It’s rare for a pitcher to strike out four batters in one inning. So rare, in fact, that it’s happened less than 100 times in Major League Baseball history going back to the 1880s.
But two Bishop Canevin pitchers – Tyler Maddix on the baseball diamond and Macie McClain on the softball diamond – turned the trick just minutes apart on April 23.
Even more amazing, the two hurlers were only a stone’s throw from one another when they pulled off the feat on Senior Day at the Meyer Middleton Complex in Crafton.
Although there are only three outs in an inning in baseball and softball, it’s possible to record four strikeouts in an inning. That’s because in both sports, if the catcher does not catch the third strike and there are two outs or first base is open, the batter can reach first base safely if he or she arrives before the catcher’s throw.
If the batter reaches safely, it’s recorded as a strikeout, although it does not count as one of the inning’s three outs.
According to Peter Barakat, Bishop Canevin’s assistant athletic director, Maddix was the first to reach the four-strikeout mark in the Crusaders’ 18-5 win over Clairton.
He opened the second inning by striking out the first two Clairton batters and with a full count to the third batter, Maddix delivered strike three. However, the pitch got away and the batter reached safely. So Maddix retired the next batter on a called third strike – his fourth strikeout of the inning.
Incidentally, Maddix eclipsed the 300-strikeout mark for his career in that game and also registered his 28th career victory – a school record.
Meanwhile, one field over, sophomore McClain was rolling through the Rochester lineup, striking out six batters over the first three innings while the Crusaders were building a 14-3 lead.
She started the fourth inning with her seventh strikeout, but a passed ball on the third strike enabled the Rams hitter to reach first base safely. McClain responded by striking out the next three hitters in a row to notch her four-K inning.
McClain, who needed just 16 pitches to record those four strikeouts, finished the five-inning game with 11 strikeouts as the Crusaders posted a 16-6 victory.
Barakat, citing MLB stats, said major league pitchers have recorded just 99 four-strikeout innings dating back to the 1880s, and it’s happened on the same day only twice – once in 2009 and once in 2012.
Five MLB pitchers have done it more than once, including former Pittsburgh Pirates pitchers A.J. Burnett and Tyler Glasnow. Chuck Finley is the only MLB pitcher ever to record four strikeouts in an inning three times.
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