Baseball Roundtable

With Opening Day 2026 upon us, I find myself (as always) looking forward to the months ahead and  reflecting on why I love baseball.  With that in mind, I’ll dedicate this post to a review/update of the ten top (plus one) reasons I love the national pastime – and also include links (at the end of this post) to posts on the topic of “Why I Love Baseball” from  guest writers ranging from Grammy nominee Leonard Eckhaus to 2013 MLB Draft sixth-round pick John Michael Murphy to sportswriter and author Larry LaRue.

Let’s start with Baseball Roundtable’s reasons to love the national pastime.

1.  Baseball comes along every spring, accompanied by sunshine and optimism.

Baseball is the harbinger of better times.  It signifies the end of winter (not a small thing if you’re from Minnesota) and the coming of spring – a season of rebirth, new life and abundant optimism.   Each season, you start with a clean slate.   Last year’s successes can still be savored, but last year’s failures can be set aside (although rival fans may try to refresh your memory), replaced by hope and anticipation.   On Opening Day, in our hearts, we can all be in contention.

People ask me what I do in winter, when there’s no baseball. 

I’ll tell you what I do.  I stare out the window and wait for spring.

 Honus Wagner, Hall of Famer

 

2.  Baseball is timeless and, ultimately, fair in the offering of opportunity.

The clock doesn’t run out.  There is no coin flip to determine who gets the ball first in sudden death overtime.  No matter what the score, your team (if trailing) gets at least 27 outs as it pursues an equal opportunity to secure victory.  What could be more fair?   And then there is the prospect of “extra” innings, bonus baseball for FREE.

3.  Plays and players are distinct (in space and time).

Baseball, while a game of inches, is also a game of considerable space.   The players are not gathered along an offensive line or elbow-to-elbow under a basket. They are widely spaced, each with his own area of responsibility and each acting (as part of a continuing play) in their own time frame.  (On a 6-3 play, for example,  first baseman can’t catch the ball for the putout until after the shortstop throws it.)   This enables fans to follow, understand  and analyze each play (maybe not always accurately) in detail.   And, baseball’s distinct spacing and timing makes it possible to see the game even when you are not there.  A lot of people grinned at President Gerald Ford’s comment that he “watched a lot of baseball on the radio.”  In my view, he was spot on.  You can see baseball on the radio – you can create a “visual” of the game in your mind with minimal description.    That’s why on summer nights, in parks, backyards and garages across the country, you’ll find radios tuned to the national pastime.

 4. The scorecard.

Can there be anything more satisfying than keeping an accurate scorecard at the ballpark?  It serves so many purposes.  The keeping of a scorecard ensures your attention to the happenings on the field.

Maintaining the score card also makes you, in a way understandable only to fellow fans, more a part of the game.   That magical combination of names, numbers and symbols also enables you to go back and check the progress of the game at any time.  “Oh, Johnson’s up next.  He’s walked and grounded out twice.”  It’s also a conversation starter, when the fan in the row behind you asks, “How many strikeouts does Ryan have today?”   And, it leaves you (if you choose to keep it) with a permanent record of the game, allowing you to replay it in your mind (or share it with others) at will.  Ultimately, a well-kept scorecard enhances the game experience and offers a true post-game sense of accomplishment.

5.  The long season.

Baseball, so many have pointed out, is a marathon rather than a sprint.  It’s a long season with ample opportunity to prove yourself and lots of chances to redeem yourself.  For fans, the long season also represents a test of your passion for the game.  Endurance is part of the nature of the true baseball fan.  And, and in the end, the rigors of a 162-game season prove your mettle and that of your team.   Not only that, but like a true friend … baseball is there for you every day.

 6.  Baseball invites, encourages, even demands, conversation.

I love the fact that whenever baseball fans gather, their passion comes out in conversation – and they find plenty to talk about:

•  Statistics,  statistics, statistics.  Baseball and its fans will count anything.  Did you know that Yankee Jim Bouton’s hat flew off 37 times in his 2-1, complete-game victory over the Cardinals in game three of the 1964 World Series?  More seriously, statistics are part of a common language and shared passion that bring baseball fans together in spirited conversation.  There is  no sport more statistically annotated than baseball and the sheer volume of stats available offers unending angles and avenues of comparison. For example, you can compare the batting average of two players from different eras – and then you can go a step further and compare how each their averages compare to the “average” average of the era in which they played or … (I could go on and on). As best-selling author Pat Conroy once put it “Baseball fans love numbers.  They love to swirl them around in their mouths like Bordeaux wine.”  I agree, to the fan, statistics are intoxicating.  I personally like to swirl them around in my brains to find new ways to connect and compare “moments” from baseball past and present (failures, achievements and even coincidences.) Side note: Fans have found other ways to savor the hypnotic draw of statistics from statistic-based board/dice and computer games like Strat-O-Matic(R) to today’s many versions of fantasy baseball.

• Stories, stories, stories.  Baseball and its fans celebrate the game’s history.  And, I’m not talking just about statistics.  I’m talking about the stories that give this great game color, character and characters:  Ty Cobb sharpening his spikes on the dugout steps; Babe Ruth’s called shot; Luis Tiant’s wind-up; Willie Mays’ basket catch; Dock Ellis’ LSD-fueled no-hitter; Dizzy Dean being, well, Dizzy Dean (r Manny being Manny); Paul Skenes starting on the mound in the All Star game – as a rookie.

• Trivia, trivia, trivia.  This may fall close to the “stories, stories , stories” category, but fans cherish the trivia that surrounds our national pastime – whether that trivia is iconic or ironic.  For example, it’s ironic that the most recent player to steal home twice in one game (Vic Power, August 14, 1958) did it in a season when he only stole a total of three bases).  Then there is the iconic performance of Ralph Kiner, who led the NL in home runs as a rookie in 1948 – and successfully defended that title in each of the next six seasons – the most consecutive home runs titles by any major leaguer ever.

Basically, I took a long time to say I love the fact that baseball fans will talk with passion about something that happened in today’s game, yesterday’s game, over time or even in a game that took place on May 30, 1894 (Bobby Lowe of the Boston Beaneaters records MLB’s first four-homer game).  And, as a bonus, all this conversation – all the statistics, stories and trivia – make the games, moments within the games and the characters of the game (heroes, goats and mere participants) as timeless as baseball itself.

7. The irony of a team game made up of individual performances.

While baseball and baseball fans live for individual statistics and, while the spacing of the players drives individual accountability, the game is, ironically, deeply dependent on the concept of “team.”

Consider the offense.  Unlike other sports , where you can deliver victory by giving the ball or puck – time and time again (particularly as the clock runs down) –  to your best runner, skater, receiver or shooter, in baseball, your lineup determines who will be “on the spot” and at the plate when the game is on the line.  It may be your .230-hitting second basemen, rather than your .320-hitting outfielder.  Yet, even as the team depends on the hitter, he is totally alone in his individual battle with the pitcher.  And, achieving individual statistics that signify exceptional performance also demands a sense of team.  You don’t score 100 runs without a teammate to drive you in (although the statistic remains your measure of performance) …  and you don’t drive in 100 runs if no one gets on base in front of you.   And, can you think of any other sport that keeps track of – and honors – the team-oriented “sacrifice.”

On defense, the story is the same.  Circumstances may determine which fielders are compelled to handle the ball at the games most critical junctures.   And, “team” is at play. A ground ball pitcher, for example, needs a good infield behind him to optimize his statistical presence in the “win” column.  And the six-four-three double play requires masterful teamwork as well as individual performance –  duly recorded in the record books as an assist for the shortstop, a putout and an assist for the second baseman and a put out for the first baseman.  Then there is the outfield assist – a perfect throw from a right fielder to nail a runner at third earns an assist – even if the third baseman drops the ball and earns an error.  Two individual results (one good / one bad) highlighted, but without the necessary teamwork – a good play on both ends – a negative outcome in terms of the game.

Ultimately, baseball is a game of individual accomplishments that must be connected by the thread of “team” to produce a positive outcome.

8.  The pace of the game invites contemplation.

Between innings, between batters or pitchers, and even between pitches, baseball leaves us time to contemplate what just occurred, speculate on what might happen next and even share those thoughts with nearby spectators.  Baseball is indeed a thinking person’s game. (Side note: The relatively new pitch clock rules have slightly dampened aspect of the national pastime, so I’ve dropped it from number-two a couple of years ago.) 

 9.  The box score. 

My mother used to refer to an accordion as “an orchestra in a box.”  That’s how I view the daily box score – the symphony of a game recorded in a space one-column wide by four inches deep.   Some would say the box score reduces the game to statistics, I would say it elevates the game to history.  What do you want to know about the contest?   Who played where, when?  At bats, hits, stolen bases, strikeouts, errors, caught stealing, time, attendance, even the umpires’ names?   It’s all there and more – so much information, captured for baseball fans in a compact and orderly space.  I am, of course, dating myself here, but during baseball season, the morning newspaper, through its box scores, is a treasure trove of information for baseball fans. (Okay, you can find that information online now, but I do prefer my box scores accompanied by the smell of fresh coffee and newsprint.)

10. Baseball’s assault on the senses.  (Indoor ballparks fall a bit short here).

The sight of a blue sky and bright sun above the ballpark or a full moon over a black sky above a well-lit stadium.  The feel of the warm sun or a crisp evening breeze.  The scent of freshly mowed grass or steaming hot dogs.  The taste of cold beer and peanuts.  The sound of the crack of the bat, the cheers (or moans) of the crowd, the musical pitch of the vendors.  Baseball assaults all the senses ―  in  a good way.

11. Baseball is the most literary of all sports. Okay, I love to read and I love baseball – and that is as perfect a combination as 6-4-3.  There is no doubt (at least in my mind) that baseball is the most literary of all sports – from the fiction of Philip Roth (The Great American Novel) and Paul Quarrington (Home Game – you’ve got to read this one if you haven’t) to non-fiction like The Glory of Their Times (Lawrence Ritter) and The Baseball 100 (Joe Posnanski).  The fact is there are literally (pun intended) hundreds of baseball books I love (and would recommend to every fan) – and the hits just keep on growing.  Heck, my library even includes a book of baseball nicknames, another on baseball trades and a two-volume set of reprinted news articles from Joe DiMaggio’s career.   And, just think of the movies that have emerged from baseball literature:  The Natural, Bang the Drum Slowly, for the Love of the Game. (Note: For each set of these examples, I could have added “and many, many more.”  The fact is, for this baseball fan, baseball literature is a “Field of Dreams.”

Now, I could go on and on, there are lots more reasons to love this game: its combination of conformity (all infields are laid out the same) and individualism (outfield configurations not so much); its strategy (hit-and-run, run-and-hit, sacrifice bunts, infield / outfield positioning, pitching changes, etc.); triples; the 6-4-3 double play; knuckleballs; and more.  But to protect myself – and BBRT’s readers – I’ve limited myself to eleven.   I probably could have saved a lot of time and words  had I just started with this so-perfect comment from sportscaster Bryant Gumbel, “The other sports are just sports.  Baseball is love.”  That says it all.

 

 

Bonus Reason to Love Baseball – Opening Day

In the words of Joe DiMaggio:

“You always get a special kick on Opening Day, no matter how many you go through. You look forward to it like a birthday party when you were a kid. You think something wonderful is going to happen.”

Now. here are links to guest posts on “Why I Love Baseball.”

• For a post from author, poet and Grammy nominee Leonard Eckhaus (that includes an original poem) click here.
• For a post from John Michael Murphy, Yankees’ sixth-round pick in the 2013 MLB draft, click here.
• For a post from Jason Love, author of “Slices of Americana – A Road Trip Through American Baseball History, click here.
• For a post from sportswriter and author Larry LaRue, click here.
• For a post from college football coach Alex Smith, click here.
• For a post from baseball blogger Bill Ivie (I70baseball.com), click here.
• For a post from dedicated autograph seeker Scott Perry, click here.
• For a post from lifelong baseball fan Tom Cuggino, click here.

 

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It’s time again for Baseball Roundtable’s Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye.  (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances and statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. I’m also drawn to baseball “unicorns,” one-of-a-kind MLB accomplishments or statistics.

Last week, we  looked at the ultimate sign of respect, MLB hitters who received a bases-loaded intentional walk. For that post, click here. This week, we’re taking  a look at the members of the 3,000-Hit Club. This statistical exploration started with a determination that Al Kaline, who retired from MLB after the 1974 season, was the first player to retire with at least 3,000 hits (3,007) and a batting average of under .300 (.297).  Kaline was the eleventh player to retire with 3,000+ safeties. Since Kaline’s retirement,  22 more players have retired with 3000+ hits – 12 of those with averages under .300.

The High And Low Of It.

The highest career average for any “3,000-Hit Club member” is Ty Cobb’s .366; the lowest Cal Ripken Jr.’s .276.  

Of course, as usual  with The Roundtable, “One thing led to another,” So, here are a few more Tidbits.  For example,  The 33 members of the 3000+-Hits Club include 18 right-handed hitters, 13 left-handed batters and just  two switch hitters (Pete Rose and Eddie Murray).

What Your Position On This?

From a position perspective, assigning each player the position he appeared in the most games at, the list includes:

• Eight First Basemen;
• Seven Right Fielders;
• Five Shortstops;
• Three Second Basemen;
• Three Third Basemen;
• Three Left Fielders;
• The Center Fielders.
• One Designated Hitter.

That led me to a few Unicorns:

• Pete Rose is the only player on the list to appear in at least 500 games at four different positions … 1B (939 games); LF (673); 3B (634); 2B (628); RF (570).
• The only players on the list to appear in at least 1,000 games at multiple positions are; Robin Yount (SS-1,478 & RF 1,150); Alex Rodriguez (SS – 1,272 & 3B 1,194); and Rod Carew (1B – 1,184 & 2B – 1,130).
• While Paul Molitor appears on the list as a DH (appearing in 1,174 games as a DH), he also appeared in 792 games at 3B, 400 at 2B, 197 at 1B, 57 at SS, 42 in CF, four in LF and four in RF.  In his first 13 seasons (his age-21 to  age-33 seasons), he appeared in just 198 games as DH.  In those first 13 seasons, he collected 1,870 hits (143.4 per season). In his final eight seasons (his age-34 to age-41 seasons), he appeared in 976 games at DH. In those seasons, he collected 1,449 hits (181.1 per season).

Almost Perfect

Ty Cobb and Tony Gwynn are the only members of the 3000+-hit club who had just one season in which they hit under .300 and, for both, it was their rookie campaign.

 In Cobb’s first season (1905), the 18-year-old rookie hit .238 in 41 games. In 1906, he hit  .316 and he hit over .320 in every season after that – a total of 23 seasons hitting over .300.

 Gwynn was 22-years-old in his 1982 rookie season, when he hit .289 in 54 games. The next season, he hit .309 and did not hit below that mark in any season over the rest of his career (a total of 19 seasons of .300 or better).

• Cap Anson had the most seasons with a .300 or better batting average – 24 in 27 campaigns.
• Dave Winfield had the most under-.300 seasons among the 3,000-hit Club … 18 seasons under .300 to four at .300 or better.
• Thirteen of the 33-member 3,000+-Hit Club had more seasons under .300 than at .300 or better.
• Eddie Collins, Lou Brock, Eddie Murray, Dave Winfield and Craig Biggio are the only players to retire with 3000+ hits without ever leading their league in either batting average or base hits.

 

Primary Resource: Stathead.com

Baseball Roundtable – Blogging Baseball Since 2012.

Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. For the full list click here. 

I tweet (on X) baseball @DavidBaseballRT. Follow me there for post notifications and links.

Follow Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here.  

Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; The Baseball Reliquary.

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It’s time again for Baseball Roundtable’s Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye.  (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances and statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. I’m also drawn to baseball “unicorns,” one-of-a-kind MLB accomplishments or statistics.

Last, week, we  looked at hitters’ performance (Modern Era) with the bases loaded – those who delivered and those who didn’t. (If you missed that  that post, click here.).  This week, we’re looking at the ultimate sign of respect, hitters who received a bases-loaded intentional walk.

The lead research of  Bill Deane, with contributions from  Everett Parker and Trent McCotter provided the foundation for this post.   

Side Note: Although MLB did not officially keep Intentional Bases on Balls records until 1955, there has been research (using box scores and news accounts) unveiling pre-1955 statistics.  Baseball-Almanac.com, credits researcher Trent McCotter for much of this effort, including uncovering the  Dalrymple bases-loaded MLB.

Here are those bases-loaded intentional walks, in reverse order.

Corey Seager, Texas Rangers, April 15, 2022

This was a weird one. In the bottom of the fourth inning of an Angels-Rangers tilt, Rangers’ SS and number-two hitter, Corey Seager came to the plate (versus Angels’ reliever) – with one out, the bases full  and the Rangers leading 3-2. Seager, who came into the game hitting .346 on the season, was intentionally walked – forcing in a run. and bringing  up C Mitch Garver. Manager Joe Maddon‘s strategy, walking the left-handed hitter (with righthander Austin Warren on the mound and right-handed batters C Mitch Garver and RF Adolis Garcia to follow) didn’t work – as Garver hit an RBI sacrifice fly and Warren (perhaps flustered) balked in another run before retiring Garcia. Warren had come on in relief of Reid Detmers, with runners on first and third, two fourth-inning runs already in and Marcus Semien (2B and leadoff hitter) at the plate.   The runner on first (CF Eli White) stole second  on the second pitch to Semien – who walked on four pitches to set up the intentional bases-loaded walk to Seager.  The inning ended with Texas up 6-2, but the Angels did come back for a 9-6 win.  Maddon later said, his goal was to both “avoid the big blow” and “stir up the group.”

Seager, by the way ended the season at .245-33-83. To date, the five-time All Star has played in 11 MLB seasons (2015-25 … Dodgers, Rangers), going .289-221-667.  Warren ended 2022 at 2-0, 5.63 and, to date, is 7-0, 2.79 in six MLB seasons (2021-25 … Angels, Giants Mets).

Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers, August 17, 2008

This  game saw RF Josh Hamilton and his Rangers trailing  the rays 7-2 in the bottom of the ninth.  With Juan Salas on the mound for Tampa (he had come in with one out in the eighth), Rangers’ DH Jarrod Saltalamacchia opened the ninth inning with a single, followed by a Chris Davis (1B)  walk. Salas then fanned 3B Travis Metcalf on three pitches. before giving way to Grant Balfour (perhaps his last name was an omen of what was to come) on the mound.

Balfour walked 2B Ramon Vazquez  to load the bases, before getting LF Brandon Boggs to hit into a fielder’s choicer (second-to-shortstop) with one run scoring. A walk to SS Michael Young again loaded the bases – and Devil Rays ‘manager Joe Maddon ordered Hamilton intentionally walked,  pushing across another run, putting the tying run at first base and bringing  Dan Wheeler in from the bullpen. The strategy worked. Wheeler ended the game by fanning Marlon Byrd on five pitches.

Hamilton had come into the August 17  game hitting .302 with 28 homers and 112 RBI, while Byrd came in at .290-8-34.  Balfour came into that August 17  game with a 3-1, 1.21 line, with four saves (in 31 appearances).

Balfour pitched in 12 MLB seasons (2011, 2003-2015 … Twins, Brewers, Rays, Athletics), going 30-23, 3.49, with 84 saves in 534 appearances (one start). Hamilton, the 2010 AL MVP, played in nine MLB seasons (2007-15 … Reds, Rangers, Angels), going .290-200-701).

Going Four-for-Two

Josh Hamilton is one of just 21 MLB players to hit four home runs in a single game. He did it on May 8, 2012 – hitting four two-run home runs and a double in five at bats (driving in eight runs) as his Rangers topped the Orioles 10-3.

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Barry Bonds, Giants, May 28, 1998

The Giants trailed the Diamondbacks 8-5  in the bottom of the ninth with Arizona closer Gregg Olson (who had come in to get the final out in the eighth) on the mound. It would prove a stressful (and memorable) frame, but the stage had been set the previous inning.

The eighth had been an adventure for Olson. He came in with runner on first, two outs, the Diamondbacks leading 7-5 (two runs had already scored in the inning)  and the Giants’ dangerous Barry Bonds (who would stay in the game in LF) pinch-hitting for starting LF Chris Jones (hitting .190 at the time, but two-for-three, with a home run in the game). Bonds came to the plate .305-13-41 on the season.

Rather than douse the flames, Olson add accelerant to the wild-fire. He walked Bonds on six pitches, bringing up C Brent Mayne. Olson’s third pitch to Mayne was a wild pitch, moving the baserunners  (PH Marvin Barnard and Bonds) to second and third. He eventually walked Mayne, loading the bases for SS Ray Sanchez, who fanned on three pitches to end the inning. The Diamondbacks scored once (a David Dellucci home run) in the top of ninth – and Olson started the final frame with an 8-5 lead and more excitement to come.

Olson fanned CF Darryl Hamilton on three pitches  to open the ninth, then walked 3B Bill Mueller on four pitches, before giving up a double to 2B  Jeff Kent (Mueller to third) and walking 1B  Charlie Hayes  to load the bases.  Olson then got RF Stan Javier to ground out (second-to-first) with Mueller scoring and Kent and Hayes each moving up a base.   J.T Snow then came on as a pinch hitter and drew a five-pitch walk again loading the bases.  Now, up by just two  runs,  manager Buck Showalter ordered Olson to intentionally walk Bonds – forcing in a run and putting the tying  tally at third base and the go-ahead run at second. Olson then got Mayne on a liner to right-center to end the contest and give the Diamondbacks an 8-7 win.  (Mayne was no easy out at  .290-2-12 coming into the game.) Olson had an unusual line for the game.  He got the save, despite giving up six walks and a hit to the 11 batters he faced (and tossing a wild pitch).

Bonds ended the season at .303-37-122, with 130 walks (a league-leading 29 intentional walks). Olson went 3-4, 3.01 with  30 saves (and not a single blown save).

R-E-S-P-E-C-T!

Barry Bonds led his league in Intentional Walks a record 12 times – the last time in his final season, at age 42. His career is bar t far MLB’s most. ( Second is Albert Pujols   with 316.)

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Bill Nicholson, Cubs, July 23, 1944 (second game)

The Giants led the Cubs 10-7 in the top of the eighth inning in this one, but the Cubs were mounting a comeback. Giants’ righty Ace Adams (on in relief of Bill Voiselle) walked Cubs’ leadoff hitter 3B  Stan Hack and SS Bill Schuster to open  the inning – and was replaced on the mound by southpaw Ewald Pyle, who walked 1B Phil Cavarretta to load the bases. That brought up RF and cleanup hitter Bill Nicholson – who was having quite a  day. In the first game of the Sunday twin bill (remember those), Nicholson had banged out three home runs (three homers and a walk for the game) as the Cubs won 7-4.   He already had an RBI single, walk and solo  home run in four plate appearances the second game – and Giants’ manager Mel Ott wanted no part of the hot hitter. Pyle issued the sacks-full free pass, plating one run.  Pyle, after facing two batters and walking both, then was replaced by right-hander Andy Hansen, who retired LF  Ival Goodman (holding the runners) and then hit CF Andy Pafko with a pitch, bringing in the second run of the inning (making the score 10-9) and keeping the bases loaded. 2B Don Johnson then grounded into a force at second,  plating another run – and tying the contest. Righty Bob Barthelson came in to pitch and got PH Billy Holm on a pop out to at least preserve the tie.  The Giants scored twice in the top of the ninth and won the game 12-10.

Nicholson finished the 1944 season at .287-33-122, leading the NL in home runs and RBI. For his 16-season MLB career (1936, 1939-53 … Athletics, Cubs, Phillies), Nicholson went .268-235-948,  Pyle, who issued the base-loaded free pass, played in  five MLB seasons (1939, 1942-45 … Giants, Browns, Nationals, Braves), going 11-21, 5.03 in 67 games (36 starts).

Taking the Lead

Bill Nicholson led the National League in home runs and RBI in both 1943 and 1944 … finishing second and third, respectively, in the NL Most Valuable voting in those years.

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Del Bissonette, Dodgers, May 2, 1928

This bases-loaded IBB was unique for a few reasons: 1) ItDel came pretty much as late in the game as possible, with two out in the ninth inning; 2) It was a very close game, the team walking in a run held just a two-run lead at the time; 3) the hurler ordered to issue the bases-loaded IBB was one out away from a complete-game shutout; and 4) the batter was a rookie.   Here’s how it went down.

The Dodgers trailed the Giants 2-0 in the top of the ninth inning, when they loaded the bases with two outs (thanks to a pair of singles and a walk). That brought up 1B and number-six hitter, 28-year-old rookie Del Bissonette, who had come into the game hitting .345-4-15 (15 games played in the season and in his MLB career). Manager John McGraw had Giants’ pitcher Larry Benton (a 13-game winner in 1927 and 2-1, 2.03 in three 1928 starts … all complete games) intentionally walk Bissonette, cutting the margin to one run. Benton then pitched to 2B Henry Riconda, who came into the contest with a .220-1-5 line on the season (15 games). While the IBB cost Benton a shutout, the strategy worked, as Benton went on to fan Riconda to end the game and get the win.

Benton, by  the way, had his best MLB season in 1928 (his sixth MLB campaign), leading the league in wins (25 versus nine losses), winning percentage (.735) and complete games (28) – with a 2.73 ERA.  He pitched 13 MLB seasons (1923-35 … Braves, Giants, Reds), going 128-128, 4.03.

The other principal in this mini-drama, Bissonette, played five MLB  seasons (1928-31, 1933 … Dodgers), going .305-66-391 in 604 games. In 1928, the year of his bases-loaded IBB (and, again, his rookie MLB campaign), Bissonette hit .320-25-106 in 155 games. He had his best season in 1930, when he hit .336-16-113 in 146 games. (The year before making the Robins’ roster, he hit .365 with 31 home runs at Class-AA Buffalo.) His major-league playing career was dampened and shortened by injury and illness, although he did play several seasons in the minors after 1933 and went on to coach and manage in the minor leagues. He also managed the Boston Braves for part of the 1945 season and served as a coach with coach with  the Pirates in 1946. He retired from baseball after the 1951 season (he was managing the Class-C Trois Rivieres in the Canadian Provincial League).   Reports are that he was offered the opportunity to manage the Milwaukee Braves in 1954, but declined to return to baseball.

Load ‘Em Up, I’m Ready

Del Bissonette is credited with (on April 21, 1930) being the first MLB player to hit a bases-loaded home run and a bases-loaded triple in the same game. 

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Napoleon Lajoie, Philadelphia Athletics, May 23, 1901

Nap Lajoie’s Athletics were down 11-5 to the White Sox in the top of the ninth inning, when they mounted a comeback – loading the bases with none out and bringing cleanup hitter 2B Napoleon Lajoie – who came into the game hitting .525 (42-for-80 in 20 games) and was on his way to a  .426-14-125 Triple Crown  season – to the plate. (Note: In 1901 Lajoie led the NL in average, home runs, RBI, runs scored (145), hits (232), doubles (48), total bases (350). on-base percentage (.463) and slugging percentage (.643).

White Sox player-manager Clark Griffith put himself into the game and intentionally  walked Lajoie, forcing in a run and cutting the lead to three. Griffith then got RF Socks Seybold (who would lead the AL in home runs in 1902) and 1B Harry Davis (who would lead the league in round trippers four times  in his career) on ground outs (one run scoring) to save an 11-9 win.  This intentional walk gets extra points for the courage of manager Griffith to take the responsibility on himself – and for setting up a situation in which the bases were loaded, the tying run was at first and he had to get two tough  outs to save the game.

Lajoie played in 21 MLB seasons (1896-1916 … Phillies, Athletics, Napoleons), going .338-82-1,599, with 3,243 hits. Clark Griffith played in 20 MLB seasons (1891, 1893-1907, 1909, 1912-14 … St. Louis Browns, Boston Reds, Chicago Colts/Orphans/Cubs, White Sox, Yankees, Reds, Nationals), going 237-146, 3.31, with 337 complete games in 372 starts (453 total appearances). Griffith managed in 20 MLB seasons, Lajoie in five.

 Clark Griffith … A Role(s) Player

Clark Griffith managed the 1901 White Sox to an 83-53 record and first  place in the National League. As a player-manager, he went 24-7, 2.67 on the mound and .303-2-14 (in 35 games) at the plate.

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Abner Dalrymple, Chicago White Stockings (NL), August 2, 1881

The White Stockings, already up  5-0 over the Buffalo Bisons, opened the eighth inning  by loading the bases on consecutive hits by P Fred Goldsmith, C Silver Flint and 2B Joe Quest. Bisons’ manager Jim O’Rourke (presumably) wanted nothing to do with Abner Dalrymple (on his way to a .323 season and the 1878 NL batting champ) and had Jack Lynch walk him intentionally – forcing in a run.  The White Sox eventually won the contest 11-2. The intentional pass was of little consequence in the outcome, but is generally accepted as the first IBB with the sacks full in MLB history. Side note: This IBB is unique in that it took seven balls to draw a walk in 1881,

Dalrymple played in 12 MLB seasons (1878-1888, 1891 … Milwaukee Grays, Chicago White Stockings, Allegheny City, Milwaukee Brewers), hitting .288-43-407. Lynch played in seven MLB seasons (1881, 1883-87, 1890 … Buffalo Bisons, New York Metropolitans, Brooklyn Gladiators), going 110-105, 3.69, with 214 complete games in 216 starts/221 appearances.

Primary Resources: Stathead.com; Baseball-Almanac.com; Del Bissonette bio, Society for American Baseball Research, by Will Anderson; Maddon Intentionally Walks Corey Seager … With The  Bases Loaded ?!, Rhett Bollinger & Kennedi Landry, MLB.com, April 16, 2022.

Next Tuesday: A look at the first player to record 3,000+ MLB hits and retire with an average below .300 (and more, of course). 

Baseball Roundtable – Blogging Baseball Since 2012.

Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. For the full list click here. 

I tweet (on X) baseball @DavidBaseballRT. Follow me there for post notifications and links.

Follow Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here.  

Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; The Baseball Reliquary.

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It’s time again for Baseball Roundtable’s Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye.  (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances and statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. I’m also drawn to baseball “unicorns,” one-of-a-kind MLB accomplishments or statistics.  This week, we’re looking at hitters’ performance (Modern Era) with the bases loaded – those who delivered and those who didn’t. Usual Disclaimer: Negro League game-by-game stats from 1920-48 are not yet fully incorporated into the MLB record books.

Did you know that Mike Morgan had the most career plates appearances and most at bats (17) with the bases loaded without recording a single RBI in those situations? Of course, he was a pitcher and a .109 career hitter (1978-79, 1982-83, 1985-2002 … Athletics, Yankees, Blue Jays, Mariners, Orioles, Dodgers, Cubs, Cardinals, Twins, Rangers, Diamondbacks).  If you look at position players, the dubious distinction of most career plate appearances (and at batss) with the bases loaded and zero RBI,  goes to Nationals’ utility player (2022-24) Juan Yepez, who  had 12 career  plate appearances (12 at bats) with the bases loaded and went 0-for-12, with three strikeouts  and, of course, zero RBI.

Contact Counts

In his MLB career (1944-50 … Cardinals, Phillies, Cubs, Braves), Emil Verban came to the plate 67 times with the bases loaded and did not strike out a single time. (The most career MLB bases loaded plate appearances without striking out.)  For his career, Verban hit .297-0-42 with the sacks full and .272-1-241 overall.  

 

Highest Single-Season Batting Average with Bases Loaded (minimum 10 at bats)

Bill Wambsganss … 1923 Indians, .833

Bill Wambsganss came to the plate with the sacks full 17 times (12 at bats) in 1923 and delivered 10 hits, three walks and two sacrifice flies.  Wambsganss played in 13 MLB seasons (1915-26 … Indians, Red Sox, Athletics), going .259-7-521.  Wambsganss’ career average with the bases loaded was .292 (40-for-137) and 104 (20 percent) of his 521 career RBI came with the sacks full. Side note: In his first nine MLB seasons, he hit just .194  (19-for-98) with the bases drunk. Then over his final four MLB seasons, he  went 21-for-35 (.600).

The Other Side

In 1960, Giants’ RF Willie Kirkland made 16 plate appearances with the bases loaded without driving in a single run (that is the most “RBI-free”  bases-loaded plate appearances in an MLB season). Kirkland went 0-for-16, with three strikeouts (which also gave him the record for the most bases-loaded at bats without an RBI in a season.    For his career, Kirkland went 13-for-60 with the sacks full (.217-0-40). In nine MLB seasons (1958-66 … Giants, Indians, Orioles, Senators), Kirkland hit .240-148-509.  

Highest Career Batting Average with the Bases Loaded (minimum 25 at bats)

Lance Richbourg –  1921, 1924, 1927-32 … .520

Only two MLB players with at least 25 career bases-loaded at bats have hit .500 or better in those situations … Lance Richbourg and So Taguchi.

Richbourg leads the way at .520.  The left-handed hitting outfielder was a career .308 hitter (.308-13-247 in 698 games). From 1927 through 1930 (the only seasons he appeared in more than 100 games), Richbourg went .315-10-196. Excluding his rookie season (1924), when he had just one bases-loaded plate appearance, Richbourg never hit under .417 with the bases loaded in any season.  Expand to a minimum of  100 MLB bases-loaded at bats and your bases-loaded average leader is Tony Gwynn at .444 (59-for-133, with three homers and 143 RBI in  158 plate appearances) – at a minimum of 100 bases-loaded plate appearances, your batting average  leader is Pat Tabler at .489 (43-for-88 in 109 plate appearances, with 108 RBI.)

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Most Career RBI with the Bases Loaded

Lou Gehrig – 1923-38 …  313

Lou Gehrig leads the way with 313 career RBI with the bases loaded, the only player to reach the 300 mark (.369-22-313).  Eddie Murray came close at 299  bases-loaded RBI. Murray also fell just short of the players with a .400 average with the sacks full (.399) and one home run short of joining the players with 20 or more bases-loaded homers.

Gehrig played 17 seasons (all with the Yankees), hitting .340-493-1,995. He led the AL in RBI five times. Over his career, he had nine seasons with 20 or more bases-loaded RBI (three with 30+).

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Most Career Strikeouts With The Bases Loaded

Mike Cameron – 1995-2011 … 71

Mike Cameron holds the record for most times striking out with the bases loaded.  From 1995-2011, he fanned 71 times in 227 bases-loaded plate appearances (31 percent of the time). The only other player to reach 70 bases-loaded career strikeouts was Jim Thome,  who, from (1992-2012) fanned 70 times in 239 bases-loaded plate appearances.  Cameron hit .249-5-143 in bases-loaded at bats over his career, Thome hit .304-9-187.

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Most Bases-Loaded RBI in a Season

Luke Appling, SS, White Sox 1936 … 48

Luke Appling is one of only two players with 40 or more bases-loaded RBI in a single MLB season – and he did it (48 bases-loaded RBI), in 1936, without the benefit of a Grand Slam. For his career, Appling hit .358-0-206 in bases-full situations (72-for-201, with 35 walks). He hit  .400 or better with the bases loaded in six seasons. Appling played in 20 MLB seasons (1930-43, 1945-50), hitting .310-45-1,116.

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What, Ducks On The Pond Again?

Bill Brubaker (1936 Pirates) holds the MLB record for plate appearances with the bases loaded in a season at 57.  In 1936, 9.2 percent of his plate appearances and 39.2 percent of his RBI came in bases-loaded situations. (He was .289-6-106 on the year and .245-0-40 with the sacks full). Brubaker, primarily a third baseman, played in 10 MLB seasons (1932-40-1943 … Pirates, Braves), going .264-22-225 in 479 games.

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Most Career Walks with the Bases Loaded

Carl Yastrzemski, 1961-83 …. 39

Carl Yastrzemski drew a free pass in 15.1 percent of his career bases-loaded plate appearances – for a career record 39 walks in such circumstances. Over his career (1961-83 … Red Sox), Yaz hit .285-452-1,844. In career bases loaded situations (259 plate appearances), he hit .315-7-207.

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Most Walks in  a Season with the Bases Loaded

Zeke Bonura and Carlos Pena … 9

Zeke Bonura (1936 White Sox) and Carlos Pena 2008 Rays share the record for the most bases-loaded walks in a season at nine.  Bonura drew his nine free passes in 32 sacks-full plate appearances, Pena did it in 26.

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Take Two and Call Me in the Morning

Yadier Molina holds the MLB record for grounding into double plays with the bases loaded – 30 times over his 19-season MLB career (241 bases-loaded plate appearances). Still, his career bases-loaded stat line was .335-7-195. The single-season record for GIDP with the bases loaded is eight – by Carl Furillo (1956 Dodgers) and Jackie Jensen (1956 Red Sox). Furillo did it in 23 bases -loaded plate appearances, Jensen in 35.

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Most Career Home Runs With the Bases Loaded

Alex Rodriguez … 25

Alex Rodriguez hit 25 Grand Slams over his 22-season MLB career and hit at least one Grand Slam in seasons. For his career, he hit .340 with the sacks full (87-for-256) and drove in 286 runs in those situations.  Only two other players reached 20 career Grand Slams: Lou Gehrig (22) and Manny Ramirez (21).

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Most Grand Slams in a Season

Don Mattingly and Travis Hafner … 6

The record most Grand Slams in a season (six) is shared by Don Mattingly (1987 Yankees) and Travis Hafner (2006 Indians). Mattingly is the unicorn among these two, his six GS in 1987 were the only Grand Slams of his 14-season (1982-95 … Yankees) MLB career. Mattingly hit his six Slams in 21 bases-loaded plate appearances (19 at bats); Hafner did it 16 plate appearances (14 at bats). For his career, Hafner was .280-12-114 with the bases loaded; Mattingly was .292-6-127.

—–Closing With A Few Grand Slam Tidbits——

• The record for most Grand Slams in a season by a pitcher is two (shared by Madison Bumgarner (2014 Giants) and Tony Cloninger (1966 Braves).  Cloninger is the unicorn here –  the only pitcher to hit two Grand Slams in one game (July 3, 1966). In that game, he also set the record for RBI by a pitcher in a game at nine. Cloninger, a career .192 hitter, was pretty darn good with the sacks full. He had  22 at bats (23 plate appearances) with the bases loaded and delivered eight hits (.364 average) and one walk, driving in 22 runs. (Side note: After retiring from MLB, Cloninger went on to become a World Class Slo-Pitch Softball third baseman. The competitive fires burn long and bright.)
• Building on Cloninger’s feat (above), the most Grand Slams in a game (by any player/any position) is also two, shared by 13 players). Fernando Tatis the unicorn here. On April 23, 1999 – A Friday evening with 46,687 in attendance at Dodger Stadium, Tatis proved to be a true cleanup hitter. In the third inning of that game, he came to the plate, facing Chan Ho Park, with no outs and the bases loaded. Tatis hit a 2-0 pitch for a Grand Slam to left. Later that same inning, Tatis faced Park again, this time with two outs and the bases loaded. History repeated itself in the minimum of time, as Tatis smacked his second Grand Slam of the inning. (He is still the only MLB player to hit two Grand Slams in an inning – and, of course, Park is the only pitcher to give up two Grand slams to the same batter in a single inning. Unicorns they will most likely be forever. Tatis, by the way, hit .341 with the sacks full over for his  11-season MLB career (28-for-82, with eight home runs and 94 RBI, including 15 bases-loaded walks.

Jim Gentile Makes Chuck Estrada An MLB  Unicorn.

In 1961 – with Yankee sluggers Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris dominating headlines in their chase of Babe Ruth’s record 60 home runs in a season – Jim Gentile of the Orioles quietly put up quite a season of his own. Gentile hit .302, with 46 home runs and a league-topping 141 RBI.  On May 9, in a game against the Twins (in Minnesota), Gentile  tied the MLB record and set a new AL mark (both since broken) for Grand Slams in a season with five bases-loaded long balls  In addition, he tied an MLB record with two Grand Slams in a game and became the first player to hit a Grand Slam in consecutive innings and on consecutive pitches. (Fernando Tatis has since hit two Grand Slams in an inning.)

Now, here’s taht unicorn that attracted The Roundtable. Orioles’ pitcher Chuck Estrada was the sole beneficiary of Gentile’s 1961 Grand Slam barrage – every one of Gentile’s record-tying five four-run blasts was hit in a game started by Estrada (who, as you would expect, picked up a victory in all four contests).  Notably, Gentile hit only one other Grand Slam in his career (June 26, 1960) and – you guessed it – the starting and winning pitcher in that contest was Chuck Estrada.  Gentile played in nine MLB seasons (1957-58, 1960-66 … Dodgers, Orioles, Athletics, Astros, Indians), hitting .260-179-549.  With the bases loaded, he hit .400 (28-for-70, with those six home runs and 92 RBI. 

 

Coming next Tuesday, a look at the players who were gifted Intentional Walks with the baes loaded.  (I thought that level of respect deserved its own Tuesday Tidbit.

 

Baseball Roundtable – Blogging Baseball Since 2012.

Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. For the full list click here. 

I tweet (on X) baseball @DavidBaseballRT. Follow me there for post notifications and links.

Follow Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here.  

Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; The Baseball Reliquary.

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With MLB’s Opening Day 2026 (actually Opening Night this year) just three weeks and a day away, Baseball Roundtable would like to use this Tuesday’s Trivia(L) Tidbits to  celebrate the dawn of a new season with an updated and expanded version of Opening Day records for MLB players to shoot for or try to avoid.

Two disclaimers here. Given statistical accuracy and game formats, I am limiting myself to the Modern Era (post 1900) and Negro League game stats from 1920-48 have not been fully documented and incorporated into the MLB record book.

“You always get a special kick on Opening Day, no matter how many you go through. You look forward to it like a birthday party when you’re a kid.  You think something wonderful is going to happen.”

                                                                                                        Hall of Famer Joe DiMaggio

So, let’s look at some Opening Day stats and stories – some wonderful, some not so great. We’ll start with an MLB unicorn looking to extend his existing record and add a unique spin to it.  Note: For this post, “Opening Day” refers to the first game of the season for each team, not just the first day of the MLB season (for example, this season will open on March 25 with just one game … Yankees at Giants).

LET’S GET THIS PARTY STARTED … The PLayer I’ll Be Tracking Most Closely in His Season Opener

Orioles’ outfielder Tyler O’Neill, will be looking to extend his enviable (and almost unbelievable) record of going deep in six consecutive Opening Day (OD) games.

Tyler O’Neill – Opening Day Home Runs

July 24, 2020* … (for the Cardinals versus the Pirates’ Joe Musgrove)

April 1, 2021 … (for the Cardinals versus the Reds’ Cam Bedrosian)

April 7, 2022 … (for the Cardinals versus the Pirate’s JT Brubaker)

March 30, 2023 … (for the Cardinals versus the Blue Jays’ Alek Manoah)

March 28, 2024 … (for the Red Sox’ versus the Mariners’ Cody Bolton)

March 27, 2025 … (for the Orioles versus the Blue Jays’ Jose Berrios)

*Late-starting COVID season.

O’Neill has homered in every Opening Day game he has started. His only other Opening Day appearance was in 2019, when he had one plate appearance as a pinch-hitter for the Redbirds and flied out to CF versus the Brewers’ Junior Guerra. In his seven Opening Day appearances, O’Neill is 9-for-21 (.429), with six home runs, 14 RBI and ten runs scored.  He’s also drawn five walks for a .538 on-base percentage. Among players with at least 25 Opening Day plate appearances, O’Neill is the leader in slugging percentage (1.286).

Travelin’ Man

Tyler O’Neill is the only MLB player to go deep on Opening Day for three different teams in three consecutive years.

GETTING ON BASE … A Fielder Does It Best

Among players with at least 25 OD plate appearances, Fielder Jones leads in on-base percentage (.624) … 32 plate appearances in seven OD games, with 12 hits and eight walks. Jones, a centerfielder,  played 15 MLB seasons (1896-1908, 1914-15 …  Superbas, White Sox, Federal League St.  Louis Terriers), hitting .285-21-631, with 1,180 runs scored.

Ahead of the Eight Ball

The career record for home runs in Opening Day (OD) games is eight, shared by Frank Robinson (20 OD games/76 AB); Ken Griffey, Jr. (21 OD games/71 AB); and Adam Dunn (13 OD games/54 AB). Trailing these three at seven OD game homers are: Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Eddie Mathews. Impressive list, I’d say.  Among active players, the leaders in OD long balls, at six, are: Bryce Harper and, of course, the already discussed Tyler O’Neill.

FIVE WHIFFS – A (strikeout) Victim of Circumstance

Which player became a “victim of circumstance” in the process of becoming the first MLB player to fan five times on Opening Day? That would be Ron Karkovice.

On March 31, 1996, White Sox’ catcher Karkovice set the still (but since tied) 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 Circumstance: Future Hall of Famer (and whiff artist) Randy Johnson started on the mound for the Mariners – striking out 14 in seven innings (including Karkovice three times). Johnson holds the MLB record for Opening Day career strikeouts with 107 (14 Opening Day Games – 97 2/3 innings pitched). Second on the OD list is Tom Seaver with 81 strikeouts in 16 Openers.

Second Circumstance:  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 Circumstance: 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.

Since Karkovice’s disappointing day, two players have matched his five OD-game strikeouts – and both did it in nine innings. In the Dodgers’ 2023 opener (versus the Diamondbacks in Arizona), Dodgers’ 3B Max Muncy (batting cleanup) fanned five time in five at bats. In 2025’s Brewers’ season opener (versus the Yankees in New York), Brewers’ starting LF Jackson Chourio tied the OD record with five strikeouts in five at bats. Both players also tied the record for the most strikeouts in any nine-inning game (eight players have fanned six times in a regular-season, extra-inning contest).

GIVE ME FIVE, BUDDY!   … These Players Got a Handful of Hits on Opening Day

In the Modern Era, only 14 MLB players have collected five hits (five is a handful, isn’t it?) in an Opening Day game.  Looking for Unicorns within this list, on March 30, 2023, we saw the first (still only) Opening Day in which two players collected five hits (it happened in two different games). The players were Andy Rutschman of the Orioles and George Springer of the Blue Jays. Rutschman also became the first (only) catcher to record a five-hit Opening Day.  The most productive of any five-hit opener belongs to Giants’ 2B Jeff Kent, who (on OD 1998) went five-for-seven, with a double, home run, two runs scored and four RBI in a 13-inning, 9-4 Giants win over the Astros.

Now, there are some potential trivia tidbits (that you can turn into trivia questions) in this list, but here’s one that intrigues The Roundtable.  In a statistical anomaly, seven of the 14 players to enjoy a five-hit Opening Day played the same position.  What position was it?

Your answer:  Second base and the players were Craig Biggio (2001); Jeff Kent (1998); Nellie Fox (1959); Billy Herman (1936); Aaron Miles (2005); Larry Doyle (1915); and Eddie Collins (1913). For those who like to know such things, the list also includes three left fielders, two third baseman, one right fielder and one catcher.  As you might guess, most of these players were batting high in the order:  Five leading off, five batting second, two in the three-hole, one at cleanup and one sixth.

DESIGNATED HITTER!  I DON’T NEED NO STINKING DH!

The highest career batting Opening Day batting  average – with no minimum at bats – is 1.000, shared by 142 players.   However, 105 of those are one-for-one for their careers on Opening Day. The most at bats for any player with a 1.000 Opening Day career average is four- shared by eight players.  Phil Collins – a right-handed pitcher –   is the unicorn in that group, the only one with five plate appearances. (He is also one of just two players with a 1.000 Opening Day average and  four at bats.)

On April 12, 1932, Collins (coming off a 12-16, 3.86 1931 season) started for the Phillies in their season opened (versus the Giants in New York). Collins picked up the complete-game win, giving up five runs in a 14-5 Phillies win.  At the plate, he was even better:  four singles and a walk in five plate appearances (the most career plate appearances by any player with a 1.000 career OD average). Collins appeared in one more Opening Day game(1934), but came on in relief and did not bat. Collins was a career .193 hitter (93-for-482). However, for one grand Opening Day, he was, indeed, grand at the plate. For those who like to know such things, Collins was 80-85, 4.66 in eight MLB seasons (1923, 1929-35 … Cubs, Phillies, Cardinals).

 

 

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OPENING DAY STARTS – Another GIMME FIVE!

Gaylord Perry and Bert Blyleven each started on the mound on Opening Day for a record five different franchises.

Blyleven: Rangers; Twins; Indians; Pirates; Angels (12 total OD starts).

Perry: Padres; Indians; Giants; Rangers; Mariners (9 OD starts).

I used the term franchises instead of” teams” because Livan Hernandez started on Opening day for the Expos; Giants; Nationals; Marlins and Twins.  However, the Nationals were the old (transported) Expos franchise.

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THREE FOR FOUR … Or, more correctly, four-for-three

The Opening Day, single-game record of three home runs is shared by four players.  The quartet includes: the Blue Jays’ George Bell; Cubs’ Tuffy Rhodes; Tigers’ Dmitri Young; and White Sox’ Matt Davidson.  Here’s another anomaly that would make a good trivia question. Three of the four three-homer Opening Day games were logged against the same franchise.  Who were the unlucky opponents in those three triple-round tripper openers?

Your answer.  The Kansas City Royals.  Here are some details.

George Bell … On April 4, 1988, 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.  Bell Played 12 MLB seasons (1981, 1983-93 … Blue Jays, White Sox), hitting .278-265-1,002.

Tuffy Rhodes … On a windy April 4, 1994, 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.

Dmitri Young … On April 4, 2005, the Tigers’ 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.  Over 13 MLB seasons (1996-2008 … Cardinals, Reds, Tigers, Nationals ), Young hit .292-171-683).

Matt Davidson … On March 29, 2018, as the White Sox topped the Royals 14-7 in Kansas City, DH and (appropriately) cleanup hitter 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 306 MLB games (2013, 2015-18, 2020, 2022 … Diamondbacks, White Sox, Reds, Athletics), Davidson had a .220-54-157 stat line.

Three seems to be the sweet spot for rarity on this one.  There have been 114 two-homer Opening Day games. The players with two, two-homer Opening Day contests are: Adam Dunn (2005 & 2007); Juan Gonzalez (1993 & 2001); Eddie Mathews (1954 & 1958); Raul Mondesi (1995 & 1999); Albert Pujols (2006-2010); and Joe Torre (1965 & 1966). None of the players with a three-homer Opening Day game had an additional multi-homer OD contest.

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A UNICORN OF A WIN

In 1980, Mike Parrott was the Opening Day starter (at home) for the Seattle Mariners – an honor he earned with a 14-12, 3.77 season for the 67-95 Mariners in 1979.   He picked up the win, going 6 1/3 innings in an 8-6 Seattle victory over Toronto. Why then Unicorn designation? Parrot would pitch in 26 more games that season (15 more starts) and not record another victory – ending the campaign at 1-16, 7.28. Parrot pitched in five MLB seasons (1977-81, all for the Mariners) – going in 19-39, 4.87.

 

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HOW ABOUT A LITTLE SUPPORT HERE GUYS?

Who was the first MLB pitcher to throw nine no-hit innings in an Opening Day Start? I’ll toss in a little hint here.  It’s not the Feller you may be thinking of – and it’s not a good Day to guess.

MLB has seen a pair of Opening Day no-hitters, Bob Feller of the Indians on April 16, 1940 and Leon Day of the of the Newark Eagles (Negro National League II) on May 5, 1946.

Still, neither of these gentlemen can lay claim to be the first MLB pitcher to throw nine no-hit innings in an Opening Day start. Back on April 15, 1909 – as the Giants opened against the Superbas (Dodgers) in Brooklyn – Giants’ righty Leon “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 had a 17-season MLB career (1903-10 … Giants, Reds, Cardinals, Phillies), going 183-167, 2.63. His best season was 1905 (Giants), when he went 22-8, 2.74.

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WALK, DON’T RUN

The record for walks received in an Opening Day game is four – shared by 134 players.  Of those players, only Mike Cameron can lay claim to two four-walk Openers.  On April 2, 2001, playing CF and batting in the two-hole for the Mariners, he drew four walks in five plate appearances as Seattle topped the A’s 5-4 in Seattle.  On April 7, 2009, Cameron again drew four walks in five plate appearances in an Opener. This time, he was playing CF and batting sixth for the Brewers, as they lost to the Giants 10-6 in San Francisco.

The career record for OD walks is 19 shared by Barry Bonds (in 91 plate appearances/20 games) and Rickey Henderson (in 92 plate appearances/21 games.) Carlos Santana leads active major-leaguers with 17 OD walks in 15 games.

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PLEASE, (DON’T) GIVE ME A BREAK

Robin Roberts holds the MLB record for consecutive Opening Day (mound) starts for the same team – 12 for the Phillies from 1950 through 1961. The record for overall consecutive Opening Day (mound) starts belong to Jack Morris at 14 – Tigers (1980-90), Twins (1991), Blue Jays (1992-93).  Morris went 8-6. 3.39 in those 14 starts.

Looking for a trivia question?   Robin Roberts made 13 Opening Day starts.  Those 12 consecutives for the Phillies and one other.  Who was that 13th Opening Day start for? The 1966 Astros. Roberts, by the way, went seven innings in that 13th Opening Day start, giving up eight hits and two runs (one earned), walking one and fanning none. He took the loss in a 3-2 game versus the Dodgers (in LA).  He was 39 and in his final MLB season at the time.  For his career, Roberts was 5-7, 4.03 on Opening Day. For his MLB career (1948-66 … Phillies, Orioles, Astros, Cubs), the Hall of Famer was 286-245, 3.41.

More: How the Game has Changed

In the 1950’s (1950-59), Robin Roberts won 199 games and threw 3,011 2/3 innings – an average of 301 innings pitched per season.

AN UNFORTUNATE BREAK

Hall of Famer 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 both overall consecutive Opening Day starts and consecutive Opening Day starts (among pitchers) for the same team. Who was the pitcher who interrupted Carlton’s streak?  Hint: Like Carlton, that pitcher is in the Hall of Fame.

In 1976, Jim Kaat (like Carlton, a lefty and future Hall of Famer) got the Opening Day nod from the Phillies. Kaat, at the time, was a three-time 20-game winner, and an All Star for the White Sox the year before (he had been traded to the Phillies in December of 1975).   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.

Oh, one other tidbit, Tom Seaver holds the record for total opening day (mound) starts with sixteen – 11 for the Mets, three for the Reds and two for the White Sox. Seaver recorded seven wins, two losses and seven no decisions on Opening Day.

OH, WHAT A RELIEF IT IS

There is a four-way tie for the most Opening Day relief appearances at 11: Rollie Fingers; John Franco; Lee Smith; and David Weathers.  Among active pitchers, Hector Neris leads the way with nine OD relief appearances.

Rollie Fingers and Francisco Rodriguez are tied for the lead in OD saves, with six.

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Both Sides of the Coin

Eleven pitchers have made at least 12 Opening Day appearances and all but one were on the mound to start each of those games. The exception is Dennis Eckersley with 12 OD appearances – seven as a starter and five as a reliever.

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Just A chart for your entertainment.

Jim Jones (chart above) stole three bases in three attempts in the 1902 season Opener. Jones then went on to play in 66 more games that season, stealing just four more bases, while being tossed out 13 times.

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TOSSING YOU A CURVE ON THIS ONE

What pitcher holds the mark for the most strikeouts in an Opening Day game? Answer: Camilo Pascual.

This is a bit of a unicorn, as Pascual’s 15 strikeouts on Opening Day 1960 have never been matched. Three players have fallen just one short of the total: Randy Johnson (twice – 1963 & 1996, Mariners); Don Drysdale (1960 Dodgers); and Shane Bieber ()2020 Indians).

On April 18, 1960, Pascual (known for his sweeping curveball) 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. It was one of two 15-whiff games in his career.

Pascual pitched 18 MLB seasons (1954-71 … Senators/Twins, Senators, Reds, Dodgers, Indians), 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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ANOTHER WALK DON’T RUN

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.

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 hit 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 cheekbone 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.

The record for Opening Day walks by a pitcher in a nine-inning game, belongs to Nolan Ryan at 10 … and he won the game. On April 5, 1974, Ryan started for the Angels in the Opener (at the White Sox). It was Ryan’s blazer versus Wilbur Wood’s floater.  After eight innings, the Angels held an 8-2 lead (scoring five runs in the top of the eighth) and Ryan had given up two runs on four hits, while walking ten and fanning five. He was relieved by Dick Selma, who threw a scoreless ninth.

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A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME

No one played in more Opening Day games then Pete Rose (23 consecutively from 1963-85) … Followed closely by Henry Aaron; Carl Yastrzemski; and at 22.  Rose is also the OD all-time leader in hits 31.

WHAT A BABE

Babe Ruth is the All-Time OD leader in:

Runs scored: 22

RBI … 22

Total bases … 55

In 18 Opening Day games, he hit .422-7-22, with 22 runs scored.  He also had five doubles, a triple and three stolen bases.  Only one other MLB player has 20 or more OD RBI – Adam Dunn (.244-8-21 in 13 Openers). In 14 MLB seasons (2001-2014 … Reds, Diamondbacks, Nationals, White Sox, Athletics), Dunn hit .237-462-1,168. Although he hit 4o or more homers in six seasons (five consecutive seasons … 2004-2008), the two-time All Star never led his league in homers.

 

A PAINFUL WAY TO START THE SEASON

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.

Second Inning – Davis, leading off, HBP (on 1-0 count) from Tom Browning;

Third Inning – Davis (one out, none on) hit by a 2-2 pitch from Browning;

Fifth Inning – Five-pitch walk off Tim Layana;

Seventh Inning – Davis fans on three pitches from Norm Charlton;

Ninth Inning: Runner on second two out, Davis intentionally walked by Rob Dibble (score tied at four);

Eleventh Inning: Davis hit by pitch (one out, one on) on a 2-2 pitch from Randy Myers.

Davis played 10 MLB seasons (1984-93 … Astros, Orioles) ), hitting .259, with 190 home runs and 603 RBI.  He was hit by a pitch 55 times.

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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.

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YOU CAN’T TOUCH THIS

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.

Key played in 15 MLB seasons (1984-98 … Blue Jays, Yankees, Orioles), going 186-117, 3.51. He was a five-time All Star and won 15 or more games in five seasons.

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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 (picked up in an off-season trade with the Senators) – LF  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. He ended the season at .291-16-61 (the 61 RBI were his career best.)

On March 31, 2003, the Cubs’ CF 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.  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.

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—THE ROUNDTABLE’S KING OF OPENING DAY-

The Washington Senators’ Walter Johnson can be crowned king of the Opening Day hill.  In 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 records for:

• Pitching victories … nine;
• Shutouts seven; and
• Complete games …. 12 (in 12 starts);

In his 12 Opening Day starts, he threw an OD record 124 innings (yep, averaging 10 1/3 innings per start).

Primary Resources: Baseball-Reference.com; Baseball-Almanac.com; MLB.com

Baseball Roundtable – Blogging Baseball Since 2012.

Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. For the full list click here. 

I tweet (on X) baseball @DavidBaseballRT. Follow me there for post notifications and links.

Follow Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here.  

Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; The Baseball Reliquary.

 

It’s time again for Baseball Roundtable’s Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye.  (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances and statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. I’m also drawn to baseball “unicorns,” one-of-a-kind MLB accomplishments or statistics.  Usual Disclaimer: Negro League game-by-game stats from 1920-48 are not yet fully incorporated into the MLB record books.

At times, as I prepare these tidbits, my mind begins to wander towards statistical queries of questionable significance. For example, as I pondered this week’s post, I started with a look at MLB pitchers who had the most strikeouts in their debut MLB appearances. I found, of course, that (in the Modern Era) J.R. Richard and Karl Spooner lead the way – each sending 15 hitters back to the dugout bat-in-hand  during their MLB mound debut. I also noted that there were only eight MLB pitchers who fanned at least a dozen batters in their big-league debut and, always on the lookout for a “unicorn,” only one of those also won 20 games in his debut season. (More on that coming up in a bit.)

Of course, with The Roundtable, one thing seems to lead to another.  So, I went on to look at Modern Era pitchers who won 20 or more games in their debut season. I found 16 of those.  (Side note: I looked at “debut” seasons, not season in which the player had “rookie” status.  Looking for a unicorn from among that group, I discovered that only one of those sixteen also struck out at least 200 batters in his debut season and only one played just that lone season in the major leagues.

Side note:  I looked at MLB-debut seasons, not  seasons in which the pitcher retained “rookie” status. Russ Ford of the 1910 Yankees is a case in point. He went 26-6, 1.65, with 209 strikeouts in 1911, but had pitched three innings, giving up four runs, in one game for the Yankees in 1910. So, he did not make these lists.

Plenty more on hurlers to make these lists to come …  after a (tid)bit of a diversion. Those of you who are not interested in pre-1900 statistics can skip over the diversion.

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I Digress … Why I’m Focusing Primarily on Modern Era Pitchers

I went with Modern Era for the bulk of this post because it offers a better comparison to today’s game.  For those who like to know such things (I do), from 1871-1900, there were 33 pitchers who won 20 or more games in their MLB debut season – and eight of those won 30 or more, led by Larry Corcoran’s 43-win season for the 1880 Chicago White Stockings (43-14, 1.95 in 63 games/60 starts). Of the 33 20+ game winners, who qualified for pre-1900 listing) just six topped 200 strikeouts in their debut season, led by Matt Kilroy’s 513 strikeouts for the 1886 American Association Baltimore Orioles (29-34,  3.37 in 68 games – all starts, 66 complete games).  The pre-Modern Era pitchers to notch 20 or more wins and 200 or more strikeouts in their debut season were: Corcoran (43-14, 1.95, 268K); Kilroy (29-34. 3.37, 513K); Ed Morris (34-13, 2.18 with 302 strikeouts for the 1884 American Association Columbus Buckeyes); George Derby (29-26, 2.20, 212K for the 1881 Detroit Wolverines); Charles “Kid” Nichols (27-19, 2.23, 222K for the 1890 Boston Beaneaters); Al Atkinson (20-26, 3.36, 247K in 1884, when he pitched for the American Association Philadelphia Athletics and the Union Association Baltimore Monumentals).  

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The only Modern Era pitcher to rack up 20 wins and 200+ strikeouts in his debut season was Grover Cleveland Alexander – 28-13, 2.57, with 227 strikeouts in 367 innings for the 1911 Phillies).

Alexander, of course, went on to the Hall of Fame with a 373-208, 2.56 record over 20 MLB seasons (1911-30 … Phillies, Cubs, Cardinals). He had nine seasons of 20 or more wins (three of 30 or more) and four seasons of 200 or more strikeouts. He led the league in wins and whiffs six times each and earned run average five time.

Henry Schmidt … A One and Done Unicorn – At Least for the Major Leagues

In 1903,  five minor-league seasons, 30-year-old righty Henry Schmidt made his major-league debut with the Brooklyn Superbas and went 23-13, 3.83 in 40 appearances (36 starts/29 complete games/five shutouts).  That season earned him “unicorn”  status as the only pitcher who won 20 or more games in his sole MLB season.  He did play in four more minor-league seasons after that lone MLB campaign. For more on Schmidt’s career, click here.  

At the end of the full post, there is a full list of Modern Era players to reach 200 or more strikeouts in their MLB debut season.

Now, switching gears a little. The chart below shows the eight Modern Era pitchers to fan at least 12 batters in their MLB debut.

O. Let’s look at a few of them.

The Unicorn … Cliff Melton, LHP, 1937 Giants

We’ll start with the unicorn on this chart. Twenty-five-year-old southpaw Cliff Melton made his MLB debut for the Giants on April 25, 1937.  (In 1936, his sixth professional season, he had gone 20-14, 3.39 for the Double-A Baltimore Orioles of the International League.)

In his MLB debut, Melton pitched well in a 3-1 loss to the Boston Bees in New York. He went all nine innings, giving up three runs (two earned) one six hits, walking two (one intentionally) and striking out 13. (To add some context, in 1937, the NL average strikeouts per nine innings was 3.7.)  Although, he pitched reasonably well early in the season, Melton was just 1-3 (2.38 ERA) after five starts and his next 14 appearances were out of the bullpen, where he went 3-1, 1.65, with five saves (figured retroactively). Back in the rotation on June 20 (22 of his final 29 appearances were as a starter), Melton went 16-5, 2.80, with two saves to finish the season at 20-9, 2.61 with 14 complete games and two shutouts in 27 starts/46 appearances.

Melton’s rookie campaign proved to be his best in eight MLB seasons (1937-44 … Giants). In his debut season, he set what would be his career best in wins (20), winning percentage (.690), ERA (2.61), appearances (46), complete games (14), innings pitched (248) and strikeouts (142). (He never won more than 14 games in a season over the rest of his MLB career and finished with MLB stat line of 86-80, 3.42, with 16 saves, 65 complete games and 13 shutouts.

A Bit of a Unicorn In Nis Own Right … Karl Spooner, LHP 1954 Dodgers

Southpaw Karl Spooner’s record MLB-debut 15 strikeouts (September 22, 1954) came in  a three-hit, three-walk, 3-0 shutout win over the Giants) and gave him unicorn status until J.R. Richard tied that debut-K mark in 1971.  However, in his very next start (September 26), Spooner cemented a spot as a unicorn that still stands. In his second MLB appearance, he threw another shutout (a four-hit, three-walk, 1-0 win over the Pirates) and fanned 12. The 27 whiffs in his first two MLB games stand as a record (closest to Spooner are Cliff Melton and Stephen Strasburg at 22 and only six Modern Era pitchers have fanned 20 or more batters in their first two games). Those 27 whiffs in his first 18 MLB innings are even more notable when you consider that, in 1954, the MLB average for strikeouts per nine innings was 4.2.

Spooner started the 1954 season with the Double-A Fort Worth Cats – and went 21-9, 3.14, with 262 strikeouts and 162 walks in 238 innings. That earned him a September call up to the Dodgers – and his place in MLB history.

Spooner is also one of just six Modern ERA pitchers to throw shutouts in their first two MLB appearances (Spooner, Joe Doyle (1906 Yankees); Johnny Marcum (1933 Athletics); Dave Ferriss (1945 Red Sox); Al Worthington (1953 Giants); and Tom Phoebus (1966 Orioles). Side note: Those two shutouts marked Spooner’s only two appearances in his debut MLB season

Spooner’s blazing start, smoldered quickly – dampened by a shoulder injury suffered in Spring Training the following year (1955). Long story short: Spooner didn’t get his first start of the 1955 season until May 15 and 1955 was his final MLB season. He finished with a career line of 10-6, 3.09 (1954-55 Dodgers).  For much, much more on Spooner career, click here.

Nobody ever threw harder than that kid (Spooner) did in the first two games he pitched in the majors. He’s the greatest young pitcher I’ve ever seen.

                                                                          Hall of Fame Dodger Catcher Roy Campanella

 Let’s Get a righty in Here … J.R. Richard, RHP, 1971 Astros

Right-hander J.R. Richard made his MLB debut on September 5, 1971, tossing a complete-game, seven-hitter, as his Astros topped the Giants (in San Francisco) 5-3. Richard fanned 15 in the game – tying the MLB rerod for strikeouts in a debut game.  (Richard was called up to the Giants after posting a 12-7, 2.45 record, with 202 strikeouts in 173 innings, with the Triple-A Oklahoma City 89ers.)

Richard pitched in three more games with the Astros that season, going 2-1, 3.43 on the season, with 29 strikeouts (16 walks) in 21 innings.  A “You’ll probably never see that again” moment – Richard threw 155 pitches in his MLB debut.

Like Spooner and Melton before him, Richard’s potential was thwarted. He suffered a number of bouts of inconsistent control, as well as some health issues, and from 1971-1974 put up a major-league stat line of 11-6, 4.34, with 154 strikeouts and 98 walks in 163 2/3 MLB innings (spending time in the minor leagues in each season).

In 1975, things began to fall into place, as Richard spent the whole season with the Astros going 12-10, 4.39, with 176 strikeouts (but also leading the league in walks with 138 and wild pitches with 20) in 203 innings. Then, from 1976 through July of 1980, he was one of MLB’s most dominant pitchers, going 84-55, 2.79, with 1,163 strikeouts and 534 walks in 1,239 1/3 innings pitched. He won 20 games in 1976 (20-15, 2.75) and 18 games each season from 1977-79. Richard led the league in ERA in 1979 (2.71) and strikeouts in 1978-79 (303 & 313, respectively). In 1980, he started the All Star game (his first half record was 10-4, 1.96, with 115 strikeouts and 39 walks in 110 1/3 innings pitched).  Then on July on July 30, disaster struck. Richard (who had previously noted some neck, shoulder and arm issues) suffered a severe stroke during pregame drills and underwent major surgery to remove a life-threatening blood clot in his neck. He attempted a comeback (minor leagues … 1982-83), but never pitched in the majors again. Richard’s final MLB stat line was 107-71, 3.15, with 76 complete games and 19 shutouts in 238 appearances (221 starts) and 1,493 strikeouts in 1,606 innings pitched.,

He (J.R. Richard) had the greatest stuff I have ever seen and it still gives me goosebumps to think of what he might have become.

                                                       Hall of Famer Joe Morgan

 

Now, Here’s that promised list of Modern Era players to notch 200 strikeouts in their debut season.

For those who like to know such things: From this list, Dwight Gooden, Herb Score, Hideo Nomo, Grover Alexander, and Mark Langston each led their league in strikeouts in their MLB-debut seasons.   Of the player in the above chart, Grover Alexander and  Don Sutton are currently in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

 

Primary Resources:  Baseball-Reference.com; J.R. Richards Tribute.  AstrosDaily.com

 

Baseball Roundtable – Blogging Baseball Since 2012.

Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. For the full list click here. 

I tweet (on X) baseball @DavidBaseballRT. Follow me there for post notifications and links.

Follow Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here.  

Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; The Baseball Reliquary.

P 1153

 

It’s time again for Baseball Roundtable’s Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye.  (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances and statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. I’m also drawn to baseball “unicorns,” one-of-a-kind MLB accomplishments or statistics.

This week, we are looking back at a game that generated two unicorns – one at the plate and one on the mound.  A contest that saw Johnny Burnett of the Indians turn in MLB’s only nine-hit game and Athletics’ righty Eddie Rommel give up the most hits ever in an MLB game (29) … and still get the win.  Read on for a look at this contest, and the other records Burnett and Rommel set that day.

As a teaser, here’s the line score.

Side note: The most runs ever scored by an MLB team in a loss (Modern Era) is 23.  On August 25, 1922, the Phillies lost to the Cubs 26-23 in Chicago – and it was a nine-inning game.  The Phillies did make quite a comeback; they were down 25-6 after four innings.  A bit of a tidbit. The second-most runs scored in a losing cause also involved the Phillies and Cubs, playing in Chicago. On May 17, 1979, The Phillies topped the Cubs 23-22 in ten innings. But, I digress (as I most often do in these posts.)

Now to our regularly slated tidbit.

Due to a combination of factors (earlier weather- related postponements, Sunday Blue Laws), the Athletics found themselves facing a demanding schedule in early-July.  This included including a stretch (July 7-11) when they were slated to play nine games in five days – home doubleheaders (hosting Chicago)part- on July 7, 8 and 9; a single road game in Cleveland on July 10; and a home doubleheader (hosting the Indians) on July 11.  And, they faced this demanding schedule with a short and overworked pitching staff.  In response, Athletics’ part-owner and manager Connie Mack decided (either to protect his beleaguered hurlers or to save money … or both) to send only two pitchers (Lew Krausse and Ed Rommel) on the one-day railway turn-around for the July 10 game in Cleveland. And, the rest, as they say, is history … and thus are MLB unicorns born. For those who like to know such things, the Athletics went 5-4 over that nine-game stretch.

Johnny Burnett, Indians – Only Player with Nine Hits in an MLB Game

The Indians lost to the Athletics in that June 10, 1932 game – by an 18-17 score – but it wasn’t Johnny Burnett’s fault. Burnett earned unicorn status with a still MLB all-time, single-game record nine-hits.

Burnett, playing shortstop and batting second (hitting .298 at the time), came to the plate 11 times in the game and delivered seven singles and two doubles in 11 at bats (raising his average to .323) ; scoring four times; and driving in two runs.  His day went like this:

First inning – Singled off Lew Krausse, scored on a home run by CF Earl Averill;

Second inning – Singled off Eddie Rommel;

Fourth Inning – Singled off Rommel;

Fifth Inning – RBI double off Rommel (tying the score at 6-6);

Seventh Inning – Led off with a single off Rommel, scored on a double by LF Joe Vosmik, batted again and struck out for the final out of the frame (Rommel);

Ninth Inning – Hit a two-out Single off Rommel, driving in 3B Willie Kamm and tying the game at 15-15 (extending the contest and giving Burnett the chance at his nine-hit day);

Eleventh Inning– Doubled off Rommel;

Thirteenth Inning – Singled off Rommel;

Sixteenth Inning – Singled off Rommel, later scored on a single by 1B Ed Morgan, tying the game at 17 apiece

Burnett finished the season at .297-4-53, with 81 runs scored (in 129 games). He played in nine MLB seasons (1927-35 … Indians, Browns) and went .284-9-213, with 288 runs scored in 558 games. He played in 100 or more games in just two of his nine seasons. His best seasons were in 1931 and 1932, when he played in a total of 240 games for the Indians and hit .298.

Johnny Burnett’s record-setting nine-hit game came in the midst of a 12-game hitting streak (game seven of the streak), during which he hit .417 (25-for-60) and raised his average from .289 to .319.

  In another nod to unicorn status, Burnett’s eight hits off Rommel during his nine-hit day makes him the answer to the question “What are the most hits any batter got off a single pitcher in a game?”  Or the reverse for Rommel – “Who is the only MLB pitcher to give up eight hits to a single batter in a single game?”

Take a Licking and Keeps on Ticking – Eddie Rommel Achieves Multiple Unicorn Status (29 Hits in an MLB Game … For the Win)

The starting pitchers in that July 10, 1932 game were Clint Brown for the Indians and Lew Krausse for the Athletics. While Brown lasted 6 2/3 innings for the Indians, Krausse was pulled after giving up three runs in the first inning (a walk, three singles and a home run). That set the stage for Rommel’s unicorn performance (remember, Mack only brought two pitchers).

Rommel, known for his reliance on the knuckleball (a rarity at the time), pitched 17 innings in the game, gave up 29 hits, nine walks and 14 runs (13 earned), but got the win. Interestingly (at least to The Roundtable), Rommel appeared to get better as the game went on. In his first eight innings of work (frames two through nine), he gave up 18 hits, walked six, surrendered 12 runs, tossed two wild pitches and struck out three batters.   Over his final nine frames, Rommel gave up 11 hits and three walks (one intentional), allowed only two runs, did not throw a wild pitch and fanned four.

His final inning, in fact, was his best. Facing the Indians 3, 4 and 5 hitters (Averill, Vosmik and Morgan), Rommel went strikeout, groundout, strikeout.

A Bit of a Tidbit

In 1932, Rommel was in the final season of his 13-season MLB career (1920-32 … Athletics). That July 10, 1932 win – in which he surrendered that record 29 hits – was the final MLB victory of his career. Rommel pitched in only five more MLB games (all in 1932) – going 0-2, 3.86 in those games and 1-2, 5.51 on the season. 

Now for those unicorn stats, which might make for some fun bar trivia questions.   Rommel set the still-standing (and I can confidently say “never to be broken”) records for:

• The most hits allowed by a pitcher in an MLB game – 29;
• The most hits allowed in a game in which the pitcher earned a victory and most hits allowed in a single relief appearance;
• The most baserunners allowed by a pitcher in a game – 39 (and, of course, in a game in which the pitcher got the win);
• The most batters faced in a relief appearance – 87 (no other reliever has even reached 70).

Cleveland Swings

Only twice in MLB’s Modern Era has a pitcher has surrendered 14 runs in a game and come away with the win. In both cases the game was played in Cleveland and the winning pitcher was with the Athletics (Chick Fraser on May 31, 1901 and Eddie Rommel on July 10, 1932).

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Another Brief Diversion

A usual with The Roundtable, one thing led to another – including a look at MLB’s longest relief appearances … which took me all the way to the end of the alphabet. Number-one on the list is the (wonderfully named) Cubs’ righty George Washington “Zip” Zabel, who threw 18 1/3 innings in relief (and picked up a win) as the Cubs topped the Dodgers (in Chicago) in 19 innings on June 17, 1915. Zabel’s long relief stint was necessitated after Chicagor starter Bert Humphries was injured in the first inning. Zabel gave up just two runs (one earned) on nine hits, while walking one and fanning six.  By comparison, the last time a reliever went even nine innings was in 1988 (Neil Allen, Yankees/May 31) and 2025’s longest MLB relief appearance was 7 2/3 innings (Jonathan Cannon, White Sox, April 26).  

Perhaps, what could have been. 1915 would prove to be Zabel’s final MLB seasons (at age 24). In the Society for American Baseball Research Zabel biography, author Bill Lamb notes that Zabel “was never quite the same after his marathon outing. He lasted  only two innings in his next start, and was soon complaining of a sore arm.”  Bill Zabel pitched in three MLB seasons (1913-15 … Cubs), going 12-14, 2.71 in 66 games (25 starts, ten complee games, three shutouts.) 

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Rommel’s MLB career, by the way, was not defined by that 29-hit outing. Rommel finished at 171-119, 3.54, in 501 appearances, 249 starts (145 complete games). He twice led the AL in wins (27-13 in 1922 & 21-10 in 1925), and won 15 or more games in five seasons.  In 1922, Rommel’s 27 wins came for an Athletics’ team that won only 65 games (89 losses).

For The Love of the Game

After retiring as a player, Eddie Rommel continued as a major-league coach and minor-league manager, before eventually working his way back to the major leagues as an umpire. He umpired in the majors for 22 seasons, along the way umpiring in six All Star Games and two World Series. 

 

Primary Resources: Stathead.com; Baseball-Almanac.com; Eddie Rommel Society for American Baseball Research bio, by Tim Deale;

 

Baseball Roundtable – Blogging Baseball Since 2012.

Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. For the full list click here. 

I tweet (on X) baseball @DavidBaseballRT. Follow me there for post notifications and links.

Follow Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here.  

Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; The Baseball Reliquary.

P 1152

It’s time again for Baseball Roundtable’s Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye.  (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances and statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. I’m also drawn to baseball “unicorns,” one-of-a-kind MLB accomplishments or statistics.

This week, it’s a walk down memory lane … back to 1968.  Some of The Roundtable’s more experienced readers (Sounds better than “older,” doesn’t it?) will remember most of these tidbits. For younger readers, there may be a few eye openers.

The usual disclaimer: Negro Leagues game-by-game stats are not yet fully incorporated into MLB records.

The 1968 MLB season was known as “The Year of the Pitcher.”  In fact, pitchers were so dominant in 1968 that (effective for the 1969 season), MLB lowered the height of the pitcher’s mound from 15 inches to ten inches, set uniform rules for the slope of the mound and reduced the size of the strike zone from the top of the batter’s shoulder to his knees to between the batter’s armpits and knees.

I include the chart below to show the impact of the 1969 changes … and I added 2025 to give some indication of how today’s game compares with the late 1960s.  As you can see, from 1968-69 we did see a moderate increase in runs scored per game, batting average and slugging percentage and, from the pitchers’ point of view, earned run averages were up and shutouts were down.  Now, I do digress from topic here, but my attention was drawn to how major-league baseball today is a “power” game. While batting averages in 2025 were about the same as in 1969 (and hits per nine innings were 8.4 in both 1969 and 2025), runs per game, slugging percentage, home runs per nine innings were up, as was earned run average.  And, from the power pitching point of view, strikeouts are up – from 5.8 per nine innings in 1969 to 8.5 in 2025.  Of course, a lot goes into this: pitchers are throwing harder than ever, batters are looking for the long ball, relief specialists have become the norm (and let’s not forget the dreaded pitch counts).  But all of this is fodder for a future post.

Just sayin’ …

In 2025, with 30 MLB teams, fans saw just 29 total complete games pitched and no pitcher tossed more than one shutout.  In 1969, with 24 teams, there were 982 complete games and it took five shutouts to make MLB’s top ten shutout list.  

But, I digress (as I often do).  Now, back to our regularly scheduled topic – trivia from 1968. A few obvious tidbits:

• Denny McLain became the first 30-game winner since Dizzy Dean in 1934 (and there hasn’t been another since), putting up a 31-6, 1.96 mark, with 28 complete games and six shutouts in 41 starts. Side note: McLain’s 28 complete games were just one less than all 30 MLB teams combined in 2025. (Juan Marichal led MLB in complete games in 1968 withs 30 … in 38 starts.)
• Carl Yaszrremski won the American League batting championship with what remains the lowest average ever for a league leader at .301. He was the AL’s only .300 hitter.

Hey, Looks Like Those Rule Changes Worked

In 1968, the NL & AL saw just six qualifying batters hit .300 or better. After the rules changes, the 1969 season saw 18 qualifying batters hit .300+. (There were four more teams).

• In 1968, for the only time (in a non-shortened season) neither the AL nor the NL had a player score at least 100 runs. (Cubs’ 2B Glenn Beckert led the NL with 98; Tigers’ 2B Dick McAuliffe led the AL with 95.) The only other seasons when neither the AL or NL had a player score 100 runs were the shortened seasons of 1918 (WWI); 1981 (strike); 2020 (Covid).
• Bob Gibson led MLB with 13 shutouts. The highest in a season by a pitcher since 1916.  (More on Gibson’s remarkable season later in this post.).

Now, a little more detail on some other 1968 tidbits I found interesting.

Longest Ever 1-0 Game

On April 15, the Mets and Astros, playing in Houston, set the tone for the season, playing the longest 1-0 game in MLB history (24 innings) … and the winning run scored on an error. In the bottom of the 24^th, with Les Rohr on the mound for the Mets, Houston RF Norm Miller led off with a single to right; Rohr balked Miller to second; then intentionally walked LF Jimmy Wynn. 1B Rusty Staub grounded out second-to-first (with Miller going to third and Wynn to second).  John Bateman came in to pinch it for C Hal King and was intentionally walked to load the bases.  3B Bob Aspromonte then reached on an error by Mets’ SS Al Weiss and, on the play, Miller scored the game’s only run.  (Given the current placed runner in extra innings rule, I doubt this record for the longest 1-0 game will ever be broken.)

The two teams each had just 11 hits in the 24 innings (79 at bats each) … a .139 average for the game. There were just two extra-base hits in the game (one double for each team). The two squads were 1-for-23 with runners in scoring position. Those among the 14,219 fans who stayed to the end, got six hours and six minutes of “entertainment” for the price of a ticket.

Don Drysdale Get Stingy

Here’s another mark that will likely never be broken. From May 14 through June 4, Dodgers’ righty Don Drysdale made six starts. He went the distance in all six games … and did not give up a single run.  The six consecutive shutouts remain the MLB record.  Over the six games, Drysdale gave up just 27 hits and nine walks, while fanning 42. Surprisingly, despite the streak (and a total of eight shutouts in 1968), Drysdale ended the season at 14-12, 2.15 in 341 starts. The six consecutive shutouts were part of a record (since broken) 58-innings scoreless streak. To further illustrate how dominant the pitching was in 1968, Drysdale lost six games in which he gave up two or fewer earned runs and his 2.15 ERA did not even put him among the ten best qualifying pitchers (he was number 12).

Hall of Famer Drysdale, an All Star in eight seasons, finished his 14-season MLB career (1956-69 … Dodgers) at 209-168, 2.95, with 167 CG and 49 shutouts in 465 starts. He recorded an ERA under 3.00 in eight seasons.

Side Note; Dodgers’ righty Orel Hershiser broke Drysdale’s scoreless innings streak in 1988, with a 59-inning streak of goose eggs. Hershiser did not break Drysdale’ shutout streak, however. Hershiser’s streak included five consecutive shutouts in September.  Then, in his final start of the season, he went ten scoreless frames before being relieved in a Dodgers 2-1 loss to the Padres, reaching 59 scoreless frames.  In the first inning of his first start of the 1969 season, he gave up a run to the Reds.  

Bob Gibson Squeezes that ERA

In 1969, the Cardinals’ Bob Gibson put up a 22-9 mark with a 1.12 earned run average, with 28 complete game and 13 shutouts in 34 starts. His ERA was the fifth-lowest for a season (among pitchers with at least 100 innings pitched in the season) in MLB history and the lowest since 1906 (Dutch Leonard – 0.96). Between June 6 and September 2 of that season, Gibson started 18 games, going 16-1, with a 0.60 earned run average. The streak included 17 complete games and 12 shutouts.  The only game he did not finish in the span was came on August 4, when he went 11 innings (four earned run) in a Cardinals’ 6-5, 13-inning loss to the Cubs.

Don’t Worry Boys, I Got This

Bob Gibson threw 13 shutouts in 1968; equaling 2025’s total of one pitcher shutouts for all of MLB.

Hall of Famer Gibson pitched 17 MLB seasons (1959-75 … Cardinals), going 251-174, 2.91, with 255 complete games and 56 shutouts in 482 starts. In 1968-69, he completed 56 of 69 starts. He was an All Star in eight seasons and won 20 or more games in five.

Side note:  In 1944, the Kansas City Monarchs’ (Negro American League) Satchel Page finished with a 6-4, 1.10 record in 16 starts (98 1/3 innings).  

Pitchers Dominate 1968 All Star Game

The 1968 All Star Game – which featured some of MLB’s all-time hitting greats (like Hank Aaron, Willie McCovey, Willie Mays, Rod Carew, Carl Yastrzemski, Harmon Killebrew, Mickey Mantle, and Johnny Bench) – saw only one run and eight total hits (20 strikeouts).  Further, it is the only All Star game that did not feature single earned run or RBI. The winning run scored in the bottom of the first (off AL starter Luis Tiant).  Mays led off with a single and went to second on a flubbed pickoff attempt. Curt Flood then walked, with Mays going to third on a wild pitch. Willie McCovey batted next and hit into a 4-6-3 double play, with Mays scoring what would be the game’s only run.

A couple of side notes: After SS Jim Fregosi opened the top of the first with a double, 20 consecutive AL hitters were retired in order. RF Tony Oliva broke the AL drought with a two-out double in the seventh.  The two teams were a combined 0-for-14 with runners in scoring positions.

Temporary Unicorn Status

On September 17, Gaylord Perry pitched a no-hitter for the Giants (in San Francisco) as they defeated Bob Gibson and the Cardinals 1-0. Perry walked two and fanned nine in the no-no. The very next day, the Cardinals’ Ray Washburn returned the favor – no-hitting the Giants in a 2-0 win. It was the first time – in 93 seasons and after 164 previous no-hitters (per MLB.com*) – that MLB saw no-hitters, involving the same two teams, in consecutive games (and in the same ballpark).

*- Does not include the National Association, which baseball-reference.com lists as having one no-hitter tossed in 1875.  And, as noted earlier, Negro Leagues game-by-game stats from 1920-48 are not yet fully documented and incorporated into MLB records.

Unicorn status was achieved, but it didn’t last long. The very next season, the Reds and Astros duplicated the feat. On April 30, 1969, the Reds’ Jim Maloney tossed a no-hitter, as the Reds topped the Astros in Cincinnati.  The next day (May 1), the Astros’ Don Wilson held the Reds hitless in a 4-0 win. These are still the only two instances in which no-hitters were tossed in consecutive games involving the same two teams.

Bucking the 1968 “Pitchers Rule” Trend

From May 12 through May 18, 1968, the Senators’ Frank Howard turned The Year of the Pitcher into The Week of the Hitter (at least for Howard). In that span, Howard set the (still-standing) MLB record for home runs in any one-week (seven-day) period. In six games, he hit 10 home runs (at least one in each contest), drove in 17 runs, scored 10 and collected 13 hits in 24 at bats (.542). Pitchers must have believed in The Year of the Pitcher. They only walked Howard once during that surge. Surprisingly, his Senators went just 3-3 over the six-game Howard binge.  Howard finished the 1968 season at .274-44-106, leading MLB in home runs (he was the only player to reach 40 homers that season).

Howard played in 16 MLB seasons (1958-73 … Dodgers, Senators/Rangers, Tigers), hitting .273-382-1,119. A four-time All Star, he led the league in home runs twice and RBI once. He was the 1960 NL Rookie of the Year (Dodgers), after a .268-23-77 season.

 

We’ll close with a pitcher who both honored and defied the 1968 Pitchers’ Rule trend.

From Both Sides Now

The Athletics’ Catfish Hunter added a bit of emphasis on The Year of the Pitcher on May 8, when he tossed a perfect game in a 4-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins (in Oakland). But he also defied the odds.  For, in this Year of the Pitcher, he collected three hits and drove in three runs (both all-time offensive records for pitchers tossing Perfect Games). Hunter is, in fact, the only pitcher to collect more than one hit while tossing a perfecto. Overall, in MLB’s 24 perfect games, only six pitchers have collected hits (although in ten of those games the pitcher did not bat).

Hunter finished 1968 13-13, 3.35 on the mound, with 11 complete games and two shutouts.  At the plate, he hit .232-1-8. The Hall of Famer played in 15 MLB seasons (1965-79 … Athletics, Yankees), going 224-166, 3.26 with 181 complete games and 42 shutouts in 476 starts. He was an eight-time All Star, five times won 20 or more games (consecutively, 1971-75) and was the 1974 AL Cy Young Award winner.

DH?  I don’t need no stinkin’ DH!!

Catfish Hunter’s .232 batting average in 1968 topped the American League’s overall average of .230.

 Primary Resources: Stathead.com; Baseball-Almanac.com

 

Baseball Roundtable – Blogging Baseball Since 2012.

Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. For the full list click here. 

I tweet (on X) baseball @DavidBaseballRT. Follow me there for post notifications and links.

Follow Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here.  

Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; The Baseball Reliquary.

P 1156

It’s time again for Baseball Roundtable’s Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye.  (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances and statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. I’m also drawn to baseball “unicorns,” one-of-a-kind MLB accomplishments or statistics.

This week, a somewhat rare (but not unicorn) occurrence caught my attention – players who won an MLB Most Valuable Player Award while playing for a team with a losing record.    It’s only happened ten times (accomplished by six different players). Even rarer is the capturing of an MVP Award by a player with a last place team. That has happened just twice.

Later in this post, we will go through these occurrences player-by-player and season-by-season, but first some overall observations.

• The first player to capture an MVP Award with a sub-500 team was the Cubs’ Ernie Banks in 1958 and, proving it was not a fluke, he recorded MLB’s second MVP season with a losing squad the very next year. Others to win two MVP Awards with sub-.500 squads are Mike Trout (Angels, 2016 & 2019) and Shohei Ohtani, (Angels, 2021 & 2023).
• The first player to earn an MVP Award while playing for a last place team was the Cubs’ Andre Dawson (1987). The only other time it has happened was in 2003 (Alex Rodriguez, Rangers).
• The Cubs (3) and Angels (4) account for seven of the ten instances in which a player for a sub-.500 team captured a league MVP Award.

I also took a look at what (statistically) might have swayed the voters in these ten instances.  It appeared to be a “power struggle.”

First, I looked at raw numbers:

• Every one of the ten MVP winners had at least 300 total bases;
• Nine of the ten had 30 or more home runs in their MVP season;
• Nine of ten had at least 100 RBI;
• Seven of the ten had at least 100 runs scored.

Notably, the batting averages of these ten MVP winners ranged from .257 to .323, with five at .300 or better and five below .300.

A prime defensive position also seemed to help.   In six of these ten seasons, the honored player played with SS or CF.  (There were three Gold Glovers among the ten MVPs.)

I also looked at league leadership in specific categories.  Again, we appeared to be looking at a power game:

• Slugging percentage led the way, with five of the ten MVPs leading their league in that category;
• Four of the ten led in home runs;
• Four led in total bases;
• Four led in extra-base hits;
• Three each led in on-base percentage and RBI and, of course, there were the three Gold Gloves;
• Two led in runs scored;
• There were no batting champions and no league leaders in base hits nor stolen bases.

Now, let’s look deeper into the ten MVP winners from losing teams.  Note: In the charts, league leadership is designated by bold face.

 

Ernie Banks, SS, Cubs … 1958 & 1959 NL MVP

Cubs, 1958: 72-82, fifth place, 20 games out of first.

Cubs, 1959: 74-80, fifth place, 13 games out of first.  

Ernie Banks was the first player to take a home a league MVP Award while toiling for a team a sub .500 record – and he did it two seasons in a row.

In 1958, Banks (in his sixth MLB season) led the NL in games played (154), home runs (47), RBI (129), slugging percentage (.614), extra base hits (81) and total bases (379).  He was also second in the league in runs scored (119) and triples (11).  He finished second in the league in (among shortstops) in assists (468) and double plays (100) and was third in putouts (292).

 

Ernie Banks was the first National League Player to win back-to-back (1958-59) MVP Awards.

In 1959, Banks again led the NL in games played (155) and RBI (143).  He also led the senior circuit in intentional walks (20).  He finished second in the NL in home runs (45) and third in total bases (351). In the field, he led NL shortstops in assists (519), and was second in putouts (271) and double plays (95).

Hall of Famer Banks played in 19 MLB seasons (1953-71 … Cubs), hitting .274-512-1,636. He was an All Star in 11 seasons (played in 14 All Star Games due to the fact that two AS Games were played each season from 1959-62) and a one-time Gold Glover. He hit 40 or more home runs in five seasons (twice leading the league), drove in 100+ runs in eight (twice leading the league) and scored 100+ runs twice.  He also led the NL in games played six times.

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Andre Dawson, RF, Cubs … 1987 NL MVP

Cubs, 1987: 76-85, sixth place (last in NL East), 18 ½ games out of first.

Andre Dawson, in his age-32 season, was in his 12th MLB season when he captured the 1987 NL MVP Award.  It was his first season with the Cubs. He had played with the Expos from 1976-86, was granted free agency by the Expos (Oops!) after the 1986 season and signed with the Cubbies.

In 1987, Dawson hit .287 for the Cubs and led the NL in home runs (49) and RBI (137) – reaching what would be his career highs in both categories.   He was third in extra base hits (75). He also won a Gold Glove for his play in right field.

Andre Dawson was the first MLB player to win an MVP Award while playing for a last place team.

Hall of Famer Dawson played in 21 MLB seasons (1976-96 … Expos, Cubs, Red Sox, Marlins), going .279-438-1,591, with 314 steals and 1,373 runs scored.  He was an eight-time All Star, eight-time Gold Glover and the 1977 NL Rookie of the Year (.282-19-65, with 21 steals and 64 runs scored for the Expos).  He hit 20 or more home runs in 13 seasons, drove in 100 or more runs in four, twice scored 100 or more runs, hit .300+ five times and stole 20 or more bases in seven seasons.   He led the NL in hits in 1983 (189) and in intentional walks with 21in 1990.

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Cal Ripken, Jr., SS, Orioles … 1991 AL MVP

Orioles, 1991: 67-95, Sixth Place, (AL East) 24 games out of first.

Playing in all 162 games, Ripken (in his eleventh MLB season) combined a strong offensive season (.323-34-114), with Gold Glove-winning defense.  He led the AL in total bases (368) and extra-base hits (85). He finished second in the AL in hits (210), doubles (46) and slugging percentage (.566); and third in home runs (34). In the field, he led AL shortstops in assists (528), putouts (267), double plays (72) and fielding percentage (.986)

 

 

Hall of Famer Ripken played in 21 MLB seasons (1981-2001, Orioles), hitting .276-431-1,695, with 1,647 runs scored. He was an All Star in 19 seasons, a two-time MVP, two-time Gold Glover and the 1982 AL Rookie of the Year (.264-28-93). Ripken hit 20 or more home runs in 12 seasons, drove in 100+ runs in four, scored 100+ runs in three.

In his first full MLB season, Cal Ripken was the AL Rookie of the year (at ag 21). The very next season, he won his first AL MVP Award, after a .318-27-102 season for the Orioles – in which he led the AL in Games (162), Runs (121), hits (211) and doubles (47).

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Alex Rodriguez, SS, Rangers … 2003 AL MVP

2003 Rangers: 71-91, fourth place (last in AL West), 25 games out of first.

In 2003, Alex Rodriguez (in his tenth MLB season) won his first of three MVP Awards. (He had finished in the second or third  in AL MVP voting in three of his first seven full MLB seasons.)  In 2003, Rodriguez went .298-47-118, with 124 runs scored and 17 stolen bases (leading the league in runs and home runs).  He led the AL in slugging percentage (.600), was second in RBI (118) and third in extra base hits (83) and total bases (364). For good measure, he also picked up a Gold Glove for his play at SS.  At SS, he was first in the AL in double plays (111) and fielding percentage (.989) and third in the AL in putouts (227) and assists (464).

Rodriguez played in 22 MLB seasons (1994-2013, 2015-16 … Mariners, Rangers, Yankees), going .295-696-2,086, with 2,021 runs scored and 329 stolen bases. He led the league in runs scored five times (scoring 100 or more runs in 13 seasons); led in hits once (topping 200 hits three times); led in doubles once (54 in 1996); led in home runs five times (hitting 40+ in eight seasons … 50+ in three of those) and hit .300 or better nine times (winning one batting title, with a .358 average in 1996).  He also topped 20 steals in six seasons and led the AL in slugging percentage and total bases four times each. He was a 14-time All Star, two-time Gold Glover and three-time MVP.

Alex Rodriguez is in MLB’s all-time Top Ten in such key offensive categories as runs batted in (fourth); home runs (fifth); total bases (seventh); extra-base hits (seventh); and runs scored (eighth).

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Mike Trout, CF, Angels …. 2016 & 2019 AL MVP

2016 Angels: 74-88, fourth place (AL West), 21 games out of first.

2019 Angels: 72-90, fourth place (AL West), 35 games out of first.

Mike Trout won his second (of three, to date) MVP Award in 2016 (in his age-24 season). Trout hit .315-29-100, with 123 runs scored and 30 steals. He led the AL in runs scored, walks (116) and on-base percentage (.441) and was second in stolen bases.  He was also third in putouts as a CF (360) and fourth in assists (7).

 

In 2019, Trout picked up his third MVP Award (his second for a sub-.500 team).  He put up a .291-45-104, line, with 110 runs scored and 11 steals.  Although he didn’t lead the league in any of the traditional straight-number offensive categories, he did top the AL in on-base percentage (.438) and slugging percentage (.645).   He was second in the AL in home runs.

Trout has played in 15 MLB seasons (2011-25 … Angels), going .294-404-1,018, with 1,196 runs scored and 214 stolen bases.  He is an 11-time All Star, three-time MVP and 2012 AL Rookie of The Year (.326-30-83, with 129 runs scored and 49 steals in his age-20 season). Trout has led the league in runs four times (topping 100 runs in seven seasons); led in RBI once (with 100 or more RBI in three seasons); led in steals once (with 30 or more SB in three seasons). He has topped 25 home runs in ten seasons (hitting forty or more in three). He has also led the AL in total bases once, on-base percentage four times, slugging percentage three times and intentional walks three times.

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Giancarlo Stanton, RF, Marlins … 2017 NL MVP

Miami Marlins, 2017: 77-85, second place, (NL East), 20 games out of first.

Giancarlo Stanton turned on the power for the 2017 Marlins, going .281-59-132, with 123 runs scored. He led the NL in home runs and RBI, as well as extra-base hit (91) and slugging percentage (.631).  He was also second in runs scored. (An aside here: The very next season, Stanton was a Yankee – traded to New York for Starlin Castro, Jose Devers and Jorge Guzman).

Stanton (still active) has played in 16 MLB seasons (2010-2025 … Marlins, Yankees), going .258-453-1,169, with 943 runs scored. He has led the league in home runs twice (hitting 25 or more home runs in ten seasons); led in RBI once (with 100 or more RBI three times); and scored 100+ runs twice. He had also led the league in slugging percentage three times, total bases once and intentional walks once.

__________

Shohei Ohtani, DH/P, Angels … 2021 & 2023 AL MVP  

Angels 2021: 77-85, fourth place (AL West), 19 games out of first.

Angels 2023: 73-89, fourth place (AL West), 17 games out of first.

Shohei Ohtani is the wild card on this list (let’s face it, his stats … and talent … are kind of wild) – winning two (of his four) MVP Awards for a sub-.500 Angels squad and, in both cases, winning as a DH/P.

In 2021, Ohtani went .257-46-100, with 103 runs scored and 26 stolen bases.  While he did appear in seven games in the outfield, he was primarily used as a DH and pitcher. Offensively, he led the league in just two categories: triples (8) and intentional walks (20).  However, his 46 home runs ranked third in the AL; his 80 extra-base hits and .592 slugging percentage second; his 318 total bases fourth; his 96 walks third; and his .372 on-base percentage and 26 stolen bases fifth. On top of that, Ohani went 9-2, 3.18 in 23 starts on the mound, fanning 156 batters (44 walks) in 130 1/3 innings.

In 2023, Ohtani had an even better offensive season.  He went .304-44-95, with 102 runs and 20 steals in 135 games. He led the league in home runs, as well as in extra base its (78), total bases (325), on-base percentage (.412) and slugging percentage (.654). He also finished third in triples (8), fifth in walks (91) and second in intentional walks (21).  The cherry on top of the sundae? On the mound, he went 10-5, 3.14 in 23 starts, with one complete game (shutout) and 167 strikeouts (55 walks) in 132 innings.

This Week’s Unicorn.

In 2024, Shohei became the first (still only) MLB player to fashion a 50/50 (HR/SB) season, as he racked up 54 homers and 59 steals (in 63 attempts) to go with a .310 average, 130 RBI and 134 runs scored.

Ohtani (still active) has now played eight MLB seasons (2-18-25 … Angels, Dodgers). He is a five-time All-star, the 2018 AL Rookie of the Year and a four-time MVP.  At the plate, he has gone .282-280-669, with 708 runs scored and 165 stolen bases.  He has led the league in home runs twice (topping 40 long balls in four seasons, surpassing 50 in two of those); led the league in runs scored twice (with 100+ runs in four seasons); led in RBI once (with 100 or more RBI three times); led in slugging percentage and total bases three times each (topping 400 total bases once); and led in on-base percentage twice.  On the mound, he has gone 39-20, 3.00 in 100 starts; fanning 670 batters in 528 2/3 innings. In 2022 (Angels), Ohtani had enough innings to qualify for the ERA title and other ratio measures.  He went 15-9, 2.33 in 28 starts – leading the AL in strikeouts per nine innings (11.9); finishing third in overall strikeouts; and fourth in earned run average.

One More Unicorn

Frank Robinson and Shohei Ohtani are the only players to win the Most Valuable Player Award in both the AL and NL. Robinson was the 1961 NL MVP (Reds) and the 1966 AL MVP (Orioles).  The unicorn? Ohtani is the only player to win multiple MVP Awards in both leagues: 2021 & 2023 AL MVP (Angels) and 2024 & 2025 NL MVP (Dodgers).

Primary Resources:  Baseball-Reference.com; Baseball-Almanac.com.

 

Baseball Roundtable – Blogging Baseball Since 2012.

Baseball Roundtable is on the Feedspot list of the Top 100 Baseball Blogs. For the full list click here. 

I tweet (on X) baseball @DavidBaseballRT. Follow me there for post notifications and links.

Follow Baseball Roundtable’s Facebook Page here.  

Member: Society for American Baseball Research (SABR); Negro Leagues Baseball Museum; The Baseball Reliquary.

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It’s time again for Baseball Roundtable’s Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye.  (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances and statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. I’m also drawn to baseball “unicorns,” one-of-a-kind MLB accomplishments or statistics.  This week, what started out as a pretty simple idea took me down a statistical rabbit hole that made a short story long (another of those cases when, “With Baseball Roundtable, one thing always seems to lead to another”).

I started out thinking about brothers who have proven to be power brokers – basically brothers that have hit the most total MLB home runs.  That, of course, was too easy (and common knowledge); 768 long balls for Henry and Tommie Aaron (755 for Henry and 13 for Tommie). That really didn’t get at what I was looking for – brothers who both showed considerable big-league power. So, I dug deeper, looking for brothers who each hit 100 or more MLB home runs. Turns out there were ten sets of brothers who qualified, led by the 489 of Justin (325) and B.J. Upton (164).

Of course, “one thing led to another”, and I went on to look for brothers who exhibited power and speed – whose career stat lines included at least 100 home runs and 100 stolen bases. Just two sets of qualifiers there: the Uptons again and Emil (Irish) and Bob Meusel.

Getting carried away (What’s new?), I went on to look at father-son combinations with at least 100 home runs and 100 steals each.  Found out there were more of those than qualifying brother combos. The father-son/100-100 duos:  Felipe and Moises Alou; Bobby Bonds and Barry Bonds; Jose Cruz and Jose Cruz; Ken Griffey and Ken Griffey, Jr.; Hal McRae and Brian McRae. Now, if you are interested, we get into the details.  (Also, if this kind of thing interests you, here’s link to an earlier post on pitching brothers who were both 20-game winners. Click here for that one.)

BROTHERS WITH AT LEAST 100 CAREER MLB HOMERS EACH

 

 

 

Justin & B.J. Upton … 489 HRs

Justin and B.J. Upton hit a combined 489 home runs, led by Justin’s 325 long balls. In his 16-season MLB career (2007-2022 … Diamondbacks, Braves, Padres, Tigers, Angels Mariners), outfielder Justin was a four-time All Star and hit 30 or more home runs in four seasons (25 or more in eight).  He also drove in 100+ twice and scored 100 or more runs in three campaigns. He also stole 151 bases.

Justin & B.J. Upton are one of just two brother combinations to each have at least 100 career homers and 100 career steals.  

B.J., an outfielder/third baseman, hit 164 long balls over 12 MLB seasons (2004, 2006-2016 … Rays, Braves, Padres, Blue Jays). He hit twenty or more homers in four seasons and stole more than 30 bases in five (three times topping 40 steals).  Overall, he notched 300 steals.

The Uptons were the “highest” brother draft picks in MLB history, with Justin being the first pick in the 2005 MLB draft (out of Great Bridge High School in Chesapeake, Virginia) and B.J. (Melvin) being the second overall pick in the 2002 Draft (out of Greenbrier Christian Academy in Chesapeake).  They both made a quick tip to the big leagues, Justin at 19 years-342 days of age and B.J. at 19 years-347 days). They played together on the Atlanta Braves (2013-14) and San Diego Padres (2015).

On August 3, 2012, Justin and B. J. Upton each hit their 100^th career MLB home runs – B.J, for the Rays and Justin for the Diamondbacks. In 2013-14. When the brothers were both with the Braves, they homered in the same game six times, including back-to-back homers on April 23, 2013. 

Joe and Vince DiMaggio … 486 HRs

Joe and Vince DiMaggio combined for 486 long balls, lead by Joe’s 361. Hall of Famer Joe (CF) played in 13 seasons (1936-42, 1946-52, all for the Yankees). He was a 13-time All-star, three-time MVP and two-time batting champion. He hit 30 or more home runs in seven seasons, topped 100 RBI nine times (twice leading the league), and scored 100+ runs eight times (leading the AL with 151 in 1937).

Vince (also a CF) played in 10 MLB seasons (1937-1946 … Bees, Reds, Pirates, Phillies, Giants). While he only reached the 20-home run and 100 RBI marks once each (and lead the NL in strikeouts in six seasons), he made two All Star teams and was known as a superior center fielder with a strong arm.

A third brother, Dom DiMaggio (also a CF) played in 11 MLB seasons (1940-42, 1946-53 … Red Sox). Dom was a seven-time All Star. He hit just 87 home runs, but had a .298 career average and hit .300+ in five seasons (and had no season under .283). Dom scored 100+ runs in six seasons, twice leading the American League. He also ran up 100 career steals.

Kyle & Corey Seager … 463 HRs

Kyle and Corey Seager are the only pair of brothers on this list to each have 200+ career homers.

Kyle (3B) played in 11 MLB seasons (2011-2012 … Mariners) and hit .251-242-807. He was a one-time All Star and one-time Gold Glover. He hit 20 or more home runs in nine seasons (with two seasons of 30 or more) and drove in 100+runs in one season .

Corey (SS), still active in 2025, has played in 11 MLB seasons (2015-2015 … Dodgers, Rangers) and hit .289-221-667. The five-time All Star has recorded six seasons of 20+ home runs (three of 30 or more)  and was the 2016 NL Rookie of the Year (.308-26-72).

Ken & Clete Boyer … 444 homers

Just as the DiMaggio brothers were all All Stars in CF, Ken and Clete Boyer were both All Stars at third base. Ken played in 15 MLB seasons (1955-69 … Cardinals, Mets, Dodgers, White Sox). He was an All Star in seven seasons (an All Star 11 times, as two All Star Games were played each season from 1959 through 1962) and hit 282 home runs, topping 20 in eight campaigns. He drove in 100+ runs twice, leading the NL with 119 in 1964, and had 90 or more RBI in eight seasons.  He also scored 100 or more runs in three campaigns and hit .300+ in five seasons. Ken was the NL MVP in 1964 and earned five Gold Gloves.

Clete played in 16 MLB season (1955-57, 1959-71 … Athletics, Yankees, Braves). While he appeared in the most games at third base (2,439), he also saw time at SS (186 games) and second base (63 games).  Clete hit 20 home runs in just one season (26 in 1967). He won a Gold Glove at third base with the Braves in 1969.

A third Boyer brother, Cloyd, also made it to the major leagues – as a pitcher. Cloyd played in five MLB seasons (1949-52, 1955), going 20-23. 4.73 in 111 games (48 starts).

Bret and Aaron Boone … 378 HRs

The Boone family’s baseball roots (and apparently baseball genes) run deep. Brothers Bret and Aaron were preceded to the big leagues by their father Bob Boone (a catcher for 19 MLB seasons – 1972-90 – and a four-time All Star, with seven Gold Gloves and a .254-105-826 stat line), as well as by their grandfather Ray Boone (an infielder with 13 MLB seasons – 1948-60 – two All Star recognitions and a .275-151-737 stat line.)

Bret built his 14-season MLB career (1992-2005 … Mariners, Reds, Braves, Padres, Twins) as a second baseman – picking up three All Star recognitions and four gold gloves along the way. He hit 30+ home runs in two seasons and drove in 100+ runs three times (including a league-leading 141 for the 2001 Mariners). He also scored 100+ runs in three seasons.

Aaron was a corner infielder for 12 MLB seasons (1997-2003, 2005-2009 … Reds, Yankees, Indians, Marlins, Nationals, Astros). He was an All Star in 2003 and put up a final stat line of .263-126-555, with 519 runs scored and 107 steals. His best season was probably 2002 when he played in all 162 games for the Reds and hit .241, with 26 homers, 87 RBI, 83 runs scored and 32 steals.

Bret and Aaroon Boone played together on the 1997-98 Reds.

When Bret Boone made his MLB debut in 1992, the Boones became the first family with three generations of MLB players.  A 201 article on psacard.com noted that “Boone family members can be found on more than 2,800 different (baseball) cards. “

J.D. & Stephen Drew … 365 HRs

J.D.  played the outfield in 14 MLB seasons (1998-2011 …Cardinals, Dodgers, Red Sox). The one-time All Star (2008 Red Sox) put up a .278-242-795 stat line. J.D. hit 20 or more home runs in five seasons (a high of 31 in 2004), drove in a career-high 100 runs in 2006 (Dodgers) and topped 100 run scored (118. Braves) in 2004.

Stephen played in 12 MLB seasons (2006-2017 … Diamondbacks, Athletics, Red Sox, Yankees, Nationals), primarily as a SS (1,007 appearances), although he also took then field at 2B (180 games) and 3B (27 games). He hit .252, with 123 home runs, 424 RBI and 565 runs scored. His best season was 2008, when he hit .291-21-67, with 91 runs scored for the Diamondbacks (setting his career highs in HRs, RBI and runs).

A third Drew brother, Tim, made to the big leagues as a pitcher, going 2-4, 7.02 over five seasons (2000-2004), appearing in 35 games (11 starts).

All three Drew brothers – J.D., Stephen and Tim – were signed as MLB Draft first-round picks (the only trio of brothers with that distinction):  J.D. with the second overall pick in the 1997 MLB Draft (out of Florida State University); Tim with the 28^th pick in the 1997 Draft (out of Lowndes High School); Stephen with the 15^th overall pick in 2004 (out of Florida State University).  

Roberto and Sandy Alomar, Jr. … 320 HRs

Roberto and Sandy Alomar were preceded in the major leagues by their father Sandy Alomar (more on Dad later). Roberto, a second baseman, had the most illustrious career – making it to the National Baseball Hall of fame. He played in 17 MLB seasons (1988-2004 … Padres, Blue Jays, Orioles, Indians, Mets, White Sox, Diamondbacks), going   .300-210-1,134, with 1,508 runs scored and 474 stolen baes. Roberto was a twelve-time All-Star and ten-time Gold Glover. He hit over .300 in nine seasons, drove in 100 or more runs twice, scored 100+ runs six times (including a league-leading 138 runs for the 1999 Indians) and hit 20 or more home runs in three seasons.

In the eleven seasons from 1991 through 2001, Roberto Alomar won ten Gold Gloves, while hitting .313-168-861.

Sandy Alomar, Jr.  donned the catcher’s gear for 20 MLB seasons (1988-2007 … Padres, Indians, White Sox, Rockies, Rangers, Dodgers, Mets), going .273-112-588, with 520 runs scored. He was the 1990 AL Rookie of the Year and a six-time All Star. His best season was 1997 (Indians), when he hit .324-21-83, with 63 runs scored (in 125 games) – setting his career highs in all four categories.

Like his sons after him, the elder Sandy Alomar had a long MLB career (1964-78 … Braves, Mets, White Sox, Angels, Yankees, Rangers.) Over those 15 seasons as a middle infielder, he hit .245-13-282, with 558 runs scored and 227 steals.

Brothers Roberto and Sandy Alomar were teammates on the 1988-89 Padres, 1999-2000 Indians and 2003-04 White Sox.

Yadier & Benjie Molina … 320 HRs

Yadier and Benjie Molina were both primarily catchers during their MLB careers. Yadier played in the majors for 19 seasons (2004-2022), all for the Cardinals. He hit .277-176-1,022, with 777 runs scored. Yadier twice hit 20 or more home runs in a season He was a ten-time All Star, nine-time Gold Glove winner and four-time Platinum Glove winner.

In his first six MLB seasons Yadier Molina was a six-time All Star and four-time Gold Glover.

Benjie played in 13 MLB seasons (1998-2010 … Angels, Blue Jays, Giants and Rangers), hitting .274-144-711, with 457 runs scored.  The two-time Gold Glover’s best season was 2008 (Giants), when he hit .292-16-95, with 46 runs scored.

A third Molina brother, Jose, made it to the big leagues (also as a catcher). Jose played in 15 MLB seasons (1999, 2001-2014 … Cubs, Angels, Yankees, Blue Jays, Rays). Jose hit .233-39-223 in 947 games.

Dmitri & Delmon Young … 280 HRs

Dmitri and Delmon Young were both first-round MLB Draft picks: Dmitri fourth overall in 1991 (out of Rio Mesa High School) and Delmon first overall in 2002 (out of Adolfo Camarillo High School).

Dmitri (OF/1B/3B) played in 13 MLB seasons (1996-2008 … Cardinals, Cardinals, Tigers, Nationals) and hit .292-171-683, with 648 runs scored. Ther two-time All Star topped twenty home runs in three seasons and hit .300+ in five. His best season may have been 2003 (Tigers) when he hit .297-29-85.

Delmon (OF) played in ten MLB seasons (2006-15 … Rays, Twins, Tigers, Phillies, Orioles), hitting .283-109-566, with 473 runs scored. His best season was 2010 (Twins), when he hit .298-21-112, with 77 runs scored, reaching his career high in HR and RBI.  He hit .300+ in two seasons, although he did not have the number of at bats necessary to qualify for the batting title in either one – 2010 marked his highest qualifying average.

Irish and Bob Meusel … 262 HRs

Emil “Irish” and Bob Meusel established their credential as power-broking brothers back when it was a bit rarer to launch 100 career long balls.

Irish played in 11 MLB seasons (1914, 1918-27 … Nationals, Phillies, Giants, Robins), going .310-106-819, with 701 runs scored and 113 stolen bases. Irish only reached 20 home runs in one season (21 for the 1925 Giants). He drove in 100+ runs four times (a high of 132 in 1922). He was however, considered a consistent source of power at the time, hitting between 14 and 19 homes in five seasons.   He also twice scored 100 or more runs.

In the four seasons from 1922-25. Irish Meusel average .316 -16-118 per campaign.

Bob (OF/3B) player in 11 MLB seasons, 1920-30 …. Yankees, Reds), hitting .309-156-1,071, with 826 runs scored and 143 stolen bases.  He hit 20+ home runs in just two seasons, although he did lead the AL with 33 homers and 134 RBI for the 1925 Yankees. Bob drove in 100+ runs in five campaigns, hit .300+ in seven, scored 100+ runs twice and   stole 20+ bases twice.

Irish and Bob Meusel are one of only two sets of brothers to each record at least 100 MLB home runs and 100 MLB stolen bases.

 

 

Primary Resource: Stathead.com

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