Charging the mound Charging the mound In baseball, charging the mound is an assault by a batter against the pitcher, usually the result of being hit by a pitch or nearly being hit by a pitch, such as a brushback. The first incidence of a professional charging of the mound has not been identified, but the practice dates back to the game's early days. Charging the mound is the most common initiator of a bench-clearing brawl. Before charging, the batter usually throws his bat and helmet aside so that he may face the pitcher unarmed (it is a very serious breach of baseball
History of the Philadelphia Phillies their first season there, pitcher Rick Wise hurled a no-hitter. On September 18, 1971, Wise pitched another near-perfect game, in which he gave up a home run to the Chicago Cubs' leadoff batter in the second inning, but then did not allow another baserunner until the 12th inning, with two outs. He had been perfect for retiring 32 consecutive batters—the record for most consecutive outs in a game by a winning pitcher. That same season, Harry Kalas joined the Phillies broadcasting team. In 1972, the Phillies were the worst team in baseball, but newly acquired Steve Carlton won nearly half