Boston Red Sox Pitcher Tanner Houck Makes History With Yet Another Dominant Start

Tanner Houck tossed 6.0 scoreless innings against the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday, giving him one of the best starts to a season in Boston Red Sox history.

Apr 7, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Tanner Houck (89) throws against the Los Angeles Angels. / Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Tanner Houck gave the Boston Red Sox another quality start Sunday afternoon against the Los Angeles Angels, and he etched his name into the franchise's history books in the process.

The 27-year-old right-hander went 6.0 innings without allowing a single run, only giving up four hits and two walks along the way. Houck struck out seven Angels batters as well, giving the Red Sox the cushion they needed to eventually secure a 12-2 win.

Coming off the back of his similarly dominant performance against the Oakland Athletics on April 1, Houck now stands alone in Red Sox history. He also did not allow an earned run in 6.0 innings of work that day either, finishing the game with 10 strikeouts.

According to JP Long, Houck is the first pitcher in Red Sox history to throw 6.0-plus scoreless innings and record six-plus strikeouts in each of his first two appearances in a season.

Tanner Houck is the first pitcher in Red Sox history to throw 6.0+ scoreless innings and record 6+ strikeouts in each of his first 2 outings of a season.

6.0 IP, 0 R, 10 K
6.0 IP, 0 R, 7 K

— J.P. Long (@SoxNotes) April 7, 2024

And when taking his final start of 2023 into account, Houck finds himself on quite the exclusive list as well.

Houck is now the fourth Red Sox pitcher in the Live Ball Era to make three consecutive regular season starts of 6.0-plus innings while allowing zero runs and four or fewer hits. The other players are Chris Sale, Tim Wakefield and Pedro Martinez.

Considering Martinez is a Hall of Famer, Sale is a seven-time All-Star and Wakefield was a fan-favorite for two decades, that is some pretty admirable company for Houck to join.

Tanner Houck’s last 3 starts in the regular season:

6.0 IP, 0 R, 1 H
6.0 IP, 0 R, 3 H
6.0 IP, 0 R, 4 H

Red Sox in the Live Ball Era to make 3 consecutive starts of 6.0+ innings, 0 runs, and 4 or fewer hits allowed:

Tanner Houck
Chris Sale
Tim Wakefield
Pedro Martinez

— J.P. Long (@SoxNotes) April 7, 2024

Houck looked like he would become a core piece of the Red Sox pitching staff when he first broke into the big leagues, and he held onto that reputation for the better part of three seasons. From 2020 to 2022, Houck went 9-9 with a 3.02 ERA, 1.123 WHIP and 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings, splitting time between the rotation and bullpen.

The righty didn't fare as well in 2023, when he was a full-time starter and dealing with injuries. He finished the year 6-10 with a 5.10 ERA, 1.368 WHIP and 8.4 strikeouts per nine innings.

Houck appears to have put those struggles behind him, as he has been as impressive as any pitcher in baseball through the first 11 days of the regular season.

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