Todd:

 

This has come up a couple places I have seen lately - including Jason Stark - but I was wondering who you would rank as the best pitcher of this generation.  I have Clemens ahead of Maddux and then Pedro.  I think Pedro may have been the best at his peak but he does not have the longevity to match the other two.  You have given me a good description of how you rank the hitters using batting runs.  How does this translate to the guys on the mound and where would that put these guys versus each other and all time?

Thanks for helping with my baseball problem since I have yet to find a 12 step program to cure my addiction - not that I would attend if I did.

 

Keith:

 

For the pitcher's corollary to batting runs, I multiply IP by ERA+.  This is not nearly as good of a gauge as batting runs, but it does allow for an objective comparison between dominance and longevity, which, as you say, is particularly important for Pedro. 

 

I divide the product by three somewhat arbitrarily.  I do so to make it look kind of like DPOR, and also to indicate that this is not a precise measure.

 

Sample calculation: Roger Clemens - 4704 *.43 / 3 = 674.2

 

Clemens - 674.2

Maddux - 558.1

Pedro - 552.9

Randy - 503.2

 

So I agree with your assessment for right now, but given Pedro's age, he'll certainly approach Clemens by the end of his career.  If he does so while maintaining a winning percentage over .700, we'll have to start talking about Martinez being the best pitcher of all time.