A World Series title in 2005 where he became the first pitcher to start and save consecutive fall classic games, a no-hitter in 2007, the 18th perfect game in MLB history today, a four-time all star, 133 wins and counting.
The White Sox' Mark Buehrle is a crafty left-hander whose fastball tops off at about 90 mph. He has a cutter and a change-up that move pretty well, but he is in no means a strike-out pitcher. This can be still a quality arm in the big leagues, but Buehrle has turned this into a historic career.
If he stays healthy, which he has about his whole career, the 30-year-old should have about another ten years left. He his in his ninth full year now and still acts like a kid enjoying every minute of the game. The guy does not get tired due to his smooth delivery, and he is a workhorse, good for at least six innings about every night. There is no reason he cannot continue doing that for about another decade. I see him getting about 10 wins a season the next six years, which would give him 200 for a career.
When you mix all the other accomplishments with at least 200 wins, I see nothing that would take him away from the hall-of-fame. The all-star has done everything this season including hit a home run. It is hard to call Buehrle a hall-of-fame pitcher because you would not classify him as being dominating. Yet he still baffles hitters and is on pace for the best season of his career this year.
The Rays did not have any hard-hit balls today until the crazy catch by Dewayne Wise in centerfield. By the way, manager Ozzie Guillen knows what he is doing, putting Wise in for the 9th inning. Buehrle hardly had any reaction, on the outside, following that catch and just went about his business. He had a three-ball count on the batter after the ultimate web gem and found a way to make the clutch pitch.
Buehrle was born in the "Gateway to the West." The Chicago White Sox may become his "Gateway to Cooperstown."
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