ATLANTA – When Tim Hudson walked off the
field following his first career victory, a seven-inning, one-earned run
performance against the Dodgers as a rookie in Oakland, the seeds of the
description “Vintage Hudson” were firmly sowed. Then-Dodgers manager Davey
Johnson watched from the visitor’s dugout that June 1999 afternoon.
Five days later, he posted a near-identical
stat line against the Tigers: seven innings, one earned run, five strikeouts.
Little did baseball know it, but a trend was forming. It still holds true even
at 37.
With now-Nationals manager Davey Johnson
looking on once more from the visitor’s dugout, Hudson captured his 200th
career win in Turner Field Tuesday night in fitting form, allowing just one
earned run in seven innings. It was the 122nd time in his career he’d
posted those kind of numbers, but this one – marked by milestones and memories –
felt different than all the rest, for good reason. He became just the 133th
pitcher all-time to reach the double-century mark for victories, joining Phil
Niekro, Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz as the only ones to reach it
an Atlanta uniform.
“It’s a great accomplishment for
anybody, but honestly I feel like it’s something that’s along the way,” Hudson
said of reaching the 200-win plateau. “I hope I can accomplish more in this
game. I feel like I can play for a while. I feel like I haven’t really missed a
beat from seven, eight, ten years ago. A little more crafty these days …
definitely more pop.”
The “pop” the veteran righty was
referring to was his opposite field home run he hit off Nationals’ reliever Zach
Duke, one that ricocheted off the glove of outfielder Bryce Harper and over the
wall. If there was a better way to write the script, Hudson is still searching
for the words. With the surprising shot, the third home run of his career, he
added Hall of Famer Bob Lemon to his list of equals on this particular night in
Turner Field. Only Hudson and Lemon homered in the same game they hit the
200-win mark.
Lemon pulled off the feat back in 1956
with the Cleveland Indians.
Hudson did it with a kid-in-a-candy-shop
smile on his face.
“Way back in the day I used to shoot ‘em
out that way all the time,” Hudson (3-1) said with a laugh. “But, you know, we’re
pitchers. We’re not supposed to hit home runs anywhere. He hit my barrel. I
think I might have backspun it a little bit. It’s just one of those nights
where everything lined up, the stars were aligned and I guess it was meant to
be.”
For their part, his teammates were not
about to let this try – his third attempt to reach the milestone, the first at
home – slip away from their go-to vet. The Braves jumped out to a 4-0 lead in
the first two innings. By the time Hudson sent his ball barely skirting over
the fence, it was 5-1, soon to be 8-1, and the ballgame was all but over.
Still, with a double and a homer to his name, Hudson jokingly made sure manager
Fredi Gonzalez did not take him out until his chance at the cycle was out of
reach. What’s one more milestone, after all?
“I don’t think I’ve ever experienced – I
know Chipper had some milestones and stuff like that last year – but this is
for me one of the most fun ones I could sit back and enjoy,” said Gonzalez, his
team owning the best record in the National League. ”He was on his game today. …
I’m glad that he did it here at home.”
The anti-classic line is that no win is
more important than the last, or the next one. The victory in 1999 did just as
much for Hudson’s career as the 20 in his sophomore campaign or the 8-1 decisive
win against the Nationals, the preemptive World Series favorites entering the
season, in April 2013.
But that simply was not the case for
Hudson on Tuesday, his wide and extended family waiting outside the Braves clubhouse
for joyous support and commemoration. This one meant more. He knew it. The fans
knew it. His teammates, whose Hudson-targeted attack of shaving cream left
evidence all over the clubhouse floor following a post-game celebration, obviously
knew it.
Tim Hudson has joined a list of greats,
Niekro and Maddux and 110 other names that adorn baseball’s pitching record
books. He called it all “kinda surreal.” It still looked kinda like “Vintage
Hudson” to the rest of us.
And if he has his way, he’ll keep
climbing those lists and charts, seven innings and one earned run at a time.
