With the 76th MLB All-Star Game taking place tomorrow at Angel Stadium, The Truth Sports takes a trip in the sports time capsule to another California All-Star game.
The first and only MLB All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium took place thirty years ago.
The star of that years All-Star Game was Houston Astros pitcher J.R. Richard. At All-Star break Richard had a 10-4 record (including two starts with 12 and 13 strikeouts) a total of 115 strikeouts and a 1.89 era. Five of the ten victories were complete games. He passed Larry Dierker’s team record of 1487 career strikeouts and was named the National League Pitcher of the Month for April.
Richard started for the National League, going two innings with a hit, two walks, and three strikeouts, before he left the game due to pain.
The pain Richard felt in his arm was ignored by the media and the Astros, and eventually led to a stroke and the end of Richard’s career. A blood clot that had made his arm feel tired had moved to his neck and cut off blood flow to the brain. He recovered but would never pitch a big league game.
Here are how Richard’s numbers rank with other Astros pitchers:
The Astros due to personal reasons have yet to honor J.R. Richard’s play by retiring his number. Many Astros legends from Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Nolan Ryan, and Jose Cruz have their number retired. Richard deserves true recognition and until he gets the Houston Astros will stay a cursed franchise, or as I like to call them: DisAstros
Sign the petition to get the Astros to retire J.R. Richard’s #50.
