OTD in 1969, Dodgers' right-hander recorded 1st-of-its-kind MLB stat
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OTD in 1969, Dodgers' right-hander recorded 1st-of-its-kind MLB stat originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Statistics that are commonplace in modern baseball had to be invented somewhere. In the case of the save, the origin dates back to the 1968-69 offseason, when sports writer Jerome Holtzman came up with the stat to try and assign value to relief pitchers.
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That meant that someone, somewhere, had to get the first official save in MLB history.
That man was Bill Singer, and he did it on April 7, 1969.
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MLB's first-ever save
Bill Singer only made one relief appearance in the 1969 season, and it was historic.
He entered for Don Drysdale with a 3-2 lead over the Cincinnati Reds, and it was the seventh inning.
Singer went the last three innings, not giving up even a hit, to preserve the victory for the Dodgers at Crosley Field.
Who is Bill Singer?
Singer was a two-time All Star pitcher who is now 81 years old (turning 82 on April 24).
He's from Los Angeles and spent the first nine years of his career pitching for the Dodgers.
He had a 3.03 career ERA with the Dodgers, and then he pitched for the California Angels, Texas Rangers, Minnesota Twins and Toronto Blue Jays.
Fittingly, he pitched for the Blue Jays in their first-ever season. He was a part of all sorts of baseball history.
His best campaign was likely that 1969 season with the Dodgers. After opening with the save, Singer went on to go 20-12 with a 2.34 ERA in 315.2 innings with 247 strikeouts.
He made the All-Star Game that year, along with 1973 for the Angels.
And he'll always be the first player to have ever recorded an official save in MLB.
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