Lancaster Throws No Hitter

If I had to pick a pitching staff to throw a no hitter and an opponent to allow it, Lancaster and Lake Elsinore would not be my respective choices. Not to be unfair to the JetHawks, what happened tonight was just very unlikely. That's the beauty of baseball though. Lancaster looked like one of the worst professional teams in the first half of the season, but now in the second half they're in the thick of the playoff race. There are a lot of oddities in this no hitter, so I'll start at the beginning.

When I wrote the preview for 8/25, I didn't even know who was starting the game for Lancaster. Edwin Walker was the listed started, but as I said, he just pitched an inning of relief recently and probably wouldn't be able to start. Of course Robert Donovan ended up getting the start, which surprised me because milb.com lists him as going on the 7 Day DL on 8/21.

Lancaster's pitching staff has had another rough year, of course partly due to Clear Channel Stadium. Coming into tonight, they were last in the league in ERA and hits allowed, so it's safe to say the JetHawks' staff has had trouble retiring batters this year. In fact, just last night when these same teams met, Lake Elsinore pounded out 10 runs on 14 hits, including seven extra base hits in the first two innings. Lake Elsinore has the best record in the league, and they're second in the league in runs scored. This is a bit misleading because injuries and promotions have depleted the Storm lineup, but the point is they can score some runs, although they are last in the league in hits and 9th in batting average.

Coincidentally, the closest anyone else in the Cal League got to a no hitter was Juan Oramas in a game between these teams. Oramas carried a perfect game into the 9th before a Brandon Barnes single broke it up. That wasn't too unreasonable. Oramas was a Cal League newcomer having a tremendous year a level lower in the Midwest League. The unfamiliarity combined with good stuff and a team in disarray is a good mix for a perfect game to happen, but it wasn't meant to be. Tonight, Lancaster returned the favor.

Back to Donovan. Prior to tonight's start, he had made five starts and posted a staggering .368 BAA. That's an ugly number, but there's one start in there that stands out. On 8/8, at Lake Elsinore of course, Donovan pitched six scoreless innings and only allowed three hits, by far his best outing. He walked five, but he clearly limited the Storm and proved he could succeed in this league. Donovan was Houston's 23rd round pick in the 2009 draft after competing at Stetson University, not exactly a baseball powerhouse. Stetson has produced a handful of Major League players, perhaps most notably Lenny DiNardo and Astros rookie Chris Johnson. Donovan arguably struggled in college too, allowing 10.3 hits per nine innings in his 2009 season before being drafted. He doesn't often go long without allowing hits, but tonight Lake Elsinore was hitless through 5.2 IP. He was actually perfect through the first 17 outs but then walked two batters before being taken out.

This was a combined no hitter, so some people may feel it's not really a big deal. However, limiting an opponent to no hits is still a rare and impressive feat. It's not easy for a bullpen to come in pressure situations like that and just preserve the lead, much less not allow any hits. However, four Lancaster relievers, Edwin Walker, David Berner, David Carpenter and Jose Trinidad, were able to pitch 4.1 IP to complete history: Lancaster's first no hitter in team history and first in the Cal League this year.

Wait, 4.1 IP? Yes, this game lasted 10 innings! Despite not giving up any hits, Lancaster allowed a run in the 8th inning. After Edwin Walker pitched 1.1 IP in relief of Robert Donovan, the typically reliable closer David Berner came into the game to start the 8th. After a leadoff walk to Jesus Lopez, catcher Robert Lara bunted the ball back to Berner. Berner threw it away, allowing Lara to reach. With two runners on and still no outs, Lake Elsinore had Brad Chalk attempt a sacrifice bunt, again to Berner, and again the ball was thrown away. This time, Berner's throw went to 3rd, beyond 3rd and into the stands. Pinch runner Bo Davis had scored the tying run.

This was the end of Berner's evening, but not the inning. Newcomer David Carpenter was summoned with two runners in scoring position and no outs. Lancaster elected to intentionally walk Dan Robertson to load the bases. Carpenter got All-Star Cole Figueroa to strike out swinging, but he wasn't out of the woods yet. Rehabbing Major Leaguer Oscar Salazar was now at the plate, but Carpenter got him to hit a grounder right back to the mound to start a 1-2-3 double play. Inning over, no hitter intact, but the game was now tied.

Thanks to JetHawks broadcaster Jeff Lasky, I can say this is not the first time potential no hitters have been carried into extra innings. In 1994, Bakersfield took one into the 11th. In 1988, the Fresno Suns took one into the 12th. Pitching a no hitter through extra innings can be treacherous. In the majors, 13 no hitters have been lost in extra innings. One memorable instance of this is when Pedro Martinez pitched nine perfect innings before allowing a hit in the 10th. Two times in the majors have no hitters been thrown in losing efforts, one a combined no hitter. Obviously the JetHawks did not want that to happen.

If Lancaster was going to take the lead and actually win the game, they would have to do it against All-Star closer Brad Brach. Everyone knows about Brach by now. Cal League record 40 saves, a .197 BAA, 65 strikeouts in 58.2 IP, simply one of the most dominant relievers in the minors for two years now. Of course, not everyone is the 2008 version of Brad Lidge, and Brach is no exception. He has blown some saves, and he even has one loss this season. That loss? Against Lancaster.

Lancaster went down quietly in their half of the 9th against Brach, and David Carpenter also retired the side in the bottom of the 9th, so the game would go to the 10th, no hitter alive. Allan Dykstra would replace Oscar Salazar at 1st, and Brach was still in the game. He got catcher John Curtis to pop out, but the speedy recent acquisition Jonathan Villar hit a single with one out. Up came David Flores, whose solo home run gave Lancaster a 1-0 lead earlier in the game. Flores did damage again, hitting a double down the left field line that scored Villar. Bryce Lane also doubled in the inning to give the JetHawks a comfortable two run lead.

Jose Trinidad would be called on to get the save and secure the no hitter. Trinidad is pretty new to the Lancaster roster, making only his 9th Cal League appearance. He's also new to closing games. Coming into tonight, Trinidad only had two career saves in the United States, one last year with A Lexington and one the previous year with the Greeneville Astros of the Appalachian League. Jesus Lopez again drew a leadoff walk, but Trinidad got Jhonaldo Pozo to strike out looking. Brad Chalk then grounded a ball to the shortstop Villar. He flipped to second to start the double play, but Chalk hustled down the line and Lancaster couldn't turn two. It was only delaying the inevitable though, as Dan Robertson grounded out to Villar to complete the no hitter.

It was not expected, it was quirky, but it's still a no hitter. Lancaster previously had four one hitters, but tonight, the JetHawks were one better. Congratulations to the Lancaster pitchers, Robert Donovan, Edwin Walker, David Berner, David Carpenter and Edwin Walker first of all. This will go down in JetHawks history. Pitching coach Don Alexander and manager Tom Lawless have dealt with a lot of turnover on the pitching staff this season. It's not just the pitchers, as the JetHawks had to play great defense and get timely hitting to complete the effort.