On this day back in 1997, Yankees third baseman Wade Boggs made his pitching debut. Facing off against the Angels in Anaheim Stadium, the 39 year old threw 16 knuckleballs and one fastball pitching a scoreless eighth inning. He gave up no hits, one walk and struck out Todd Greene to end the inning.
The Angels were coasting to an eventual 12-4 win and had beaten up on starter David Wells. Joe Torre wanted to save his bullpen due to the obvious loss and a doubleheader coming up. After initially considering Charlie Hayes to pitch, Torre was told by several players that Boggs had a nasty knuckleball.