Baseball GOATstarting pitcher
Bert Blyleven
Minnesota Twins, 1970–1992
68.4
Score, No. 45 all-time
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Blyleven leads on both counts: 89.9 wins added to 41.9 over a career, and 46.8 to 29.7 across his seven best seasons.
starting pitcher
Minnesota Twins, 1970–1992
68.4
Score, No. 45 all-time
designated hitter
Texas Rangers, 2005–2023
35.8
Score, No. 538 all-time
Wins added is how many extra games a player’s teams won because they had him and not a replacement-level player, the kind of fill-in any team can find. In one season, 2 is a solid regular, 5 is an All-Star and 8 or more is an MVP-level year. Score is the average of the career total and the best seven seasons.
| Bert Blyleven | Nelson Cruz | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | ||
| 68.4(better) | Score | 35.8 |
| 89.9(better) | Wins added, career | 41.9 |
| 46.8(better) | Wins added, best 7 seasons | 29.7 |
| 45(better) | All-time rank | 538 |
| 22 | Seasons | 19 |
The dot marks the better number in each row. A hitter and a pitcher don’t share traditional stats, so this comparison uses the ratings only.