1968 All Star GAme Drysdale and Tiant
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The National League wins the 1968 All Star Game 1-0 at the Astrodome

Appropriately, pitching dominates the All-Star Game in the first All-Star Game played indoors. Willie Mays, playing in place of the injured Pete Rose, tallies an unearned run in the 1st inning against American Leaguestarter Luis Tiant to complete the scoring for the day – the first All-Star effort to end 1 – 0. Don Drysdale, Juan Marichal, Steve Carlton, Tom Seaver, Ron Reed and Jerry Koosman hold the American League to three hits.

Bob Gibson’s scoreless inning streak ends abruptly at 47 with a questionable call when the official scorer rules a wild pitch, and not a passed ball, allowed Len Gabrielson to score in the first inning of the Cardinals’ 5-1 victory over the Dodgers at Chavez Ravine. Without the hometown decision, the Redbird right-hander, who will blank San Francisco in his next start, would have been within three innings of breaking the mark of 58 scoreless frames established in June by Don Drysdale, tonight’s losing pitcher.

Bob Gibson’s scoreless inning streak ends abruptly at 47 with a questionable call when the official scorer rules a wild pitch, and not a passed ball, allowed Len Gabrielson to score in the first inning of the Cardinals’ 5-1 victory over the Dodgers at Chavez Ravine. Without the hometown decision, the Redbird right-hander, who will blank San Francisco in his next start, would have been within three innings of breaking the mark of 58 scoreless frames established in June by Don Drysdale, tonight’s losing pitcher.

bob gibson

Bob Gibson threw his fifth consecutive shutout

On June 26, 1968 At Busch Stadium Cardinal Bob Gibson pitches his 5th straight shutout in the first game of a doubleheader with Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh wins the second game, 3 – 1, although the Cardinals stop Maury Wills’ 24-game hitting streak. The future Hall of Famer’s accomplishment is one shy of the major league mark,…

Don Drysdale’s major league record streak of consecutive scoreless innings comes to an end
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Don Drysdale’s major league record streak of consecutive scoreless innings comes to an end

On June 8, 1968, Don Drysdale’s major league record streak of consecutive scoreless innings comes to an end. Howie Bedell of the Philadelphia Phillies delivers a sacrifice fly against Drysdale, ending his streak at 58 2/3 innings. Drysdale’s Los Angeles Dodgers will go on to win the game, 5-3. @ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiTGVhcm4gTW9yZSBhYm91dCB0aGUgdGVhbXMsIHBsYXllcnMsIGJhbGwgcGFya3MgYW5kIGV2ZW50cyB0aGF0IGhhcHBlbmVkIG9uIHRoaXMgZGF0ZSBpbiBoaXN0b3J5IGp1c3QgY2xpY2sgdGhlIHRhZ3MhICAiLCJhZnRlciI6IiIsImxpbmtfdG9fdGVybV9wYWdlIjoib24iLCJzZXBhcmF0b3IiOiIgfCAiLCJjYXRlZ29yeV90eXBlIjoicG9zdF90YWcifX0=@

Don Drysdale pitches his sixth straight shutout-a major league record
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Don Drysdale pitches his sixth straight shutout-a major league record

On June 4, 1968, Los AngelesDodgers’ Don Drysdale pitches his sixth straight shutout, defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates, 5 – 0, and establishes two new major league records. Drysdale tops Doc White’s 64-year-old mark of five shutouts, and with 54 scoreless innings, he breaks Carl Hubbell’s National League string, set in 1933, by one-third, en route…

Don Drysdale appears to end when he hits Dick Dietz with a bases-loaded pitch in the ninth inning
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Don Drysdale appears to end when he hits Dick Dietz with a bases-loaded pitch in the ninth inning

On May 31, 1968, the shutout streak of Don Drysdale appears to end when he hits Dick Dietz with a bases-loaded pitch in the ninth inning. But umpire Harry Wendelstedt rules that Dietz made no effort to avoid the pitch, thus prolonging the at-bat. Drysdale then retires Dietz on a fly ball and and the…

Roberto Clemente hits 2 home runs off Don Drysdale, accounting for all of Pittsburgh’s runs in a 4 – 1 victory over Los Angeles. Clemente’s first bomb travels 400 feet to tie the score at 1 – 1 in the fifth. Facing him again in the seventh with 2 on and 2 out, Drysdale makes two mistakes: first, he flattens him; then, to compound his gaffe, rather than walk Clemente outright, he tries to pitch around him. The celebrated free-swinger lays off balls two and three and fouls off ball four, before slugging another potential ball four 420 feet away. Speaking with the Pittsburgh Press after the game, Clemente confides: “I was hoping he wouldn’t walk me. I wanted one good swing and I got it. It was a thrill but the biggest thrill came when I went back to the field and the [Dodger] fans applauded me. This doesn’t happen very often.”

Roberto Clemente hits 2 home runs off Don Drysdale, accounting for all of Pittsburgh’s runs in a 4 – 1 victory over Los Angeles. Clemente’s first bomb travels 400 feet to tie the score at 1 – 1 in the fifth. Facing him again in the seventh with 2 on and 2 out, Drysdale makes two mistakes: first, he flattens him; then, to compound his gaffe, rather than walk Clemente outright, he tries to pitch around him. The celebrated free-swinger lays off balls two and three and fouls off ball four, before slugging another potential ball four 420 feet away. Speaking with the Pittsburgh Press after the game, Clemente confides: “I was hoping he wouldn’t walk me. I wanted one good swing and I got it. It was a thrill but the biggest thrill came when I went back to the field and the [Dodger] fans applauded me. This doesn’t happen very often.”

Roberto’s Revenge: Old Testament Style – Donn Clendenon and Roberto Clemente combine to give Don Drysdale a taste of his own medicine (perhaps taking Orlando Cepeda’s adage – “the trick with Drysdale is to hit him before he hits you” – a tad literally). Dodger beat writer Frank Finch reports: “Before Drysdale retired, he took a physical pounding from the Pirates. Clemente’s third hit almost tore Don’s right hand off, and later in the same inning Donn Clendenon’s drive drilled Drysdale on the shins so hard that it bounced to first base, where Wes Parker made an easy put-out.”

Roberto’s Revenge: Old Testament Style – Donn Clendenon and Roberto Clemente combine to give Don Drysdale a taste of his own medicine (perhaps taking Orlando Cepeda’s adage – “the trick with Drysdale is to hit him before he hits you” – a tad literally). Dodger beat writer Frank Finch reports: “Before Drysdale retired, he took a physical pounding from the Pirates. Clemente’s third hit almost tore Don’s right hand off, and later in the same inning Donn Clendenon’s drive drilled Drysdale on the shins so hard that it bounced to first base, where Wes Parker made an easy put-out.”