Archive for the 'Uncategorized' Category

-- Yankees (CC Sabathia) 1, Rays (James Shields) 0: The first regulation game since 2002 in which both pitchers went the distance and did not allow an earned run.

• Like the last time, the run in this game was built on not one but two errors, wild throws by B.J. Upton (trying to double up Robinson Cano after a flyout) and Shields himself (trying to pick Cano off 3rd base).
• It was the 2nd 1-0, double-CG game this year.
• First double-CG with each pitcher allowing 4 hits or less since July 8, 2010.
• First double-CG since 2005 with each pitcher allowing no more than 5 baserunners.
• Sabathia's first shutout in 77 starts (including postseason) since May 8, 2009.

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Check out the guys with the most homers in his team's first 91 games to see where Jose Bautista ranks: Read the rest of this entry »

-- In Los Angeles today, five Padres pitchers held the Dodgers hitless for 8-2/3 innings, but Juan Uribe doubled and Dioner Navarro singled him home for a 1-0 win. Uribe was batting .208 before today, Navarro .176 with 8 RBI in 40 games. The Padres were held to 1 hit by Rubby De La Rosa and 3 relievers.

A few facts and figures on this titanic clash: Read the rest of this entry »

Derek Jeter's 2nd hit of the game, a game-tying HR off David Price into the LF stands, was the 3,000th hit of his career. Wade Boggs is the only other player who homered for number 3,000.

Jeter last homered (twice) on May 8 in Texas. I'd give some more Jeter stats, but the B-R search engine is apparently swamped at the moment.

So I'll just say: Congratulations to an exemplary player on reaching a great milestone.

Thanks to reader Jim P. for emailing in about this.

Last night the Phillies' Juan Perez pitched a perfect inning, meaning 3 strikeouts coming on a total of 9 pitches.

Here are the most recent guys to pitch a perfect inning, where that inning was his entire appearance:

Pitch count data only goes back to the late 1980s for most teams, so we can't search before that.

There have also been lots of other times a pitcher has recorded a perfect inning but it came as part of a longer appearance--for example the starter might strike out the side on 9 pitches in the 4th inning--but that wouldn't show up in this search.

B-R blogger Raphy posted recently about Justin Verlander's long streak of 100-pitch games.

But here are some other streaks and things Verlander has going this year:

1. 6 straight starts of 7+ innings and no more than 1 run allowed.
2. 8 straight starts of 7+ IP and no more than 2 runs allowed.
3. 18 Quality Starts in 19 games.

Taking them one at a time, and with some historical perspective....

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Jon Lester pitched 4 innings last night, allowed no hits, and then left with an injury.

Here's an interesting list of starting pitchers to do the same:

I suspect that a number of these guys were either injured or removed after a lengthy rain delay. In the case of Santana's game earlier this year, it was a rain delay.

And then there are games like Nomo's in 1995. He walked 7 and his defense also didn't play well behind him, leading to 3 runs (1 earned.)

Catching up on the recent games, starting with Tuesday, July 5:

-- Justin Verlander's 7-start win streak is over. Dan Haren beat the Tigers 1-0 on 2 hits with 9 Ks and no walks. Verlander went 7.2 IP with 8 Ks but lost for the first time since April 27. In his last 8 starts, he allowed 6 runs in 64.1 IP, an 0.84 ERA, with 65 Ks and 10 walks.

• Verlander was ejected after issuing his 2nd walk of the game; Jim Leyland had been tossed in the 7th and Bobby Abreu in the 1st for arguing balls and strikes.
• Haren's gem earned a 92 Game Score, a career best and tied for the 4th-highest this year; here are the previous 12 Game Scores of 90+. Haren had a 91 in a 1-hitter on April 12.
• It was the 2nd time this year that both starters threw at least 120 pitches (122 for Haren, 129 for Verlander).

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The first 8 starting in the Yankees' lineup today each have at least 2 hits. Only Francisco Cervelli, the 9th-place batter, has no hits.

Here are all the games in the searchable box score era where all 9 starters had at least 2 hits:

[Some of this appeared in Monday Mentions, but I'm doing a separate post in a blatant play for the outside world's attention....]

With interleague play done for this year and little chance of further batting by AL pitchers, Baltimore's Zach Britton has likely set a number of season batting records for an American League pitcher in the DH era (1973-present). (Minimum 4 AB for all rate stats.)

• Hits, 5
• Total Bases, 9 (old record was 6)
• Batting Average, .625
• Slugging Average, 1.125
• OPS, 1.750

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