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Mark Melancon earns 50th save in Pirates' 10,000th NL win

Doug Pensinger / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Mark Melancon is having a historic season for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The closer record a 1-2-3 ninth inning Thursday against the Colorado Rockies to become the first Pirates closer ever to record 50 saves in a season.

The feat has only been accomplished 15 times since saves became an official statistic in 1969.

RANK PLAYER SAVES YEAR
1 Francisco Rodriguez 62 2008
2 Bobby Thigpen 57 1990
3 Eric Gagne 55 2003
T-3 John Smoltz 55 2002
5 Trevor Hoffman 53 1998
T-5 Randy Myers 53 1993
T-5 Mariano Rivera 53 2004
8 Eric Gagne 52 2002
9 Rod Beck 51 1998
T-9 Dennis Eckersley 51 1992
T-9 Jim Johnson 51 2012
12  Mark Melancon 50 2015
T-12 Jim Johnson 50 2013
T-12 Craig Kimbrel 50 2013
T-12 Mariano Rivera 50 2001

With nine games remaining, Melancon can't mathematically challenge Rodriguez's record of 62 saves in a single season, but he can rocket himself up the list considerably.

The Pirates earned their 10,000th win since joining the National League in 1887 by edging the Rockies 5-4. They're now fifth all-time in NL wins, behind the San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, and Los Angeles Dodgers.

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