Peter Gerard Richert (born October 29, 1939) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former professional

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 tea ...

player. 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 (AL), ...

as a left-handed

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 draw ...

with the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

(1962–64, 1972–73), Washington Senators (1965–67),

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

(1967–71),

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 ...

(1974) and

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

(1974).

Baseball career

In his

Major League debut 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 (AL), ...

on April 12, , against the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a baseball stadium in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It is the home stadium of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers. Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a cost of ( ...

, Richert set a record by

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Irish television legal drama series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017. Produced by Bl!nder F!lms for RTÉ Television, ''Striking Out'' stars Amy Huberman as Dublin-based solicitor Tara Rafferty, who is ...

the first six batters he faced. He entered the game with two outs in the top of the second inning with his Dodgers trailing 4–0, and struck out

Vada Pinson Vada Edward Pinson Jr. (August 11, 1938 – October 21, 1995) was an American professional baseball player and coach. He played as a center fielder in Major League Baseball for 18 years (1958–1975), most notably for the Cincinnati Reds, for who ...

for the final out. Richert then recorded a four-strikeout third inning in which his victims were

Frank Robinson Frank Robinson (August 31, 1935 – February 7, 2019) was an American professional baseball outfielder and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams, from to . The only player to be named Most Valuable Player (MVP) of bot ...

(his future Baltimore Orioles teammate),

Gordy Coleman Gordon Calvin "Gordy" Coleman (July 5, 1934 – March 12, 1994) was a professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball with the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds. He helped the Reds win the 1961 National League pennant, ...

(who reached first base on a

passed ball In baseball, a catcher is charged with a passed ball when he fails to hold or control a legally pitched ball that, with ordinary effort, should have been maintained under his control, and, as a result of this loss of control, the batter or a ru ...

by Johnny Roseboro),

Wally Post Walter Charles Post (July 9, 1929 – January 6, 1982) was a right fielder in Major League Baseball.

and Johnny Edwards; his record-tying sixth strikeout was of

Tommy Harper Tommy Harper (born October 14, 1940) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder and third baseman. He played with the Cincinnati Reds (1962–67), Cleveland Indians (1968), Seattle Pilots / Milwaukee Brewers (1969–71), Boston Red S ...

leading off the fourth. Richert remains the only pitcher to record a four-strikeout inning in his Major League debut. He also set a Major League record by retiring 12 consecutive batters, the most by a pitcher making his MLB debut as a reliever;

Max Scherzer Maxwell Martin Scherzer (born July 27, 1984) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Detroit Tigers, Washington Nationals, and L ...

broke this record in by retiring 13 consecutive batters. Richert won the game in 3 innings of

relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

, giving up no hits or walks and striking out seven. That year, he went 5–4 as a spot starter in a rotation led by the future Hall-of-Fame duo of

Don Drysdale Donald Scott Drysdale (July 23, 1936 – July 3, 1993) was an American professional baseball player and television sports commentator. A right-handed pitcher for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers for his entire career in Major League Baseball, D ...

and

Sandy Koufax Sanford Koufax (; born Sanford Braun; December 30, 1935) is an American former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966. He has been hailed as one of t ...

. In , he went 5–3 on a Dodgers team which won the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

; Richert did not pitch in the Series, in which the Dodgers swept the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

. After the season, Richert, Frank Howard, Ken McMullen,

Dick Nen Richard Leroy Nen (born September 24, 1939) is an American former professional baseball player. A first baseman, Nen appeared in 367 games in Major League Baseball ( MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers (), Washington Senators (–, ) and Chicago Cub ...

and

Phil Ortega Filomeno Coronado Ortega (born October 7, 1939) is a retired American professional baseball pitcher who appeared in 204 games in Major League Baseball for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Senators and California Angels over all or parts of ten ...

were traded to the Washington Senators for fellow pitcher Claude Osteen, infielder John Kennedy and $100,000 cash. Richert's two full seasons with the Senators, and , were the two best seasons of his career. In the former he won a career-high 15 games with a 2.60

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

, also a career high. In the latter, Richert went 14–14 with a 3.37 ERA and set a career-high with 195 strikeouts. He struck out seven consecutive batters in an April 24 game against the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

in the latter year, but still lost, 4–0. Richert was also an All-Star during both seasons and was the losing pitcher in the 1966 game, giving up a single to former Dodgers teammate

Maury Wills Maurice Morning Wills (October 2, 1932 – September 19, 2022) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) primarily for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1959 through 1966 and the latter part of ...

, which scored

Tim McCarver James Timothy McCarver (born October 16, 1941) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from to , most prominently as a member of the St. Louis Cardinal ...

for the winning run in the 10th inning. After going 2–6 to start the season, Richert was acquired by the

in a deal sending

Mike Epstein Michael Peter Epstein (born April 4, 1943), nicknamed "Superjew", is an American former professional baseball player for the Baltimore Orioles, Washington Senators / Texas Rangers, Oakland Athletics, and California Angels of Major League Bas ...

and

Frank Bertaina Frank Louis Bertaina (April 14, 1944 – March 3, 2010) was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from through for the Baltimore Orioles (1964–67, 1969), Washington Senators (1967–69), and St. Louis Cardinals (1970). Liste ...

to Washington. Richert went 7–10 with the Orioles in this, his final season as a starter. In he went 6–3 with a 3.47 earned run average in his first season as a relief pitcher. Richert pitched on an Orioles team that played in three consecutive

from to . In 1969 he went 7–4 with 12 saves and a 2.20 ERA. The Orioles lost the

in surprising fashion to the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

, and Richert was involved in a controversial play which ended Game 4. In the bottom of the 10th, with the game tied at 1–1, J. C. Martin laid down a bunt and was hit by Richert's throw; the error allowed Rod Gaspar to score the winning run from second. Television replays later showed Martin was running inside the baseline, which could have resulted in him being called out for interference. In , Richert went 7–2 with 13 saves and a 1.98 ERA. He was a member of the

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

team that year, the Orioles defeating the

in five games. Richert saved Game 1 of that Series in relief of

Jim Palmer James Alvin Palmer (born October 15, 1945) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 19 years in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles (1965–1967, 1969–1984). Palmer was the winningest MLB pitcher in the ...

. Richert returned to the

Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

upon being traded, along with

, from the

Orioles Oriole or Orioles may refer to: Animals * Old World oriole, colorful passerine birds in the family Oriolidae * New World oriole, a group of birds in the family Icteridae Music * The Orioles, an R&B and doo-wop group of the late 1940s and earl ...

for

Doyle Alexander Doyle Lafayette Alexander (born September 4, 1950) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue J ...

Bob O'Brien Robert Allen O'Brien (born April 23, 1949) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball. He pitched in 14 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers during the 1971 season, including four starts and one shutout. He played college ball at three different ...

, Sergio Robles and

Royle Stillman Royle Eldon Stillman (born January 2, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player whose career lasted for 3 seasons (1975–1977). Beginnings An outfielder, he appeared in 75 Major League Baseball games, and played all or part of thr ...

at the

Winter Meetings Representatives of all 30 Major League Baseball teams and their 120 Minor League Baseball affiliates convene for four days each December in the Winter Meetings to discuss league business and conduct off-season trades and transactions. Attendees in ...

on December 2, 1971. He was dealt from the

to the

Cardinals Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

for

Tommie Agee Tommie Lee Agee (August 9, 1942 – January 22, 2001) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a center fielder from through , most notably as a member of the New York Mets team that became known as th ...

two years later at the Winter Meetings on December 5, 1973.Koppett, Leonard. "Dodgers Also Acquire Agee From Cards," ''The New York Times'', Thursday, December 6, 1973.
Retrieved September 27, 2022. During a 13-year baseball career, Richert compiled 80 wins, 925

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s, and a 3.19

References

External links

Pete Richert
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Pete Richert
at Baseball Almanac
"BASEBALL NOTES/ Giants Hire A's Richert As Fresno Pitching Coach"
''San Francisco Chronicle'', Thursday, November 25, 1999 {{DEFAULTSORT:Richert, Pete 1939 births Living people American League All-Stars Baltimore Orioles players Los Angeles Dodgers players St. Louis Cardinals players Philadelphia Phillies players Washington Senators (1961–1971) players Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from New York (state) Reno Silver Sox players Green Bay Bluejays players Atlanta Crackers players Spokane Indians players Omaha Dodgers players People from Floral Park, New York

Baseball career

See also

References

External links