Diamond Rundown – Edition Fifteen
by Brian Joseph
Facts, figures and other tidbits from the fifteenth week of the ’08 major league baseball season.
Proving to be Fast Quickly: Tampa Bay’s Carl Crawford stole the 300th base of his career on Monday in their 7-4 extra inning loss to the Royals on Monday. With the steal, Crawford became the ninth player in the Majors since 1900 to steal 300 bases before turning 27. The others — Rickey Henderson, Ty Cobb, Tim Raines, Vince Coleman, Cesar Cedeno, Clyde Milan, Eddie Collins and Sherry Magee.
Almost Perfect I: Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Hiroki Kuroda faced just 28 batters and threw 91 pitches in his one-hit complete game shutout of the Atlanta Braves on Monday. Kuroda retired 21 straight batters before Mark Teixeira led off the eighth inning with a double — the team’s only hit.
In Good Company: Cleveland’s Grady Sizemore stole the 100th base of his career on Tuesday in their 9-2 loss to the Tigers. Sizemore became just the second player in team history to hit 100 homers and steal 100 bases joining Joe Carter.
Ray Man: Yankees pitcher Andy Pettite outpitched All-Star Scott Kazmir on Tuesday in their 5-0 win over Tampa Bay. In his career, Pettite is 15-4 against the Rays.
Notable Quotable I: “If you watched the game you know what happened. So what do you want to talk about?” Baltimore’s Freddie Bynum — a late inning defensive replacement — who made a key error in the ninth inning on a Scott Rolen grounder which scored the winning run. Toronto trailed 6-2 but came back to win 7-6.
Home Sweet Home: Chicago’s Ryan Dempster improved to 10-0 at home in their 7-3 win over the Reds on Tuesday.
Dazzling Debut I: Rangers pitcher Matt Harrison pitched seven strong innings allowing just two runs on five hits and a walk in his first Major League win in their 3-2 win over the Angels.
Moving On: On the day the Athletics traded Rich Harden to the Cubs, Oakland’s Justin Duchscherer became the first Oakland pitcher to pitch a 2-hit complete game shutout since Harden accomplished the feat on July 14, 2005. Oakland beat Seattle 2-0 and Duchscherer raised his record to 10-5 while lowering his Major League leading ERA to 1.78.
Notable Quotable II: “I probably won’t wear it during the game… unless I happen to get tossed.” Yankees manager Joe Girardi on “Jason Giambi Mustache Day” where the first 20,000 fans received fake mustaches to support Giambi’s candidacy for the 32nd roster spot in the Final Vote. Giambi came up short, beaten out by Tampa Bay’s Evan Longoria.
SurgeRy: Philadelphia’s Ryan Howard was hitting .163 in May but set a team record for most RBI before the All-Star break when he plated his 80th run on Wednesday. The previous record was held by Greg Luzinski who had 79 RBI at the All-Star break in 1975. Howard finished the week with 84 RBI.
Notable Quotable III: “Perfect timing, isn’t it?” Giants manager Bruce Bochy after learning his team would face newly acquired Cubs pitcher Rich Harden over the weekend and CC Sabathia in their first series against the Brewers after the All-Star break.
Almost Perfect II: Dodgers pitcher Derek Lowe retired 18 straight before giving up a single to Gregor Blanco to lead off the seventh. Lowe went 7 2/3 innings and gave up just one run on two hits and a walk in their 2-1 win over the Braves on Wednesday. The game lasted just two hours which was three minutes shorter than Hiroki Kuroda’s one hitter on Monday.
Mulligan: The Pirates and Yankees had to restart a game rained out earlier in the season in which the Yankees were leading 3-0. In that game, Pittsburgh’s Paul Maholm gave up four consecutive extra-base hits and was the pitcher of record when the game was washed away. On Thursday, the game was replayed and Maholm was the starter. This time, he went eight innings and gave up two runs on seven hits and a walk in their 4-2 win over the Yankees.
Well Supported: Angels pitcher John Lackey tied a team record for most hits allowed in their 11-10 win over the Rangers on Thursday. Lackey gave up 15 hits and six runs in 5 2/3 innings but left with a 10-6 lead and ended up with a no decision. The 15 hits allowed tied Paul Hartzell’s team record of 15 hits allowed in 8 2/3 innings on September 9, 1976.
Career Year?: Cardinals pitcher Kyle Lohse registered his 11th win on Friday in their 6-0 win over the Pirates. Lohse gave up no runs on six hits and a walk in seven innings for his 12th quality start of the season. He is 11-2 and on pace to blow away his career best record of 14-11 in 2003.
Dazzling Debut II: Cardinals reliever Jaime Garcia finished off the shutout of the Pirates on Friday in his debut with two innings of scoreless ball. He gave up a hit and a walk with two strikeouts in his first game in the Majors.
Trickery: In the sixth inning with runners on first and third, Philadelphia sent Carlos Ruiz from first base and Ruiz allowed himself to get into a rundown which allowed Shane Victorino to score from third and give the team a 3-1 lead. The game ended up going extras and the Phillies won 6-5 on a Jayson Werth walk-off single. Victorino did not get credit with a steal of home on the play that gave them a 3-1 lead. Who was the last player to steal home in Philadelphia history? Carlos Ruiz.
Finish What You Started: Toronto’s Roy Halladay’s 2-hit complete game shutout of the Yankees on Friday was his Major League best seventh complete game and second shutout of the season.
Notable Quotable IV: “I wanted to go into the record book. I told my wife, some way, somehow in my career, I’m going in the record book.” Washington’s Tim Redding who snapped a streak of nine consecutive no decisions with his seventh win of the season and first since May 19 on Friday. The Nationals beat the Astros 10-0 and kept Redding from joining San Diego’s John D’Acquisto and Philadelphia’s Randy Lerch who both started 10 consecutive games without a decision in 1977.
I Get Around: Astros Hall of Fame broadcaster Milo Hamilton called Friday’s Astros-Nationals game at Nationals Park marking the 57th Major League stadium Hamilton called a game from. He is the only broadcaster to call games in all three Major League parks in Washington, D.C. — Griffith Stadium, RFK Stadium and Nationals Park.
Notable Quotable V: “I don’t like a player like Barry Bonds on my ballclub. He’s a Hall of Famer, to me the best player in the history of baseball no matter what. But he’s not the type of player we’re looking for in this organization.” White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen when asked about the possibility of acquiring baseball’s home run king.
Almost Doesn’t Count: Florida’s Chris Volstad went 8 2/3 innings in his first Major League start, nearly ending the Marlins streak of games without a complete game. It was the 269th consecutive time a Marlins starter failed to register a complete game. The Marlins did win the game 3-1 and Volstad went to 2-0.
One is Not Always a Lonely Number: On Saturday, Pedro Martinez, Carlos Muniz, Aaron Heilman, Scott Schoenweis and Billy Wagner combined for the 32nd one-hitter in Mets history. The Mets beat the Rockies 3-0 and the quintet became the first group of five players to combine for a no-hitter in team history.
K-onsistent: Oakland’s Jack Cust struck out for the 19th consecutive game on Saturday to set a new team record for consecutive games with a strike out by a non-pitcher. The previous record was held by Reggie Jackson. Fortunately, Cust ended the streak on Sunday and finished with 114 strikeouts at the All-Star break — one short of Bo Jackson’s American League record of 115 at the All-Star break.
Olympic Spirit: Dodgers outfielder Andruw Jones became the fourth player to strike out five times on Saturday lowering his batting average to .167. Often, a five strikeout game is referred to as a “Platinum Sombrero” but also earns the nickname “Olympic Rings”. Jones has struck out 58 times in 52 games this season.
According to Elias: On Saturday, the Cardinals blew a lead and lost to the Pirates 12-11 in 10 innings on a Jason Michaels’ walk-off homer. In the game, the Cardinals registered 22 hits, the most in a St. Louis loss since July 1, 1956 when they had 23 hits in a 19-15 loss to the Reds.
Home Field Advantage: The Cleveland Indians snapped a 10-game losing streak on Friday — their longest since 1979 — with a win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Then, they swept the Rays which extended their home winning streak over the Rays to 13. The Indians have not lost to the Rays in Cleveland since September 29, 2005.
Sunday Stumbles: The Baltimore Orioles lost to the Boston Red Sox on Sunday by a score of 2-1. The loss marked their 14th consecutive losing Sunday. The streak is nowhere close to the Major League record for most consecutive losses on a day of the week held by the 1939 St. Louis Browns and 1890 Pittsburgh Innocents who lost 21 consecutive Tuesdays.
An Irresistible Force Meets an Immovable Object: Chicago’s Ryan Dempster lost at Wrigley for the first time in 12 starts this year. Dempster fell to 10-1 at home and to 0-7 in his career against the San Francisco Giants. His opponent, Tim Lincecum, raised his road record to 8-1 and his season record to 11-2.
Streakin’: Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler heads into the All-Star break on a 25-game hitting streak, the longest in the Majors this season. It moved him past teammate Michael Young who had a Major League longest 23-game hitting streak and went into the break on a 15-game hitting streak.
Record for K-Rod: Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez recorded his 38th save of the season on Sunday. Rodriguez’s 38 saves is a new Major League record for most saves at the All-Star break. The previous record was held by John Smoltz.
AL+NL+CC=HR: Milwaukee’s CC Sabathia earned his second win as a National Leaguer on Sunday with a complete game win over the Reds. He also hit a home run in the third to become the first pitcher since Earl Wilson in 1970 to hit homers in both leagues.
Numbers Game
38: Philadelphia’s Jimmy Rollins stole twice on Sunday to extend his consecutive steals without being caught to a Major League-best 38. Rollins finished at the All-Star break a perfect 24-for-24, tied for third for the most steals at the All-Star break without getting caught. Only Vince Coleman (39-for-39 in 1989), Julio Cruz (28-for-28 in 1981) and Mitchell Page (24-for-24 in 1977) have equaled or surpassed Rollins’ feat.
87: Florida’s Scott Olsen made his 87th consecutive start without a complete game — the ninth longest streak in Major League history. He came close to ending his personal streak as well as the team’s Major League record streak of games without a complete game. Olsen went eight innings and gave up one run on four hits and two walks.
200: Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter hit the 200th home run of his career in their 9-4 win over the Blue Jays on Saturday.
290: Arizona’s Randy Johnson raised his record to 6-7 in 2008 and notched the 290th win of his career in their 10-4 win over the Phillies on Saturday. Johnson had a two-run double in the fourth that started an eight-run inning.
537: Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez passed Mickey Mantle for 13th on the All-Time Home Run list with the 537th homer of his career on Saturday.
1000: Houston’s Miguel Tejada score in the first inning of their 10-7 loss to the Pirates on Monday for the 1,000th time in his career.
1509: Chicago’s Jim Thome walked for the 1,509th time of his career on Wednesday passing Lou Gehrig for 15th on the All-Time walks list.
2000: Kansas City’s Mark Grudzielanek’s second of two hits on Saturday gave him 2,000 career hits. He became the 18th active player with 2,000 hits and the 251st in Major League history.
Grand Slams
Kevin Youkilis, Boston vs. Baltimore (7/12)
Walk-Off Archive
Single: Adam Lind, Toronto vs. Baltimore (7/10); Jayson Werth, Philadelphia vs. Arizona (7/11); Reed Johnson, Chicago Cubs vs. San Francisco (7/12)
Double: Bobby Abreu, NY Yankees vs. Tampa Bay (7/9)
Triple: None
Home Run: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit vs. Cleveland (7/9); Josh Hamilton, Texas vs. LA Angels (7/9); Emil Brown, Oakland vs. Seattle (7/10); Jason Michaels, Pittsburgh vs. St. Louis (7/12)
Error: Scott Rolen, Toronto vs. Baltimore (7/8); David DeJesus, Kansas City vs. Seattle (7/12)
