Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025: Daily Dirt
Let’s begin with Vander Meer on the list. Welcome to The Daily Dirt’s Vol. 1,371: Three Thoughts for Today.
1. This is one of those topics that is highly open for discussion.
The topic is all the more interesting because the debate can go on forever.
Now, put on your thinking caps and tell me which individual MLB records are the most amazing in terms of durability or sheer numbers, at least on paper.
According to author Matt Kelly, the idea that records are meant to be broken is as old as sports records themselves. However, there are some accomplishments in baseball that go well beyond that saying.
These are mine:
1. Johnny Vander Meer’s consecutive strikeouts in 1938:This accomplishment, in my opinion, has never gotten the recognition it merits. It is rarely brought up while discussing such achievements. No pitcher has ever made a serious attempt to repeat this accomplishment. The rarest of the rare is this. Since 1901, there have only been 326 no-hitters, and no pitcher has even approached two consecutive without a hit, except for Vande Meer.
2. Joe DiMaggio’s 1941 hitting streak of 56 games:When Pete Rose challenged DiMaggio in 1978 with a 44-game hitting streak, it demonstrated how unattainable the Yankee Clippers’ achievement truly was, is, and most likely always will be. Few fans are aware that DiMaggio promptly started another 16-game run once his last one ended. In 72 out of 73 games, the man hit safely! Cleveland third baseman Kenny Keltner made two outstanding plays to deny DiMaggio a hit on the night the streak was broken, including a diving stop on a line drive. For 84 years, DiMaggio’s streak has been recorded.
3. Ichiro: If Ichiro Suzuki had been able to leave Japan before the age of 27, what would his career statistics have been? This outstanding player managed to put together ten consecutive seasons with 200 hits, including an MLB record of 262 hits in 2004. It would take a unique mix of consistency, opportunity, and contact-making ability—all of which are becoming more and more scarce in the modern game—to surpass Ichiro’s single-season hit record, according to Kelly. In addition, Ichiro was one of just four players to reach the 700 at-bat mark in a single season in 2004 with 704 at-bats. You would therefore need to log more than 700 ABs and hit.373 in order to shatter this record. “Good luck,” said Kelly.
Cal Ripken Jr. broke Lou Gehrig’s record of 2,130 games played in a row in 1995, and I was one of the millions watching on TV. It’s amazing to imagine that Ripken played three more seasons before taking a break. Miguel Tejada has the greatest streak of any player since, with 1,152 games from 2000–07—not even close to Ripken’s total. Additionally, Ripken’s streak more than doubles the 1,207 games played by Steve Garvey in the National League from 1975 to 1983.
5. The 1,406 career and 130 1982 thefts of Ricky Henderson: Since baseball is a cyclical sport, it’s difficult to see the stolen base being used as frequently as it was during Henderson’s prime. In 1985, Vince Coleman became the last player to attempt 130 thefts in a season.
6. In 2004, Barry Bonds took 232 walks:Naturally, this occurred during Bond’s roid-assisted attack on the record books, but we still deal with the numbers. To put things in perspective, Bonds is the only player who has walked at least 170 times in a season (Babe Ruth, 1923). Only one other player has ever drawn more than 45 intentional passes in a single season than Bonds, who received 120 that year (Willie McCovey, 1969).
7. Nolan Ryan’s 5,714 strikeouts in his career:No one will ever surpass this record, at least not in their lifetimes.
8. The 2,795 career walks of Nolan Ryan: Likewise.
9. In 1971, Ron Hunt was hit by 50 pitches. I’ve always been interested in this somewhat obscure mark, in part because I recall the season he completed it. Hunt’s ability to draw an HBP also made him a pivotal player in the 1971 Sports Illustrated tabletop baseball game. There hasn’t been a genuine challenge to Hunt’s fairly unpleasant 71 campaign in over fifty years. Craig Biggio, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame, came in second with 34 plunkings in 1997.
10. Joe Sewell’s 1932 season with three strikeouts:How amazing is this? Many MLB batters now match Sewell’s 1932 season total on a daily basis.
2. Did you know that (Part 455)
Ted Williams hit.412 during Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak, while DiMaggio batted.408.
In 1920, Babe Ruth hit more home runs than any other team in the American League with his 54.
that Hideki Matsui believed the turf at Yankee Stadium was sacrosanct and never spat on it.
Sammy Sosa never led the league in home runs during any of the five years from 1998 to 2002, despite hitting 292 home runs during that time, which is the most in MLB history (Pass the roids, please).
Since 1901, just three Major League Baseball players have amassed at least 450 at-bats without either a home run or a stolen base. Dick Groat of the Pirates was the last to accomplish this in 1956.
3. Appalachian Word of the Day: Fornication
I’m in love with her dress tonight, man. This kind of fornication is ideal.
Steve’s Daily ThoughtYou must respect Hideki Matsui.
