Derek Holland Joins MLB Record Book With Disaster Start To Game

Derek Holland is now in the record book -- as best we can tell -- for something that he most likely doesn't want to be known for.

Holland gave up five runs, on four homers, on his first 11 pitches in the Pittsburgh Pirates game this afternoon versus Detroit.

According to our research of the Baseball Almanac, it is the least amount of pitches to have given up five runs in the history of the game.

It is also just the second time that any team has given up four home runs during in the first inning in the history of baseball. Jose Lima accomplished the "feat" back in 2000.

There has been multiple instances of teams allowing four homers in a single inning, the last was in 2019 when the Washington Nationals hit four home runs in the eighth inning against the San Diego Padres.

Holland is joined by Craig Stammen, who was victimized in the aforementioned game versus the Nationals; Michael Blazek of Milwaukee was also tagged by the Nationals for four in an inning in 2017; Dave Bush was pitching for the Brewers when he was lit up for four dingers in the fourth by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2010; Chase Wright watched the Red Sox round the bases in the sixth inning of the 2008 season as part of the Yankees, and Paul Foytack snapped his neck back four times for the Los Angeles Dodgers against Cleveland way back in 1963.

Holland stayed out and took one for the team working into the third during the time of this publishing.

The Pirates were down 6-0 and appear to be on its way to a 3-12 record, meaning that the team will need to play 23-22 baseball to close the year if it is to burst our "Best Bet" from the preseason, where that under was highlighted.