The Day Norm Cash Didn’t Record a Putout at First Base
From SABR member Joe Guzzardi at Baseball Past & Present on April 27:
Of all the statistical oddities in baseball, the rarest occurs when a first baseman plays an entire game without recording a put out.
Detroit Tigers’ Norm Cash did exactly that on June 27, 1963. That Thursday afternoon, the Tigers’ 27 outs in the team’s 10-6 loss to the Minnesota Twins, were recorded as follows: six strike outs, 11 fly balls and 10 line drives.
By comparison, the twenty perfect games pitched in Major League history are common place.
“Stormin’ Norman,” as he was fondly called by Tigers’ fans had other notable achievements in his productive career. In 1960, Cash never hit into a double play. For a slow-footed big man, that’s quite a feat.
The following year, Cash both leagues with his .361 batting average. Critics note that 1961 was the first expansion year and suggest that the diluted pitching may have attributed to Cash’s lofty average. Cash attributes his batting prowess, at least in part, to his corked bat.
Read the full article here: http://baseballpastandpresent.com/2011/04/27/not-norm-cash-plays-entire-game-recording-put/
Originally published: April 27, 2011. Last Updated: April 27, 2011.