Matty's Streak Ends at 68

Matty's Streak Ends at 68 (1913)

Christy Mathewson shut out the Cardinals, 5 to 0, in the nightcap of a doubleheader at the Polo Grounds, but the bigger story was a walk. When he handed Ed Konetchy a free pass in the eighth, it ended a run of 68 consecutive innings without issuing one. The Christian Gentleman walked just 21 batters in 306 innings that year. His mark stood for nearly half a century, until Kansas City reliever Bill Fischer strung together 84 straight walkless innings in 1962.

Fat Pat's Four Swings (1948)

The chunky White Sox left fielder Pat Seerey hit four home runs in one game at Philadelphia, just the fifth player ever to do it, strange for a man who could barely make contact. Two came off Carl Scheib, one off Bob Savage, and the game-winner off Lou Brissie in the top of the 11th to beat the Athletics, 12 to 11. A scorecard advertiser had promised $300 for a three-homer game, then phoned the park to offer $500 for a fourth. Seerey obliged. Six days later he struck out seven times in a doubleheader, another first.

Bill White Chases a Ghost (1961)

Ty Cobb died on July 17, 1961. That same day, Cardinals first baseman Bill White started pounding Cubs pitching, and he did not stop. Across two straight doubleheaders in St. Louis he collected 14 hits in 18 at-bats, going 3 for 4 in both games on the 18th to tie a record Cobb himself had set 49 years earlier, almost to the date. Asked about it, White just said it felt good to win four ballgames.

The Say Hey Kid Hits 3,000 (1970)

At 39, when most center fielders are coaching, Willie Mays was still chasing history. In the second inning at Candlestick Park, he lined a single off Montreal's Mike Wegener for career hit number 3,000, the tenth man to reach the club and the first Giant ever. The umpires stopped the game so Stan Musial could walk out and hand him the ball. Then Willie McCovey doubled him home. The Giants won, 10 to 1.