Kerry Wood burst onto the scene as a 20-year old phenom in 1998. Injuries prevented him from sustaining his success as a starter, but he he had flashes of brilliance, including a performance so close to flawless it will be talked about for generations to come.
Fans of Wood can unlock a Diamond Dynasty card of him in MLB® The Show™ 20 by completing the missions and moments in the Kerry Wood Player Program.
The moments featured in the game are from his 2008 All-Star campaign with the Cubs, but how well do you remember his other seasons in the big leagues?
Test your knowledge with the following trivia questions.
Who had the only hit off Wood in his 20-strikeout performance against the Astros?
Kerry Wood’s historic 20-strikeout start on May 6, 1998 resulted in the highest game score of any nine-inning game in history (105). On that Wednesday afternoon at Wrigley Field, Wood’s pitches moved so violently he might as well have been throwing a wiffle ball.
An Astros lineup that included future Hall of Famers Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell as well as big-time boppers like Derek Bell and Moises Alou only managed two baserunners. Biggio was hit by a pitch in the sixth inning, and one Astro was credited with a single in the third.
So, who was the sole Houston batter to collect a base hit off of Wood?
Surprisingly, it was light-hitting shortstop Ricky Gutierrez, and in retrospect, the play probably should have been ruled an error. Gutierrez hit a grounder that bounced off the glove of Cubs third baseman Kevin Orie and went into left field.
For what it’s worth, Wood recently weighed in on the scoring decision during a Cubs TV broadcast and felt that the ball was a “hit all the way, as soon as I saw it. Never crossed my mind that that was an error or they were going to give him an error. Never glanced at the scoreboard. It was a hit all the way.”
Before Wood, who was the only pitcher with 20 strikeouts in a nine-inning game?
As a right-handed fireballer from Texas, Wood drew early comparisons to the game’s all-time strikeout leader, Nolan Ryan.
He was also similar to another hard-thrower from the Lone Star State, a pitcher whose record he tied when he struck out 20 Astros in May of 1998. Before Wood accomplished the feat, the only pitcher in history with 20 strikeouts in a nine-inning game was Roger Clemens, who did so in both 1986 and 1996.
Wood and his Clemens would cross paths in 2003 when they faced off at Wrigley Field in early June. The 25-year-old Wood bested the 40-year-old Clemens on that day, denying his boyhood idol a chance to earn his 300th win. The matchup was so highly anticipated that the Wrigley marquee read “Wood vs. Clemens” rather than “Cubs vs. Yankees.”
Twenty strikeouts remains the major league record for a nine-inning start, and it’s only been matched twice since Wood did it two decades ago: Randy Johnson racked up 20 strikeouts against the Reds in 2001 and Max Scherzer did so against the Tigers in 2016.
In which game did Wood hit his only postseason home run?
Wood’s career batting average of .171 is about what you’d expect from a pitcher, but he did manage to club seven regular season home runs for the Cubs (all of which came at Wrigley Field).
The hurler also went deep at Wrigley in the decisive Game 7 of the 2003 NLCS against the Marlins. A day after the infamous Steve Bartman incident helped the Marlins come back and tie up the series, Wood was tasked with sending Chicago to its first World Series appearance since 1945.
He got off to a shaky start, putting his team in an early hole by surrendering a three-run shot to Miguel Cabrera in the first inning. An inning later, Wood redeemed himself with a homer of his own, a two-run shot off lefty Mark Redman to tie the game.
Wood became the first Cubs pitcher with a postseason home run since Rick Sutcliffe in Game 1 of the 1984 NLCS. Alas, he would be touched for four more runs on the mound, taking the loss as the Cubs were eliminated from the playoffs.
Wood led the majors with 266 strikeouts in 2003. Who finished second?
Kerry Wood earned his first All-Star selection in 2003, a year that saw him pace the majors with 266 strikeouts. That total was a career high for the right-hander, who also eclipsed the 200-inning mark for the second straight season.
The top four strikeout pitchers that year were all from the National League, and the man who finished directly behind Wood was a familiar face.
As Cubs fans likely remember, the pitcher with the second-most strikeouts in 2003 was Wood’s teammate Mark Prior, who had 245. The duo’s reign as the top tandem in the game was short-lived, as both would struggle with injuries for the remainder of their careers.
Cubs fans will always wonder what might have been had these hurlers stayed healthy; their brief status as the most fearsome one-two punch in baseball was immortalized in the form of a Sports Illustrated cover from July of 2003.
The cover showed Wood and Prior, eyes fixed directly on the camera, holding a flaming baseball with the headline “Chicago Heat: Kerry Wood and Mark Prior Fire Up the Cubs.”
Which team did Wood make his final appearance against?
After brief stints with the Indians and Yankees in the latter part of his career, Kerry Wood returned to the team that had drafted him all the way back in 1995. He signed a one-year deal with the Cubs prior to the 2011 season and inked another one-year contract prior to 2012.
After a shoulder injury kept him out for the first month of 2012, Wood made the decision to retire from baseball. He made his final appearance on May 18, 2012 against the crosstown rival White Sox at Wrigley Field. Wood’s career began just as it had started: with a strikeout.
An appreciative Cubs crowd gave Wood a standing ovation as he fanned the only batter he faced, Dayan Viciedo. The three-pitch punchout was a reminder of Wood’s former glory, and an appropriate finale for a pitcher once known for his overpowering stuff.
The appearance was also heartwarming because it ended with Wood’s son Justin embracing his father before he exited the field.
Searle’s Final Say
Kerry Wood’s big league tenure was cut short by injuries, but I’m glad that fans can relive some of his best late-career moments. After all, his 20-strikeout start was far from his only brilliant performance as a Cub. The added bonus of recreating these moments is that unlocking Wood’s Diamond Dynasty card in MLB® The Show™ 20 can significantly improve your pitching staff.
