June 11, 1974: Stottlemyre's Last Start
- Paul Semendinger
- Jun 11
- 1 min read
By Paul Semendinger
June 11, 2026
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On June 11, 1974, Mel Stottlemyre made the last start of his Major League career.
Stottlemyre holds the American League record for the most consecutive games started without a single relief appearance - a streak of 272 starts.
The Yankees lost the game 5-4 to the Angels. Stottlemyre lasted only three innings. He allowed four runs on six hits. He struck out only one batter (Ellie Rodriguez).
Mel Stottlemyre would appear in just one other game, on August 4, 1974, in his career. This was his first and only relief appearance. Stottlemyre pitched the final two innings of that game, a 7-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox. He struck out two batters in that game - Rico Petrocelli and Bernie Carbo, with Carbo being the last strikeout of Stottlemyre's career.
The last victory of Mel Stottlemyre's career came on June 2, 1974. In that game, Stottlemyre pitched a complete game topping the Minnesota Twins 11-1. Stottlemyre did not strikeout any batters in that complete game effort.
In his career, Mel Stottlemyre pitched to a 164-139, 2.97 record. He earned 40.7 WAR. Stottlemyre was a 20-game winner in 1965, 1968, and 1969.
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