Let 'Em Pitch

Watching post season baseball with its parade of pitchers used in every game, prompts me to write up this episode I came across while doing some research after the recent passing of Luis Tiant.

On June 14, 1974 the Red Sox played the California Angels in Anaheim, with Luis starting against Nolan Ryan.  In 1974 Tiant would set a career high in wins with 22 and innings pitched with 311, completing 25 of 38 starts and tossing 7 shutouts.  

Nolan Ryan would also win 22 games that season, tossing 332.2 innings and leading the league in both walks (202) and strikeouts (367).

Luis was pitching on three days rest, having beaten the eventual World Series champs Oakland Athletics at Fenway 3-1, with the A's one run unearned.  The Ryan Express had four days rest, having been roughed up by the Tigers in his previous outing, giving up 11 hits and 5 runs in eight innings while only striking out 6.

Ryan started out on fire, striking out 13 in the first six innings.  He did give up a run in the 4th, when he walked four Sox; he struck out the other three.  At that point the Angels were leading 3-1 because Luis gave up three on three hits and a walk in the 4th.

The Angels lead held until one out in the top of the 9th, when Carl Yazstremski hit a two run homer off Ryan, sending the game into extra innings.  In today's game, Ryan would have already been removed no later than the end of the 7th and he certainly would have been pulled after giving up the home run.  Manager Bobby Winkles left Nolan in.  In fact, he left him in for 13 innings.  The game was still tied at that point.  Ryan had given up eight hits and three runs while walking ten and striking out 19.  It is estimated he threw well over 200 pitches.

Both Luis was still throwing, setting down the Angels in the 14th before finally giving up the winning run with one out in the 15th inning.  He'd given up 11 hits, four runs, four walks, and struck out five.  The game was played in four hours and two minutes.  Tiant threw more than 160 pitches.

Ryan would next pitch on June 18 against the Yankees, going on three days rest and pitching six shutout innings.

Tiant got four days rest, starting against Oakland on June 19, throwing ten innings while giving up only three hits and winning 2-1.  In 14 starts after the Angels game, El Tiante would go 12-2, with nine complete games and four shutouts.