Pete Richert

In his Major League debut on April 12, 1962 against the Cincinnati Reds at Dodger Stadium, Richert set a record by striking out the first six batters he faced. He entered the game with two outs in the top of the second inning with his Dodgers trailing 4–0, and struck out Vada Pinson for the final out. Richert then recorded a four-strikeout third inning in which his victims were Frank Robinson (his future Oriole teammate), Gordy Coleman (who reached first base on a passed ball by Johnny Roseboro), Wally Post and Johnny Edwards; his record-tying sixth strikeout was of Tommy Harper leading off the fourth. As of 2015[update], Richert is the only pitcher to record a four-strikeout inning in his Major League debut. He also set a Major League record by retiring 12 consecutive batters, the most by a pitcher making his MLB debut as a reliever; Max Scherzer would break this record in 2008 by retir…