We Interrupt Our Yankees Coverage To Bring You This Special Bulletin

Craig Biggio's career ends this week. Presumably, so does the best sports blog ever, maybe even the best one possible: Plunk Biggio.

Dedicated to Craig Biggio and his (probably unintentional) Quest to break the all time major league career record for getting hit by pitches.

The record would be nice, but author pbr's hopes are starting to look as bruised as Biggio's bicep. The assailable Astro has been stalled at 285, two behind Hughie Jennings' record, since July 7th.

That the possibility excites pbr at all is funny.* Funnier still is his super-obsessive study of Biggio's career as a target. This is how he gets:

Biggio has been hit by a pitch by someone born in nearly every calendar year between 1953 and 1984 - missing only 1954, 1959, and 1961. The oldest pitchers currently in the league are Roger Clemens and Jamie Moyer, and they were both born in '62. There hasn't been a pitcher in the league born before '62 since John Franco retired after the '05 season. Yovani Gallardo missed his chance last night to become the only pitcher born in 1986 ever to plunk Biggio, but Biggio could still get hit by Jose Ascanio of the Braves, who was born in 1985.

Craig Biggio has also been hit by pitchers wearing 53 different uniform numbers, but there are 5 pitchers on the rosters of the teams left on the Astros schedule who wear numbers not on that list. Biggio has already been plunked by pitchers wearing numbers 14 to 19, 21 to 23, 25 to 62, 66, 67, 69, 71, 75 and 99. Carlos Villenueva wears #12 for the Brewers but he won't pitch against the Astros (barring a really long game in which he'd be forced into a relief appears). The Brewers also have Seth McClung though, wearing #73. The Cardinals have a #63 in Andy Cavazos, and the Reds have #81 Eddie Guardado and #64 Tom Shearn.

Also, Biggio has only been plunked by pitchers born in 37 of the 50 US States...

And on he goes, as he has done in post after post since April, 2005.
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*Although he denies it in this standing footer:

Moral disclaimer: The author of this blog does not support or endorse intentionally throwing at Craig Biggio.