The weirdest MiLB stats, plays from the gateway to summer
Bizarre and bombastic occurrences in the Minors in June
Benjamin Hill
@BensBizWelcome to Crooked Numbers, a monthly column dedicated to Minor League Baseball on-field oddities and absurdities. The June edition features a doubles deluge, oppositional surnames, way too many walks and, of course, much more. Keeping track of this type of thing is a team effort, so get in touch if you¡¯ve witnessed something weird at a Minor League game (benjamin.hill@mlb.com).
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Rough day at the office
The Dominican Summer League, like all Rookie-level circuits, is full of raw players who sometimes put up exceedingly raw numbers. Take, for example, the DSL Yankees¡¯ 19-7 shellacking of DSL Arizona Black on June 4. The Yankees posted 11 runs in the first inning, highlighted by Luis Puello¡¯s grand slam, which was one of just two hits in the frame. Three Arizona Black pitchers issued three walks while recording one out apiece in this grueling inning, and things didn¡¯t get much better from there. Three additional Arizona Black pitchers combined to walk 11 more batters over the next three frames, at which point the contest was mercifully concluded. The Yankees¡¯ 19 runs came on eight hits ¡ and 20 walks!
DSL madness, part II
For DSL Padres Gold on June 6, DSL stood for ¡°Don¡¯t Slow Down.¡± The team put up 14 runs over the first seven innings against DSL Dodgers Bautista, who appear to be named for one of their coaches (there are 51 teams in the league, so the names can get very specific). Padres Gold then stayed golden by scoring another 17 runs over the final two frames, eight in the eighth and nine in the ninth. Sixteen Padres Gold hitters appeared in the game, and every one of them scored at least one run. Final score: 31-2.
Two players, four homers, one inning
Speaking of pouring it on late, on June 6, the Triple-A Columbus Clippers scored 12 runs in the ninth inning en route to a 23-5 romp over the Indianapolis Indians. What made this outburst all the more remarkable was that two players each hit two home runs in the frame. That dynamic duo was Bryan Lavastida and Johnathan Rodriguez , the latter of whom had also homered in the eighth and finished the evening with nine RBIs.
If you¡¯re the type to append asterisks to formidable feats, then consider this: Lavastida and Rodriguez both homered off a position player in that notable ninth, with the former going yard against catcher Dylan Shockley and the latter smashing a grand slam against Brenden Dixon, who began the game as the Indians designated hitter. Nonetheless, two home runs in the same inning by two players is still an exceedingly rare occurrence, having happened in the Major Leagues just once since 1974. On May 2, 2002, Seattle¡¯s Bret Boone and Mike Cameron both homered in the same inning in a game against the White Sox.
A deluge of doubles
June 6 was a great evening for historically rare feats as John Garcia of the High-A Asheville Tourists collected five hits against the Bowling Green Hot Rods in an 18-8 victory -- and all five of his hits were doubles. No player in Major League history has ever hit five doubles in a game, and the accomplishment is exceedingly rare in the Minors. The last man to do it was Keith McDonald with the Memphis Redbirds on May 1, 2001 during a wild game against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox in which Memphis was up, 15-0, heading into the eighth and held on to win, 15-14. (McDonald had a penchant for the weird, as he collected three hits in his Major League career and all three were home runs.)
But back to Garcia: he doubled in the first, second, fourth, fifth and seventh innings. He had an opportunity to hit an unfathomable sixth double in the eighth but struck out swinging.
Lightning strikes on the same night twice
June 25 was a memorable night in the Minor Leagues. Mariners prospect Hogan Windish hit four home runs for the Double-A Arkansas Travelers, driving in all nine of the team¡¯s runs. Meanwhile, Cole Carrigg tripled three times for the Arizona Complex League Rockies. Minor League Baseball stats have been compiled online since 2005, and in that time there have been 15 four-homer games and 26 three-triple games. Never have they occurred on the same day. This has never happened in the Majors either. In fact, 2002 was the only season in which both feats were recorded in the span of the same season. Oh, and the last player in the Minors to have a three-triple game? That would be the very same Cole Carrigg, who first accomplished the feat last Aug. 9 while playing for the Single-A Fresno Grizzlies.
Never say die
It¡¯s not the size of the dog in the fight, it¡¯s the size of the fight in the dog. The Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas, diminutive in name only, demonstrated the truth of this adage on June 8. They were down, 15-1, to the Las Vegas Aviators after three-and-a-half innings of play and then rallied for a 17-16 win. A two-run double by Eguy Rosario with one out in the seventh inning snapped a 15-15 tie, completing the comeback. The Aviators brought it back to within one in the eighth following Tyler Nevin¡¯s one-out RBI triple but failed to score after that. The Chihuahuas¡¯ comeback was epic, but lest we forget: On May 7, 2014, the Clinton LumberKings erased a 16-run deficit en route to a 20-17 win over the Burlington Bees.
Hell's Bells, Jr.
On June 12, Wyatt Hoffman did something that his dad, Trevor, was known for: He pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to close out a game. OK, this wasn¡¯t a save situation, as Hoffman¡¯s Lake Elsinore Storm -- the Padres' Single-A affiliate -- had a 19-0 lead over the Stockton Ports when he came into the game. And, OK, Hoffman isn¡¯t even a pitcher. He is versatile, though, having appeared at every position except catcher and first base for the Storm. He took the rubber again on June 21 in an actual save situation, entering the game in the bottom of the 12th inning with the Storm leading the Visalia Rawhide, 8-6. He allowed two runs in that frame, threw a scoreless 13th and then gave up three in the 14th for the loss.
No-No-No-No-No-No-No
The Triple-A Charlotte Knights recorded their third no-hitter in franchise history on Father's Day, and in an extremely anomalous fashion. It was a bullpen game and the team used seven pitchers over the course of nine innings (an International League record for a no-hitter). Garrett Schoenle started the game and went three innings. No one else pitched more than 1 1/3 frames. The MLB record for most pitchers in a combined no-hitter is six, achieved twice -- by the Houston Astros in 2003 and Seattle Mariners in 2012.
Olds vs. Young, the sequel
On June 27, for the second time this season, Double-A Portland¡¯s Wyatt Olds faced Binghamton¡¯s Wyatt Young. Olds once against came out on top, retiring Young on a flyout.
Reversal of fortune
Life comes at you fast. One minute you¡¯re hitting a ninth-inning double to presumably bring the tying run to the plate, the next you¡¯re getting tagged out to complete a game-ending 9-6-2-4-5 double play. Let¡¯s go to the tape: