Revisiting Greatness, Part III

And now the Hall of Fame plaques start to become a lot more fun….

No. 200: Vladimir Guerrero

• Nickname: None

• Defining line: “Dazzling five-tool talent from the Dominican Republic renowned for distinctive approach in the batter’s box as well as aggressive style in the field and on the bases.”

I believe Guerrero is the second player to be referred to as a “five-tool talent,” after Ken Griffey Jr. That’s a very modern description, even though scouts have been using the five-tool system for many, many decades.

I’m probably underrating this plaque—it’s really pretty good. It’s too long, sure, but just about all of the recent plaques are too long. I guess why I have it here is that Vladdy was just so much fun, and this plaque doesn’t quite get there. “Distinctive approach in the batter’s box” is true, but it doesn’t really get at what it was like to watch Guerrero hit, the way every part of his body seemed to move in opposite directions as he unleashed that violent swing.

“Covered the plate with an attacking swing” is true, but it doesn’t really get at how Vladdy would swing at everything—balls in the dirt, balls over his head, balls thrown to kids in the stands. And he would hit them. He rarely struck out, even while chasing any pitch.

“What do you look for in a pitch?” Guerrero was once asked. He seemed baffled by the question.

“I don’t look,” he said. “I swing.”

No. 199: Jesse Haines

• Nickname: (Pop)

• Defining line: “Tossed 5-0 no-hitter vs. Boston, 1924.”

First of all, I had no idea that Jesse Haines’ nickname was “Pop.” He earned the nickname late in his career—Haines pitched for the Cardinals until he was 43. There are two other players nicknamed “Pop” in the Hall, one who has the name on his plaque (Pop Lloyd) and one who doesn’t (Cap Anson was also known as “Pop”). There’s also a “Pops” in the Hall of Fame, Willie Stargell, but he doesn’t get the nickname on his plaque, either.

I do like it when the plaques pull out a specific moment, such as Haines’ no-hitter against Boston in ’24. Haines was in the midst of a miserable season—he was 4-12 and the league was hitting .303 against him. Here’s how one sportswriter covered his no-hitter:

Since the 1924 National League baseball season opened, Jesse Haines of St. Louis has been a pretty consistent failure. Counted upon as one of the mainstays of the staff, Jesse led the whole league in defeats, and his appearances on the mound began to bring groans from the fans. Yesterday, while 15,000 fans looked on, Jesse made up for his deficiencies this season by blanking the Boston Braves without a hit.

That’s fairly harsh for a guy who just threw the first St. Louis no-hitter since 1876.

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No. 198: Ted Lyons

• Nickname: None

• Defining line: “Pitched no-hit game, Aug. 21, 1926, against Boston. Pitched 21-inning game May 24, 1929.”

Like with Haines (and with a couple more pitchers coming up), this plaque is mostly bland fare. But the specific mentions of two great games livens it up a bit.

The 21-inning game is particularly special. It looked like a nothing game for a long time. Detroit started George Uhle, who gave up two runs in the first inning and left the bases loaded. Haines then gave up three runs in the second and another in the third. Back and forth it went, and through seven innings, the score was tied at 5.

And then… that was it. Uhle and Lyons stopped giving up runs. They gave up plenty of hits, but no runs. In the 12th, Detroit’s great Charlie Gehringer tried to steal home, but he was caught. In the 13th, Lyons stranded two runners. In the 14th, he gave up a double to Harry Heilmann and then a single to Marty McManus, but Heilmann was thrown out at the plate.

On and on the game went. “Lyons was hit freely,” the Associated Press reported, “but a stout heart and spectacular support brought him through.”

In the 20th inning, though, Uhle singled off him and a pitcher named Emil Yde—“pronounced as if were spelled backward,” the Pittsburgh Press reported—came in specifically to pinch-run (he did not stay in the game to pitch). A single moved him to third, and then Yde tried to score on a ground ball—he was out at the plate. But, finally, with runners on second and third and one out in the 21st, Gehringer lifted the sacrifice fly that gave the Tigers the lead. Lil Stoner came in for Detroit to wrap things up.

Lyons had pitched 21 innings, he gave up 24 hits … and he lost.

Nobody has pitched 21 innings in a game since then. In fact, nobody has pitched the 20 that George Uhle finished with that day. In fact, here you go:

Last time someone pitched:

• 19 innings: Les Mueller, 1945 for Detroit

• 18 innings: Vern Law, 1955 for Pittsburgh

• 17 innings: Law

• 16 innings: Gaylord Perry, 1967 for San Francisco

• 15 innings: Gaylord Perry, 1975 for Cleveland

• 14 innings: Steve McCatty, 1980 for Oakland*

• 13 innings: Charlie Hough, 1986 for Texas

• 12 innings: Hough

• 11 innings: Dave Stewart, 1990 for Oakland

• 10 innings: Cliff Lee, 2012 for Philadelphia

*Rick Langford threw 14 innings for Oakland a month earlier. Mike Norris pitched 14 innings for Oakland a month or so before Langford. AND Matt Keough pitched 14 innings for Oakland a month or so before Norris. That Oakland manager, Billy Martin, was something else.

It’s fun when something on a Hall of Fame plaque can send you down a rabbit hole.