The Lost Art of the HOLD

It's time to give the set-up men their own statistic again. Let's reinstate the Major League Hold. After all, ESPN still lists it in their box scores. Seriously though, something needs to be done, statistically speaking, to differentiate a set-up man from a specialist (in just to face one batter). In some cases, a Hold can be even more important than a save (in my opinion). Look at it this way, what situation would you rather have your best reliever pitch in? A ninth inning against a team's 7-8-9 hitters or in the 7th or 8th inning of a close game with the 3-4-5 hitters due up? Which scenario is more important? Unless you're facing the 2008 (don't laugh, wait until it gets warmer) Tigers, Indians or Yankees; I'd rather bring in my best RP to face the 3-4-5 hitters and then throw my second or third best RP for 9th inning clean up duty. By now, some of you might be asking, "What on God's green earth is a Hold anyway?". Well, according to Baseb...