On this date (April 9) in 1990, Houston Astros’ first baseman and cleanup hitter Glenn Davis got his season off to a bruising start. It was Opening Day – Yes, they opened the season as late as April 9 back then. – and the Astros were hosting the Reds. Davis came to the plate six times and it appears the Reds wanted little to do with him. Here’s how his day went:
– Bottom of the second inning – Hit by pitch (Tom Browning)
– Third inning – Hit by pitch (Browning)
– Fifth inning – Five-pitch walk (Tim Layana)
– Seventh inning – Strikeout on three pitches (Norm Charlton)
– Ninth inning – Intentional walk (Rob Dibble)
– Eleventh inning – Hit by pitch (Randy Myers)
Astros’ first baseman Glenn Davis set an Opening Day record and tied an overall MLB record by getting hit by a pitch three times in a single game. He was the 11th MLB player to be hit three times in a contest – a number that has since risen to 28. He is still the only three-time Opening Day victim. Davis, by the way, led the NL in HBP that season with eight.
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IS THAT ALL YOU’VE GOT? I’M STANDING RIGHT HERE!
Seven players share the record for getting hit by a pitch in a single inning – TWICE.
- Reds’ pitcher Willard Smith – April 26, 1959 … Third inning by Milwaukee Braves’ pitchers Lew Burdette and Bob Rush.
- Mets’ LF Frank Thomas – April 29, 1962 … Fourth inning by the Phillies’ Art Mahaffey and Frank Sullivan.
- Rockies’ 1B Andres Galarraga – July 12, 1996 … Seventh inning by the Padres’ Bryce Florie and Willie Blair.
- Orioles’ CF Brady Anderson – May 23, 1999 … First inning, both times by the Rangers’ Mike Morgan.
- Giants’ RF Jose Guillen – September 23, 2010 … Second inning, both times by the Cubs’ Ryan Dempster.
- Cubs’ CF David DeJesus – June 18, 2012 … Seventh inning by the White Sox’ Will Ohman and Hector Santiago.
- A’s LF Brandon Moss – April 25, 2014 … Ninth inning by the Astros’ Josh Fields and Anthony Bass.
Takng One for Team
Nobody led his league in being hit by a pitch more times than Minnie Minoso, who topped the American League in “plunkings” ten times in a 17-season MLB career (12 seasons of 100 or more games played). The seven-time All Star lead the AL in hit by pitch in 1951, 1952-54 and 1956-61.
ALL TIME HIT-BY-PITCH RECORDS
Career – Top Five
Hughie Jennings – 287
Craig Biggio – 285
Tommy Tucker – 272
Don Baylor – 267
Jason Kendall – 254
Single Season – Top Five
Hughie Jennings – 51 (1896)
Ron Hunt – 50 (1971)
Hughie Jennings – 46 (1897)
Hughie Jennings – 46 (1898)
Dan McGann -39 (1896)
Southpaw Phil Knell, pitching for the American Association Columbus Solons, holds the all-time MLB single-season record for hit batsmen – plunking 54 hitters in 462 innings in 1891. Knell went 28-27, 2.92 that year and led the AA in shutouts with five.
Right-hander Gus Weyhing – who pitched in the American Association 1887-89 and 1891); the Players League (1890) and the National League (1892-1896 and 1898-1901) holds the all-time major-league career record for hit batsmen with 277. Notably, he led his league in HBP in only two of his 14 MLB seasons – the first two. In his first three campaigns, Weyhing hit 113 batters, 41 percent of his career total. In those first three seasons, he also threw 142 of his career 240 wild pitches (59 percent of his career total).
Since 1900, there have been eight seasons in which a batter had been hit by a pitch 30 or more times – and, in just one of those campaigns, two batters reached the 30+ mark.
1910 – Steve Evans, Cardinals … 31 HBP
1972 – Ron Hunt, Expos … 50 HBP
1986 – Don Baylor, Red Sox … 35 HBP
1997 – Craig Biggio, Astros … 34 HBP
1997 – Jason Kendall, Pirates … 31 HBP
1998 – Jason Kendall, Pirates … 31 HBP
2004 – Craig Wilson, Pirates … 30 HBP
2015 – Anthony Rizzo, Cubs … 30 HBP
2016 – Brandon Guyer, Indians/Rays … 31 HBP
Ron Hunt led his league in Hit By Pitch in an MLB record seven straight seasons … 1968-74.
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