What years did Joe Nathan play?

Joe Nathan played in Major League Baseball from 1999 to 2016.

Was Joe Nathan a pitcher?

Yes. Joe Nathan pitched in the major leagues, recording 64 wins and 976 strikeouts.

How many home runs did Joe Nathan hit?

Joe Nathan hit 2 career home runs with 10 hits.

What teams did Joe Nathan play for?

Joe Nathan played for 5 teams: the San Francisco Giants (1999–2000, 2002–2003, 2016), the Minnesota Twins (2004–2009, 2011), the Texas Rangers (2012–2013), the Detroit Tigers (2014–2015), and the Chicago Cubs (2016).

Did Joe Nathan win a Cy Young Award?

No. Joe Nathan did not win the Cy Young Award.

What awards did Joe Nathan win?

Joe Nathan was selected to 6 All-Star Games.

What were Joe Nathan's career stats?

In 787 games, Joe Nathan went 64-34 with a 2.87 ERA, 976 strikeouts, 923.1 innings pitched, and 377 saves.

What was Joe Nathan's salary?

Joe Nathan's last recorded salary was $10,000,000, in 2015. His highest recorded salary was $11,250,000, in 2009, and his lowest was $200,000, in 1999. The Salary History table lists each season from 1999 to 2015.

What position did Joe Nathan play?

Joe Nathan played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.

How tall was Joe Nathan and how much did he weigh?

Joe Nathan was listed at 6 feet 4 inches and 230 pounds.

What was Joe Nathan's career ERA?

Joe Nathan finished with a 2.87 career ERA, going 64-34 with 976 strikeouts.

How many strikeouts did Joe Nathan have?

Joe Nathan recorded 976 career strikeouts.

Is Joe Nathan in the Hall of Fame?

No. Joe Nathan has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Joe Nathan

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1999-2016)

Joe Nathan was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1999 to 2016 for 5 teams, including the San Francisco Giants, a span of 18 seasons. Across 787 career appearances, he went 64-34 with a 2.87 ERA, 976 strikeouts, and 377 saves. Joe Nathan was a 6-time All-Star. His career Pitcher PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of pitching impact — is 22319.3.

W (Wins):: Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):: Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):: For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):: Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated October 15, 2026

W–L 64–34

ERA 2.87

WHIP 1.12

SO 976

Pitcher PIV 22319.3

Position: Pitcher
Bats / Throws: R / R
Height / Weight: 6'4" / 230 lb
Born: 11/22/1974 in Houston, TX, USA
MLB Debut: 1999-04-21
Last Game: 2016-09-27
Awards: 6× All-Star

Full name: Joseph Michael Nathan

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Career Pitching Statistics

Joe Nathan — Career Pitching Statistics
W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
64	34	787	29	0	0	377	923.1	690	294	84	344	976	2.87	22319.3

Career ERA 2.87 vs. league average 4.27 across their career seasons — 32.8% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Joe Nathan Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1999	SFN	NL	7	4	19	14	1	90.1	84	42	46	54	4.18	4.71 (+11%)	-2794.3
2000	SFN	NL	5	2	20	15	0	93.1	89	54	63	61	5.21	4.77 (-9%)	-2059.1
2002	SFN	NL	0	0	4	0	0	3.2	1	0	0	2	0.00	—	0.0
2003	SFN	NL	12	4	78	0	0	79.0	51	26	33	83	2.96	4.40 (+33%)	1907.7
2004	MIN	AL	1	2	73	0	44	72.1	48	13	23	89	1.62	4.46 (+64%)	4221.4
2005	MIN	AL	7	4	69	0	43	70.0	46	21	22	94	2.70	4.29 (+37%)	3701.7
2006	MIN	AL	7	0	64	0	36	68.1	38	12	16	95	1.58	4.53 (+65%)	4926.0
2007	MIN	AL	4	2	68	0	37	71.2	54	15	19	77	1.88	4.47 (+58%)	3308.1
2008	MIN	AL	1	2	68	0	39	67.2	43	10	18	74	1.33	4.32 (+69%)	2627.2
2009	MIN	AL	2	2	70	0	47	68.2	42	16	22	89	2.10	4.32 (+51%)	2512.4
2011	MIN	AL	2	1	48	0	14	44.2	38	24	14	43	4.84	3.94 (-23%)	-376.0
2012	TEX	AL	3	5	66	0	37	64.1	55	20	13	78	2.80	4.01 (+30%)	2005.7
2013	TEX	AL	6	2	67	0	43	64.2	36	10	22	73	1.39	3.87 (+64%)	2631.4
2014	DET	AL	5	4	62	0	35	58.0	60	31	29	54	4.81	3.74 (-29%)	-292.8
2015	DET	AL	0	0	1	0	1	0.1	0	0	0	1	0.00	—	0.0
2016	CHN	NL	1	0	3	0	0	2.0	2	0	2	4	0.00	—	0.0
2016	SFN	NL	1	0	7	0	0	4.1	3	0	2	5	0.00	—	0.0
Career · 17 seasons			64	34	787	29	377	923.1	690	294	344	976	2.87	—	22,319

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Career Batting Statistics

Joe Nathan — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
787	63	4	10	3	0	2	4	0	3	17	.159	.194	.302	.496	0

Career AVG .159 vs. league average .262 across their career seasons — 39.3% below league average.

Career OBP .194 vs. league average .329 across their career seasons — 41.1% below league average.

Career SLG .302 vs. league average .416 across their career seasons — 27.5% below league average.

Career OPS .496 vs. league average .745 across their career seasons — 33.5% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Joe Nathan Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1999	SFN	NL	19	28	1	5	1	0	1	2	6	.179	—	—	—	—	0.0
2000	SFN	NL	20	32	3	5	2	2	3	1	9	.156	—	—	—	—	0.0
2002	SFN	NL	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2003	SFN	NL	78	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2004	MIN	AL	73	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2005	MIN	AL	69	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2006	MIN	AL	64	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2007	MIN	AL	68	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2008	MIN	AL	68	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2009	MIN	AL	70	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2011	MIN	AL	48	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2012	TEX	AL	66	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2013	TEX	AL	67	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2014	DET	AL	62	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2015	DET	AL	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2016	CHN	NL	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
2016	SFN	NL	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
Career · 17 seasons			787	63	4	10	3	2	4	3	17	.159	—	—	—	—	0

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Joe Nathan — Playoff Career Batting
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
10	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Joe Nathan — Playoff Batting by Year
Year	Round	Team	G	AVG
2014	ALDS2	DET	1	.000
2012	ALWC	TEX	1	.000
2009	ALDS1	MIN	2	.000
2006	ALDS2	MIN	1	.000
2004	ALDS2	MIN	3	.000
2003	NLDS1	SFN	2	.000

Playoff Career Pitching

Joe Nathan — Playoff Career Pitching
W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
0	2	10	0	1	10.0	14	9	8	12	8.10

Playoff Pitching by Year

Joe Nathan — Playoff Pitching by Year
Year	Round	Team	L	G	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
2014	ALDS2	DET	0	1	0	1.0	0	0	0	1	0.00
2012	ALWC	TEX	0	1	0	1.0	2	2	1	1	18.00
2009	ALDS1	MIN	0	2	0	2.0	5	2	1	2	9.00
2006	ALDS2	MIN	0	1	0	0.2	1	0	0	1	0.00
2004	ALDS2	MIN	1	3	1	5.0	2	2	5	6	3.60
2003	NLDS1	SFN	1	2	0	0.1	4	3	1	1	81.00

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (1570 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Joe Nathan — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	422	27	2	6	1	2	.222
Away	363	36	2	4	1	2	.111

Pitching — Home / Away

Joe Nathan — Pitching — Home / Away
Split	G	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
Home	422	495.2	339	135	175	547	2.45
Away	363	425.2	348	159	169	427	3.36

Last 10 Games — Pitching

Joe Nathan — Last 10 Games — Pitching
Date	Tm	Opp	Dec	IP	H	BB	SO
2016-09-27	SFG	COL	—	0.1	0	0	1
2016-09-23	SFG	SDP	—	1.0	0	0	1
2016-09-18	SFG	STL	—	0.1	0	0	0
2016-09-14	SFG	SDP	—	0.2	0	2	1
2016-09-09	SFG	AZ	W	1.0	1	0	1
2016-09-07	SFG	COL	—	0.0	2	0	0
2016-09-04	SFG	CHC	—	1.0	0	0	1
2016-07-31	CHC	SEA	—	0.0	1	1	0
2016-07-26	CHC	CHW	—	1.0	0	0	1
2016-07-24	CHC	MIL	W	1.0	1	1	3

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Joe Nathan — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
P	787	29	50	82	7	6

Season-by-Season Fielding

Joe Nathan — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1999	SFN	P	19	14	3	11	0	0
2000	SFN	P	20	15	8	11	0	0
2002	SFN	P	4	0	0	2	0	0
2003	SFN	P	78	0	4	5	0	1
2004	MIN	P	73	0	1	6	0	1
2005	MIN	P	69	0	2	6	1	0
2006	MIN	P	64	0	3	5	2	1
2007	MIN	P	68	0	1	3	1	0
2008	MIN	P	68	0	3	6	1	1
2009	MIN	P	70	0	5	6	1	1
2011	MIN	P	48	0	5	4	0	0
2012	TEX	P	66	0	3	4	1	1
2013	TEX	P	67	0	5	7	0	0
2014	DET	P	62	0	6	6	0	0
2015	DET	P	1	0	0	0	0	0
2016	CHN	P	3	0	0	0	0	0
2016	SFN	P	7	0	1	0	0	0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Joe Nathan Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
Pitcher	787

Awards & Honors

Joe Nathan — Awards & Honors
Year	Award	Notes
2013	Reliever of the Month	June
2009	Reliever of the Month	June
2008	Reliever of the Month	July
2006	Reliever of the Month	July
2005	Player of the Week	Week of 2005-07-02
2005	TSN All-Star	RP
2004	Player of the Week	Week of 2004-05-15
2004	TSN Reliever of the Year

Salary History

Joe Nathan's recorded salaries total $86,015,000 over 15 seasons, 1999 to 2015. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Nathan's career ran from 1999 to 2016. No salary is recorded for 2002 and 2016.

Joe Nathan — Salary History
Year	Team	League	Salary
2015	DET	AL	$10,000,000
2014	DET	AL	$9,000,000
2013	TEX	AL	$8,000,000
2012	TEX	AL	$7,000,000
2011	MIN	AL	$11,250,000
2010	MIN	AL	$11,250,000
2009	MIN	AL	$11,250,000
2008	MIN	AL	$6,000,000
2007	MIN	AL	$5,250,000
2006	MIN	AL	$3,750,000
2005	MIN	AL	$2,100,000
2004	MIN	AL	$440,000
2003	SFN	NL	$300,000
2000	SFN	NL	$225,000
1999	SFN	NL	$200,000
Total recorded salary (partial)			$86,015,000

College History

Joe Nathan — College History
School Name	City	State	Years Attended
Stony Brook University	Stony Brook	NY	1993, 1994, 1995

Award Voting History

Joe Nathan — Award Voting History
Year	Award	League	Finish	Points Won	Points Max
2006	Cy Young Award	AL	5th	3.0	140
2006	Most Valuable Player	AL	18th	6.0	392
2004	Cy Young Award	AL	4th	1.0	140
2004	Most Valuable Player	AL	12th	12.0	392

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Joe Nathan (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

Compare Joe Nathan

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Joe Nathan: the record in brief

Between the debut on April 21, 1999 and the final game on September 27, 2016, Joe Nathan built the record summarized on this page. The team column moves through the San Francisco Giants (1999 through 2016), the Minnesota Twins (2004 to 2011), the Texas Rangers (2012 through 2013), the Detroit Tigers (2014 to 2015), and the Chicago Cubs (2016). Born on November 22, 1974, in Houston, TX, USA, Nathan is listed as a pitcher and threw and hit right-handed. Nathan's listed size is 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds. Joe Nathan was the playing name; the full given name is Joseph Michael.

The pitching table credits Nathan with a 64-34 record and a 2.87 ERA in 787 games. Also on Nathan's record: 976 strikeouts and 377 saves. Against a 4.27 league ERA for the same years, Nathan was 32.8% better. The best win total was 12, in 2003. The strikeout high was 95 in 2006. Nathan saved 47 games in 2009, the season high.

Frequently Asked Questions about Joe Nathan

What years did Joe Nathan play?: Joe Nathan played in Major League Baseball from 1999 to 2016.
Was Joe Nathan a pitcher?: Yes. Joe Nathan pitched in the major leagues, recording 64 wins and 976 strikeouts.
How many home runs did Joe Nathan hit?: Joe Nathan hit 2 career home runs with 10 hits.
What teams did Joe Nathan play for?: Joe Nathan played for 5 teams: the San Francisco Giants (1999–2000, 2002–2003, 2016), the Minnesota Twins (2004–2009, 2011), the Texas Rangers (2012–2013), the Detroit Tigers (2014–2015), and the Chicago Cubs (2016).
Did Joe Nathan win a Cy Young Award?: No. Joe Nathan did not win the Cy Young Award.
What awards did Joe Nathan win?: Joe Nathan was selected to 6 All-Star Games.
What were Joe Nathan's career stats?: In 787 games, Joe Nathan went 64-34 with a 2.87 ERA, 976 strikeouts, 923.1 innings pitched, and 377 saves.
How much did Joe Nathan earn in his career?: Joe Nathan's recorded salaries total $86,015,000 over 15 seasons, 1999 to 2015. This total is partial: the salary data covers 1985 to 2016, and Nathan's career ran from 1999 to 2016. No salary is recorded for 2002 and 2016.
What was Joe Nathan's salary?: Joe Nathan's last recorded salary was $10,000,000, in 2015. His highest recorded salary was $11,250,000, in 2009, and his lowest was $200,000, in 1999. The Salary History table lists each season from 1999 to 2015.
What position did Joe Nathan play?: Joe Nathan played primarily as a pitcher, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Joe Nathan and how much did he weigh?: Joe Nathan was listed at 6 feet 4 inches and 230 pounds.
What was Joe Nathan's career ERA?: Joe Nathan finished with a 2.87 career ERA, going 64-34 with 976 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did Joe Nathan have?: Joe Nathan recorded 976 career strikeouts.
Is Joe Nathan in the Hall of Fame?: No. Joe Nathan has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.