<\/a>Time for another edition of Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable\u2019s eye.\u00a0 (I\u2019m particularly fond of unexpected performances or statistical coincidences.) These won\u2019t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. Yesterday, I posted an article focusing on pitchers whose first MLB complete game was a no-hitter. (You can see that post by clicking here<\/a>.) As usual with The Roundtable, one thing led to anothe<\/em>r \u2013 and that post spurred this look at the remarkable start to Vida Blue<\/strong>\u2019s MLB career.<\/p>\n

Let me explain what took me there. Blue\u2019s first complete game was not<\/em> a no-hitter. It was, however, a one-hit shutout \u2013 as Blues\u2019 A\u2019s topped the Royals 3-0 in Kansas City (September 11, 1970). \u00a0It was his second career MLB win, coming in his 14^{th<\/sup> appearance and sixth start. \u00a0\u00a0Ten days (September 21) and two starts later, Blue pitched his second career complete game \u2013 and this one was<\/em> a no-hitter \u2013 as Blue and the A\u2019s beat the Twins 6-0 in Oakland. In that one, Blue walked one and fanned nine \u2013 and only three balls were hit out of the infield. \u00a0So, in his first two MLB complete games, Blue allowed just one hit.<\/p>\n}

Of course, these Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesdays do need a trivia-focused hook.\u00a0 That came the following season (1971), when Blue (in his age-21 season (he turned 22 on July 28 that year) became the youngest MLB pitcher to win the Cy Young and<\/em> Most Valuable Player Awards in the same season<\/strong> – a distinction he still holds. In 1971, his first full MLB campaign, Blue went 24-8, with a league-low 1.92 earned run average, 24 complete games, a league-leading eight shutouts and 301 strikeouts in 312 innings.\u00a0 That season, he was 12-4 (1.19) at home and 12-4 (2.53) on the road.\u00a0 How spectacular was Blue in his age 21 season? \u00a0That season, he was featured on the cover of Time<\/em> and Sports Illustrated.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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Blue was selected by the A\u2019s in the second round of the 1967 MLB draft – out of high school (DeSoto High, Mansfield, Louisiana), where he starred in football and baseball. In three minor-league campaigns, Blue went 30-17, 2.57, with 508 strikeouts (187 walks) in 389 innings. \u00a0He was called up to the A\u2019s in July of 1969, after a 10-3, 3.20 season at Double-A. He wasn\u2019t quite ready and went 1-1, 6.64 in 12 appearances (four starts).\u00a0 It was back to the minors (Triple-A) to start the 1970 season, and Blue earned a September call up via a 12-3, 2.17 record, with 165 strikeouts and 55 walks in 133 innings. \u00a0He went 2-0, 2.09 in six late-season starts for the A\u2019s \u2013 and that brings us to the 1971 CYA\/MVP campaign.<\/p>\n

Blue went on to a 17-season MLB career (1969-83, 1985-86\u2026 A\u2019s Giants, Royals), during which he went 209-161, 3.27. He was a six-time All Star and three times won 20 or more games in a season.<\/p>\n

Blue passed away, at the age of 73, on May 6, 2023.<\/p>\n

Primary Resources: Baseball-Reference.com; Baseball-Almanac.com<\/p>\n

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P 1074<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Time for another edition of Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable\u2019s eye.\u00a0 (I\u2019m particularly fond of unexpected performances or statistical coincidences.) These won\u2019t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. Yesterday, I posted an article […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n