From Tug McGraw to Brad Lidge to Jonathan Papelbon, the City of Brotherly Love has been home to some of the best relievers in MLB history. Philadelphia even has one of the best relievers in baseball right now: Jhoan Duran.
Among that iconic list is also Steve Bedrosian, who spent three-and-a-half years with the Philadelphia Phillies. On this day 39 years ago, the 29-year-old Bedrosian became the third Phillies player to earn the National League Cy Young Award.
Steve Bedrosian's 1987 season was among the best ever by a Phillies pitcher
Given Steve Carlton's run of dominance, capturing his fifth Cy Young Award just five years earlier, it was also the seventh time that a Phillie had earned the prestigious award.
Phillies all-time Cy Young Award winners
- Steve Carlton: 1972, 1977, 1980, 1980, 1982
- John Denny: 1983
- Steve Bedrosian: 1987
- Roy Halladay: 2010
In 1987, Bedrosian finished with a league-best 40 saves and boasted a 2.83 ERA in 65 appearances (89 innings). Bedrosian did not begin the year on a high note, either. In his first six outings, he allowed nine runs in 7.1 innings.
But then he went on a run, recording a save in 13 consecutive appearances from May 25 to June 30; Bedrosian surrendered one run over this 19.1-inning stretch. That streak earned him a spot on his first (and only) All-Star roster. He ended the year receiving MVP votes, too, placing 16th in the National League.
He became the sixth reliever in MLB history to win the Cy Young Award and the only Philadelphia representative to receive the award.
Relievers to win the Cy Young Award
- Mike Marshall, Dodgers: 1974
- Sparky Lyle, Yankees: 1977
- Bruce Sutter, Cubs: 1979
- Rollie Fingers, Brewers: 1981
- Willie Hernandez, Tigers: 1984
- Steve Bedrosian, Phillies: 1987
- Mark Davis, Padres: 1989
- Dennis Eckersley, Athletics: 1992
- Eric Gagne, Dodgers: 2003
The 1987 campaign was Bedrosian's second with the Phillies. During his tenure in Philly, he had 103 of his 184 career saves, the third-most in franchise history (Papelbon, 123; José Mesa, 112).
But you can't talk about the 1987 Cy Young Award without mentioning the other candidates. Because, in hindsight, Bedrosian had the worst Cy Young-winning season in MLB history. At the time, wins were a much more highly regarded statistic than they are today, and Rick Sutcliffe, who led the league in wins, had an ERA of 3.68. Nolan Ryan, meanwhile, led the league in ERA at 2.76 but finished with an 8-16 record, all but taking him out of the running. Thus, the NL Cy Young Award went to the NL's saves leader in Bedrosian, who finished the year with 2.3 rWAR.
The bearded righty would go on to have a respectable career, logging 921 total strikeouts in 14 seasons with the Phillies, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, and Minnesota Twins. But no season stood out quite like 1987 for him.
Bedrosian enjoyed baseball at its highest level, too, well after he retired. His son Cam pitched in the big leagues from 2014-21, which included his final season in Philadelphia. What a baseball life: winning a Cy Young award, then watching his son follow in his footsteps.
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