Southpaw Savior: How Luis Arroyo Re-Defined Relief Pitching in 1961

In the early 1960s, left-hander Luis Arroyo established the prototype for the "closer," the relief pitcher whose job was to get the critical final outs that preserved victory. While baseball in the early 1960s had its share of successful relief specialists such as Hoyt Wilhelm, Roy Face, Stu Miller and Lindy McDaniel, starting pitchers were still relied upon as occasional closers, and any reliever could be used at practically any point in the game for as many innings or outs as needed. The closer just happened to be guy who got the last out.

Then came in 1961 season, and Arroyo's spectacular dominance as a closer. The closer became a strategic pitching weapon rather than a late-game after-thought.

Arroyo was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1949 and spent 6 years in their minor league system until his major league debut with St. Louis in 1955. As a starter for the Cardinals, he went 11-8 in his rookie season with a 4.19 ERA. He was also named to the National League All-Star team.

Arroyo spent only 1 season in a Cardinals uniform. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates the following winter, and was transformed into a reliever, appearing in 72 games over the next 2 seasons with a combined record of 6-14. Arroyo spent of the next 2 seasons in the minors, pitching first at the Pirates' Triple-A affiliate at Columbus and then, after being acquired by the Cincinnati Reds, pitching in that system in 1959.

In June of 1960, Arroyo was purchased by the New York Yankees. Both his effectiveness as a reliever, and his career, improved dramatically with that change of address. Over the second half of the 1960 season, Arroyo appeared in 29 games for the Yankees – all in relief – going 5-1 with a 2.88 ERA and 7 saves.

The 1961 season was when Arroyo showed the baseball world what the role and value of a closer could be. Arroyo made 65 relief appearances and finished 54 of them, tops in the major leagues in both categories. Arroyo also led in majors with 29 saves, while compiling a 15-5 record with a 2.19 ERA. He was named to the American League All-Star team and finished sixth in the balloting for Most Valuable Player.

His stay in excellence would be short-lived. A sore arm developed during the next spring, and Arroyo was limited to only 27 appearances in 1962 and 6 in 1963 before retiring. He finished with a career record of 40-32 with a 3.93 ERA.