If the Mets’ 2-0 win over the Twins yesterday seemed like a high-wire act as far as shutouts go, that’s because Tylor Megill, Phil Bickford, Trevor Gott, Brooks Raley, and Adam Ottavino combined to pitch a four-hitter whose peripherals have rarely been seen in Major League Baseball.
The Twins got a triple by Willi Castro, had stolen bases from Alex Kiriloff and Royce Lewis, drew six walks, and left nine runners on base.
The last time that a team gave up a triple, at least two steals, half a dozen or more walks, and nine-plus stranded runners? It was September 26, 1984, in Montreal, where Kurt Kepshire went the distance for the Cardinals with seven hits allowed, seven walks, eight strikeouts, and so much traffic that the Expos left 12 men on base, including Andre Dawson at third after his triple (and a two-out walk to Gary Carter before Dan Driessen grounded out).
The 1976 Royals also got blanked at home by a hard-working Brewers trio of Bill Travers, Ray Sadecki, and Danny Frisella, failing to capitalize on a Frank White triple or seven walks, as they went 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position and White got thrown out at third on another play by Sixto Lezcano.
The Yankees blanked the White Sox, 1-0, in a 13-inning game on May 24, 1968, Bobby Cox scoring the winning run on a Sandy Alomar Sr. throwing error. Before that, it’s all pre-integration games: Giants-Dodgers in 1903, A’s-Browns in 1914, Cardinals-Pirates in 1916, Tigers-Browns in 1922, and Giants-Pirates in 10 innings in 1946.
That 1946 game is unique because Lee Handley had two triples off Giants hurler Monty Kennedy, who tossed a 10-inning complete game and was himself 2-for-3 with a double. Too bad for him and Pittsburgh, both came with two outs, and he was left at third each time, as were 10 other Pirates runners around the diamond. The Giants got the go-ahead run in the 10th when Sid Gordon walked, went to third on a Goody Rosen single, and scored on Jack Graham’s fly to center. It wasn’t a sacrifice fly because RBI flyouts were just RBI flyouts from 1940-54.
Is it weird that four of the nine all-time stressful shutouts of this type were thrown by New York teams? Maybe. It’s never easy around here, but it sure beats giving up 40.
We Can Pod It Out 181: I Me Mine