Los Angeles Angels Rookie Nolan Schanuel's Historic Streak Snapped By Scoring Change
MLB retroactively ruled one of Nolan Schanuel's singles an error, meaning the Los Angeles Angels first baseman had no longer reached safely in 36 straight games.
In each and every one of the 36 MLB games he had appeared in, Nolan Schanuel had reached base safely.
Every time the Los Angeles Angels first baseman slapped a single up the middle, drew a walk or got hit by a pitch, he got closer and closer to making history. He was closing in on the record for most consecutive games reaching base safely to start a career – Alvin Davis did it 47 games in a row with the Seattle Mariners in 1984.
But Saturday morning, Schanuel's chances at breaking said record were dashed.
MLB retroactively ruled that Schanuel's single against the Baltimore Orioles on March 30 was actually an error by pitcher Mike Baumann. The Angels were trailing 13-2 at the time, and they ultimately lost the contest 13-4, so the play didn't amount to much outside of Schanuel's historic streak.
The decision drew criticism from fans online, as well as Angels broadcaster Wayne Randazzo, who put the league on blast on live TV.
When Schanuel was able to actually take the field Saturday, he got on base again, drawing two walks against the Boston Red Sox. The streak would have reached 37 games, putting him one game off second place on the all-time start-of-the-career leaderboards, if not for MLB's delayed score change earlier that day.
Ironically, Schanuel's streak would have ended regardless on Sunday. He went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts in the Angels' loss to the Red Sox.
Schanuel was Los Angeles' first round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. He was called up to the big leagues a month later and immediately made an impact, batting .275 with a .732 OPS and 0.1 WAR in 29 appearances.
Although he is batting just .091 nine games into 2024, Schanuel's on-base percentage is sitting at .297 due to his league-leading eight walks.
The 22-year-old infielder will have a chance to kickstart a new streak when the Angels take on the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday at 9:38 p.m. ET.
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