Even if you account for the eras and parks in which the pitchers on that list were playing, Borowski’s 2007 was still surprisingly bad: his 89 ERA+ was _by far_ the lowest of any pitcher with 40+ saves (Brian Wilson’s 2008 season was the only one to come close, with a 95 ERA+ across 41 saves). Loved this video dude.

As a Cubs fan, I can confirm that there is no more perfect descriptor for Joe Borowski than “The Heart Attack Closer.” I’m not sure who was sweating harder: Joe Borowski on the mound, or Cubs fans when Joe Borowski was on the mound.

What's even more amazing about the 07 season (which I remember fondly) is how GOOD his understudy, Rafael Betancourt, was. 2007 Rafael Betancourt 79 IP, 1.47 ERA, .756 WHIP, 2.22 FIP, 9.1 K/9, 1BB/9, 307 ERA+. Dude was downright dominant and yet only had 3 saves on the year thanks to Borowski. Then Betancourt in 2008, still not a closer, completely fell off the wagon at 71 IP, 5.07 ERA, 1.423 WHIP, 4.40 FIP, 8.1 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 84 ERA+. Wild times to be a Cleveland fan for sure.

Even though Lidge was 48 for 48 in saves in 2008, everytime he pitched for the Phillies he always put runners on and his saves never seemed to be easy.

Im a Cleveland fan. I vividly remember the feeling in the pit of my stomach every time Jo Bo came out. Whenever we were at the bar and it was time for Jo Bo to come out, Petey the owner would walk out and put a bottle of pepto bismol on the bar. Good times

I can’t even begin to explain how miserable it was to know Joe Borowski would be coming out to close in these tight games as an Indians fan back in the day. That 2007 team was incredible, but if there was one major flaw, he was it. I seriously could not stand watching him blow/turn every 9th inning into a heart attack. 😂

“But we know by now what the Indians tend to do with 3-1 leads” Damn dude, as a Indians fan, that cut deep.

Trevor Rosenthal always made me nervous back in 2014 and 2015. He usually got the job done but it always felt like the game wasn't shutdown for the cardinals.

Reminds me of Kenley Jansen the past few years. Every time he came in for a save I got nervous but then I would tune in to a talkin baseball episode later in the season and they would mention that Jansen is having a good year. In the moment it seems like he’s horrible but looking back, he’s been really good the past few years. It’s only the blown saves that stick in your mind (that one game vs the Astros where he gave up 5)

Should do something in Rob Deer, one of the first 3 true outcome hitters

Ah, Stay Away Joe. I remember him as the one year wonder closer for the 2003 Cubs. I honestly forgot he pitched in Cleveland.

You need to review Bob Wickman. Another disaster of a closer. Beer belly softball closer. They used to have a scoreboard graphic which was "The wick is lit.". Everyone, I mean everyone, knew there would be multiple base runners before he wriggled off the hook.

I love this video. Learning about somebody who dominated the league but in reality shouldn't have done so is fascinating. I would love to see more videos like this but on the "Coors Effect" where a pitcher who plays for the Rockies has on paper a bad year, but when you substitute Coors field for a standard ball park he would have had an elite season.

The 07 Indians were the team of my childhood. No matter how bad Borowski actually was, I will always look back fondly at him. That whole season was magical for 9 year old me.

Can I note that John Smoltz got 155 saves in 4 seasons, and 145 in 3. And he only closed games for 4 seasons, recovering from an injury.

I remembered Borowski from his days as a Braves prospect then and it was fascinating at the time how his ERA was huge and he still kept getting saves for the Indians. Really an interesting case on how you don't have to be the best pitcher on the team to get a lot of saves.

Just when I thought Danny Graves was the worst closer, here comes the Olive Man with this banger video

So glad I found this channel. More of this please! It’s fascinating to examine the players of my youth in the lens of modern statistics.

Bob Wickman often had this vibe for Cleveland. Even if he wasn't giving up runs, he always put guys on and made it interesting

As a teen I had a lot of the cooler 2007 Indians newspaper clippings hung on the wall in my bedroom, and for one (maybe about them clinching the central) I very clearly remember there being a story by Plain Dealer writer Terry Pluto being lower down the page titled "Relax, Cleveland fans - Joe Borowski is your closer!" No sir, I don't think I will 'relax.'

Joe Borowski is from my hometown Bayonne, New Jersey. He's actually a really nice guy. His mom and dad are super nice people. Would always see them in the diner uptown on Sundays . Last I heard Borowski was doing dbacks games living in Arizona.

Craig Kimbrel is a Borowski. I remember watching the 2018 playoffs and he was the heart attack reliever for Boston. It was pretty funny actually. Also a minor example would be Rafael Montero in April/May for the Mariners last year. Dude gave me emotional fits when he was called upon LMAO

The last closer to he selected in the MLB Power Pros Dream Draft

Being an Indians fan as a kid, I thought Borowski was pretty good. Funny how your perspective changes as an adult. Good video dude!

I love your videos man. Bringing up names I haven’t heard in years 😂

I'm a Yankee and raider fan, 20 years of seabass and Mo never had me worried. #Blessed

It's really crazy how in 2022, people are still not realizing the value, or lack thereof, in a lot of these stats. It's obviously not a bad thing to have a high save total, but it's overrated now more than ever, especially as teams like the Rays don't really have a consistent closer. This was another really interesting video, great job man

LOL. Then there's Oscar Zamora, a closer for the Cubs who was even worse. The fans used to sing a parody of "That's amore" when he would come in. "When the pitch looks so fat that the ball meets the bat, that's Zamora. When the ball hits the wall and the runners all score, that's Zamora."

One of the best baseball channels out there. Keep going dude, love your content!

everyone loves a good ol 4 fip closer. thank you again for this masterpiece of a video!

I knew Joe from about 1980 - '90 when I hung out on Schuyler Pl in Bayonne during those years. We were in the same ccd confirmation class at St. Mary's church, seems like a 100 years ago. Joe was a good athlete, tough to tackle and move off the snow mtn playing king of the mtn, and even harder to get a hit off playing wiffle ball in the driveway. Last saw Joe in Camden Yards as an Oriole back in '95 when I was doing center field camera for then Home Team Sports. We also had Danan Hughes who made it to the NFL playing for the KC Chiefs catching td passes from the greatest qb ever, Joe Montana. Very cool to see these guys you grew up with playing sports, make it to the show. Just about everyone I knew in Bayonne has moved on. Certainly not the town I grew up in, it's far worse now. Anyway, I wish them the best.

I don't know if you do requests but can you talk about the angels no hitting the mariners during spring training in 2017

The nail-biting aspect reminds me of Don "Full Pack" Stanhouse, the All Star closer for the 78/79 Orioles. He had a WHIP up to the sky and make everybody fret. But he'd succeed more often than not.

The fact that this is a thing is what I love about baseball

I had to actually get a new bob wickman calendar for this year, thanks for the reminder

This video brought back some nightmares

“He’s basically Edwin Diaz before it was cool” lol 😂

Played with Joe in winter ball in Obregon. Mx! Great dude!

Joe is my husband's cousin. I've met him last time we were in Arizona, he's such a nice guy.

Borowski was Doug Jones (RIP) raised to the power of Doug Jones. He got the saves, and nearly killed the fans and his manager in the process. He was Mitch Williams if Mitch could get the job done.

The issue for closers and ERA is the small innings count they tend to get. If a ball club is .6 out of 160 games that means at best a closer will get about 100-120 innings if there’s a lead to protect in the 8th or 9th. Often times there isn’t though so they don’t come out at all. Or they’re the home team and rally in the bottom of the 9th. Trevor Hoffman only pitched 1089 innings over 18 years and Rivera did 1200 over 19. Both averaged around 70 a season…both Jansen and Chapman make 15 million a year to pitch 50-70 Innings. josh Hader makes 11 million dollars a year pre Free Agency to pitch 60-70 innings a season. You get the point. The ERA doesn’t matter. Converting the save opportunity is what matters. It’s crazy that starters make about that much on average and pitch 2-3 times as much. They’re paying Patrick Corbin 22 million a year to be the worst starting pitcher in baseball.

Mitch Williams: Finally, a worthy opponent!

Rick aguilara mention. Nice!

not quite a Borowski, but Shawn Chacon, 2004 Rockies: 35/44 saves 52 K's 52 BB's 7.11 ERA

As a Braves fan, that first clip of Will Smith made my stomach twist 🤪

Wade Davis didn’t put me in agony. I always just expected him to blow it.

that game 5 vs yanks in ALDS was so scary he had so many bombs hit foul barely

Jack Cust, jesus christ that's a name I haven't heard in forever

Billy Wagner should be in the hall of fame

To be fair his career was plagued with major injuries to his throwing arm. Even broke it once with the Cubs. Torn biceps, triceps, every year it was something. Knowing Joe personally, he definitely would never use that as an excuse. But it is a factor that should've been mentioned here. It definitely affected him. Which is one big reason why he could start out well, then go completely downhill. He was playing through a lot of pain. He's been announcing for Arizona. He's a very humble, funny guy who can take a ribbing regarding his career. In the end, beyond baseball, he's simply a great all-around guy.

Saves is a nice category to have for bragging rights, but what matters wayyyy more for a closer imo is WHIP, HR/9, and ERA

If you want a closer that was leaving a team on the edge of their seat, then I recommend the 1998 Mets, with their closer John Franco = 0-8, with a 3.62 ERA, 38 saves. Hes the reason why the Mets didnt get the wild card in 1998 and why they signed Armando Benitez after the 1998 season

I need to correct you on something. While most kickers do create anxiety for their fans, Justin Tucker does not.

jolly olive

It's also interesting to note that the Indians brought in Keith Foulke to compete with him in Spring Training for the closer role. That competition never occurred since Foulke retired shortly after agreeing to a deal with Cleveland.

His FIP that year was 4.12 so I’m glad went with an ERA over 4 because that seems to be what his body of work actually was.

He was on my fantasy baseball team this year. It was horrible

Interesting note about Borowski: In 2006 with FLA, he saved 36 in 69.2 innings and 3.75 ERA in 2007 with CLE, he saved 45 in 65.2 innings and 5.07 ERA However, his FIP each year was identical: 4.12 The biggest difference in the two seasons was that he walked nearly twice as many batters in 2006 (33) than in 2007 (17)

Rafael soriano always did that. It never felt like a sure win until it was over

I have a good country song about this...it is titled, well any country song really, they aren't that original...they are all about that one guy on the high school team that failed. So basically country music is a high school football song. So anytime someone says I have a country song that I made up. just loop back to this....and if it's a girl, just loop back to this, but she is probably the scorned ex.. And we have a hit song on our hands!!

Good job, Jolly! Videos for da fans 😅 but really I love this format and you did a great job. Thanks for the great content!

From a Tigers fan Joe Mauer is a Hall of Famer.

Ahhh the 3rd member of Cleveland's Kerosene Gang 1. Bob Wickman 2. David Riske 3. Joe Borowski There wasn't a sure thing in Cleveland until Cody Allen (Even then he poured the gasoline a lot, he just never lit the match)

Def had him as my fantasy baseball closer one year.

4:32 it didn’t make sense at the time either. This is a fatal flaw that the Cleveland front office has. They don’t want to spend big BUT they also don’t want to always buy low on redemption projects so every once in awhile they’ll overspend on a mid-tier veteran a couple years removed from their peak in hopes of a return to glory. It almost never works out. Nick Swisher, Michael Bourn, Josh Bell…

Putting Wade Davis on there isn't fair he was playing in Colorado.

Man Joe Borowski was a name I haven't heard in a long time

Is this Shea station jolly olive!! Keep it up in blitz ball. You’ll find the twig soon!

1:35 should be in the HOF just based on his name!

8:00 bruh 😭

I think the thing about the save stat is that leading yearly is alot easier than being among the top all time when your career is over with.

Cubs fans, back me up here: How many heart attacks did Carlos Marmol give you? Dude was filthy, but had absolutely no control whatsoever.

Nice work. Where do these creators get access to all these clips?

Alex Reyes of the Cardinals almost got into the borowski group.

Brian Wilson got a lot better when it counted in 2010 when he closed the WS with a save for the Giants. 48 saves, 1.81 ERA that year. Unfortunately his his wacky behavior made him an instant celebrity which affected his game the next season After one more ok season with the Giants he had a second Tommy John surgery the next season and got traded to the Dodgers but his career was finished by then.

Never heard of this guy what a wild season he had, sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good like Will Smith this past year.

Any of the Tigers' closers since 2012

To me save percentage is how to determine a great closer…. Usually

Heart attack closer? Two words. Kenley. Jansen.

Jolly I love your stuff, it’s digital nostalgia with a professional sheen. What video editing software do you use to make your videos?

When barowski came in. Fans said “game over”

If you're pitching with a lot of confidence closing a game is fun and exciting.

Your vids are not showing up in my sub box. Loved Joe on the 2003 Cubs

Enter sandman!

Yup, this is a watch

I love Paul Sewald

holy shit i looked at that era/save total in the thumbnail and laughed my ass off

Can I introduce you to Todd "The Rollercoaster" Jones

Two names John Franco & Mitch Wild Thing Williams

Rod Beck I miss him

An 85 mph fastball. What were we thinking.

do a video on fernando rodney another closer that gave fan bases heart attacks

Who was managing that bullpen?! The amount of anxiety that this man probably had to go through couldn't have been healthy.

I think to some extent these guys putting up "Borowskis" were a bit unlucky. According to Fangraphs, Jenks' FIP was 3.20 and xFIP 3.08, Wilson was 3.93 and 3.55, Davis was 3.65 and 3.63, and Borowski was 4.12 for both. Only Alfonseca's FIP was close to his ERA.

Will Smith 2021 season. Every time he come to pitch I was scared

To me Percival will always be the guy who invented the mix of foreign substance modern pitchers used before spider tack and before the MLB finally cracked down in spite of Trevor Bauer repeatedly asking them to do so (and when they said no, he decided if you can’t beat them then join them.

Edwin Borowski Díaz

2021 Alex Reyes even worse he choked in the wildcard tho I think he will turn it around this year lol

2006 Brad Lidge: 32 saves, 5.28 ERA, 85 ERA+ 🤢

What I remember most about Borowski as a cubs fan is the insane amount of sweat the man was able to produce. it looked like he just got out of the shower all the time.