Okay, so Opening Day won’t be quite the same. At least, it’s on the way.
How about a little Opening Day trivia, as we eagerly anticipate the first pitch the counts in the 2020 MLB season? Here are a half-dozen quick questions – and answers – followed by lots more Opening Day facts and figures. Mull them over a bit before you read on.
- Who was the first MLB pitcher to throw nine no-hit innings in an Opening Day start? Hint: It’s not the Feller you may be thinking of.
- Which player became a “victim of circumstance” and set an Opening Day single-game record by fanning five times? Hint: Well, it was against Randy Johnson, whose 107 career Opening Day strikeouts are an MLB record.
- Steve Carlton started 14 of the 15 Phillies’ Opening Day games from 1972 through 1986. The one year he missed cost him the record for consecutive Opening Day starts and consecutive Opening Day starts for the same team. Who was the pitcher who interrupted Carlton’s streak? Hint: Like Carlton, a lefty (and one who ought to be in the Hall of fame, but isn’t).
- Can you name the pitcher who holds the record for the most walks surrendered in an Opening Day game (11)? Hint, despite the 11 free passes, the opposition only scored three runs (two earned) off him in 11 innings.
- Which pitcher holds the mark for the most strikeouts in an Opening Day game? Kinda tossing you a curve on this one.
- Which player holds the record for the most hit-by-pitches in an Opening Day game – getting plunked three times? Hint: These pitches were to (Glenn) close for comfort.
Read on for the answers and more Opening Day facts and figures.
- Who was the first MLB pitcher to throw nine no-hit innings in an Opening Day start? Hint: It’s not the Feller you may be thinking of. Answer: Leon “Red” Ames.
On April 16, 1940, 21-year-old Bob Feller (already in his fifth MLB season) threw the first – and still only – Opening Day no-hitter in MLB history – topping the White Sox 1-0 in Chicago. It was the first no-hitter (of an eventual three) for Feller, who walked five and struck out eight. During the season, Feller would go on to lead the AL in wins (27), ERA (2.61), strikeouts (261), games pitched (43), games started (37), complete games (31), innings pitched (320 1/3) and shutouts (4).
Feller, however, is not the answer to this trivia question. Back on April 15, 1909 – as the Giants opened against the Superbas (Dodgers) in Brooklyn – Giants’ righty Red Ames started and, with just the minimum of support, could have made history. Ames held Brooklyn hitless for nine innings, but got nary a run of support from his batsmen. Ames finally gave up a hit with one out in the tenth and, while he kept the shutout going through the 12th inning, eventually lost 3-0 in 13 innings. How the game has changed: Both Ames and Brooklyn starter Irvin “Kaiser” Wilhelm went the distance. Ames, by the way, had a 17-season MLB career (1903-10), going 183-167, 2.63. His best season was 1905 (Giants), when he went 22-8, 2.74.
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- Which player became a “victim of circumstance” and set an Opening Day single-game record by fanning five times? Hint: Well, it was against Randy Johnson, whose 107 career Opening Day strikeouts are an MLB record. Answer: Ron Karkovice.
On March 31, 1996, White Sox’ catcher Ron Karkovice set an MLB Opening Day record by striking out five times as Chicago lost 3-2 in Seattle. Karkovice, however, may have been a victim of circumstance.
First, future Hall of Famer Randy Johnson started on the mound for the Mariners – striking out 14 in seven innings (including Karkovice three times).
Randy Johnson holds the record for the most career Opening Day strikeouts with 107 and for the most Opening games with double-digit strikeout totals (four).
Second, the White Sox could muster only two runs on four hits over the first nine innings – taking a slim 2-1 lead into the bottom of the ninth (at that point, Karkovice had fanned just three times).
Third, the Mariners tied the contest in the ninth, and the game went to 12 innings before the Mariners prevailed 3-2. In those three extra innings, Karkovice struck out against Norm Charlton (tenth inning) and Edwin Hurtado (twelfth inning) to set the Opening Day record.
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- Steve Carlton started 14 of the 15 Phillies’ Opening Day games from 1972 through 1986. The one year he missed cost him the record for consecutive Opening Day starts and consecutive opening Day starts for the same team. What pitcher interrupted Carlton’s streak? Hint: Like Carlton, a lefty (and one who ought to be in the Hall of fame, but isn’t. Answer: Jim Kaat.
In 1976, Jim Kaat- a three-time 20-game winner, and an All Star the year before – got the Opening Day nod from the Phillies. For those who may be wondering whether Carlton’s health played an issue in Kaat’s Opening Day start, Carlton started the second game of the season and went on to a 20-7 record in 35 starts. Side note: Kaat was not only a 283-game winner, but also a 16-time Gold Glover. Kaat pitched for the Phillies from 1976-79, putting up a 27-30, 4.23 record. He spent 15 of his 20 seasons with the Senators/Twins.
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- Can you name the pitcher who holds the record for the most walks surrenders in an Opening day game (11)? Hint, despite the 11 free passes, the opposition only scored three runs (two earned) off him in 11 innings. Answer: Herb Score.
On April 16, 1957, Cleveland southpaw Herb Score set the Opening Day record for pitcher’s walks, delivering eleven free passes to the visiting White Sox. Despite Score’s wildness, it was a close contest, with Score going the distance in a 3-2, 11-inning loss. Score struck out ten and gave up just seven hits and two earned runs – stranding 14 Chicago base runners.
Herb Score was the 1955 AL Rookie of the Year, when the 22-year-old lefty went 16-10. 2.85 and led the league in strikeouts with 245. In 1956, he was even better, going 20-9, 2.53 and again topping the league in whiffs (263). His 1957 season ended on May 7, when he was it in the face by a line drive off the bat of Yankee Gil McDougald. Score suffered a broken nose, as well as damage to is right cheek bone and right eye. He was hospitalized for about three weeks and did not return to the mound that season.
Score came back in 1958, but suffered an elbow injury early in the season (some wondered if he had changed his delivery after the McDougald incident, but Score denied that – and had been pitching well to that point). At any rate, from 1958 until he retired in 1962, Score was 17-26, 4.43.
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- What pitcher holds the mark for the most strikeouts in an Opening Day game? Hint: Kind of tossing you a curve on this one. Answer: Camilo Pascual.
On April 18, 1960, Camilo Pascual (known for his sweeping curve ball) took the mound at Griffith Stadium for the Washington Senators (against the Boston Red Sox). In 1959, the Senators had finished in last place in the AL, but Pascual had gone 17-10, 2.64, leading the league with 17 complete games and six shutouts. As the Senators’ Opening Day starter in 1960, Pascual picked up right where he left off – tossing a complete game three-hitter, walking three and striking out a still Opening Day record 15 batters in a 10-1 win over the Red Sox.
Pascual pitched 18 MLB seasons (1954-71), winning 174 and losing 170, with a 3.63 earned run average. He was a five-time All Star, two-time twenty-game winner and led the league in complete games, shutouts and strikeouts three times each.
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- Which player holds the record for the most hit-by-pitches on Opening Day – getting plunked three times? Hint: These pitches were too (Glenn) Close. Answer: Glenn Davis.
On April 9, 1990, Astros’ first baseman and cleanup hitter Glenn Davis was hit by a pitch an Opening Day record three times. Davis came to the plate six times and never put the ball in play – but still made only one out. Davis (who led the league in HBP that season with eight) was hit by a pitch three times, walked twice and struck out once as the Astros lost to the visiting Reds 8-4. Davis finished Opening Day with a batting average of .000, but an on-base percentage of .833.
Glenn Davis played 10 MLB seasons (1984-93), hitting .259, with 190 home runs and 603 RBI. He was hit buy a pitch 55 times.
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Now, let’s look at some additional Opening Day tidbits.
Let’s get this party started.
No pitcher started more Opening Day games than Hall of Famer Tom Seaver (16). Seaver opened for Mets eleven times, the Reds three times and for the White Sox twice. Seaver recorded seven wins, two losses and seven no decisions on Opening Day,
“They call him the streak.”
Hall of Famer Jack Morris holds the record for the most consecutive Opening Day starts at 14 (eleven for the Tigers, one for the Twins and two for the Blue Jays).
Rockin’ Roberts
Hall of Famer Robin Roberts, holds the record for the most consecutive Opening Day starts for the same team at 12 – for the Phillies from 1950-1961.
In the “How the Game has Changed” category, in the 1950’s (1950-59), Robin Roberts won 199 games and threw 3,011 2/3 innings – for an AVERAGE of 20 wins and 301 innings pitched per season.
Opening Day Starts – Gimme five!
Gaylord Perry was honored by the most teams with Opening Day starts. He started on Opening Day for an MLB-record five different teams (Giants, Indians, Rangers, Padres and Mariners).
The Longest Day – 15 Shutout Innings
On April 13, 1926, the Senators’ Walter Johnson pitched a 15-inning, complete-game shutout (six hits, three walks, nine strikeouts) as Washington topped the Philadelphia Athletics 1-0 in Washington. The opposing starter, Eddie Rommel tossed the second-most innings in an Opening Day appearance – going 14 1/3, as Washington scored the winning run with one out in the 15th. Johnson, by the way, was 38-years-old at the time.
U Can’t Touch This – 7-0 on Opening Day
Jimmy Key holds the record for Opening Day wins without a loss at seven – and he did in the minimum seven starts (Blue Jays, Yankees and Orioles). In those seven wins, he threw 44 1/3 innings, with a 3.05 ERA.
Knock Three Times – Most Home Runs in an Opening Day Game
The Opening Day, single-game record of three home runs is shared by four players – the Blue Jays’ George Bell, Cubs’ Tuffy Rhodes, Tigers’ Dmitri Young and White Sox’ Matt Davidson.
On April 4, 1988, George Bell – batting clean-up and serving as the DH – became the first major leaguer to hit three home runs in an Opening Day game, as his Blue Jays topped the Royals 5-3 in Kansas City. Bell’s power outburst was no surprise. He was coming off a 1987 season in which he hit 47 homers, drove in 134 runs and was the AL MVP. Bell went three-for-four with three runs scored and four RBI, hitting all three home runs off Royals’ starter Brett Saberhagen.
On a windy April 4, 1994, Karl “Tuffy” Rhodes (leading off and playing CF for the Cubs in Chicago) hit three solo shots off Mets’ starter Dwight Gooden. Rhodes also had a single and a walk in five plate appearances. Despite Rhodes’ record-tying performance, the Cubs lost to the visiting Mets 12-8. At the time, Rhodes had played 107 MLB games in four seasons – hitting a total of five home runs. His MLB career consisted of 225 games in six seasons, with a .224 average and just 13 round trippers (with a high of eight in 1994). Rhodes did go on to hit 474 home runs in eleven seasons in Japan.
On April 4, 2005 the Tigers’ Dmitri Young joined Bell and Rhodes on the list of batters with three home runs in an Opening Day game – as the Tigers topped the Royals 11-2 in Detroit. Young started at DH and went four-for-four with four runs and five RBI. Young, an All Star in 2003 and 2007, hit a total of 21 home runs in 2005 – and 171 in 13 MLB seasons. He hit a career-high 29 round trippers in 2003.
On March 29, 2018, as the White Sox topped the Royals 14-7 in Kansas City, DH and (appropriately) cleanup hitter Matt Davidson opened the season with a three-homer, five-RBI game. He went three-for-four with a walk, four runs scored and five RBI. Davidson went deep off three different pitchers: solo shots in the fourth and fifth off Danny Duffy and Blaine Boyer and a three-run blast in the eighth off Brian Flynn. Davidson, in his fourth MLB season, went on to a .228-20-62 campaign. In his 273 MLB games (2013, 1015-18), Davidson has just three multi-homer contests. and a total of 49 round trippers.
Bringing the boys home, sweet home
The Opening Day single-game record for RBI (seven) is shared by the Twins’ Brant Alyea and the Cubs’ Corey Patterson.
On April 7, 1970 – in his very first game as a Twin – LF Brant Alyea drove in an Opening Day record seven runs as Minnesota topped the White Sox 12-0 in Chicago. Batting fifth, Alyea went four-for-four, with two home runs, two singles and two runs scored. The game, it turned out, would foreshadow a strong April for Alyea. In 17 April games, he hit .415, with seven runs, 23 RBI, four doubles and five home runs.
On March 31, 2003, the Cubs’ CF Corey Patterson tied Alyea’s record. In a 15-2 win over the Mets in New York, Patterson, batting seventh, drove in seven runs, going four-for-six with two home runs and two runs scored.
Corey Patterson, a career .252 hitter (12 seasons), was a true Opening Day All Star. In seven Opening Day appearances, Patterson hit .440, with seven runs, 12 RBI and three home runs.
Eight is Enough
On Opening Day 2019 (March 28), as the Dodgers topped the Diamondbacks 12-5 in Los Angeles, the Californians launched an Opening Day record eight home runs (two by LF Joc Pederson, two by 2B Enrique Hernandez and one each by C Austin Barnes, SS Corey Seager, 1B Max Muncy and RF Cody Bellinger. Before the Dodger outburst, the Opening Day record for team long balls was six (1988 Mets and 2018 White Sox.)
Eight is also a career magic number for Opening Day. Frank Robinson, Ken Griffey, Jr. and Adam Dunn Share the career record for Opening Day home runs with eight each. Robinson’s were all hit in one-homer games, giving him the record for the most Opening Days with a home run.
BBRT KINGS OF OPENING DAY – IN THE BATTER’S BOX AND ON THE MOUND
Photo by Wicker Paradise 
Perhaps no one looked forward to Opening Day more than Ted Williams – the king of the Opening Day batter’s box. A career .344 hitter, Williams was even better on Opening Day. Teddy Ballgame played in fourteen “Openers” and was never held without a hit. He compiled a .449 Opening Day average (22 hits in 49 at bats), with three home runs, eight doubles, one triple, nine runs scored, 14 RBI and eleven walks. His Opening Day on-base percentage was .550 and his season-opener slugging percentage was .837. (Side note: The highest career Opening Day average – at least 50 Opening Day at bats – is .467 shared by Gabby Hartnett, Jeff Kent and Adrian Gonzalez.
Photo by The Library of Congress
The Washington Senators’ Walter Johnson can be crowned king of the Opening Day hill. On his first-ever Opening Day start (April 14, 1910), the 22-year-old Johnson tossed a 3-0 one-hit shutout against the Philadelphia Athletics. Sixteen years (and 13 Opening Day starts) later, a 38-year-old Johnson fulfilled his last Opening Day assignment with a 15-inning, complete-game, 1-0 win (6 hits, 3 walks, 9 strikeouts) over the A’s. Johnson holds the record for Opening Day pitching victories with nine (against five losses) and also threw a record seven Opening Day shutouts.
Primary Resources: Baseball-Reference.com, Stathead.com; Baseball-Almanac.com; MLB.com
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