2011 DMBL Dennis Eckersley
Rolaids® Relief Pitcher of the Year Award

The prestigious Dennis Eckersley Award, named after the former Vancouver and Toledo star pitcher who dominated in the early 1990s, is given to the most astounding Relief Pitcher in the DMBL. A series of points are given to score a reliever's Eckersley standings. Two points are awarded for each save and each victory earned in relief and one point is subtracted for each blown save and each loss.

And the award goes to....

Matt Thornton, Philadelphia Endzone Animals

Matt ThorntonThornton, a 34-year-old lefthander, had been a setup man for his previous four seasons in the DMBL before finally being anointed the closer this year -- and boy did he respond! Thornton racked up 74 relief points and led the league in saves (38); he also was fourth in save percentage (.905). He had a 2.18 ERA, 9.1 R/9, struck out 78 batters in 66 innings, and most impressively, allowed just 1 home run all year. Thornton is just the second southpaw to win the Eck, following Billy Wagner way back in 2000. His 74 relief points are the 10th-most in a single season.

Finishing second with 67 relief points was Sardine City rookie Neftali Feliz, who picked up 30 saves with a microscopic 1.32 ERA and 7.7 R/9. The 23-year-old righthander was amazingly effective against lefties, allowing just 11 hits (10 singles, 1 double) in 127 AB -- .087 BA, .139 OBP, .094 SLG!... After back-to-back years as the runner-up, ageless wonder Mariano Rivera finished third this year with 65 relief points (but, of course, second in saves, with 34). The 41-year-old had a 1.62 ERA and 8.3 R/9... Rafael Soriano may have finished fourth in the Eck standings, but he can take some satisfaction in knowing that he set an all-time DMBL record! Soriano was nearly perfect with 29 saves in 30 opportunities for a .967 SV%, shattering the previous record of .946 set by Joey Devine in 2009.

Rounding out the top 10 were Las Vegas's Hong-Chi Kuo, Carolina's Heath Bell, Hoboken's Brian Wilson (acquired mid-season from the Sugar Bears), Vancouver's Joaquin Benoit, and in a tie, Blue Ridge's Jose Valverde and Vancouver's Brian Fuentes.

Final Relief Points Standings
Reliever ERA W SV  L BS Pts
Thornton,PHI
 2.18
 2
 38
 4
 2 74
Feliz,SAR
 1.32
 6
 30
 2
 3
 67
M.Rivera,MAR
 1.62
 2
 34
 2
 5
 65
R.Soriano,HIL
 1.64
 6
 29
 3
 3
 64
Kuo,LV
 1.73
 10
 22
 0 1
 63
H.Bell,CAR
 3.41
 0
 31
 5
 3
 54
B.Wilson,HBK/NWK
 3.66
 5
 26
 5
 5
 52
Benoit,VAN
 2.08 11
 16
 2
 3
 49
Valverde,BR
 2.08
 2
 21
 8 3
 35
Fuentes,VAN
 3.39
 5
 18
 7
 4
 35

The Eck Award has been presented 16 times through the years. (No award was given in 1991, 1992 or 1997, as blown save data wasn't available; no award was given in 1995 due to the strike.) Four relievers have won it twice.

PREVIOUS WINNERS OF THE ECK
YEAR PLAYER TEAM  W  SV  L BS PTS
2009 Thornton PHI 2
 38 4
 2
 74
2010 Wuertz SAR 4 50 6 3 99
2009 Devine NWK 5
 35 2
 2
 76
2008 Papelbon DC 4 31 3 3 64
2007 F.Rodriguez PHI 4 34 5 6 65
2006 F.Rodriguez PHI 4 34 5 5 66
2005 Isringhausen HBK 8 33 4 6 72
2004 Smoltz NWK 8 34 6 5 73
2003 Smoltz NWK 4 45 1 3 94
2002 Percival PHX 4 34 2 5 69
2001 M.Rivera STP 5 38 3 4 79
2000 B.Wagner VAN 6 41 4 4 86
1999 M.Rivera JER 9 35 4 8 76
1998 Wetteland NWK 5 34 2 3 73
1996 Wetteland NWK 13 7 5 3 32
1994 R.Beck ARK 12 11 6 5 35
1993 R.Hernandez VAN 12 11 2 6 38

Here's a look at the top seasons by closers in DMBL history:

TOP 10 RELIEF SEASONS OF ALL TIME
# PLAYER YEAR TEAM  W SV  L BS PTS
1 Wuertz 2010 SAR 4 50 6 3 99
2 Smoltz 2003 NWK 4 45  1 3 94
3 M.Rivera 2010 MAR 10 40 3 6 91
4 B.Wagner 2000 VAN 6 41 4 4 86
5 Nen 2003 BRK 3 41 4 4 80
6 M.Rivera 2001 STP 5 38 3 4 79
7 M.Rivera 2000 JER 14 27 2 3 77
8T M.Rivera 1999 JER 9 35 4 8 76
8T Devine 2009 NWK 5 35 2 2 76
10 Thornton 2011 PHI 2 38 4 2 73