9 Hall of Famers who you might have forgotten were Cardinals

Dennis Eckersley

It's not often that a player makes the Hall of Fame based on his achievements after age 30, but Dennis Eckersley defied the odds, as he transitioned from an above-average starting pitcher to a lights-out closer at age 32.

Eckersley spent the first three years of his career in Cleveland, starting 87 games and holding a 3.23 ERA for the Indians. Despite his strong performance and an All-Star appearance in 1977, the team's front office reportedly had concerns about his aggressive sidearm delivery and worried that it would lead to arm issues. They traded Eckersley to the Boston Red Sox, where he pitched six and a half season. The arm problems that the Indians' front office feared cropped up in 1979, and he lost some of his effectiveness over the rest of his time in Boston.

The Red Sox sent Eckersley to the unexpectedly successful Chicago Cubs in 1984, and he stabilized their rotation during that season's stretch run, but the Cubs lost in the NLCS. After a poor season in 1986 for both Eckersley and the Cubs, Chicago traded the sidewinder to the Oakland Athletics, and that was where his career truly blossomed.

Eckersley's evolution in Oakland involved some names that are near and dear to Cardinals fans. Manager Tony La Russa decided to dispatch Eckersley to the bullpen and, in the process, become one of the first skippers to popularize the concept of the single-inning closer.

La Russa credited another eventual Cardinals legend with the idea of making Eckersley a closer. The Athletics' pitching coach at the time was Dave Duncan, who would eventually earn a reputation with the Cardinals as one of the greatest pitching coaches of all time. Duncan opined that Eckersley's bulldog attitude was perfect for the bullpen and that the shift would be less taxing on his arm.

In 1988, Eckersley's first full season at the back of bullpen, he led the major leagues with 45 saves, although his year ended on a sour note, as he surrendered Kirk Gibson's stunning walk-off home run in Game 1 of the World Series en route to a Dodgers title. He and Oakland got over the hump in 1989, sweeping the San Francisco Giants. Eckersley earned the save to close out the series.

Eckersley had an eye-popping season in 1990, surrendering only nine earned runs in 73.1 innings, good for an 0.61 ERA, and he closed for Oakland for five more seasons. including an MVP year in 1992, where he also won the Cy Young Award.

In 1996, La Russa departed for the Cardinals, and Eckersley soon followed. The Cardinals were able to arrange the deal so that Oakland would be on the hook for $700,000 of Eckersley's $2.2 million salary, while the Cardinals would pay $500,000, and Eckersley would defer the remaining $1 million to the following season.

Eckersley replaced another strong Cardinals closer in Tom Henke, who had just retired following an All-Star season with 37 saves. Eckersley's 30-save season helped the Cardinals notch a division championship in his first season with the team, and he added 36 more saves to the pile in 1997, at age 42. Eckersley signed as a free agent with the Red Sox in 1998 and retired after that season.

Eckersley was one of many projects whom La Russa and Duncan can point to in their years of magic together. Although the Cardinals weren't where Eckersley shone brightest, he still racked up 66 saves and a 3.58 ERA over his two seasons. Not bad for a guy in his 40s.