2013 Yankees Fall Just Short of 1990 Reds

The New York Yankees opened the 2013 season having won 19 straight games in which they scored first. That streak ended May 21 when the Yankees fell to the Baltimore Orioles in 10 innings.

Only two teams had done as well in that regard as New York—the 1990 Reds (20-0) and 1902 Pirates (19-0).

That Reds team went wire-to-wire in winning the World Series while the Pirates finished with a .741 winning percentage, the second-best mark in history.

The Yankees lost on a leadoff home run by Nate McLouth in the bottom of the 10th inning. As it turns out, both Cincinnati and Pittsburgh had interesting losses as well to break their streaks.

On May 22, 1990, Cincinnati’s Tom Browning and Chicago’s Mike Bielecki locked up in a scoreless battle. Browning went nine innings and Bielecki 10 before both were replaced.

The Reds scored first – of course – when Chris Sabo homered off Jeff Pico to open the 13th inning. But Chicago’s Luis Salazar repeated the trick in the home 13th off Randy Myers.

Finally, in the 16th inning—and if this game had been played years earlier, there might not have been a 16th only because Wrigley Field didn’t have lights—the Cubs loaded the bases and Dave Clark singled off Scott Scudder to win the game.

Unlike the Reds, the Pirates played at home on May 21, 1902—yes, exactly 111 years before the Yankees’ streak ended at 19. Pittsburgh, which would average a run more per game than any other team in the National League and allow a half-run less than any other in 1902, was already 25-4 on the season as it hosted the New York Giants.

Pittsburgh got its first run quickly—Lefty Davis opened with a walk and one out later stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error. He would score on a Honus Wagner fly out.

The Giants scored twice in the second but Tommy Leach homered in the home half to tie the game. However, New York took a 3-2 lead in the fourth as Frank Bowerman doubled and moved around the bases on grounders.

It stood 3-2 until the seventh inning. With one out, Dummy Taylor (or “Dunning” as one newspaper account called him), walked Pirates pitcher (and part-time outfielder) Jesse Tannehill. Upset with the call, Taylor threw down his glove in disgust—and likely uttered some words to umpire Bob Emsile, who ejected Taylor from the game.

In came the popular Christy Mathewson. Even in only his second full season, he came into a chorus of cheers, despite being on the road. Mathewson would be making only one of his two relief appearances on the season.

Obviously a bit rusty, Mathewson hit Davis. Light-hitting Wid Conroy then hit a grounder to third baseman Billy Lauder, who got the force at third but then threw widly to first base in his effort for an inning-ending double play; the errant throw scoring Davis with the tying run.

In the eighth, with one out, Tannehill returned the favor, hitting Mathewson. Tannehill retired George Van Haltren, but Jack Doyle would double, with Mathewson scoring all the way from first.

Mathewson might have been a bit winded—he needed outfielder Jim Jackson to make a great catch on a Wagner fly to open the eighth then, after another fly out, he walked Jimmy Burke, although he was caught stealing.

A rested Mathewson got Leach to foul out, Harry Smith on a bouncer to third and Tannehill to fly out to end the game.

The loss hardly effected the Pirates, who would win their next five games en route to an incredible 103-36 record (an even more incredible 27 1/2 games in front of second place Brooklyn).