On September 21st, 1971, Baltimore Orioles Dave McNally won his 20th game for the fourth consecutive season when he blanked New York at Yankee Stadium, 5-0. The lefty became the first of the four 20-game winners on the club, which would include Jim Palmer, Mike Cuellar, and Pat Dobson.

Dave McNally is one of just 27 big league players born in the State of Montana. For reference, Minnesota has 188 and California 2,496.

Here is a list of states with the least number of people to ever play at least one game in the Majors:

• Alaska – 12
• Idaho – 33
• Montana – 27
• New Mexico – 34
• North Dakota – 20
• South Dakota – 39
• Wyoming – 17

Dave McNally was born in Billings, Montana. He played in the Major Leagues for 14 seasons and got pitching victories in 3 different World Series. In 1970, he led the League in Wins and in Games Started.

When I collected autographs, I tried to get an autograph from every player that had been born in Montana. I would have to go back and look now to see how well I did. I don’t remember if I ever got McNally’s. But I did meet him once in Billings. I shook his hand and told him I was from Townsend and that I had one of his baseball cards. What do you say to a Major Leaguer when you are a 12- or 13-year-old kid who is crappy at baseball?

McNally died in 2002 in Billings at the age of 60. Much too young. But for a handful of years in the late 60s and early 70s he was as good as anyone in the game.