When was the last time Mariano Rivera threw three innings in a regular-season game? It was Sept. 6, 1996, and it didn't go as smoothly as last night's three-inning gem here in Detroit. Rivera gained the win against the Toronto Blue Jays; he allowed two runs and three hits with a walk and six strikeouts in a 4-3 victory at the Stadium.
There were several familiar names in the lineup that day. Some rookie named Derek Jeter, batting second, went 0-for-3 with a walk. The third hitter, Bernie Williams, went 0-for-4 with a strikeout. And guess who was playing second base for the Blue Jays? Miguel Cairo, who had a single and a walk. Also of note, Cecil Fielder hit two home runs that game, amazingly his 34th and 35th of the season. Who knew?
Now here's an even more impressive stat. Rivera has not allowed an earned run to the Tigers since 1999 (he allowed an unearned run in 2000). Counting last night's three-inning gem, that's 22 2/3 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run.
The last time the Tigers scored off him was July 6, 1999, in a game the Yankees won, 9-8, at Tiger Stadium. Here's the boxscore of that game, thanks to retrosheet.org.
(By the way, Tiger Stadium is still standing, essentially rotting away. Tried to get inside it during my Tour of Baseball with two friends in 2002, and the stadium is all locked up for seemingly no real reason other than keep the bums out. Imagine how tall the grass and weeds have to be these days. Anyway, sad they don't honor it.)
Comments (1)
Torre is killing the Yankee bullpen with his over-use of Rivera. I believe Farnsworth is young enough to stand the punishment that Torre is putting him through, but not the much older Rivera. When Rivera starts blowing saves or has to go on the D.L., remember this 3 inning night in Detroit.