Brother battery! Romine pitches to Romine
Andrew, Austin become first brothers together as pitcher, catcher in same game since 1962
Jordan Bastian
@MLBastianCHICAGO -- Andrew Romine walked off the mound at Wrigley Field with a smile on his face in the ninth inning on Thursday. He reached his brother, Austin, and threw his left arm around his younger brother's shoulders.
"It was kind of like throwing the ball around in the backyard," Andrew Romine said.
In the final frame of a tough day for the Cubs, the Romine brothers managed to provide a memorable moment in a 17-4 loss to the Brewers. For the first time in more than six decades, a pair of Major League brothers were batterymates.
With the game out of hand, Cubs manager David Ross asked the 35-year-old Andrew Romine -- an infielder by trade -- to take the mound. The younger Romine, who had just pinch-hit in the eighth, was told to put his catcher's gear on.
Andrew and Austin combined for one inning, ending things with a called strikeout of Jackie Bradley Jr.
"Trying to create a bright spot," Ross said. "I knew they would get some time together. ... But I didn't know it'd be like that. That was definitely something they can hold onto for a long, long time."
Once Andrew took the mound, the Romines made some history:
? Per the Elias Sports Bureau, they became the first brothers to form a battery since Larry (pitcher) and Norm (catcher) Sherry for the Dodgers from 1960-62. They last partnered on June 28, 1962, against the Mets.
? Per Cubs historian Ed Hartig, they became the first brothers to appear in the same game at the same time for the Cubs since Hal and Danny Breeden on June 4, 1971, against the Braves.
? According to Hartig, the last brothers to play in the same game for the Cubs were the Reuschels (Rick and Paul), who did so on May 30, 1978, against the Expos.
The next goal for the Romines will be to appear in the Cubs' starting lineup at the same time. Once they accomplish that, they will be the first brothers to start in the same game for the franchise since Kid and Lew Camp on May 8, 1894, against Cleveland (per Hartig).
"There will definitely be a smile on my face when I get to write that in, for sure," Ross said.
During Andrew Romine's inning, he mixed in a few knuckleballs and lobbed a few other pitches with the goal of ending things as swiftly as possible. He gave up two hits -- including a home run to Luis Ur¨ªas -- among five batters faced.
Combined, the Romines have played over 1,000 games in the Majors and more than 2,500 professional games between seven organizations. The only time they played on the same team was as Arizona Fall League All-Stars back in 2010.
Austin Romine signed with the Cubs over the offseason to be the backup catcher, but injuries shelved him for most of the season. He was activated from the injured list on Thursday. Andrew joined the fold on a Minor League contract and came up after a series of Trade Deadline moves depleted Chicago's roster.
"I mean, we weren't even sure if we were ever going to be on the same team in the same organization," Andrew Romine said. "Today was a surprise. ... To be able to see him in the dugout was pretty cool."
Andrew Romine said this was the first time he pitched to his brother since their days as high schoolers in California. Was he a good pitcher back then?
"I like to think I was," he said with a smirk.
Ross was happy to give the brothers that experience.
"I know they appreciated that," said Ross. "When I got to tell Austin he was going to be catching Andrew, if you guys could've seen his face light up in that moment, that was kind of the highlight of the day for me."