Alex Cobb became the first pitcher in MLB history to strike out 13 batters without making it through five innings. Cobb gave up three runs on five hits with two walks over 4 2/3 innings, but ultimately his pitch count got out of hand and he left the game after 117 pitches. Tampa Bay pitching went on to strike out San Diego batters 18 times.
That ended a streak of 34 straight games in which Tampa Bay’s starting pitchers have worked at least five innings.
Will Venable and Carlos Quentin hit solo homers off Cobb in the first for San Diego.
“I can’t really explain why or how that happened. It was just one of those weird days,” Cobb said. “Obviously, that’s not my goal. I never go into a game trying to strike everybody out. I was trying to put balls over the plate and have them make weak contact, and they were swinging and missing.”
Fantasy Play: I can’t have been one of the most consistent pitchers on the race staff and will face the Boston Red Sox Thursday and take a 4-2 record and a 3.09 ERA into the game. The strikeouts were nice for Cobb owners, but don’t look for repeat in his next start.
