two more against Padres on HOF weekend

Jake Peavy missed Craig Biggio with all 6 pitches he threw him last night, but it only took him that many to get Biggio out 3 times. Biggio singled on a Cla Meredith pitch after Peavy left the game, but nobody hit Craig Biggio with a pitch, and the Astros lost 9-4.

This afternoon, Craig Biggio is expected to play, and he'll be facing Greg Maddux, which seems perfectly appropriate for a Saturday afternoon on the weekend when the Baseball Hall of Fame is celebrating induction weekend. Biggio has faced Maddux more times than any other pitcher - a total of 137 plate appearances so far, and if he could manage 2 hits of Maddux, he'd break the all time record for most hits off Greg Maddux. The current holder of that record will be giving his induction speech tomorrow - Tony Gwynn. As coveted as that record surely is, if Biggio could get hit by a pitch 3 times against Maddux, he'd break both the all time record for getting hit by pitches, AND the all time record for getting plunked by Greg Maddux (currently 4, by Andres Galarraga). Okay, that's not too likely - Biggio hasn't been plunked by Maddux in his last 81 plate appearances against the future Hall of Famer. Maddux last plunked Biggio on June 12, 1994 and on July 31, 1993. (Biggio does not even have the Astros record for being plunked by Greg Maddux - he hit Jeff Bagwell 3 times.) Maddux has a career total of 129 hit batters, including 4 this season even though he didn't hit anyone last year.

Biggio has been hit once before by the Padres on July 28 - in 1990 by Calvin Schiraldi. He was also plunked on July 18, 2001 by Jimmy Anderson.

On Sunday, Craig Biggio is expected to be out of the starting lineup, but he may see pinch-hitting duty. Chris Young is expected to start for the Padres, and he's hit 4 batters this season and 19 in his career. Biggio has never been hit by a pitch on July 29th.