Slow and behold! Texas Rangers infielder lobs 31mph eephus pitch - the slowest for a called strike ever recorded - in 12-3 blowout loss to A's
- Brock Holt was brought in to pitch during eighth inning of Rangers loss to A's
- He threw a 31mph eephus pitch that was called a strike by home plate umpire
- It was slowest ever recorded pitch called for a strike since start of tracking era
- Holt allowed a single and no runs during his one-inning relief appearance
Texas Rangers utility man Brock Holt took the mound and threw the slowest pitch to be called for a strike that was ever recorded since the start of the pitch-tracking era - a 31mph eephus pitch.
Holt was brought into the game and took the mound to start the bottom of the eighth inning as his team was getting blown out by the Oakland Athletics.
The A’s were beating the Rangers 12-3 during their game at RingCentral Coliseum.
When the score is that lopsided, the team that is trailing usually looks to keep its bullpen pitchers out of the game in order to save them for the next day.
Texas Rangers utility man Brock Holt took the mound and threw the slowest pitch to be called for a strike that was ever recorded since the start of the pitch-tracking era - a 31mph eephus pitch
Holt was brought into the game and took the mound to start the bottom of the eighth inning as his team was getting blown out by the Oakland Athletics
Holt’s first pitch was a slow, high-arcing eephus ball that was clocked at 31.1mph. The pitch was called a strike by the home plate umpire
The scoreboard at RingCentral Coliseum shows that one of Holt's pitches was a 32.6mph curve ball
So a position player is brought in to pitch the final inning or so, relying on pitches that are much slower and don’t have the same movement as the starters and relievers on the roster.
Holt’s first pitch was a slow, high-arcing eephus ball that was clocked at 31.1mph. The pitch was called a strike by the home plate umpire.
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It was the slowest pitch ever to be called a strike since 2008, the start of the so-called pitch-tracking era, when television broadcasters used data to track the location of pitches relative to the strike zone.
Holt’s strike was the slowest, breaking the previous record held by Willians Astudillo of the Minnesota Twins.
Astudillo threw a 41.3mph pitch for a called strike during the Twins’ 15-4 loss to the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City on June 4 of this season.
Holt managed to get three outs without allowing the Rangers to score a run. He mixed slow eephus pitches with a fastball that exceeded 80mph.
Holt managed to get three out and did not allow a run. He acknowledges the fans as he walks toward the dugout on Saturday
Six of his 10 pitches thrown were for strikes.
‘The situation stinks but it’s always fun for us to be able to go out and do that,’ Holt said.
‘The plan was to see how slow I could throw it and still be able to throw strikes.
‘I don’t throw hard enough to put very much stress on my arm.
‘For me it’s about throwing strikes and get us to tomorrow without using any more pitchers.’
Matt Olson matched his career high with four hits, including a two-run double as part of Oakland’s seven-run third inning.
The A’s, who are just two games back of first place in the American League West, handed the Rangers their 13th consecutive road loss.
Oakland currently has one of the two wild card slots in the American League.
Yan Gomes and Josh Harrison also homered.
Oakland Athletics' Josh Harrison runs the bases after hitting a two-run home run against the Texas Rangers during the fifth inning
Oakland’s sputtering offense batted around in consecutive innings for the first time since 2016.
A’s newcomer Starling Marte added a pair of hits to continue his surge at the plate. Oakland has won seven of nine.
‘It seems like for the better part of a couple months now we’ve been playing games that have been tight all the way to the finish,’ A’s manager Bob Melvin said.
‘To have one of those games where you’re not grinding all the way to the last inning, to the last pitch ... kind of nice.’
Cole Irvin (8-10) pitched four-hit ball over seven innings.
Adolis García homered and drove in three runs for Texas, which has lost five straight overall.
