SAVE IT FOR LATER
After nearly two weeks stuck at 299, Eckersley reaches elusive 300-save milestone in fewer appearances than any relief pitcher in baseball history
This story was originally published on May 24, 1995
OAKLAND >> Dennis Eckersley’s 17th and final pitch was hit harmlessly to first base, where Mark Mcgwire gloved it and stepped on the bag. A routine out? Hardly. After waiting 13 days for just a chance at it, Eckersley joined the pantheon of relievers Wednesday night with his 300th save, an effort that preserved the A’s 5-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. “That was like the final out of the World Series,” an exhausted, but happy, Eckersley said. Only six pitchers in history have recorded 300 or more saves. But no one has gotten there quicker than “The Eck.” He did got to 300 it in 499 relief appearances. Eckersley’s one inning of work tied him with Bruce Sutter, who needed 661 appearances to achieve 300 saves. On his way to the Hall of Fame, the 40-yearold Eckersley probably will surpass recently retired Goose Gossage (310 saves) but will be challenged to catch up to Rollie Fingers (341). The A’s came up with two runs in the bottom of the eighth in setting up the chance for
Eckersley. His previous two appearances, both on the road, were perfect but didn’t qualify for saves. Eckersley disposed of pinch hitter Sherman Obando on a swinging third strike, only to allow a single to Brady Anderson, who earlier had tied the American League record with his 32nd straight successful stolen-base attempt. Like Anderson, the next two batters were left-handed hitters, as troublesome as it gets for Eckersley. The first. Kevin Bass, actually a switch hitter, went down on strikes. Eckersley then had to face the dangerous Rafael Palmeiro, whose eight homers rank him among the league leaders. Eckersley got ahead 1-and-2 before Palmeiro fouled a pitch off plate umpire Dale Scott. Eckersley was flying so high emotionally that he didn’t realize what had happened. “He fouled it down the line, didn’t he?” Eckersley said later. “He didn’t?” The next pitch was a ball that just missed. But the sixth pitch in the sequence, “high gas,” as described by Eckersley, rolled to Mcgwire, giving the chilled Coliseum crowd of 10,003, including Eckersley’s parents, something to cheer about. Eckersley took it relatively calmly as his teammates rushed out of the dugout to shake his hand or hug him. “You would have seen some emotion if I’d punched Palmeiro out,” Eckersley said. “I was trying to act like no big deal. If it had happened on the road, it might have been (more emotional). This wait has been grinding.” Not only did the A’s give Eckersley the opportunity to gain 300, they managed to beat right-hander Mike Mussina for only the second time in nine career decisions against the A’s. With the score tied 3-3 in the eighth, Rickey Henderson topped a grounder toward third baseman Jeff Manto, who had the ball go under his glove for a twobase error. Stan Javier singled Henderson to third, chasing Mussina and bringing in Alan Mills. Javier stole second and Geronimo Berroa drove in both runners with a single through a drawn-in infield. The A’s had the bases loaded and were in position to deny Eckersley a chance for the save by going four runs ahead. But Craig Paquette preserved the stage for Eckersley’s milestone by grounding to short for the third out. This was Eckersley’s sixth save of the season. The victory went to Jim Corsi, who needed only two-thirds of an inning to pick up his first victory in three years. Epilogue: Eckersley retired in 1998 with 390 saves and currently stands sixth on the all-time list. He likely will fall to seventh in the next year or two as Craig Kimbrel, the only active player among the top 25, has 346 saves. About the author: Ron Bergman, whose sportswriting career spanned six decades, was the original Oakland A’s beat writer in 1968. His 1973 book, The Mustache Gang, chronicled the exploits of the wild and wild-haired team that won the World Series three years in a row. Bergman spent most of his career at the Oakland Tribune, followed by a tour with the Mercury News. He died in 2016 at age 80.