Washington Nationals Countdown to Spring Training: 6 Days

The off-season is almost over. Less than three weeks until Washington Nationals pitchers and catchers report to Viera. To celebrate this fact, we here at DistrictOnDeck will commence a countdown of sorts pointing out interesting facts about numbers.

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Six innings is a big number for pitchers. It is the number of innings a starter has to pitch to earn a win. So, today we will take a look at which pitchers in franchise history have pitched at least six innings in a game the most.

Aug 12, 2011; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Washington Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond (6) doubles during the sixth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Not surprisingly, Steve Rogers is at the top of that list. He had 319 starts of at least six innings which is far and away number one. Next on the list is Dennis Martinez with 187. The third person on the list is a workhorse who wore the uniform of the Expos and Nationals in Livan Hernandez. He had 162 starts. Rounding out the top-5 is Bryn Smith at 149 and Steve Renko at 138. Javier Vazquez is just outside the top-5 with 137 and is one of the only players in the top-20 who can add to his total realistically if he returns to Washington. The person who had the most games of at least six innings only as a National is John Lannan with 79 which puts him in 13th spot, tied with Dustin Hermanson.

The highest active National is Jordan Zimmermann who is 23rd with 56, tied with Carlos Perez.

Nineteen players have exactly one start of at least six innings. Among those on that list, Tyler Clippard, Omar Daal, Rocky Biddle, Jon Rauch, Tommy Milone, Ted Lilly, Jonathan Hurst, John Montague, and Howard Farmer.

The best hitting performance coming from the number six spot in the order was by Bob Bailey on July 3, 1973. He went 4/6 with 1 2B, 2 HR, and 7 RBI (11 Total Bases). Five players were tied for second spot, including Josh Willingham‘s 2 HR, 8 RBI game July 27, 2009. Lee Stevens, Shane Andrews, Chris Widger and Larry Parrish also had a game with 10 total bases from the six spot.

Notable players to wear 6 with the Expos/Nationals: Ron Fairly, Wallace Johnson, Brad Wilkerson, Jose Guillen, D’Angelo Jimenez, Emilio Bonifacio, Anderson Hernandez, Ian Desmond, Cesar Izturis