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Adjusted ERA+, often simply abbreviated to ERA+ or ERA plus, is a pitching

Pitcher

In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

statistic in baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

. It adjusts a pitcher's earned run average

Earned run average

In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...

(ERA) according to the pitcher's ballpark (in case the ballpark favors batters or pitchers) and the ERA of the pitcher's league. Average ERA+ is set to be 100; a score above 100 indicates that the pitcher performed better than average, below 100 indicates worse than average.

For instance, if the average ERA in the league is 4.00, and the pitcher is pitching in a ballpark that favors hitters, and his ERA is 4.00, then his ERA+ will be over 100. Likewise, if the average ERA in the league is 3.00, and the pitcher is pitching in a ballpark favoring pitchers, and the pitcher's ERA is 3.00, then the pitcher's ERA+ will be below 100.

As a result, ERA+ can be used to compare pitchers across different run environments. In the above example, the first pitcher may have performed better than the second pitcher, even though his ERA is higher. ERA+ can be used to account for this misleading impression.

Pedro Martínez

Pedro Martínez

Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...

holds the modern record for highest ERA+ in a single season; he posted a 1.74 ERA in the 2000

2000 in baseball

-Major League Baseball:*Regular Season Champions*World Series Champion - New York Yankees*Postseason - October 3 to October 26Click on any series score to link to that series' page....

American League

The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...

, which had an average ERA of 4.92, which gave Martinez an ERA+ of 291. While Bob Gibson

Bob Gibson

Robert "Bob" Gibson is a retired American professional baseball player. Nicknamed "Hoot" and "Gibby", he was a right-handed pitcher who played his entire 17-year Major League Baseball career with St. Louis Cardinals...

has the lowest ERA in modern times (1.12 in the 1968

1968 in baseball

-The Year of the Pitcher:In Major League Baseball, the trend throughout the 1960s was of increased pitching dominance, caused by enforcing a larger strike zone beginning in 1963...

National League

The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...

), the average ERA was 2.99 that year (the so-called Year of the Pitcher) and so Gibson's ERA+ is 258, sixth highest since 1900. 1968 was the last year that Major League Baseball employed the use of a pitcher's mound greater than 10 inches.

The career record for ERA+ (with a minimum of 1,000 innings pitched) is held by Mariano Rivera

Mariano Rivera

Mariano Rivera is a Panamanian right-handed baseball pitcher who has played 17 years in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. Nicknamed "Mo", Rivera has served as a relief pitcher for most of his career, and since 1997, he has been the Yankees' closer...

, a closer

Closer (baseball)

In baseball, a closing pitcher, more frequently referred to as a closer , is a relief pitcher who specializes in closing out games, i.e., getting the final outs in a close game. Closers often appear when the score is close, and the role is often assigned to a team's best reliever. A small number of...

who has a career ERA+ of 202. The career record ERA+ amongst retired players is 154, held by Pedro Martinez

Pedro Martínez

Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...

, with Jim Devlin

Jim Devlin

James Alexander Devlin was an American Major League Baseball player who played mainly as a first baseman early in his career, then as a pitcher in the latter part...

, a pitcher in the 1870s, next at 151. Pedro Martínez has the most separate seasons with an ERA+ over 200, with five, and the most consecutive 200 ERA+ seasons (4). Roger Clemens

Roger Clemens

William Roger Clemens , nicknamed "Rocket", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who broke into the league with the Boston Red Sox, whose pitching staff he would help anchor for 12 years. Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards, more than any other pitcher. He played for four different teams over...

topped a 200 ERA+ three times, and Greg Maddux

Greg Maddux

Gregory Alan Maddux , nicknamed "Mad Dog" and "The Professor", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He was the first pitcher in major league history to win the Cy Young Award for four consecutive years , a feat matched only by Randy Johnson...

had two such seasons.

Leaders

Players in bold are active as of the beginning of the 2011 season

2011 Major League Baseball season

The 2011 Major League Baseball season began on Thursday, March 31, and ended on Wednesday, September 28. This marked the first time a season began on a Thursday since , and the first time a regular season ended on a Wednesday since...

and have not announced their retirement.

Career Leaders
Rank	Player	Adjusted ERA+
1	Mariano Rivera Mariano Rivera Mariano Rivera is a Panamanian right-handed baseball pitcher who has played 17 years in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. Nicknamed "Mo", Rivera has served as a relief pitcher for most of his career, and since 1997, he has been the Yankees' closer...	205
2	Pedro Martínez Pedro Martínez Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...	154
3	Jim Devlin Jim Devlin James Alexander Devlin was an American Major League Baseball player who played mainly as a first baseman early in his career, then as a pitcher in the latter part...	151
4	Lefty Grove Lefty Grove Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove was a professional baseball pitcher. After having success in the minor leagues during the early 1920s, Grove became a star in Major League Baseball with the American League's Philadelphia Athletics and Boston Red Sox, winning 300 games in his 17-year MLB career...	148
5	Walter Johnson Walter Johnson Walter Perry Johnson , nicknamed "Barney" and "The Big Train", was a Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire 21-year baseball career for the Washington Senators...	147
	Dan Quisenberry Dan Quisenberry Dan Raymond "Quiz" Quisenberry was an American right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played primarily for the Kansas City Royals...
	Hoyt Wilhelm Hoyt Wilhelm James Hoyt Wilhelm was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985....
8	Ed Walsh Ed Walsh Edward Augustine Walsh was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He holds the record for lowest career ERA, 1.82.-Baseball career:Born in Plains Township, Pennsylvania, Walsh had a brief though remarkable major league career...	146
8	Smoky Joe Wood	146
10	Roger Clemens Roger Clemens William Roger Clemens , nicknamed "Rocket", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who broke into the league with the Boston Red Sox, whose pitching staff he would help anchor for 12 years. Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards, more than any other pitcher. He played for four different teams over...	143
11	Addie Joss Addie Joss Adrian Joss was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched his entire nine-year baseball career for the Cleveland Bronchos/Naps .-Early life:...	142
	Johan Santana Johan Santana Johan Alexander Santana Araque is a Major League Baseball left-handed starting pitcher who is currently playing for the New York Mets. He is a native of Venezuela....
	Brandon Webb Brandon Webb Brandon Tyler Webb is a Major League Baseball pitcher. He was the 2006 National League Cy Young Award winner.-High school:Webb attended Paul G...
14	Trevor Hoffman Trevor Hoffman Trevor William Hoffman is a former Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher. During his 18-year career from 1993 to 2010, he pitched for the Florida Marlins, San Diego Padres, and the Milwaukee Brewers, spending years of his career with the Padres. A long-time closer, he is the Major...	141
15	Kid Nichols Kid Nichols Charles Augustus Nichols , better known as Kid Nichols, was a Major League Baseball pitcher. Admired for his steadfast consistency year-in and year-out, Nichols won 361 games, the 7th highest total in major league history...	140
16	Mordecai Brown Mordecai Brown Mordecai Peter Centennial Brown , nicknamed "Three Finger" or "Miner", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher at the turn of the 20th century. Due to a farm-machinery accident in his youth, Brown lost parts of two fingers on his right hand and eventually acquired his nickname as a result...	139
17	John Franco	138
17	Cy Young Cy Young Denton True "Cy" Young was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. During his 22-year baseball career , he pitched for five different teams. Young was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937...	138
19	Roy Halladay Roy Halladay Harry Leroy "Roy" Halladay III , nicknamed "Doc", is a Major League Baseball starting pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies...	137
20	Pete Alexander Grover Cleveland Alexander Grover Cleveland Alexander , nicknamed "Old Pete", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and St. Louis Cardinals and was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1938.-Career:Alexander was born in Elba, Nebraska, one of thirteen...	136
	Randy Johnson Randy Johnson Randall David Johnson , nicknamed "The Big Unit", is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. During a 22-year career, he pitched for six different teams....
	Christy Mathewson Christy Mathewson Christopher "Christy" Mathewson , nicknamed "Big Six", "The Christian Gentleman", or "Matty", was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire career in what is known as the dead-ball era...
	Bruce Sutter Bruce Sutter Howard Bruce Sutter is a former Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher. He was arguably the first pitcher to make effective use of the splitter....

Single Season Leaders
Rank	Player	Adjusted ERA+	Year	Team
1	Tim Keefe Tim Keefe Timothy John "Tim" Keefe , nicknamed "Smiling Tim" and "Sir Timothy", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. He was one of the most dominating pitchers of the 19th century and posted impressive statistics in one category or another for almost every season he pitched...	295	1880	Troy Trojans
2	Pedro Martínez Pedro Martínez Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...	291	2000	Boston Red Sox Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
3	Dutch Leonard Dutch Leonard (left-handed pitcher) Hubert Benjamin "Dutch" Leonard, was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who had an 11-year career from 1913–1921, 1924-1925. He played for the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers, and holds the major league modern-era record for the lowest single-season ERA of all time — 0.96...	279	1914	Boston Red Sox Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
4	Greg Maddux Greg Maddux Gregory Alan Maddux , nicknamed "Mad Dog" and "The Professor", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He was the first pitcher in major league history to win the Cy Young Award for four consecutive years , a feat matched only by Randy Johnson...	271	1994	Atlanta Braves Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
5	Greg Maddux Greg Maddux Gregory Alan Maddux , nicknamed "Mad Dog" and "The Professor", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He was the first pitcher in major league history to win the Cy Young Award for four consecutive years , a feat matched only by Randy Johnson...	262	1995	Atlanta Braves Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
6	Walter Johnson Walter Johnson Walter Perry Johnson , nicknamed "Barney" and "The Big Train", was a Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire 21-year baseball career for the Washington Senators...	259	1913	Washington Senators Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...
7	Bob Gibson Bob Gibson Robert "Bob" Gibson is a retired American professional baseball player. Nicknamed "Hoot" and "Gibby", he was a right-handed pitcher who played his entire 17-year Major League Baseball career with St. Louis Cardinals...	258	1968	St. Louis Cardinals St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
8	Mordecai Brown Mordecai Brown Mordecai Peter Centennial Brown , nicknamed "Three Finger" or "Miner", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher at the turn of the 20th century. Due to a farm-machinery accident in his youth, Brown lost parts of two fingers on his right hand and eventually acquired his nickname as a result...	253	1906	Chicago Cubs Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
9	Pedro Martínez Pedro Martínez Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...	243	1999	Boston Red Sox Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
9	Walter Johnson Walter Johnson Walter Perry Johnson , nicknamed "Barney" and "The Big Train", was a Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire 21-year baseball career for the Washington Senators...	243	1912	Washington Senators Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...
11	Christy Mathewson Christy Mathewson Christopher "Christy" Mathewson , nicknamed "Big Six", "The Christian Gentleman", or "Matty", was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire career in what is known as the dead-ball era...	230	1905	New York Giants San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
12	Dwight Gooden Dwight Gooden Dwight Eugene Gooden , nicknamed "Doc Gooden" or "Dr. K", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He was one of the most dominant and feared pitchers in the National League in the middle and late 1980s.-Career:...	229	1985	New York Mets New York Mets The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
13	Roger Clemens Roger Clemens William Roger Clemens , nicknamed "Rocket", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who broke into the league with the Boston Red Sox, whose pitching staff he would help anchor for 12 years. Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards, more than any other pitcher. He played for four different teams over...	226	2005	Houston Astros Houston Astros The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball team located in Houston, Texas. They are a member of the National League Central division. The Astros are expected to join the American League West division in 2013. Since , they have played their home games at Minute Maid Park, known as Enron Field...
14	Pete Alexander Grover Cleveland Alexander Grover Cleveland Alexander , nicknamed "Old Pete", was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and St. Louis Cardinals and was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1938.-Career:Alexander was born in Elba, Nebraska, one of thirteen...	225	1915	Philadelphia Phillies Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
15	Christy Mathewson Christy Mathewson Christopher "Christy" Mathewson , nicknamed "Big Six", "The Christian Gentleman", or "Matty", was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire career in what is known as the dead-ball era...	222	1909	New York Giants San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
15	Roger Clemens Roger Clemens William Roger Clemens , nicknamed "Rocket", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who broke into the league with the Boston Red Sox, whose pitching staff he would help anchor for 12 years. Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards, more than any other pitcher. He played for four different teams over...	222	1997	Toronto Blue Jays Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
17	Denny Driscoll Denny Driscoll John F. "Denny" Driscoll was an American Major League Baseball pitcher from 1880 to 1884. Driscoll played for the Buffalo Bisons, Pittsburgh Alleghenys, and Louisville Eclipse. While playing for Pittsburgh, he led the American Association in earned run average in 1882, at 1.21...	220	1882	Pittsburgh Alleghenys
17	Lefty Grove Lefty Grove Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove was a professional baseball pitcher. After having success in the minor leagues during the early 1920s, Grove became a star in Major League Baseball with the American League's Philadelphia Athletics and Boston Red Sox, winning 300 games in his 17-year MLB career...	220	1931	Philadelphia Athletics
19	Pedro Martínez Pedro Martínez Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...	219	1997	Montreal Expos Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
20	Cy Young Cy Young Denton True "Cy" Young was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. During his 22-year baseball career , he pitched for five different teams. Young was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937...	216	1901	Boston Americans
20	Kevin Brown Kevin Brown James Kevin Brown is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. Because two other MLB players named Kevin Brown had careers that overlapped with his, he is sometimes incorrectly referred to in baseball documents as Kevin J...	216	1996	Florida Marlins Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1993 as an expansion franchise called the Florida Marlins, the Marlins are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Marlins played their home games at...