two seasons with the New York Yankees.  The certain Hall of Fame candidate retired after the 2009 season.}

Johan Santana ^{122-60 /3.12 ERA/4 all-star appearances}

^{Still in the prime of his career, Johan Santana used the major’s best change-up to two Cy Young Awards and three ERA titles in the decade.  Santana has great arm action on his change-up and the command to throw it during any time in the count.  He also has just enough fastball to keep hitters honest.  Santana’s numbers look even better when you consider that he spent the first eight years of the decade pitching in the hitter friendly Metro Dome in Minnesota.}

Pedro Martinez ^{112-50/ 3.01 ERA /4 all-star appearances} 

^{For the decade, Pedro Martinez’s resume includes having the highest winning percentage, the lowest earned run average and lowest opponents’ batting average against.  Martinez was a smart pitcher who could always tell what the hitter was thinking would work against that hitter’s strengths.  He maintained command of all his pitches, had a terrific feel for his breaking ball and had the ability to change speeds on all of his pitches and still throw them for strikes in every quadrant of the strike zone.  He reached his pinnacle in 2000 when he won his third Cy Young Award in four seasons pitching for the Boston Red Sox.}

Roy Halladay ^{139-69/  3.40 ERA/6 all-star appearances}

^{The Toronto Blue Jays’ favourite son, Halladay works quicker than any other pitcher in baseball.  He is a tough competitor with a simplified approach of sinker-cutter-breaking ball-split finger.  He finished in the top five of Cy Young voting three times during the decade, including winning the award outright in 2003.  He also likes to finish what he starts, leading all pitchers in both shutouts and complete games in the decade.}

Mariano Rivera ^{45-39 /397 saves/2.08 ERA /8 all-star appearances}

^{Quite simply, Rivera is the best big game closer in history.  He has a perfect delivery that has allowed him to maintain a high level of success into his 40s.  He has used one dominant pitch for most of his career, a cut fastball.  The pitch looks hittable until you swing at it while it makes a quick four inch move to the handle and breaks the hitter’s bat.  He can throw it up or down, in or out to both lefties and righties.}

 Andy Pettitte ^{148-89 / 3.90 ERA/1 all-star appearance}  

^{Looking at Andy Pettitte’s numbers in the 2000s, the first number that jumps out is that he pitched in 40 post-season games.  He is a terrific competitor with a wide assortment of pitches.  He is at his best when he works both sides of the plate, keeping the hitters from diving out over the plate to get his sinker.  His pick-off move was also a game changer, shutting down the opponent’s running game.}

Roy Oswalt  ^{137-70/3.23 ERA/3 all-star appearances}

^{The least physically imposing hurler on the list, the 6 foot Roy Oswalt finished in the top 5 in Cy Young voting 5 times in the decade.  He had back-to-back 20 win seasons and led the National League in ERA in 2006.  He is a terrific competitor with a wicked curve ball.  That curve is made even more effective because it comes out of his hand on the same plane as his fastball making hitters think fastball and end up swinging over a snapping curve.}

Tim Hudson ^{137-76/3.50 ERA/2 all-star appearances}

^{Hudson started the decade as one of three young aces on the Oakland A’s along with Mark Mulder and Barry Zito.  However as injuries and ineffectiveness effected the other two, Hudson continued his dominance when he moved to the National League in 2005.  He won 61 more games over the next four seasons for the A’s before signing on with the Atlanta Braves.  When healthy, he is one of the most efficient pitchers in the game.  He has short arm action that allows him to throw a good moving fastball and a very effective breaking ball.} 

Jamie Moyer ^{140-94/ 4.23 ERA/ all-star appearance}  

^{Easily the oldest pitcher on the list, Moyer was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 1984.  He bounced around with five different teams before coming into his own when he joined the Mariners in 1997.   He understands who he is and never tries to go away from his strengths.  He has a great feel for changing speeds and how to keep the hitter off stride.  He works both sides of the plate with his sinking fastball, curve, cut fastball and change up that continues to baffle hitters even though his speed will never light up the radar gun.}

Trevor Hoffman  ^{23-40/363 saves/2.77 ERA/5 all-star appearances}

^{Hoffman is a terrific closer who plied his trade in virtual anonymity in San Diego for most of the decade.  Like Mariano Rivera and his cut fastball, Hoffman effectively was a one-pitch closer who uses his change-up as his out pitch.  He has a great work ethic that still allows his him to stay effective into his 40s.  Once he retires, he will join Bruce Sutter, Rich Gossage, Rollie Fingers, Dennis Eckersley and most likely Rivera as the only modern day closers in Baseball’s Hall of Fame.
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Sidebar

Top 5 individual pitching seasons by the Toronto Blue Jays:

1.  Roger Clemens 1997 ^{21-7 /2.05 ERA
Won the Cy Young Award, led league in wins, ERA, strikeouts, shutouts, innings pitched and WHIP.}

2.  Roger Clemens 1998  ^{20-6/2.65 ERA
Won the Cy Young Award, led league in wins, ERA and strikeouts.}

3.  Roy Halladay 2003  ^{22-7/3.25 ERA
Won the Cy Young Award, led league in wins, starts, complete games and shutouts.}

4.  Roy Halladay 2008  ^{20-11/2.78 ERA
Finished second in the Cy Young voting to Cliff Lee.  Led league in complete games, shutouts and innings pitched.}

5.  Pat Hentgen 1996  ^{20-10/3.22 ERA
Won the Cy Young Award, led league in complete games, shutouts and innings pitched.}