Consecutive Starts 8+IP, 1-R
Posted by Raphy on June 8, 2010
With his shutout of the Reds tonight, not only has Matt Cain thrown at least 8 innings in 4 consecutive starts, he has also not allowed more than 1 run in any of those starts. Since 2000, only 2 other pitchers have put together streaks as long as Cain's.
| Rk | Strk Start | End | Games | W | L | GS | CG | SHO | GF | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | HBP | WP | BK | Tm | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roy Halladay | 2003-09-01 | 2003-09-17 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 37.0 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 25 | 0 | 0.24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | TOR |
| 2 | Randy Wolf | 2002-08-16 | 2002-09-05 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 35.0 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 30 | 1 | 0.26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | PHI |
The last pitcher to go 8+ with at most 1 run allowed in 5 consecutive starts was Roger Clemens in 1997. The current PI-era (1920-1939,1952-2010) leader is Bob Gibson, who did it in 11 consecutive starts in 1968. Here are the leaders:
| Rk | Strk Start | End | Games | W | L | GS | CG | SHO | GF | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | HBP | WP | BK | Tm | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Gibson | 1968-06-06 | 1968-07-30 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 99.0 | 56 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 83 | 0 | 0.27 | 3 | 1 | 0 | STL |
| 2 | J.R. Richard | 1979-08-03 | 1979-09-06 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 72.0 | 40 | 6 | 4 | 20 | 76 | 0 | 0.50 | 1 | 3 | 0 | HOU |
| 3 | Fernando Valenzue | 1981-04-09 | 1981-05-08 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 63.0 | 40 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 61 | 0 | 0.29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | LAD |
| 4 | Orel Hershiser | 1988-09-05 | 1988-09-28 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 55.0 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 34 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 1 | 0 | LAD |
| 5 | Don Sutton | 1976-09-02 | 1976-09-27 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 55.2 | 30 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 31 | 1 | 0.49 | 1 | 1 | 1 | LAD |
| 6 | Steve Carlton | 1972-07-23 | 1972-08-13 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 54.0 | 25 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 45 | 1 | 0.17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | PHI |
| 7 | Don Drysdale | 1968-05-14 | 1968-06-04 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 54.0 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 42 | 0 | 0.00 | 2 | 1 | 0 | LAD |
| 8 | Johnny Vander Mee | 1938-05-27 | 1938-06-19 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 55.0 | 17 | 4 | 4 | 24 | 35 | 1 | 0.65 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CIN |
| 9 | Red Faber | 1921-07-03 | 1921-07-21 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 60.0 | 42 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 28 | 1 | 0.60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CHW |
| 10 | Roger Clemens | 1997-07-06 | 1997-07-28 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 42.0 | 24 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 53 | 1 | 0.64 | 2 | 0 | 0 | TOR |
| 11 | John Smoltz | 1992-07-10 | 1992-08-01 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 41.1 | 30 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 33 | 0 | 0.44 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ATL |
| 12 | Dave Stieb | 1988-09-18 | 1989-04-10 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 44.0 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 25 | 0 | 0.20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | TOR |
| 13 | Dwight Gooden | 1985-09-06 | 1985-09-26 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 44.0 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 39 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NYM |
| 14 | Dave Stieb | 1983-05-01 | 1983-05-21 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 46.1 | 27 | 3 | 3 | 17 | 35 | 0 | 0.58 | 3 | 0 | 0 | TOR |
| 15 | Dick Ruthven | 1982-05-08 | 1982-05-29 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 43.0 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 25 | 1 | 0.84 | 0 | 0 | 1 | PHI |
| 16 | Frank Tanana | 1977-05-20 | 1977-06-10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 44.0 | 26 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 36 | 1 | 0.41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CAL |
| 17 | Tom Seaver | 1975-06-05 | 1975-06-25 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 43.1 | 23 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 38 | 1 | 0.62 | 3 | 0 | 0 | NYM |
| 18 | Jim Kaat | 1974-09-13 | 1974-10-01 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 45.0 | 27 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 36 | 0 | 0.40 | 1 | 0 | 0 | CHW |
| 19 | Fergie Jenkins | 1974-08-27 | 1974-09-13 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 45.0 | 28 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 46 | 0 | 0.60 | 1 | 1 | 0 | TEX |
| 20 | Rudy May | 1972-08-29 | 1972-09-15 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 47.0 | 26 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 41 | 1 | 0.57 | 0 | 1 | 0 | CAL |
| 21 | Wilbur Wood | 1971-09-29 | 1972-04-25 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 45.0 | 29 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 33 | 1 | 0.20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CHW |
| 22 | Ray Culp | 1968-09-07 | 1968-09-25 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 45.0 | 23 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 47 | 0 | 0.20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | BOS |
| 23 | Steve Blass | 1968-08-15 | 1968-09-06 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 43.2 | 29 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 27 | 1 | 0.41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | PIT |
| 24 | Tom Cheney | 1962-09-30 | 1963-05-01 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 44.2 | 23 | 3 | 2 | 9 | 50 | 0 | 0.40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | WSA |
| 25 | Bob Gibson | 1962-07-08 | 1962-07-27 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 43.2 | 23 | 4 | 3 | 17 | 32 | 1 | 0.62 | 3 | 0 | 0 | STL |
| 26 | Billy Pierce | 1957-05-21 | 1957-06-08 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 47.0 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 33 | 0 | 0.19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | CHW |
| 27 | Don Newcombe | 1956-07-20 | 1956-08-07 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 45.0 | 25 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 27 | 2 | 0.40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | BRO |
| 28 | Bucky Walters | 1939-07-09 | 1939-07-25 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 45.0 | 23 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 17 | 1 | 0.60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CIN |
| 29 | Bill Lee | 1938-05-19 | 1938-06-03 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 46.0 | 26 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 13 | 0 | 0.20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | CHC |
| 30 | Jim Turner | 1937-07-09 | 1937-07-29 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 45.0 | 25 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 0.60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | BSN |
| 31 | Dizzy Dean | 1937-04-20 | 1937-05-09 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 46.0 | 38 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 40 | 0 | 0.39 | 0 | 0 | 1 | STL |
| 32 | Carl Hubbell | 1933-09-16 | 1934-04-28 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 45.0 | 38 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 21 | 1 | 0.80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NYG |
| 33 | Tommy Thomas | 1927-05-19 | 1927-06-03 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 45.0 | 34 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 22 | 0 | 0.40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | CHW |
June 8th, 2010 at 10:46 pm
The moment I saw the title of this post, I knew Bob Gibson would be #1 on the list. His 1968 is so dominant that it has to rank amongst the single dominant seasons for any sport, ever. I know there have been posts in the past to support this
June 8th, 2010 at 10:47 pm
There are some DAMN good pitchers on that list.
June 8th, 2010 at 10:52 pm
4 of these were from 68, not surprising. also, gibson and dave steib appeared twice.
June 8th, 2010 at 10:52 pm
Matt Cain has been a stud for years. His poor W-L record keeps him under the radar unfortunately.
June 8th, 2010 at 11:29 pm
Bob Gibson in 1968 blows away the field? There's a "shocker".
June 8th, 2010 at 11:38 pm
Fernando was just staring his career when he was making those starts... Fernando-mania lives on in our memories!
June 8th, 2010 at 11:52 pm
Am I remembering incorrectly, or didn't Larry Jaster throw five consecutive shutouts for the Cardinals back in the mid-Sixties sometime?
June 9th, 2010 at 2:35 am
I took a look at the stats and none of his 5 shutouts in '66 were consecutive. (he only had 2 others in his career) BUT, all 5 of his shutouts that year were against the Dodgers, and he holds the record for most consecutive shutouts against one team.
June 9th, 2010 at 8:32 am
These are impressive streaks, but note that 43% of them included a September start when rosters are expanded...
June 9th, 2010 at 8:55 am
I know that I am in a small minority here when I say this, but I believe that Bob Gibson's 1968 season is on e of the more overrated ones in history. Let's keep in mind that he still found time to lose nine games for a team that was good enough to go to the World Series. His 1.12 ERA was as much a product of the times as it was a reflection of his skill. That was the same year that Drysdale threw 58 consecutive scoreless innings, Yaz won the batting title with a .301 average, the Mets and Astros took 24 innings to settle a 1-0 game, and the All-Star Game saw only one run scored, and that was on a double play grounder. IMO, Gibson's 1968 has since been topped by Guidry in '78, Gooden in '85, Maddux in both '94 and '95, and Martinez in both '99 and '00.
June 9th, 2010 at 9:25 am
While Gibson's 1.12 ERA was certainly depressed by the prevailing conditions, to say he "found the time" to lose 9 games is pretty harsh. He lost two 1-0 games and a 2-0; in seven of those losses the Cards scored no more than two runs. In May he "found the time" to lose four consecutive games while pitching 33 innings and allowing only 7 earned runs, losing by scores of 3-2, 1-0, 2-0, and 3-1.
June 9th, 2010 at 9:43 am
Yeah, that slacker Gibson, only posting 13 shutouts and the seventh-best ERA+ of all time! But in fairness to you, wboenig, you did manage to pick out three of the six years that topped his ERA+ mark: Maddux's '94 and '95, and Pedro's 2000. (Guidry's '78 is 30th, an ERA+ of 208 vs. Gibby's 258.)
Gibson's WHIP of .853 is 11th all-time (excluding the five pre-1901 results). Pedro's 2000 was first.
From 1968-1972, Gibson completed 72.6% of his starts. Holy shniekie.
June 9th, 2010 at 11:17 am
This makes me wonder about this 100 pitch count nonsense that so many pitchers are under nowadays. How many of those starts would have been less than 8 innings if the pitcher had to come out at 100 pitches? And I don't see a lot of careers in that list that were shortened due to "overwork".
June 9th, 2010 at 11:42 am
Since 1900, Gibson's '68 ranks third in WAR for pitchers (behind only Walter Johnson's 1913 and Steve Carlton's 1972), and sixth in ERA+ (behind only Pedro's 2000, Dutch Leonard's 1914, Maddux's '94 and '95, and Johnson's '13). In fact, Gibson's '68 and Johnson's 1912 and '13 are the only seasons in the top ten in both WAR and ERA+.
I do agree that the Maddux and Pedro seasons are more impressive given the era they occurred in, but Gibson's season is nonetheless deservedly on the short list for greatest of all time. It's not overrated by any stretch.
June 9th, 2010 at 12:08 pm
As for Cain, his four-game 8+IP, 1-R streak gives him five such starts on the season, which is more than Roy Halladay (four) and Ubaldo Jimenez (three).
June 9th, 2010 at 12:19 pm
In honor of Mr. Strasburg's amazing kickoff I was harkening back to Fernando's rookie 1981, when my dad and I were looking forward to seeing him at Three Rivers after work, only to be denied by the strike in the middle of that season. Per the rest of my Facebook post, I hope other fathers and sons get to do better with this memory.
June 9th, 2010 at 2:03 pm
Its fun to see Johnny Vander Meer's consecutive no-hitters show up on the list.
June 9th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
Interesting that Vander Meer came up. It was a really fond memory of my dad that he was there to so the second no-hitter -- and how my dad booed when McKechnie kept warming up relievers because Vandy was so wild. That reliever was Bucky Walters -- a childhood favorite of mine.
Thanks for that memory.
June 9th, 2010 at 4:52 pm
It seems like the only time Matt Cain gets a friggin' win is when he throws a complete game. Giants need some bats to back him up.