A's Ace Mark Mulder ranks among game's elite pitchers: Oakland left-hander has been the majors' winningest hurler since the start of the 2001 season and through July 2004.

BY NEARLY ANY STANDARD, Mark Mulder is among the brightest of the starting pitchers in the major leagues. But the A's left hander didn't swagger into last July's All-Star game start for the American League thinking he ranks among baseball's pitching royalty.

"There are guys who have been doing it a lot longer and been a lot more successful," Mulder said. "You get a little nervous around those guys--'nervous' is the wrong way to put it. But just walking into the clubhouse is kind of intimidating."

Mulder lacks the big-name reputation of Randy Johnson, Curt Schilling or Roger Clemens. Although his years in the major leagues (five) fall short of the number of Cy Young Awards won by Clemens (six), Mulder has achieved more in recent seasons than almost any of his peers.

Since the start of the 2001 season, Mulder has won 69 games, more than any other major leaguer--including Schilling (65), Johnson (61) and Clemens (62). With a 14-3 record through August 1 this season, he was leading all major league pitchers in victories. Mulder paced the American League in complete games (four) and innings (155) and owned the league's fourth-best ERA (3.43).

But figures don't accurately reflect why Mulder made his second All-Star team in a row and was rivaling the game's top pitchers for supremacy. Talk to Mulder about the unofficial yet widely used statistic known as a "quality start"--three earned runs or fewer allowed in six innings or more--and he'll ridicule you. Talk to him about the quality of Oakland's ability to compete when he's on the mound, and you'll get a sense of what drives him.

"They make a big deal about quality starts. But if you go six innings and allow three runs, that's a 4.50 ERA. In reality, that's not a good thing," Mulder said. "But if you keep your team in the game and give them a chance to win each and every start, what could be better than that? That, to me, is my main goal."

For instance, one of ...