MLB Player Just Set a Record No One Wants

The phrase "the longest ever recorded in baseball history" might sound pretty exciting for an MLB player to accomplish, until you add the words "hitless streak" to it. Chris Davis found that out all too well Monday night, when the Baltimore Orioles first baseman went 0-for-5 while at bat against the Oakland Athletics. That made it his 49th appearance at the plate in which he didn't earn a hit, CBS Baltimore reports, and broke the previous record (46) by a non-pitcher set by Eugenio Velez, an infielder who's played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants, and earning Davis a place in "miserable baseball history," per Deadspin.

Fox News notes it's not the only dubious record Davis, who's in year four of a $161 million, seven-year contract, has attained: He also currently holds the title for worst batting average for a qualified player, with last year's .168. The last time he notched a hit was when he slammed a double on Sept. 14, 2018. Davis has said "no one is more frustrated than me" about his lack of effective contact with the ball, per CBS, but ESPN notes there was a bit of a silver lining during Monday's game: All of his outs had an exit velocity of at least 90mph. "First three at-bats were really good," Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. "I'm taking that as a positive moving forward." (More MLB stories.)