How to Note Saves on a Baseball Scorecard

Video Transcript

"A statistic that's become important in modern baseball is saves. It can also be a little bit difficult to understand how to get a save because you don't always get a save when you come in in relief. There has to be a specific set of circumstances to get a save. So let's look back down at our scorecard here. And we denote a save by putting SV by the pitcher's name. In this case, Jim Ross came in in relief, and he pitched two innings. Now normally a closer who gets a save is only going to pitch one inning, but in this case Ross went a little bit extra. So he pitched two innings in relief with a three run lead when he came into the game. Now, to get a save you have to come into the game with your team ahead by three runs or fewer. So you need to be three, two, or one run ahead, and you come in and protect that lead. That means you don't give up more runs, losing the game for your team. Now you can also get a save by pitching more than five innings in relief. So if you come in and your team's up by ten runs, but you've come in in the third inning, and you finish out the game, then you can be credited with the save that way. But most of the time when a closer gets a save, it means that he came in in the ninth inning or the eight inning with his team ahead by three runs or fewer and he protected that lead. This is a statistic that's given to closers, and why the position of closer has become so important in the modern game of baseball."