Phillies fans very recently saw firsthand what it’s like for a pitcher to strike out 16 guys batters in a game. Back in April 2016, Vince Velasquez put himself on the map by sitting down 16 Padre hitters. The young right-hander was dotting his fastball on the black, throwing it by hitters, and using his off-speed pitches to make a fool of others. One has to have special “stuff” to be able to strike out at least 16 in a single game.
Why is this relevant? As Phillies Nation continues to serve up history pieces during the dog days of January, we find that Velasquez took a page out of Art Mahaffey’s book, all the way back in 1961.