Finishing a game without facing a batter
Posted by Andy on July 3, 2009
Reader Tomepp asked about this, so here is the list.
These are games where the pitcher getting credit for finishing the game (save or not) also faced zero batters.
Cnt Player Date Tm Opp GmReslt App,Dec IP H R ER BB SO HR Pit Str GmSc IR IS BF AB 2B 3B IBB HBP SH SF GDP SB CS Pk BK WP ERA +----+-----------------+-------------+---+----+-------+---------+----+--+--+--+--+--+--+---+---+----+--+--+--+--+--+--+---+---+--+--+---+--+--+--+--+--+------+ 1 Jesus Colome 2009-06-30 WSN @FLA L 5-7 2-2f 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 undef 2 Duaner Sanchez 2009-05-13 SDP @CHC L 4-6 2-2f 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 undef 3 Jensen Lewis 2008-09-03 CLE CHW L 2-4 9-9f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.00 4 Ramon Ramirez 2008-08-01 KCR CHW L 2-4 9-9f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.00 5 Dennys Reyes 2007-07-07 MIN @CHW L 1-3 8-8f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0.00 6 Mike Stanton 2007-05-02 CIN @HOU L 1-3 8-8f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0.00 7 Dave Weathers 2006-08-28 CIN @LAD L 5-6 8-8f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.00 8 Jose Mesa 2006-05-30 COL @SDP L 0-2 8-8f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.00 9 Mike Stanton 2005-07-15 WSN @MIL L 3-4 10-10f 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 undef 10 Scott Munter 2005-05-26 SFG LAD L 4-6 9-9f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.00 11 Joaquin Benoit 2005-05-04 TEX @OAK W 16-7 2-2f 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 undef 12 Mike DeJean 2005-04-30 NYM @WSN L 3-5 2-2f 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 undef 13 Jason Davis 2004-09-11 CLE @OAK L 4-5 8-8f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0.00 14 Mike Myers 2004-08-06 BOS @DET L 3-4 8-8f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.00 15 Brian Boehringer 2004-05-09 PIT LAD L 7-9 14-14f 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0.00
These are the 15 most recent cases. The full list is here.
A few notes:
- This list includes all game-finishing performances, even for the top of the last inning. Click, for example, on the box score for #6 above. Stanton came in with 2 outs in the top of the 9th and picked off a runner. Then the Reds did not rally in the bottom of the 9th and lost the game. Stanton finished the Reds' portion of the pitching for the game but he wasn't on the mound at the end. One way to cut down on these sorts of entries is to limit the list just to team wins. See here for that list.
- Notice that Mitch Williams did this twice in 1989, both times ending a game by coming in and picking off a runner.
- The entry for #1, Jesus Colome, is a really weird case. The Marlins rallied against the previous pitcher Joe Biemel and Colome was brought in. He threw 7 pitches (5 for strikes) but then the game was suspended due to rain. In the end, since no batter finished an at-bat against Colome, he is shown as having faced 0 batters, but also was the last pitcher of the game for the Nationals.
- #15 above is also pretty weird. Boehringer came in and Paul LoDuca was caught steaing home in the top of the 14th. The Dodgers were ahead by 2 at that point and went on to win anyway.
Tomepp also asked about any game in which a pitcher got credited with at least one out but didn't officially face any batters. That full list is right here. You can see that virtually all of the games involve stolen bases or pickoffs, and of course every single one of them has inherited baserunners. One exception is #46, a 2001 game between the Rays and Yankees that ended on this play:
| Mark Wohlers replaces Randy Choate pitching | |||||||||||
| t9 | 2 | 123 | RO | 1,(0-0) | 0% | 100% | 4-12 | TBD | B. Abernathy | M. Wohlers | Passed Ball; Huff Scores/unER; Martinez out at Hm/1B-P; Rolls to 2B |
So there was a passed ball that must have gotten pretty far away from Todd Greene. One runner scored but the second runner, Felix Martinez, got thrown out at home to end the game. I have to admit that for a moment I was very confused reading that scoring play above. I thought the bit at the end about "Rolls to 2B" was describing something that happened to the ball, which of course makes no sense. Then I realized it meant that runner Damian Rolls reached second base safely on the play. Heh.
July 3rd, 2009 at 10:36 am
That J. Benoit guy (#11 in the first list) isn't even listed in the play-by-play account?
He is the only one whose team won the game.
July 3rd, 2009 at 1:44 pm
The only thing I can think of for the Benoit game is that he threw the final strike. If Shouse had thrown the first 2 strikes, I believe he would be credited with the K and Benoit didn't officially do anything.
July 3rd, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Hmm that is odd. If you read the recap here:
http://scores.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=250504111
Shouse was definitely on the mound when the game ended due to rain.
July 3rd, 2009 at 3:21 pm
Benoit must of pitched the top of the ninth which was negated by the rain. Why then is he considered to have pitched at all?
July 3rd, 2009 at 3:44 pm
Benoit is credited with 32 games pitched in 2005, but his gamelog shows 33 games.
July 3rd, 2009 at 11:23 pm
Benoit was announced into the game before the game was halted on account of rain. for an explanation, see the retrosheet account of the Aaron Fultz game (#20):
REDS 8TH: FULTZ REPLACED FELIZ (PITCHING);; game called after
30 minute rain delay Fultz announced into game, but did not
throw a pitch, so gets a game played, but not a game
pitched; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Giants 4, Reds 8.
July 3rd, 2009 at 11:25 pm
My question is, why are almost all the rain outs listed under "App,Dec" as '2-2f'?
July 4th, 2009 at 12:21 am
I am assuming that 'Pk' is a pickoff by the pitcher, correct? However, sometimes this results in a CS & a Pk, while sometimes it is just a Pk. Also, a catcher's pickoff does not get accounted for in any of these categories. Also, when going through the game summaries, there are statements like, "MEACHAM REPLACED
MAGNANTE (PITCHING); McDowell was out trying to advance to third (catcher to third)." Why isn't that a CS?
Anyway, here's my summary:
Called games account for 32 of these, leaving 105. Of these:
Caught Stealing: 55
Pickoffs: 10
Balks (yes, the infamous "Walk off Balk"): 3
Wild Pitch: 19
Base runners out, but not in the first two categories: 12
Scored on a passed ball: 1
Scored on an error: 3
That leaves 2. The Dodgers won on Sept. 19, 1964 in the bottom of the 16th when Tommy Davis stole home!
The last one a game that does not have a game log, the July 17, 1954 game at Wrigley. What can be made out from the box score is that George O'Donnell can in with one out in the ninth and the game ended on a 3-1-4-3 double play. Maybe it was the hidden ball trick?
July 4th, 2009 at 1:07 am
The discussion of Game #6 says the Reds did not rally in the bottom of the 9th, but the game is listed as CIN @HOU, which I take to mean the Reds would have batted in the top of the 9th. Something doesn't make sense here.
July 4th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Gerry (nice to see you back, for starters), yeah that was my bad. Stanton finished pitching the bottom of the 8th, the Reds did not rally in the top of the 9th, and then there was no bottom of the 9th since the Astros were already ahead. I made a bad assumption as I was looking at the half-innings in the play-by-play that the last one of bottom of the 9th and the next-to-last one was the top of the 9th.
July 8th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
I'm wondering how many of these games include not just 0 batters faced, but 0 pitches thrown (as happened 7/7 with the Rockies Alan Embree), with the pitcher earning the win.
July 15th, 2009 at 5:57 pm
Andy:
A delayed "thank you" for posting this list. I was away last week without Internet access (whitewater rafting, rock climbing, hiking) and am just now getting caught up with my "recreational reading". Obviously my memory was incomplete or incorrect, but I'll slog through the list and try to find the game to which I was referring (it was by a position player, so that should help; it's also possible that he did not finish the game...)
Thanks!