Plunk Everyone

Postseason HBPs of note: October 19, 2009

Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz stepped to the plate down by 1 run in the 9th inning last night, with one out and a runner on first, and did what needed to be done - he got hit by a pitch. But two batters later, he came around to score the game's winning run on a walkoff double by Jimmy Rollins. As you may recall, the last time a batter got hit by a pitch that put him on base to score the winning run in a walkoff was game 3 of the world series last year, when it was Carlos Ruiz himself hitting the game winner, driving in Eric Bruntlett who had reached on a plunk. The only other plunk in postseason history that resulted in the game ending run being scored by the plunked runner was in NLDS game 1 between the Marlins and Giants in 1997. Charles Johnson got plunked in the 9th in that one, and scored the winning run on an Edgar Renteria single.

Shane Victorino also got plunked yesterday, but he got his in the 8th inning, and did not score a run. But that made him the first player born in Hawaii to get hit by a pitch in a postseason game in the Majors. Ruiz was the first player born in Panama to get a postseaon plunk.

George Sherrill threw Victorino's plunk, giving him 2 this postseason, which leaves him tied for 2nd on the Dodgers career list, behind Tommy John and Don Sutton who both hit 3 batters in postseason play for the Dodgers. John threw all 3 in 1977, so Sherrill is one short of the Dodgers single-postseason record as well. 8 other pitchers have hit 2 postseason batters for the Dodgers. Jonathon Broxton became the 11th pitcher from Georgia to hit a batter in the postseason.

Labels: HBPs of note