MLB Pitchers: 2000-2009 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Andy Pettitte

Andy Pettitte of the New York Yankees and Houston Astros led all Major League pitchers with 148 wins between 2000 and 2009. The lefty starter compiled a record of 148-89 during the decade. His best season during these years occurred in 2003 when he posted a record of 21-8 with the Yankees. The other three pitchers listed in this question all threw right-handed.

Answer: Randy Johnson

The Big Unit fanned 2182 batters during this decade. As a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Johnson led the National League four times in strikeouts between 2000 and 2009, including 372K's during the 2001 season. The other three pitchers listed in this question threw right-handed.

Answer: Mariano Rivera

Mariano Rivera, All-Star closer for the New York Yankees, had 397 saves, the most among all Major League relief pitchers between 2000 and 2009. "Mo" twice led the American League in saves, including a total of 53 saves in 2004. Rivera also compiled 26 postseason saves during that decade. Trevor Hoffman had 363 saves, Billy Wagner posted 284 saves, and Frankie Rodriguez saved 243 games from 2000 to 2009.

Answer: Roy Halladay

Roy Halladay of the Toronto Blue Jays, an outstanding righty starter, hurled 47 complete games and 14 shutouts, the most of any Major League pitcher between 2000 and 2009. This All-Star pitcher had an outstanding record of 139-69 for that decade. The other three pitchers listed in this question were left-handed.

Answer: Los Angeles Dodgers

Pedro Martinez compiled a record of 112-50 between 2000 and 2009 and had an impressive ERA of 3.01. Martinez pitched for three teams during that decade: the Red Sox (2000-2004), the Mets (2005-2008) and the Phillies (2009). However, Martinez never pitched for the Dodgers during the first decade of the 21st century. Martinez began his big league career with Los Angeles in 1992.

Answer: Tim Wakefield

Tim Wakefield of the Boston Red Sox was a versatile knuckleball pitcher. Wakefield was used mainly as a starter by the Bosox during that decade, winning 110 games. Wakefield also earned seven saves for Boston. The knuckleball is a notoriously difficult pitch to control, and Wakefield plunked over 100 hitters with the pitch. Presumably, the slow-moving knuckler didn't sting batters very much.

Answer: U.S. Cellular Field

Mark Buehrle, a lefty pitcher for the Chicago White Sox, hurled a 5-0 perfect game at Chicago's U.S. Cellular Field on July 23, 2009, against the Tampa Bay Rays. A crowd of about 28,000 fans witnessed the historic 5-0 Sox victory. Outfielder Dewayne Wise preserved the perfect game by making a spectacular catch against the U.S. Cellular fence in the ninth inning. Randy Johnson (2004) pitched the only other perfect game in the decade.

Answer: Jon Lester

Southpaw Boston starter Jon Lester hurled a no-hitter at Fenway Park in May 2008. Lester's performance against the Kansas City Royals in a 7-0 victory was amazing because the lefty had been diagnosed with cancer just two years earlier. The other three Boston pitchers in this question all threw right-handed.

Answer: David Weathers

David Weathers pitched in 713 Major League contests between 2000 and 2009, the most of any big league hurler. Weathers had 711 relief appearances, with just two starts during that decade. The well-traveled reliever earned 73 saves from 2000 to 2009. Weathers pitched for the Brewers, Cubs, Mets, Astros, Marlins and Reds during that 10-year period.

The other three pitchers listed in this question all threw left-handed.

Answer: Moyer pitched for the 2008 World Series champion Phillies

Moyer started Game Three of the World Series, pitching 6.1. innings against the Tampa Bay Rays. Moyer didn't get a decision in the game, but the Phillies won it, 5-4. Moyer's best season between 2000 and 2009 occurred in 2002 when he won 21 games for the Seattle Mariners. Moyer did not pitch a no-hitter during that decade, nor did he pitch for the New York Mets.