One of many many lovely components of baseball is that measuring greatness is not restricted to 1 stat and even one historic occasion.
We had been reminded of that after once more Thursday, when the inimitable Shohei Ohtani discovered one more strategy to go away us awestruck, inserting him in a category that had till that time included just one member.
Ohtani grew to become the second participant in AL/NL historical past (since no less than 1900) to surrender one or fewer hits in a shutout and hit two house runs on the identical day.
In Sport 1 of the Angels’ doubleheader in opposition to the Tigers at Comerica Park, Ohtani threw the primary full recreation of his profession, limiting the Tigers to 1 hit in a 6-0 win. An hour or so later, he launched the primary of two homers to assist lead his Halos to an 11-4 victory to brush the dual invoice.
The one different man to yield no a couple of hit on the mound whereas belting two homers on the plate was at a charity golf occasion in Pennsylvania whereas Ohtani was conducting the feat. However when he acquired house and turned on his tv, the 77-year-old started to marvel anew on the two-way celebrity.
“I turned on SportsCenter and I noticed on the underside line there what Ohtani had carried out,” mentioned Rick Clever, who’s the one participant in AL/NL historical past to throw a no-hitter and launch a pair of homers in the identical recreation.
“He is the explanation they invented the phrase ‘freak.'”
It was 52 years in the past that Clever did the unprecedented and, to at the present time, unmatched. On a sweltering night time at Cincinnati’s Riverfront Stadium, going through a strong Reds lineup that includes the likes of Johnny Bench, Pete Rose, Lee Could and George Foster, Clever took the mound for the Phillies whereas battling the consequences of the flu.
“I believed the ball was stopping midway to the catcher once I was warming up within the bullpen,” Clever mentioned. “I used to be nonetheless getting over the flu and in that stadium, under avenue stage, it was greater than 110 levels on the turf.”
Clever was good via 4 innings as he started to “sweat out” the virus, getting stronger as the sport went on and capitalizing on Cincinnati’s aggressive strategy on the plate.
Within the fifth, Clever got here to the plate and smashed a two-run homer over the left-field wall off Reds starter Ross Grimsley, and as that ball sailed over the fence, the sensation started to emerge that one thing particular was within the making.
The one blemish on Clever’s pitching line on this night time got here with one out within the sixth, when he walked Dave Concepcion. From there, he was irrepressible, each on the hill and on the plate.
As he stored retiring Cincinnati’s aspect so as, Clever stepped into the batter’s field once more within the eighth in opposition to reliever Clay Carroll. He went deep over the wall in left once more for a solo shot that made it 4-0 Philadelphia.
Hitting homers was nothing new for Clever — getting into this recreation, he had seven to his title. He’d hit six extra after his two solo photographs in opposition to the Reds.
What wasn’t so acquainted, nonetheless, was an actual likelihood to throw a no-hitter.
“I feel when you get via the seventh inning, you actually begin pondering you’ve a shot,” Clever mentioned.
Following an ideal eighth, Clever struck out Jimmy Stewart and acquired Ty Cline to floor out to second with Clever overlaying first base within the ninth. That dropped at the plate the one man standing between Clever and the file books.
He simply occurred to be the participant who would acquire probably the most hits in MLB historical past.
“The final man you need to see on the plate if you’re making an attempt to complete a no-hitter is Pete Rose,” Clever mentioned.
Rose hit a line drive towards third, and for a heart-pounding cut up second, historical past was teetering on the brink.
However the ball landed within the glove of third baseman John Vukovich, securing an accomplishment that will stay unmatched greater than half a century later.
Trying again in any case this time, Clever is pleased with what he achieved that night time in Cincinnati. However even earlier than Ohtani got here very near equaling it on Thursday, he knew there was one man on the planet who may do it.
“Folks would say to me that no one would ever do it once more, particularly now that we’ve got the designated hitter in each leagues,” Clever mentioned. “However I instructed them there’s one man who may do it sometime.”
Therein lies the complexity of greatness that baseball so typically brings to the fore. What Ohtani did Thursday will not be the equal of Clever’s day in the summertime of 1971. However in a special dimension, it was simply as nice, if not better.
“He did that in a doubleheader,” Clever mentioned. “He pitched an entire recreation after which a couple of minutes later, performed in a second recreation and hit two house runs. His power is unbelievable.”
Nonetheless, Clever stays one in all one. No less than for now.
“Ohtani had an incredible day,” he mentioned earlier than his trademark delicate humor surfaced. “However he did it in two video games. I did it in a single.”