Tag Archives: Max Scherzer

Oct 30

World Series Game Three, 2023

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Texas at Arizona, 5:03 PM PDT, TV: Fox. The Series is tied at one game apiece.

RHP Max Scherzer (0-1, 9:45 ERA postseason) starts for the Rangers; RHP Brandon Pfaadt (0-0, 2.70 ERA postseason) starts for the Diamondbacks.

Today in baseball history:

  • 2013 The Red Sox capture the World Championship at Fenway Park for the first time since 1918 when the team beats the Cardinals, 6-1, in Game 6 of the Fall Classic. After an 86-year drought between World Series titles, Boston has won three crowns in the past ten years.

  • 2019 After beginning the season with the worst record through 50 games of any champion, the Nationals win the World Series, beating the Astros 6-2 in Game 7. The Minute Maid Park victory marks the first time in the history of the Fall Classic that the road teams were a perfect 7-0 in the series.
Oct 23

NLCS Game Six & ALCS Game Seven, 2023

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Arizona at Philadelphia, 2:07 PM PDT, TV: TBS. The Phillies lead the series three games to two.

RHP Merrill Kelly (1-1, 3.00 ERA postseason) goes for the Diamondbacks and RHP Aaron Nola (3-0, 0.096 ERA postseason) pitches for the Phillies. Preview here.

Texas at Houston, 5:07 PM PDT, TV: Fox. The series is tied at three games apiece.

The Rangers give the ball to RHP Max Scherzer (0-1, 11.25 ERA postseason). The Astros hand their ball to RHP Cristian Javier (2-0, 1.69 ERA postseason). Preview here.

Today in baseball history:

  • 1945 Dodger President Branch Rickey announces that the team has signed two black players, shortstop Jackie Robinson and pitcher Johnny Wright, to play with Brooklyn’s Triple-A team in Montreal. The 26-year-old Negro League infielder will be the first black player in organized baseball since 1884.
  • 1952 The Pacific Coast League announces its teams will play a reduced 176-game schedule next season. However, the PCL clubs will continue to play 180 contests next season, similar to the past two years.
  • 1993
    “Touch ’em all Joe, you’ll never hit a bigger home run in your life” – Tom Cheek, radio voice of the Blue Jays.

    Thanks to Joe Carter’s dramatic ninth-inning three-run homer over the left-field wall, the Blue Jays beat the Phillies 8-6 to win their second consecutive World Championship. The Toronto outfielder becomes the second player to end the World Series with a home run, joining Bill Mazeroski, whose Forbes Field’s round-tripper beat the Yankees in 1960.

  • 2005 For the 14th time in World Series history, a walk-off home run ends the contest when Scott Podsednik’s ninth-inning blast in Game 2 at Chicago’s U.S. Cellular Field beats the Astros, 7-6. Bill Mazeroski remains the only player to accomplish the feat in the seventh game of the Fall Classic.
Oct 18

ALCS Game Three, 2023

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Houston at Texas, 5:07 PM PDT, TV: FS1

RHP Cristian Javier (1-0, 0.00 ERA postseason) pitches for the Astros and RHP Max Scherzer (0-0, 0.00 ERA postseason) takes the ball for the Rangers for the first time in the playoffs after sitting out a month with shoulder issues.

Today in baseball history

  • 1950 After spending half a century managing in the major leagues, Connie Mack retires as skipper of the A’s. The 87-year-old manager, who has the most wins and losses in the game’s history, will be replaced by Jimmy Dykes, after compiling a 3731-3948 (.486) record during his 50 years in the dugout.
  • 1960 “Resigned, fired, quit, discharged, use whatever you damn please. I’ll never make the mistake of being seventy again” – CASEY STENGEL, announcing his dismissal from the Yankees for being too old to manage.
    Five days after losing to the Pirates in Game 7 of the World Series, the Yankees fire Casey Stengel, believing he’s too old to manage. During his twelve-year tenure with the Bronx Bombers, the ‘Old Perfesser’ compiled an 1149-696 (.623) record while capturing ten AL pennants and seven World Championships.

  • 1977 After homering in his last at-bat yesterday and drawing a walk in his first at-bat, Reggie Jackson hits three more on each first pitch he sees in the Yankees’ 8-4 victory over the Dodgers in the Bronx, giving him three homers on three consecutive pitches off three different pitchers. “Mr. October’s” heroics in Game 6 of the Fall Classic assure the team of their twenty-first World Championship and first since 1962.
  • 2004 After 5 hours, 49 minutes, and 471 pitches, the Red Sox outlast the Yankees, 5-4, in Game 5 of the league championship. Boston’s DH David Ortiz, who is the first player in baseball history to hit two walk-off home runs during the postseason, ends the longest game in ALCS history at 1:22 a.m. with a two-out single into center scoring Johnny Damon from second in the 14th inning at Fenway Park.
  • 2012 At Comerica Park, the Tigers win their second American League pennant in seven years when they beat the punchless Yankees, 8-1, to complete a four-game sweep. The contest marks the first time the Bronx Bombers have failed to win a game in a best-of-seven series since they dropped four straight to the Reds in the 1976 Fall Classic.
Oct 15

ALCS Game One, 2023

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Rangers at Astros, 5:15 PM PDT, TV: Fox

LHP Jordan Montgomery (1-0, 3.27 ERA postseason) pitches for the Rangers and RHP Justin Verlander (1-0, 0.00 ERA postseason) goes for the Astros. Here’s a preview of Game One.

The Rangers added Max Scherzer and Jon Gray to the ALCS roster. To make room, Brock Burke and Matt Bush were left off. The Astros’ right-hander Ronel Blanco was added to their roster, replacing outfielder Jake Meyers.

Today in baseball history:

  • 1917 A letter signed by 24 World Series Champion Chicago White Sox members and manager Pants Rowland contains complaints about not receiving their full share after beating the New York Giants. The written request, discovered as a tattered document more than 40 years later among boxes stored at the Hall of Fame library, may explain the ‘Black Sox’ motivation for fixing the Fall Classic two years later.
  • 1923 At the Polo Grounds, the visiting Yankees score five runs in the eighth inning, beating the Giants in Game 6 of the Fall Classic, 6-4. The victory over their crosstown rivals gives the franchise its first World Championship.
  • 1946 In Game 7 of the World Series, the Cardinals beat the Red Sox, 4-3, when Enos Slaughter streaked home from first on a long single into the left-center gap by Harry Walker, who stayed a first to avoid making the last out before the run score. The play surprises everyone, including cut-off man shortstop Johnny Pesky who hesitates, as legend has it, throwing the ball home.
  • 1988
    “In the year that has been so improbable, the impossible has happened.” – VIN SCULLY, commenting on Kirk Gibson’s dramatic World Series walk-off home run.

    In his only plate appearance in the Fall Classic, a limping Kirk Gibson, appearing as a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning of Game 1, sends a two-out, 3-2 pitch from relief ace Dennis Eckersley over the right-field fence, giving the Dodgers a 5-4 victory over the A’s. The round-tripper marks the first time a World Series game ends on a come-from-behind home run in the final inning.

  • 2017 Twenty-nine years later, Justin Turner follows Kirk Gibson into franchise folklore when he hits a postseason walk-off three-run home run in the 12th inning of LA’s 4-1 victory over the Cubs in Game 2 of the NLCS. In his only Fall Classic appearance, a hobbled Kirk Gibson came off the bench in 1998 to hit one of the most memorable round-trippers in World Series history, giving the Dodgers a come-from-behind victory against the A’s in Game 1.
Sep 27

Game 158, 2023

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Dodgers at Rockies, 5:40 PM PDT, TV: ATT SportsNet-RM, SPNLA

RHP Emmet Sheehan (3-1, 5.13 ERA) gets the start for the Dodgers and RHP Noah Davis (0-3, 8.77 ERA) starts for the Rockies.

For those fretting about how deeply into the game the Dodgers’ starters can be expected to go in the playoffs, here’s a nugget from The Athletic:

Here are all of the Dodgers postseason starts that have gone into the seventh inning since 2019:

  • Max Scherzer, 2021 NLDS Game 3
  • Clayton Kershaw, 2020 NLWC Game 2
  • Walker Buehler, 2019 NLDS Game 5

That’s it. That’s the list. The Dodgers had seven such starts in the 2018 postseason, but that’s half a decade ago at this point.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1936 Replacing Johnny Mize, tossed by an ump for arguing, Cardinal rookie first baseman Walter Alston makes an error in handling two chances and strikes out in his only major league at-bat. ‘Smokey’ will, however, win seven pennants and four World Series in his 23-year Hall of Fame career as Dodger manager from 1954 to 1976.
  • 1951 Bill Sharman, recently called up from Fort Worth, is one of 15 Dodgers who are ejected by umpire Frank Dascoli for bench jockeying after a close call at home plate. The future basketball Hall of Famer will never play in the big leagues, and thus he will become the only player to be ejected from a major league game without ever appearing in one.
  • 1960 Ryne Duren makes his first start in two years memorable when he strikes out the first five batters he faces in the Yankees’ 5-1 victory over Washington. The feat ties a modern major league record shared by Lefty Gomez (Yankees), Dazzy Vance (Dodgers), and Walter Johnson (Senators).
  • 1961 Sandy Koufax breaks the National League mark for strikeouts in a season, surpassing Christy Mathewson’s mark of 267 established in 1903. Unlike the turmoil caused by commissioner Ford Frick’s edict of having to hit 61 homers by the 154th game in the extended 162-game schedule to break Babe Ruth’s single season home run record, little is made that the Dodgers southpaw’s 268th punch-out occurs in the 151st game of the season, compared to the 142-game sked played early in the century.
  • 1964 The Houston Colt .45’s play their final game in Colt Stadium, the team’s home ballpark since joining the National League in 1962. The future Astros beat the Dodgers in the 12th inning, 1-0, when Jimmy Wynn’s single plates Bob Aspromonte.
  • 1993 In a 7-3 victory over the Dodgers, Cubs’ reliever Randy Myers becomes the first National League pitcher to record 50 saves in a season.
  • 1993 Mike Piazza, who broke the major league rookie record for home runs by a catcher earlier in the month, sets another mark for round-trippers when he hits his 34th, surpassing the previous L.A. Dodger mark shared by Steve Garvey (1977) and Pedro Guerrero (1985). Duke Snider established the franchise record with 43 homers playing with Brooklyn in 1956.
  • 2000 The United States Olympic team, managed by former Dodger skipper Tommy Lasorda, stuns the world, beating the much-favored Cuban team to win the country’s first gold medal in its national pastime. Ben Sheets ends Cuba’s 21-game Olympic winning streak with a 4-0 shutout.

  • 2011 After giving up five runs in the top of the tenth inning, the Diamondbacks score six times in the bottom of the frame in an amazing 7-6 come-from-behind victory over the Dodgers. Arizona infielder Ryan Roberts delivers the decisive blow in the Chase Field contest, a walk-off grand slam with two outs.

Lineups when available.

Sep 12

Game 144, 2023

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Padres at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: MLBN (out-of-market only), SPNLA

RHP Michael Wacha (11-3, 2.99 ERA) goes for the Padres and RHP Lance Lynn (10-11, 6.09 ERA) goes for the Dodgers.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1930 The last major league bounced home run is hit by Dodger catcher Al Lopez at Ebbets Field as the NL joins the American League, which had enacted the rule change in 1929. The player who hits the ball over the wall on a bounce will now be awarded a ground-rule double.
  • 1932 In the bottom of the ninth, Johnny Frederick hits his major league record-setting sixth pinch-homer of the season, giving the Dodgers a 4-3 victory over the Cubs. The Brooklyn outfielder’s major league mark will not be broken for 68 years until another Dodger, Dave Hansen, strokes seven round-trippers coming off the bench in 2000.
  • 1953 The Dodgers clinch a pennant at the earliest date ever in baseball history with a 5-2 victory over the Braves at County Stadium. Carl Erskine gets the win when Brooklyn, who clinches consecutive titles for the first time in franchise history, goes up 13 games up on Milwaukee with 12 left to play.
  • 1962 One game behind the front running Dodgers, the Giants lose Willie Mays, their All-Star center fielder, when he is hospitalized for nervous exhaustion. The ‘City by the Bay’ will drop six games in a row, but will recover along with ‘Say Hey Kid’ in time to beat Los Angeles in a playoff to win the National league pennant.
  • 1963 In a pregame ceremony with his former Dodgers teammates, Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, Don Newcombe, and Ralph Branca in attendance, Duke Snider is honored by the Mets with a special ‘night’ at the Polo Grounds, which coincidentally marks the last time the Giants, now located in San Francisco, will ever play in their once long-time home in Harlem. The ‘Silver Fox’, obtained by the last-place expansion team in April, has recently requested to be traded to a contender.

    “I look up into the stands, and it looks like Ebbets Field. The Mets are wonderful, but you can’t take the Dodger out of Brooklyn” – DUKE SNIDER, – addressing the Mets fans on his special night at the Polo Grounds.

  • 1995 During a WGN pre-game radio broadcast at Wrigley Field, Cubs announcer Harry Caray remarks to the team’s skipper Jim Riggleman, “Well, my eyes are slanty enough, how ’bout yours?”, referring to Hideo Nomo, the Japanese rookie hurler scheduled to start for the Dodgers. The veteran announcer, known for not backing off for his on-the-air off-handed comments, does issue an apology, calling the incident “unfortunate.”
  • 2000 On the same date the mark was established 68 years ago, Dave Hansen breaks Johnny Frederick’s 1932 record for pinch-hit home runs in a single season with his seventh round-tripper coming off the bench. The Dodger pinch-hitter’s historic homer, a seventh-inning three-run blast off Diamondback right-hander Curt Schilling, isn’t enough to prevent the team’s 5-4 loss to Arizona at Bank One Ballpark.
  • 2021 Max Scherzer becomes the 19th player to reach the 3,000-strikeout plateau with a fifth-inning punch out of Eric Hosmer, who will break up the right-hander’s bid for a perfect game with a one-out double in the eighth of LA’s 8-0 victory over the Padres. The three-time Cy Young Award winner whiffs nine batters in the Dodger Stadium gem, including his third career immaculate inning, tying a major league mark shared by Sandy Koufax and Chris Sale.

Lineups when available.

Jul 16

Game 92, 2023

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Mets-Dodgers game on Sunday moved to 5:10 p.m. ET/2:10 p.m PT

Dodgers at Mets, 2:10 PM PDT, TV: SPNLA, WPIX

RHP Bobby Miller (5-1, 4.50 ERA) goes for the Dodgers if/when the game starts, while RHP Max Scherzer (8-3, 4.31 ERA) goes for the Mets.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1913 In a game against the Cubs, Superbas’ second baseman George Cutshaw handles 14 chances without an error. The infielder’s defensive prowess helps Brooklyn beat Chicago at Ebbets Field, 4-2.
  • 1948 Brooklyn’s Branch Rickey agrees on a deal with Giants owner Horace Stoneham that releases his manager Leo Durocher to become the Giants’ skipper, replacing the popular Mel Ott. Burt Shotton will take the ‘Lip’s’ place in the Dodger dugout.

On this date in 1990 Steve Lyons embarrassed himself dreadfully by dropping his uniform pants while standing at first base after sliding into the bag to beat out a bunt.

Lineups when available.

Apr 19

Game 19, 2023

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Mets at Dodgers, 12:10 PM PDT, TV: SNY, SPNLA

It’s the Mets’ RHP Max Scherzer (2-1, 3.72 ERA) versus the Dodgers’ RHP Noah Syndergaard (0-3, 4.91 ERA)

Today in Dodgers’ history,

  • 1890 The Brooklyn Bridegrooms, who will later be known as the Dodgers, play their first National League game. The former American Association team loses to the Beaneaters, who will become known as the Braves in 1912, at Boston’s South End Grounds, 15-9.
  • 1938 During the first inning, both Dodgers’ Ernie Koy and Phillies’ Emmett Mueller homer in their first major league at-bats. The pair of rookies will collectively hit a total 42 home runs during their nine seasons in the major leagues.
  • 1956 In the first major league game ever played in New Jersey, the Dodgers begin their Jersey City home game experiment with a 10-inning 5-4 victory over the Phillies at Roosevelt Stadium. A sparse crowd of 12,214, limited by inclement weather, sees Brooklyn backstop Roy Campanella tie the score in the tenth inning with his 1000th career hit, a double down the left field line.
  • 1968 Nolan Ryan makes quick work of the Dodgers when he strikes out the side on nine pitches in the top of the third inning of the Mets’ 3-2 loss at Shea Stadium. The 21 year-old New York fireballer, who will also accomplish the feat with the Angels in 1972, strikes out 11 batters in 7.1 frames, including Claude Osteen, Wes Parker, and Zoilo Versalles, the victims of his immaculate inning.
  • 2000 Veteran hurler Orel Hershiser ties a major league mark, equaled by 19 others, hitting four batters in one game. Astro Richard Hidalgo also ties a modern major league record by getting hit three times in a game, twice by Hershiser and a third time by Dodger reliever Matt Herges.
  • 2002 Mariners’ third baseman Jeff Cirillo ties the major league record for consecutive errorless games at the hot corner by playing his 99th contest without a miscue. John Wehner, a journeyman infielder with the Dodgers, Pirates, and Marlins, established the mark during a span of eight-plus seasons.

Lineups when available.

Oct 07

Wild Card Games One, 2022

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ALWC Game One: Rays at Guardians, 9:07 AM PDT, TV: ESPN

LHP Shane McLanahan (12-8, 2.54 ERA) goes for the Rays and RHP Shane Bieber (13-8, 2.88 ERA) goes for the Guardians.

NLWC Game One: Phillies at Cardinals, 11:07 AM PDT, TV: ABC

RHP Zach Wheeler (12-7, 2.82 ERA) pitches for the Phillies and LHP José Quintana (3-2, 2.01 ERA) does the same for the Cardinals.

ALWC Game One: Mariners at Blue Jays, 1:07 PM PDT, TV: ESPN

RHP Luis Castillo (4-2, 3.17 ERA) gets the ball for the Mariners and the Blue Jays hand their ball to RHP Alek Manoah (16-7, 2.24 ERA).

NLWC Game One: Padres at Mets, 5:07 PM PDT, TV: ESPN

RHP Yu Darvish (16-8, 3.10 ERA) takes the mound for the Padres and RHP Max Scherzer (11-5, 2.29 ERA) does so for the Mets.

Feb 18

Open Thread #8, 2022

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The only thing new about the negotiations between players and owners is the brevity of yesterday’s meeting: 15 minutes. From SB Nation:

ESPN’s Jeff Passan has some details of the MLBPA’s proposal. The union backed off its request for salary arbitration for all players with 2+ years of service time and instead requested 80% of the players. The players also requested an increase in the pre-arb bonus pool from $100 million to $115 million. Remember the league offered just $15 million for the bonus pool in their latest offer.

USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports that the league consider’s the union’s most recent proposal of changes to the arbitration system a non-starter.

In other unhappy news, Calvin Jones has died of cancer. He was 58. He was the Dodger scout who studied and advocated signing Clayton Kershaw back in 2005-2006. Published six years ago at Bleacher Report, it’s a good story.

A couple of things about the 2006 draft: it had some very good pitchers in it. Here are the six players who went ahead of Kershaw:

  1. Luke Hochevar
  2. Greg Reynolds
  3. Evan Longoria
  4. Brad Lincoln
  5. Brandon Morrow
  6. Andrew Miller
  7. Clayton Kershaw

Then, three picks later, the Giants selected Tim Lincecum. Right after that the Diamondbacks picked Max Scherzer.

Not a bad draft, huh?