baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

, a middle reliever, or middle relief pitcher, is a

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who pitches in the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher has been removed from the game due to fatigue (medical), fatigue, injury, ineffectiveness, ejection ...

who typically pitches during the fifth, sixth, and seventh

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other tea ...

s of a standard baseball game. In leagues with no

designated hitter The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. Unlike other players in a team's lineup, they generally only play as an offensive player and usually do not play defense as ...

, such as in the

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

before 2022 and the Japanese Central League, a middle reliever often comes in after the

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

has been pulled in favor of a

pinch hitter In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, A ...

. Middle-relief pitchers are usually tasked to pitch one, two, or three innings. Several factors determine this, such as who’s winning, the score, eligible

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...

pitchers remaining, the importance of the current game, etc. After the middle relief pitcher has completed his portion, they are normally replaced in later innings by a left/right-handed specialist, setup pitcher, and/or lastly a closer. When they’re replaced, it is partly due to deprivation of stamina and/or effectiveness but also characteristics, such as pitch arsenal, speed of pitches, which arm they throw with, and who’s up to bat next for the opposing team. Middle relievers may pitch in these later innings, especially during games tied or close in score.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Middle Relief Pitcher Pitching (baseball) Baseball strategy