# Baseball/Pitcher (Who Gets the Win) Question.
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [May 31, 2005, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222 "2005-05-31T15:17:16Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@TheBoneyKingofNowhere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheBoneyKingofNowhere)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2005, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222/1 "2005-05-31T15:17:16Z")
After Mark Prior got drilled in the elbow last week and was forced to leave the game after throwing 3 2/3 innings (I think), he was not eligible for the win, as he did not complete five innings of work.
So, my question is this: Lets say Prior leaves the game after 3 innings pitched, while his team has the lead, say 5 to 3.
A different relief pitcher is brought in every inning thereafter, and there is no change in score at the end of the game.
So you’ve got Prior throwing 3 innings, and 6 pitchers each throwing 1 inning.
Which pitcher gets the win?
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### Author:  [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2005, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222/2 "2005-05-31T15:23:34Z")
Whichever pitcher the official scorer deems to have been most effective.
In your example, the last pitcher would get a save - the scorer would choose between the other five.
Rule 10.19© - (1) When, during the tenure of the starting pitcher, the winning team assumes the lead and maintains it to the finish of the game, credit the victory to the relief pitcher judged by the scorer to have been the most effective;
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### Author:  [@TheBoneyKingofNowhere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheBoneyKingofNowhere)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2005, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222/3 "2005-05-31T15:50:35Z")
Ah, interesting – just to clarify, the official scorer cannot deem the starting pitcher victorious, even though he might have pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings, and everyone else each pitched just an inning…
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### Author:  [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2005, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222/4 "2005-05-31T15:59:41Z")
That’s right. Unless circumstances are exceptional\* the starting pitcher MUST pitch five innings to be eligible for the win.
After that any pitcher which the official scorer deems ‘most effective’ will be credited with the win. A certain amoung of habit leads this to be the pitcher who was brought in to replace the starter as that pitcher has the ‘lead’ and merely hands it off to subsequent relievers…but nothing in the rules dictates that.
\*Example of exceptional circumstances: Following the 1990 lockout Spring training was reduced to 3 weeks instead of it’s normal 6 or more. For the first month of the season the commissioner dictated that starting pitchers needed to only pitch _three_ innings to qualify for the win.
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### Author:  [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2005, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222/5 "2005-05-31T16:04:45Z")
> [@Jonathan Chance](#):
>
> That’s right. Unless circumstances are exceptional\* the starting pitcher MUST pitch five innings to be eligible for the win.
>
> After that any pitcher which the official scorer deems ‘most effective’ will be credited with the win. A certain amoung of habit leads this to be the pitcher who was brought in to replace the starter as that pitcher has the ‘lead’ and merely hands it off to subsequent relievers…but nothing in the rules dictates that.
>
> \*Example of exceptional circumstances: Following the 1990 lockout Spring training was reduced to 3 weeks instead of it’s normal 6 or more. For the first month of the season the commissioner dictated that starting pitchers needed to only pitch _three_ innings to qualify for the win.
Actually, there is a less-than-exceptional circumstance in which a staring pitcher can go less than five innings and still get the win - if the game only lasts five innings, the starter can get the win if he pitches four innings. (Rule 10.19(a))
Zev Steinhardt
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### Author:  [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)
#### Post date: [May 31, 2005, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222/6 "2005-05-31T18:50:45Z")
This is a rare 4-winning win with a save tossed in.
[http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B10030SLN1999.htm](http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B10030SLN1999.htm)
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### Author:  [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2005, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-pitcher-who-gets-the-win-question/306222/7 "2005-06-07T20:29:35Z")
> [@Jonathan Chance](#):
>
> \*Example of exceptional circumstances: Following the 1990 lockout Spring training was reduced to 3 weeks instead of it’s normal 6 or more. For the first month of the season the commissioner dictated that starting pitchers needed to only pitch _three_ innings to qualify for the win.
BTW, that never went into effect.
Zev Steinhardt