Fastball

Tanner Houck Joins Pedro Martinez as the Only Red Sox Pitchers to Ever Accomplish This Feat

The Boston Red Sox beat the Chicago Cubs on a walk-off single on Sunday night, but before that, Sox' pitcher Tanner Houck dominated yet again.

Brady Farkas

Apr 28, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Tanner Houck (89) pitches
Apr 28, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Tanner Houck (89) pitches / Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports
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The Boston Red Sox got a walk-off single from Tyler O'Neill on Sunday night to beat the Chicago Cubs, 5-4, at Fenway Park.

The Sox were in control for most of the game, but Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a three-run home run to tie the game in the top of the eighth inning. That knotted the game at 4-4 and set the stage for the O'Neill heroics.

However, prior to those heroics, the story of the game was really about Red Sox' pitcher Tanner Houck, who dominated on the mound once again.

The former first-round pick went 6.2 innings, allowing just one run on four hits. He walked none and struck out nine. His ERA now stands at a microscopic 1.60. The excellent performance from Houck, which have become a regular occurrence for the Red Sox, also put him in some very exclusive team history.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

3 starts of 9+ strikeouts and no walks, Red Sox pitchers in calendar month:

2024 April Tanner Houck
2000 Aug Pedro Martínez

Pedro is a Hall of Famer and one of the best pitchers of his generation, so to be included with him is a high achievement for Houck, Furthermore, Martinez also won the Cy Young in that 2000 season with a 1.74 ERA, so if Houck keeps this up he could find himself at least receiving votes for the award.

With the win, the spunky Red Sox are now 16-13 on the season. The Cubs are 17-11 after the loss.

The Red Sox are off on Monday but will be at it again on Tuesday when they welcome the San Francisco Giants to town.

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Brady Farkas

BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady.