+ - Indicates Hall of Famer. Bold indicates active player.
Statistic Description: Defensive Games PlayedGames played at this position.
Minimum of 1000 IP, 3000 PA, 500 games (fielding), 200 stolen base attempts (catchers) or 80 stolen base attempts (baserunners only since 1951) or 100 decisions for career and active leaderboards for rate statistics.
| Rank | Player (yrs, age) | Def. Games as P | Throws |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Mariano Rivera (19, 43) | 1079 | R |
| 2. | LaTroy Hawkins (19, 40) | 900 | R |
| 3. | Kyle Farnsworth (15, 37) | 835 | R |
| 4. | Octavio Dotel (15, 39) | 758 | R |
| 5. | Darren Oliver (20, 42) | 736 | L |
| 6. | Francisco Rodriguez (12, 31) | 695 | R |
| 7. | Derek Lowe (17, 40) | 681 | R |
| 8. | J.C. Romero (14, 37) | 680 | L |
| 9. | Joe Nathan (13, 38) | 677 | R |
| 10. | Dennys Reyes (15, 36) | 673 | L |
| 11. | Miguel Batista (18, 42) | 658 | R |
| 12. | Jeremy Affeldt (12, 34) | 649 | L |
| 13. | Rafael Betancourt (11, 38) | 625 | R |
| 14. | Chad Qualls (10, 34) | 624 | R |
| 15. | Jamey Wright (18, 38) | 622 | R |
| 16. | Jose Valverde (11, 35) | 604 | R |
| 17. | Javier Lopez (11, 35) | 589 | L |
| Dan Wheeler (13, 35) | 589 | R | |
| 19. | Matt Thornton (10, 36) | 579 | L |
| 20. | Joe Beimel (11, 36) | 567 | L |
| 21. | Brandon Lyon (12, 33) | 566 | R |
| 22. | Ryan Dempster (16, 36) | 561 | R |
| 23. | Jon Rauch (11, 34) | 556 | R |
| 24. | Jason Frasor (10, 35) | 551 | R |
| 25. | Luis Vizcaino (11, 38) | 543 | R |
| 26. | Heath Bell (10, 35) | 537 | R |
| 27. | Shawn Camp (10, 37) | 532 | R |
| Kevin Gregg (11, 35) | 532 | R | |
| 29. | J.J. Putz (11, 36) | 528 | R |
| 30. | Jesse Crain (10, 31) | 527 | R |
| 31. | Scott Downs (12, 37) | 525 | L |
| Fernando Rodney (11, 36) | 525 | R | |
| 33. | Andy Pettitte (18, 41) | 512 | L |
| 34. | Matt Guerrier (10, 34) | 510 | R |
| 35. | Joaquin Benoit (12, 35) | 504 | R |
| 36. | Luis Ayala (9, 35) | 502 | R |
| 37. | Randy Choate (13, 37) | 501 | L |
| 38. | Jonathan Papelbon (9, 32) | 492 | R |
| 39. | Ryan Madson (9, 32) | 491 | R |
| 40. | Carlos Marmol (8, 30) | 482 | R |