Tourtellotte: Zero, interrupted: pulling starters from no-hitters
From SABR member Shane Tourtellotte at The Hardball Times on June 14, 2018:
It was on the third day of baseball this season, still not out of the month of March, that Minnesota Twins manager Paul Molitor set a tone. His starting pitcher, Kyle Gibson, had thrown six no-hit innings against Baltimore, but had walked five and was sitting at 102 pitches. Molitor took him out. Gibson’s relievers could not hold the no-hitter or the shutout, but Gibson and Minnesota did get the 6-2 win.
The next day, Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle reinforced the pattern. His starter in the first game of a Detroit doubleheader, Trevor Williams, had pitched six no-hit innings, but likewise had walked five. Despite a pitch count of just 85, Hurdle wielded the hook. Again, the no-hitter didn’t last in the bullpen’s hands, but the 1-0 shutout did.
Over the following five weeks, it would happen three more times. Jarlin Garcia of Miami, Walker Buehler of the Dodgers and Domingo German of the Yankees all pitched six no-hit innings, then watched as relievers opened the seventh. A few weeks later, still in the month of May, Nathan Eovaldi joined the season’s six-and-out ranks.
Read the full article here: https://www.fangraphs.com/tht/zero-interrupted-pulling-starters-from-no-hitters/
Originally published: June 15, 2018. Last Updated: June 15, 2018.