Baseball
SPORTSMOST
STRIKEOUTS
IN AN MLB MATCH
Max Scherzer threw
20 strikeouts in
a single game for
the Washington
Nationals against
the Detroit Tigers
on 11 May 2016. The
Nationals won the
game 3–2. Only two
other pitchers have
matched Scherzer’s
achievement: Roger
Clemens (twice for
the Boston Red Sox,
in 1986 and 1996)
and Kerry Wood
(for the Chicago
Cubs in 1998).In 2016, the New York Mets and the Miami Marlins sold the most
expensive hot dogs in Major League Baseball: $6.25 (£5.10).All teams and players USA, unless otherwise indicated.Youngest person to hit 500 home runs
in an MLB career
On 7 Aug 2016, the New York Yankees’ Alex
Rodriguez announced his retirement from
baseball. “A-Rod” hit 696 home runs in his
career, passing 500 on 4 Aug 2007, aged
32 years 8 days. He also hit the most grand
slam home runs in an MLB career: 25.Longest postseason baseball match
(nine innings)
On 13 Oct 2016, Game 5 of the National League
Division Series between the Los Angeles
Dodgers and the Washington Nationals lasted for
4 hr 32 min. The Dodgers came out 4–3 winners
at Nationals Park in Washington, DC, USA.Most pinch-hit home runs
in an MLB match by a team
On 8 Apr 2016, the St Louis Cardinals hit three
pinch-hit home runs (i.e., by substitute batters)
against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field in
Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Jeremy Hazelbaker,
Aledmys Díaz (CUB) and Greg Garcia helped
the Cardinals to a 7–4 victory.
The Cardinals went on to score the most
pinch-hit home runs in an MLB season by
a team. They hit 15, one more than the San
Francisco Giants and the Arizona Diamondbacks
managed in 2001.Most valuable baseball franchise
The New York Yankees were valued at
$3.4 bn (£2.36 bn) by Forbes as of 31 Mar
2016 – the 19th consecutive year that
the club had topped the baseball business
standings. In second place were the Los
Angeles Dodgers, valued at $2.5 bn (£1.73 bn).Most runs batted in during
a World Series game
The Chicago Cubs’ Addison Russell batted in
six runs during Game 6 of the 2016 World Series
against the Cleveland Indians on 1 Nov. This
equalled the mark set by Bobby Richardson in
1960, Hideki Matsui (JPN) in 2009 and Albert
Pujols (DOM) in 2011.Oldest baseball player to reach
30 home runs in one season
David Ortiz (DOM, b. 18 Nov 1975) hit his 30th
home run of the season aged 40 years 280 days,
for the Boston Red Sox during their 4–3 loss to
the Tampa Bay Rays in St Petersburg, Florida,
USA, on 24 Aug 2016.Oldest MLB player to hit
his first career home run
On 7 May 2016, pitcher Bartolo Colón (DOM,
b. 24 May 1973) hit his first major league
home run playing for the New York Mets
against the San Diego Padres. He was
aged 42 years 349 days.LOWEST EARNED RUN AVERAGE (ERA)
IN AN MLB SEASON
In 2016, Zach Britton of the Baltimore Orioles
pitched 67 innings while allowing only four
earned runs, giving him an ERA of 0.54. This
is the lowest ERA recorded by any MLB pitcher
with at least 50 innings pitched in a season.LONGEST WORLD SERIES DROUGHT
On 2 Nov 2016, the Chicago Cubs clinched the World Series with
a dramatic 8–7 victory in Game 7 against the Cleveland Indians at
Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. This ended one of the most
celebrated title droughts in US sports. The Cubs’ last World Series
victory came on 14 Oct 1908 – a gap of 108 years 19 days.MOST MLB HOME RUNS HIT
IN SEQUENTIAL FIRST GAMES
Rookie shortstop Trevor Story hit at least one
home run in his first four games for the Colorado
Rockies in 2016. Story hit two on his MLB debut
against the Arizona Diamondbacks on 4 Apr at
Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. He followed
up with homers on 5 Apr and 6 Apr, also against
Arizona, before hitting two more against the
San Diego Padres on 8 Apr.YOUNGEST
PITCHER TO START
A MAJOR LEAGUE
BASEBALL (MLB)
POSTSEASON GAME
Aged 20 years
68 days, Julio Urías
(MEX, b. 12 Aug 1996)
took the ball for the
Los Angeles Dodgers
against the Chicago
Cubs in Game 4 of
the National League
Championship Series
on 19 Oct 2016.
The youngest
MLB player was
also a pitcher: Joe
Nuxhall (b. 30 Jul
1928) played for the
Cincinnati Reds aged
15 years 316 days on
10 Jun 1944.The
Cleveland
Indians not only
lost the 2016 World
Series, they also gained
an unwanted record – the
longest World Series
drought (current)
:
68 years. They last
won the title
in 1 948.