The Best Reliever in Baseball

Since 2019, only one reliever has accumulated over 200 saves while striking out 599 batters, which is 100 more strikeouts than the second-place qualifier. Throughout his career, he's accumulated five All-Star appearances and is a three-time Trevor Hoffman Reliever Award (Reliever of the Year Award in the National League) winner. His name is Josh Hader, and he's established himself as the best reliever in baseball this season yet again. The flamethrowing lefty has been one of the best relievers in the league over the last half-decade, and he received a 5-year, $95 million contract prior to the 2024 season. In 2024, however, he posted a solid 3.80 ERA, which is higher considering his 2.62 career ERA. A below-average season for Hader pushed him out of the conversation for best relievers in baseball despite his previous track record and strong underlying statistics that said he was unlucky.

Photo Courtesy of Sports Illustrated

In 2025, Josh Hader has been absolutely dominant this season as his ERA currently stands at 1.67, and he is the league leader in saves. Hader is leading all MLB pitchers in xERA (Expected ERA) at 1.66, xBA (Expected Batting Average) at .148, Chase% at 40.1, and K% (Strikeout Percentage) at 40.1. He's doing this while only walking 4.9% of the batters he's faced. Simply, Josh Hader is the best reliever in the MLB, and the underlying stats push his case further.

• https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/savant-player/josh-hader-623352?stats=statcast-r-pitching-mlb

• https://www.fangraphs.com/players/josh-hader/14212/stats?position=P

• https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/haderjo01.shtml

• https://www.statmuse.com/ask/most-amount-of-saves-since-2019?l=mlb

• https://sports.yahoo.com/article/highest-paid-mlb-relief-pitchers-023819427.html