Q. and A. With Dennis Eckersley Dennis Eckersley earned his Hall of Fame credentials as a pitcher capable of dominating both the start and finish of games. Eckersley is one of only two pitchers in major league history to have both a 20-win season and a 50-save season. For his career, he had 197 wins and 390 saves pitching for the Oakland Athletics, the Boston Red Sox, the Cleveland Indians, the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals. As a member of the Athletics in 1992, Eckersley became the ninth pitcher in history to win the Cy Young and most Most Valuable Player awards in the same season. He helped the Athletics win four American League West titles, three A.L. pennants and the 1989 World Series. Eckersley was named the A.L. Championship Series most valuable player in 1988. He threw a no-hitter against the California Angels in 1977. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2004. Eckersley, 58, is a baseball analyst for TBS. The network will televise the A.L. wild-card tiebreaker, the National League and A.L. wild-card games, up to 20 N.L. and A.L. division series games and the N.L. championship series. What teams will meet in the World Series and who is your choice to win it? Dodgers versus the Red Sox. I pick the Red Sox. What player do you think will have a big postseason? Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers. I think his dominance will continue in the postseason. Do you consider Mariano Rivera the greatest closer ever? Goose Gossage (link: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/sports/baseball/07seconds.html) has said Rivera is the best modern-day closer although he didn't pitch multiple innings as many relievers did in the past. Yes, I think he's the greatest of all time. No one has or ever will have his dominance and consistency. He never had a bad year. What also puts him over the top is his postseason success. That will never be duplicated, ever. Would you advise Matt Harvey to have Tommy John surgery or try to rehab instead? He should have the surgery. He should fix it once and for all. You don't want to have a lingering problem and risk losing or wasting more time. Should players who used performance-enhancing drugs make the Hall of Fame? No, but the larger jury of baseball writers will make the ultimate conclusion. Do you like the expanded use of replay? I like the expanded use of replays. You'd be surprised at the amount of plays that would have been changed. Let's get it right. You started and closed. The Reds have thought about making Aroldis Chapman, their star closer, a starter. What are your thoughts? Don't mess with success. His velocity may go down as a starter and make starting more difficult. Stick with closing. Who do think is a pitcher that will have a big year in 2014? Jose Fernandez with the Miami Marlins. He already had a great coming-out year, and I expect an even greater year next year. Game on the line, what hitter did you not want to face? George Brett. He was the greatest gap-to-gap hitter I ever faced. Your favorite memory? Catching the ball in my glove for the last out of the 1989 Bay Bridge World Series. It was extra special because it was my only World Series win. I was born and raised in the Bay Area, growing up a San Francisco Giants fan and then had the best years of my career with the Oakland A's. Any regrets? Does the pitch to Kirk Gibson give you any hints of my regrets? If you were not a baseball player, what career would you have chosen? Hollywood (laughs).