Rick Porcello Throws Immaculate Inning Against Rays
BOSTON (CBS) -- Rick Porcello has had his share of great outings for the Red Sox in the past two seasons, but he isn't necessarily a pitcher you'd consider "overpowering".
For one inning on Wednesday night against the Rays, he was as overpowering as you could possibly be.
Watch below for a video recap of Porcello's "immaculate inning" in the bottom of the fifth against the Rays at Tropicana Field on Wednesday. Porcello became just the fourth pitcher in Red Sox history (and the 84th in major league history) to record an inning in which he struck out the side on just nine pitches. Closer Craig Kimbrel accomplished the feat against the Brewers back in May.
Here's how the inning went:
Trevor Plouffe: Foul ball, swinging strike, swinging strike
Wilson Ramos: Foul ball, foul ball, swinging strike
Mallex Smith: Strike looking, swinging strike, strike looking
Kimbrel, Pedro Martinez (2002), and Clay Buchholz (2012) are the only other Red Sox pitchers to accomplish immaculate innings. The Red Sox became the only major league team this season to have two. Other notable pitchers who accomplished the feat are Roger Clemens (who did it against the Red Sox as a member of the Blue Jays in 1997), Sandy Koufax, Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson, Felix Hernandez, and Max Scherzer.
Porcello finished with six innings on Wednesday, allowing two earned runs (two solo home runs) with seven strikeouts. The 2016 Cy Young award winner has posted a solid 3.66 ERA since the start of July after a rough first half of the season.
