William Blake Stein (born August 3, 1973) is an American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or dr ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

(MLB) for the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The t ...

and

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

from -.

Career

On June 2, 1994, he was drafted by the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

in the 6th round of the 1994 amateur draft. On July 31, , he was traded by the Cardinals with Eric Ludwick and

T. J. Mathews Timothy Jay Mathews (born January 9, 1970) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played all or parts of eight seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, and Houston Astros. Mathews wa ...

to the Oakland Athletics for

Mark McGwire Mark David McGwire (born October 1, 1963), nicknamed "Big Mac", is an American former professional baseball first baseman who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 2001 for the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Card ...

. On July 31, , he was traded by the Athletics with

Jeff D'Amico Jeffrey Charles D'Amico (born December 27, 1975) is an American former professional baseball pitcher from to . D'Amico, sometimes nicknamed "Big Daddy" due to his six-foot nine stature, was a starting pitcher who played for the Milwaukee Brewers ...

and Brad Rigby to the Kansas City Royals for

Kevin Appier Robert Kevin Appier (; born December 6, 1967) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher for the Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, New York Mets, and Anaheim Angels. Appi ...

. On June 17, , Stein fanned eight straight Brewers for the Royals, and 11 in five 2/3 innings, but Milwaukee defeated Kansas City, 5-2. Only

Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanning four decades, Ryan ...

(twice), Ron Davis, and

Roger Clemens William Roger Clemens (born August 4, 1962), nicknamed "Rocket", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the Boston Red Sox. Clemens was one of the most dominant pi ...

had struck out eight in a row in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...

Tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

pitcher

Doug Fister Douglas Wildes Fister (born February 4, 1984) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Detroit Tigers, Washington Nationals, Houston Astros, Boston Red Sox, and Texas ...

would break this record on September 27, , striking out nine Royals, but receiving a no-decision in a 5-4 Detroit victory. When starting for the Athletics against the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

on 31 August 1998, Stein was unable to get out any of the first eight Indian batters out - the inning started walk-hit batsman-walk-single-single-walk-single-single, giving the Indians a 6-0 lead. Stein was pulled from the game by manager

Art Howe Arthur Henry Howe Jr. (born December 15, 1946) is an American former professional baseball infielder, coach, scout, and manager, who appeared as a player in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (–), Houston Astros (–), and ...

, and became the first starting pitcher in Major League history to fail to get out any of the first eight batters of the game. After retiring from

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

, Stein attended

Spring Hill College Spring Hill College is a private, Jesuit college in Mobile, Alabama. It was founded in 1830 by Michael Portier, Bishop of Mobile. Along with being the oldest college or university in the state of Alabama, it was the first Catholic college in the ...

and graduated in 2005. He is now Assistant Principal for Discipline and Attendance at McGill-Toolen Catholic High School.

References

External links

Baseball Reference
1973 births Living people Altoona Curve players American expatriate baseball players in Canada Akron Aeros players Baseball players from Mississippi Edmonton Trappers players Harrisburg Senators players Huntsville Stars players Johnson City Cardinals players Kansas City Royals players Major League Baseball pitchers Nashville Sounds players Oakland Athletics players People from McComb, Mississippi Peoria Chiefs players Spring Hill Badgers baseball players St. Petersburg Cardinals players Vancouver Canadians players Wichita Wranglers players Anchorage Glacier Pilots players {{US-baseball-pitcher-1970s-stub

Career

See also

References

External links