Now on to relief pitchers and it's not surprising the majority of these season come before the Dennis Eckersley era of closers. In fact you won't find Eck or Mariano Rivera in the Top 20 but the list should give you a better appreciation for Dan Quisenberry. Maybe the most impressive season on the list though is by Eric Gagne's 2003 year as he did it in only 82 1/3 innings. Also reminds you how far he has fallen.

Top 20 Relief Pitcher Seasons since 1979 (per Win Shares)

1. Dan Quisenberry, 1983 - Kansas City Royals 27.8 Win Shares

Year Ag Tm  Lg  W   L   G   GS  CG SHO  GF SV   IP     H    R   ER   HR  BB   SO  HBP  WP  BFP  IBB   ERA  *ERA+ WHIP
+--------------+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+--+------+----+----+----+---+----+----+---+---+-----+---+---+-----+-----+----+-----+
1983 30 KCR AL   5   3  69   0   0   0  62 45  139.0  118   35   30   6   11   48   0   0   536   2   1.94   210 0.928

2. Eric Gagne, 2003 - Los Angeles Dodgers 25.0

3. Jim Kern, 1979 - Texas Rangers 24.9

4. Doug Corbett, 1980 - Minnesota Twins 24.0

5. Willie Hernandez, 1984 - Detroit Tigers 24.0

6. Dan Quisenberry, 1984 - Kansas City Royals 23.7

7. Dan Quisenberry, 1985 - Kansas City Royals 23.1

8. Bruce Sutter, 1984 - St. Louis Cardinals 23.0

9. Mike Marshall, 1979 - Minnesota Twins 22.7

10. Bruce Sutter, 1979 - Chicago Cubs 22.4

11. Jeff Montgomery, 1993 - Kansas City Royals 22.3

12. Bob James, 1985 - Chicago White Sox 21.8

13. Dan Quisenberry, 1982 - Kansas City Royals 21.5

14. John Wetteland, 1993 - Montreal Expos 21.4

15. Keith Foulke, 2003 - Oakland A's 21.4

16. Mark Eichhorn, 1986 - Toronto Blue Jays 21.0

17. Jeff Shaw, 1997 - Cincinnati Reds 20.9

18. Sid Monge, 1979 - Cleveland Indians 20.8

19. Greg Minton, 1982 - San Francisco Giants 20.7

20. Bob Stanley, 1983 - Boston Red Sox 20.7