Oddly, "Prince Hal" Newhouser pitched--and completed--the first MLB game I ever attended. It was between the Tigers and Senators at Griffith Stadium on Saturday August 23, 1952. The game was meaningless in baseball's long history. Washington finished in 5th place and Detroit in 8th that season. Going into the park I knew nothing about baseball, but the game made a long and lasting impression on me. Retrosheet says that the Tigers won that day 6-3. It doesn't indicate exactly how many pitches Newhouser threw, but it had to have been well over 100. Giving up 10 hits and walking 7 batters, he must have been in trouble all day, but was helped because the Senators left 11 men on base and grounded into 4 double plays. Clearly, it was a different baseball era back then.
Yeah, Newhouser giving up 10 hits and walking 7 while only giving up 3 runs is what baseball was like in that era, I suppose. I've had quite a few games like that already. I'm not sure how managers back then could stand it. These pitchers loved to nibble around the corners, and yet they always seemed to get the double play when they needed it.
Oddly, "Prince Hal" Newhouser pitched--and completed--the first MLB game I ever attended. It was between the Tigers and Senators at Griffith Stadium on Saturday August 23, 1952. The game was meaningless in baseball's long history. Washington finished in 5th place and Detroit in 8th that season. Going into the park I knew nothing about baseball, but the game made a long and lasting impression on me. Retrosheet says that the Tigers won that day 6-3. It doesn't indicate exactly how many pitches Newhouser threw, but it had to have been well over 100. Giving up 10 hits and walking 7 batters, he must have been in trouble all day, but was helped because the Senators left 11 men on base and grounded into 4 double plays. Clearly, it was a different baseball era back then.
That's a great memory!
Yeah, Newhouser giving up 10 hits and walking 7 while only giving up 3 runs is what baseball was like in that era, I suppose. I've had quite a few games like that already. I'm not sure how managers back then could stand it. These pitchers loved to nibble around the corners, and yet they always seemed to get the double play when they needed it.