There are no off days for the @SoxNerd!
Here is what has been transpiring — @SoxNerd style — in the world of the White Sox recently:
*STREAKING! The Tampa Bay Rays improved to 13-0 with a win over the Boston Red Sox on Thursday.
In case you were wondering, the White Sox best start came in 1982 at 8-0.
For the record, the Sox longest winning streak was a 19-gamer in 1906.
*ONE TOUGH PITCH: Tuesday Jesse Scholtens became just the second White Sox hurler since 1988 to absorb a one-pitch loss.
MLB started tracking pitches in 1988.
Scholtens’ one pitch in the 10th resulted in a bunt which Hanser Alberto threw away allowing the winning run to score in a 4-3 loss in Minneapolis.
Prior to Scholtens, the last Sox pitcher to take a one-pitch loss was Jeff Darwin on Sept. 14, 1997.
The right-handed Darwin relieved lefty Tony Castillo in the eighth to face Manny Ramirez with two on and no out and the Sox leading 2-0 at then-named Comiskey Park.
Darwin gave up a single on his first offering to load the bases and was promptly pulled by manager Terry Bevington. Two pitchers and three batters later, Manny being Manny scored the go-ahead run in a seven-run frame in what turned out to be an 8-3 Sox loss.
*HE’S NO. 99! It’s interesting to note (as the late great Vin Scully often said) that two pitchers prior to Scholtens, Kenyan Middleton became the first Sox player to wear No. 99 since … MANNY RAMIREZ in 2010.
*4-BATTER SAVE! On Monday, Reynaldo Lopez logged the 22nd four-batter/three-plus strikeout save in White Sox history today (21st in the save era)
The only Sox pitcher with a four-batter/four-strikeout save is Roberto Hernandez on May 17, 1995 vs. Oakland.
Coincidentally one of the other Sox pitchers to accomplish this was Tom Gordon on July 12, 2003. Tom’s son, Nick, was on deck when Monday’s game ended.
Hernandez (5), Bobby Jenks (4), Sergio Santos (2) and Liam Hendriks (2) are the only Sox pitchers with multiple four-batter/three-plus strikeout saves.
Others with one are Bill Simas, Bob Howry, Matt Thornton, David Robertson and Alex Colome, who is currently toiling for the Sox Triple-A affiliate in Charlotte.
*GOOD OLD FRANK: Also on Monday, Alberto became the 670th player to homer for the White Sox. Frank Shugart hit the Sox first homer on April 29, 1901
*TOUGH LOSS: The White Sox lost a game for the 29th time when allowing no more than two hits in a 1-0 loss to the Pirates on April 9th.
*QUITE A RUN: On April 8th, Andrew Vaughn became the 18th Sox first baseman to score at least four runs in a game (27th time overall) and the first since Jose Abreu scored five on September 12, 2020
*NICE DEBUT: Scholtens struck out four batters in his big league debut in relief on April 7th in Pittsburgh.
Only Harry Boyles (Aug. 3, 1938), Joe Crede’s cousin Dennis Higgins (April 12, 1966) and Reb Russell (April 18, 1913) with five fanned more batters in relief in a debut for the Sox than Scholtens.
Scholtens made his debut at age 29 years, 1 day. In case you were wondering, the oldest pitcher to make a big league debut for the Sox was Shingo Takatsu (age 35 years, 136 days) on April 9, 2004.
*OLD MAN GOPHER BALLS: The White Sox showed no respect for their elders when they tagged Rich Hill, aged 43 years and 27 days, for three home runs on April 7th in Pittsburgh.
The last pitcher older than Hill to yield a bomb to the Sox was 45-year old Bartolo Colon on June 30, 2018 (Matt Davidson).
The only pitchers older than Hill to give up three homers to the Sox are both Hall of Famers: The Yankees’ Phil Niekro at age 45-117 on July 27, 1984 and the Mariners’ Gaylord Perry at age 43-284 on June 26, 1982.
The oldest pitcher to give up homer to the Sox was 48-year old Phil Niekro on Aug. 13, 1987. Donnie Hill honors in Toronto