HOME RUN ALLOWED TO FIRST BATTER FACED

MLB Pitchers Who Surrendered a Home Run to the First Batter | Baseball Almanac

Every pitcher dreams about that first game in the Major Leagues. That first game where all eyes are on him; where he gets to go up against the men he's watched for so long. They all dream of coming into a game and shutting the opposing team down with something they've never seen before, but that is not very likely to happen...

These rookie pitchers found out about the big leagues in a hard way. The very first batter they faced didn't just welcome them to the show, they took them long. Seventy-plus pitchers, from hall of famers Bert Blyleven and Bob Gibson, to virtually unknowns, like John Papa and Chris Bushing, have seen their first series of pitches end with a home run — for fourteen of these twirlers it was their first PITCH!

Not all Fabulous Feats are good ones. Sometimes you just have to recognize the heartbreaks of the game. These pitchers learned that very quickly. Here is a complete list of the Major League Baseball pitchers unlucky enough to surrender a home run to the first batter they ever faced. Research by Baseball Almanac.

Baseball Almanac Top Quote

"When it came to winning 'the big game,' there were few pitchers who compared with Bob Gibson. As outstanding as the St. Louis Cardinals' scowling right-hander was at other times, he was at his most ferocious when the spotlight shined brightest." - Schwartz, Larry. ESPN Analyst. ESPN Network. 10 October 2020.

Home Run Allowed to First Batter Faced

American League Pitchers Who Gave Up a HR to 1st Batter Ever

A.L. Pitchers Who Gave Up a HR to 1st Batter Ever | Research by Baseball Almanac

1. 5. Joe Martina RHP 04-19-1924 Washington Senators
2. 6. Spencer Pumpelly RHP 07-11-1925 Washington Senators
3. 7. Charlie Biggs RHP 09-03-1932 Chicago White Sox
4. 8. Bobby Coombs RHP 06-08-1933 Philadelphia Athletics
5. 10. Cal Dorsett RHP 08-19-1940 Cleveland Indians
6. 12. Bill Bevens RHP 05-12-1944 New York Yankees
7. 22. John Papa RHP 04-11-1961 Baltimore Orioles
8. 24. Fred Gladding RHP 07-01-1961 Detroit Tigers
9. 25. Dave Boswell RHP 09-18-1964 Minnesota Twins
10. 27. Dick Baney RHP 07-11-1969 Seattle Pilots
11. 28. Bert Blyleven RHP 06-05-1970 Minnesota Twins
12. 29. Bob Kaiser LHP 09-03-1971 Cleveland Indians
13. 30. Norm Angelini LHP 07-22-1972 Kansas City Royals
14. 34. Roy Branch RHP 09-11-1979 Seattle Mariners
15. 37. Charlie Mitchell RHP 08-09-1984 Boston Red Sox
16. 41. Gary Mielke RHP 08-19-1987 Texas Rangers
17. 42. Dave Eiland RHP 08-03-1988 New York Yankees
18. 45. Tom Drees LHP 09-03-1991 Chicago White Sox
19. 48. Greg Gohr RHP 04-07-1993 Detroit Tigers
20. 50. Al Reyes RHP 04-27-1995 Milwaukee Brewers
21. 51. Jeff Suppan RHP 07-17-1995 Boston Red Sox
22. 52. John Wasdin RHP 08-24-1995 Oakland Athletics
23. 53. Jaime Bluma RHP 08-09-1996 Kansas City Royals
24. 54. Jason Dickson RHP 08-21-1996 California Angels
25. 55. Danny Rios RHP 05-30-1997 New York Yankees
26. 59. Damaso Marte LHP 06-30-1999 Seattle Mariners
27. 60. Matt DeWitt RHP 06-20-2000 Toronto Blue Jays
28. 61. Brett Jodie RHP 07-20-2001 New York Yankees
29. 64. Francisco Liriano LHP 09-05-2005 Minnesota Twins
30. 66. Hideki Okajima LHP 04-02-2007 Boston Red Sox
31. 67. Freddy Dolsi RHP 05-06-2008 Detroit Tigers
32. 69. Wei-Yin Chen LHP 04-10-2012 Baltimore Orioles
33. 71. Masahiro Tanaka RHP 04-04-2014 New York Yankees
34. 74. Jose De Paula LHP 06-21-2015 New York Yankees

Home Run Allowed to First Batter Faced

National League Pitchers Who Gave Up a HR to 1st Batter Ever

N.L. Pitchers Who Gave Up a HR to 1st Batter Ever | Research by Baseball Almanac

1. 1. Bert Conn RHP 09-16-1898 Philadelphia Phillies
2. 2. Henry Schmidt RHP 04-17-1903 Brooklyn Dodgers
3. 3. Ernie Baker RHP 08-18-1905 Cincinnati Reds
4. 4. Harry Sullivan LHP 08-11-1909 St. Louis Cardinals
5. 9. Bill Kerksieck RHP 06-21-1939 Philadelphia Phillies
6. 11. Bill Webb RHP 05-15-1943 Philadelphia Phillies
7. 13. Bill MacDonald RHP 05-06-1950 Pittsburgh Pirates
8. 14. Glenn Mickens RHP 07-19-1953 Brooklyn Dodgers
9. 15. Tom Qualters RHP 09-13-1953 Philadelphia Phillies
10. 16. Jim Davis LHP 04-18-1954 Chicago Cubs
11. 17. Jack Meyer RHP 04-16-1955 Philadelphia Phillies
12. 18. Ted Wieand RHP 09-27-1958 Cincinnati Reds
13. 19. Bob Gibson RHP 04-15-1959 St. Louis Cardinals
14. 20. Ed Rakow RHP 04-22-1960 Los Angeles Dodgers
15. 21. Cal Browning LHP 06-12-1960 St. Louis Cardinals
16. 23. Chi-Chi Olivo RHP 06-05-1961 Milwaukee Braves
17. 26. Ken Holtzman LHP 09-04-1965 Chicago Cubs
18. 31. Pat Osburn LHP 04-13-1974 Cincinnati Reds
19. 32. Mickey Mahler LHP 09-13-1977 Atlanta Braves
20. 33. Dickie Noles RHP 07-05-1979 Philadelphia Phillies
21. 35. Jeff Stember RHP 08-05-1980 San Francisco Giants
22. 36. Ricky Horton LHP 04-07-1984 St. Louis Cardinals
23. 38. Bobby Moore RHP 09-11-1985 San Francisco Giants
24. 39. Rob Murphy LHP 09-13-1985 Cincinnati Reds
25. 40. Tom Funk LHP 07-24-1986 Houston Astros
26. 43. Mike Munoz LHP 09-06-1989 Los Angeles Dodgers
27. 44. Gil Heredia RHP 09-01-1991 San Francisco Giants
28. 46. Tim Pugh RHP 09-01-1992 Cincinnati Reds
29. 47. Kevin Rogers LHP 09-04-1992 San Francisco Giants
30. 49. Chris Bushing RHP 09-03-1993 Cincinnati Reds
31. 56. Jason Johnson RHP 08-27-1997 Pittsburgh Pirates
32. 57. Jason Phillips RHP 04-05-1999 Pittsburgh Pirates
33. 58. Rick Greene RHP 06-19-1999 Cincinnati Reds
34. 62. J.J. Trujillo RHP 06-11-2002 San Diego Padres
35. 63. Chin-hui Tsao RHP 07-25-2003 Colorado Rockies
36. 65. Josh Kinney RHP 07-03-2006 St. Louis Cardinals
37. 68. Evan MacLane LHP 07-07-2010 St. Louis Cardinals
38. 70. Curtis Partch RHP 06-09-2013 Cincinnati Reds
39. 73. Steven Matz LHP 06-28-2015 New York Mets
40. 74. Jake Smith RHP 09-07-2016 San Diego Padres
41. 75. Robert Dugger RHP 08-05-2019 Miami Marlins
42. 76. Connor Brogdon RHP 08-13-2020 Philadelphia Phillies
43. 77. Jose Mujica RHP 09-08-2020 Colorado Rockies
44. 78. Hans Crouse RHP 09-26-2021 Philadelphia Phillies
45. 79. Lyon Richardson RHP 08-06-2023 Cincinnati Reds
Pitchers Who Gave-Up a HR to 1st Batter | Research by Baseball Almanac
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baseball almanac fast facts

Why are some names bold faced? Jose De Paula, Matt DeWitt, Jason Dickson, Freddy Dolsi, Robert Dugger, Ricky Horton, Jason Johnson, Josh Kinney, Damaso Marte, Mike Munoz, Hideki Okajima, Al Reyes, Kevin Rogers, Jake Smith, Connor Brogdon, Hans Crouse, and Lyon Richardson served up their home run with their first pitch ever during a Major League game!

BONUS: From that set of pitchers above, Lyon Richardson gets "extra credit" – not only did he surrender a home run to the first batter he faced with the first pitch he ever threw in his entire career, but the second pitch he threw, was also hit for a home run. The first known instance in baseball history!

Bob Gibson served-up a home run to the first batter he faced, then went on to become a truly dominating force on the mound—winning two-hundred fifty-one games, striking out more than three-thousand hitters, and earning a rightful place in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

On August 3, 1988, Dave Eiland allowed a home run to the first batter he faced. On April 10, 1992, Eiland hit a home run in his first major league at-bat giving him a pair of feats unmatched in Major League Baseball history.