Batting Around Before Getting Out
Posted by Raphy on June 5, 2011
The PI event database, which includes all games since 1974 and most games (1043 are still missing) from 1950-1973, has 10 instances of a team batting around before making their first out of the game. Here they are in reverse chronological order. You can find the play-by-play description by clicking on the title for each game.
1. Cleveland Indians vs. KC Royals 08/13/2006
Batters before the first out: 10 (1 ROE, 3 bb, 5 1b, 1 2b, 0 tr, 0 hr)
Runs before the first out: 7
Total 1st inning runs: 11
Final Score: W 13-0
2. Boston Red Sox vs. Florida Marlins 06/27/2003
Batters before the first out: 11 (1 bb, 5 1b, 3 2b, 1tr, 1 hr)
Runs before the first out: 10
Total 1st inning runs: 14
Final Score: W 25-9
3. Detroit Tigers vs. California Angels 07/30/1996
Batters before the first out: 9 (2 ROE, 3 bb, 2 1b, 2 2b, 0 tr, 0 hr)
Runs before the first out: 7
Total 1st inning runs: 8
Final Score: W 12-9
4. Houston Astros @ SF Giants 06/04/1992
Batters before the first out: 9 (4 bb, 5 1b, 0 2b, 0 tr, 0 hr)
Runs before the first out: 6
Total 1st inning runs: 8
Final Score: W 12-6
5. SF Giants vs. LA Dodgers 04/22/1986
Batters before the first out: 9 (2 bb, 5 1b, 2 2b, 0 tr, 0 hr)
Runs before the first out: 6
Total 1st inning runs: 7
Final Score: W 10-3
6. Cleveland Indians @ NY Yankees 07/27/1978
Batters before the first out: 10 (5 bb, 4 1b, 0 2b, 1 tr, 0 hr)
Runs before the first out: 7
Total 1st inning runs: 9
Final Score: W 17-5
7. STL Cardinals vs. SF Giants 07/06/1976
Batters before the first out: 9 (1 ROE, 2 bb, 6 1b, 0 2b, 0 tr, 0 hr)
Runs before the first out: 6
Total 1st inning runs: 7
Final Score: W 13-7
8. Montreal Expos vs. NY Mets 06/27/1971
Batters before the first out: 9 (2 ROE, 1 bb, 5 1b, 1 2b, 0 tr, 0 hr)
Runs before the first out: 7
Total 1st inning runs: 7
Final Score: W 12-4
9. Cleveland Indians vs. Baltimore Orioles 07/06/1954
Batters before the first out: 10 (2 bb (1 Ibb) , 6 1b, 0 2b, 1 tr, 1 hr)
Runs before the first out: 8
Total 1st inning runs: 11
Final Score: W 11-3
10. Chicago Cubs @ Pittsburgh Pirates 05/12/1951
Batters before the first out: 9 (1 ROE, 1 HBP, 1 bb , 6 1b, 0 2b, 0 tr, 0 hr)
Runs before the first out: 6
Total 1st inning runs: 7
Final Score: W 8-4
The games in this post were found using the PI team batting event finder. I found all the times a #9 hitter came to the plate in the first inning with no outs, and selected only those in which the hitter reached safely. To replicate this search: (1) Under Event Finders, select Batting by Team (2) Search for all plate appearances for all teams in 2011. (This provides you with a way to create your filters.) (3) Under outs click 0 (4) Under inning click 1 (5) Under OrderPos click 9th (6) Change the year of the search to include 2006-2011 (Change the year to 2000, click "to?" and make the ending year 2011.) (7) Repeat for other years. As you go back in time you can include more years in your search.
June 5th, 2011 at 3:17 pm
I remember the highlights from that Red Sox 2003 game-ESPN played all the hits in question at like Keystone Kops speed.
June 5th, 2011 at 3:27 pm
Imagine turning on the radio in the third inning of that Sox game: "Coming to the plate is Johnny Damon. He's 3-3 on the day, after singling, doubling, and tripling in the first inning."
WHAT?!?!?
June 5th, 2011 at 4:32 pm
And only four of these occurred in games using the DH, so the pitcher no doubt also reached. That one interleague game was among them, since it was in Boston.
I thought I remembered something like this happening in an early 1990s All Star Game, with the American League batting around against Tom Glavine in the 1st inning.
I just looked at the game at http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NLS/NLS199207140.shtml (1992 game). Here's what happened in the top of the 1st in a National League park where the DH wasn't being used:
1. Leadoff hitter Roberto Alomar made an out.
2. 7 consecutive singles followed. The 5th of these was hit by Cal Ripken, Jr., with Joe Carter on 2nd and Mark McGwire on 3rd. Ripken was out at 2nd, possibly trying to stretch that single into a double but more likely trying to take an extra base while the other team was trying unsuccessfully to get Carter or McGwire out while trying to advance two bases. So 7 consecutive batters reached, but there was an out on the basepaths during this stretch. The last three of these singles were hit by offspring of former players or managers who were named for their fathers.
3. AL starting pitcher Kevin Brown then struck out to end the inning.
Two runners, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Sandy Alomar, Jr., were stranded on base, so only four runs scored.
June 5th, 2011 at 4:56 pm
Raphy, you are playing the Player Index like a violin!
Nice call by starting with the current year for plate appearances, narrowing the list by applying numerous filters, then expanding the list by years.
I never would have thought of that. Very creative! ~bows to Raphy~
The step-by-step is much appreciated.
June 5th, 2011 at 6:11 pm
How about the Indians being shut down after their big first inning in 1954?
Well, they still won.
Boston holds the record for the most 1st-inning runs. What an inning.
@3
Double, awesome research. I'm still trying to figure out who the "The last three of these singles were hit by offspring of former players or managers who were named for their fathers." were!
To have an inning like that in an all-star game trumps the regular season because of the quality of opposition pitching.
June 5th, 2011 at 7:11 pm
@5
On May 21,1952 the Dodgers scored 15 runs in the first inning. After the first out 19 consecutive players reached base.
June 5th, 2011 at 7:27 pm
@6 Richard - wow. That's crazy. Here's the link to that game.
BTW if anyone is interested in high-scoring innings Whiz did a rundown a couple of years ago. Its due for an update, but its still an interesting list.
June 5th, 2011 at 8:39 pm
It looks like the Red Sox hit for the cycle in that inning against the Marlins.
June 5th, 2011 at 10:58 pm
Wow, the Reds needed 4 pitchers to get through that first inning versus the Dodgers in that '52 game. That's gotta be a record.
Also, I thought this 8/3/89 Reds game would show up. They scored 14 in the first inning and did something maybe even more impressive: they made it through the lineup twice having made only one out! The leadoff hitter came up for the third time in the game with one out in the first! For reference, in a perfect game, the leadoff batter bats for the third time in the seventh inning!
Here's a post from a couple of years ago on big first innings.
June 5th, 2011 at 11:37 pm
this brings up a scoring question i've been unable to find an answer to...let's say Player A comes in to pinch hit for the pitcher in the 9th spot...then the team bats around, and the ninth spot comes up again. Does Player A bat? Is his 2nd at bat considered a 2nd pinchhitting at bat? Is his first at bat as a pinch hitter, but his second at bat as a pitcher? If he bats again, does he play have to play in the field? Or does someone else have to pinch hit in that spot the 2nd time around? What are the rules around this? And what are the official scoring rules around this?
June 6th, 2011 at 12:07 am
@10,
"let's say Player A comes in to pinch hit for the pitcher in the 9th spot...then the team bats around, and the ninth spot comes up again. Does Player A bat?"
Yes. Here's a game where that happened.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CIN/CIN201105160.shtml
"If he bats again, does he play have to play in the field?"
No.
"Or does someone else have to pinch hit in that spot the 2nd time around?"
No.
June 6th, 2011 at 12:12 am
Richard Chester, I remember reading about that game years ago. The story was that the starting pitcher (Blackwell) got knocked out of the game, showered, and headed to a nearby bar. He was shocked to see (hear? how many games were televised in '52?) that the Dodgers were still batting in the first.
Interesting to see that Brooklyn's SP, Chris van Cuyk, went the distance while allowing only 1 run, and only earned .054 WPA. I ran a search for games in which the SP went at least 9 IP and allowed no more than 1 run. Van Cuyk's game garnered the 32nd least WPA of over 19,000 qualifying games since 1950.
The lowest is Jim Perry's .006 in a 7/5/69 MIN win vs OAK. He also allowed 1 run in 9 IP. It's not immediately clear to me why Perry's WPA would be so much lower. In the '52 game, BRO is estimated to have a 99% chance of winning after the 1st inning, so there isn't much van Cuyk could do to amass WPA over the remainder of the game. I guess the whole difference is that van Cuyk pitched a scoreless top of the 1st, while Perry allowed a run in the top of the first, before his team ran out to the lead.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/MIN/MIN196907050.shtml
June 6th, 2011 at 12:40 am
@ 12
Most(maybe all) home games of the Dodgers, Yankees and Giants were televised in 1952.
June 6th, 2011 at 1:03 am
The Red Sox knew they needed to score 14 runs in the first inning (and all the ones after) because of who was pitching for them - Byung-Hyun Kim.
June 6th, 2011 at 1:47 am
Very nice presentation, sir!
Two things I notice about the 1978 game (Cleveland 17, Yankees 5):
(1) Catfish Hunter walked 3 of the first 4 batters; Cleveland leadoff man Jim Norris walked twice in the inning.
(2) It was the 2nd game of a Thursday afternoon doubleheader. The Yankees won the first game, 11-0, knocking out David Clyde (!) with 7 runs in the 2nd inning.
June 6th, 2011 at 1:52 am
I find it interesting that just 2 of these 10 big innings featured a HR.
While I have not studied the matter, and obviously shouldn't draw conclusions from either these 10 games or my personal observations, I have long considered the home run to be a sort of rally killer -- especially in the 9th inning.
June 6th, 2011 at 2:40 am
@16
Interesting observation. I kinda see your point - that a home run kinda cleans the slate (tabula rasa!) for the pitcher on the mound and kills the rally.
June 6th, 2011 at 9:37 am
@7...and all for that matter, did Jackie Robinson bat cleanup regularly for the Dodgers? I just assumed he was a leadoff man or 2nd hitter with Reese.
June 6th, 2011 at 10:03 am
Just an observation:
2 World Series teams had "this" done to them - 2003 Marlins and 1978 Yankees (both won WS)....
while only 1 World Series team did "this" to another team - 1954 Indians (lost WS).
June 6th, 2011 at 10:07 am
@18, Dave -- You'd never guess it from the way his game is generally described, but Jackie Robinson actually batted 4th in a majority of his games. He was the regular cleanup hitter from 1949 (his MVP year) to '51, and in 1953. His career line in the #4 spot: .329 BA, .426 OBP, .514 SLG.
He almost never hit leadoff; Reese had that spot locked down before Jackie came along.
June 6th, 2011 at 12:02 pm
"I have long considered the home run to be a sort of rally killer -- especially in the 9th inning."
Tim McCarver has said that more than a few times.
June 6th, 2011 at 12:56 pm
From the Yankees-Indians game, Bob Kammeyer came in for NY and took a beating. One year later he had his final MLB app (also against the Tribe), faced 8 batters and failed to get any out.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CLE/CLE197909180.shtml
June 6th, 2011 at 1:05 pm
@21, Statboy -- You really know how to hurt a guy, eh?
Well, at least I've never observed that, "Ironically, speed slows down the game!"
June 6th, 2011 at 9:42 pm
@23
JA, what?
Being compared to Tim McCarver as an analyst is an insult? 🙂
June 6th, 2011 at 10:24 pm
@5 I mentioned all three of them in my account of this inning. Maybe I didn't state it the way I should have to have made it more understandable. It was the players in the game who were named for their fathers, not their fathers who were named for their fathers before them (although since the two Griffeys are both named George Kenneth, I've wondered if Senior's father/Junior's grandfather was/is also named George, even if with a middle name other than Kenneth).
As for "the quality of opposition pitching", Tom Glavine pitched that whole inning. Since it was the top of the first, AL starter Brown had not even taken the mound yet when the 9th spot in the order came up.
I just noticed that the AL had another 4-run inning later in that same game, in the sixth against Bob Tewksbury. This one was more typical of a 4-run inning:
Double
Groundout
Groundout
Double scoring the guy who had doubled earlier
Another double, scoring the second guy who had doubled
Home run
Walk
At this point, Tewksbury, who was notable at some point in his career for having given up very few unintentional walks, was replaced by Glavine's long-time Braves teammate, John Smoltz. The play description for this one doesn't seem to make sense.
Travis Fryman, the guy who had walked, was on first base. Paul Molitor was the batter. Here is what it says:
"Single to RF; Fryman out at 2B/RF-SS"
It seems to me that if the runner who had been at first is thrown out at second, that is a fielders choice, not a single, even if the ball was hit out of the infield and fielded by an outfielder.
So many times, as you listen to the play-by-play of a game, especially one on the radio (or, now, audio streaming online), you'll hear the announcer say, "Base hit to right field," when a ball bounces before an outfielder can get to it or was hit on the ground past the infielders. But every so often, the outfielder is able to throw out either the batter at first or a runner advancing to the next base.
I wonder if this is only considered to be an out when it's the batter itself who was thrown out, rather than a runner who didn't even advance one base. (I know that it's a hit when a runner who had been on second is thrown out at the plate or a runner who had been on first is thrown out at third.)
June 6th, 2011 at 11:29 pm
@25,
If a batter hits the ball and another runner is forced out, the batter doesn't get credit for a hit, no matter how far he hit the ball.
As for this... "Single to RF; Fryman out at 2B/RF-SS", Fryman must have been thrown out AFTER he touched 2nd base. He probably rounded the base and then got thrown out while trying to get back. Since he reached 2nd base safely (albeit briefly), the batter gets a hit.
June 6th, 2011 at 11:56 pm
One game I would like to see the complete play by play occurred in 1941 between the Tigers and Indians. Al Benton had two sacrifice hits in one inning, which Detroit scored 11 runs. I have noticed that in record books all my life. Once I saw the box score, which showed that Benton scored a run. The final score was 11-2.
There are several situations which a batter can have a sacrifice hit without an out being recorded. One is the defense tries unsuccessfully to throw out a lead runner. Another is for an error to be committed.
June 7th, 2011 at 12:00 am
@25
Double, I did misunderstand your wording.
Much food for thought in your post.
I'm not sure how the official
June 7th, 2011 at 12:02 am
@28
oops. Wrong button.
... scorer gave a single to Travis Fryman rather than a fielder's choice!