The Detroit Tigers were one out away from history. Then Gunnar Henderson stepped up.
The Baltimore Orioles star saved his team from a no-hitter on Friday with a triple on the first pitch of the ninth inning. He came within 90 feet of tying the game, but Tigers reliever Tyler Holton struck out Anthony Santander to end the game with a 1-0 victory.
By Sarah Langs of MLB.comIt was only the second time MLB has seen a no-hitter broken up on the final out by a triple.
The no-hitter would have been the 10th in Tigers franchise history and the second combined. The Tigers aren’t the only ones who fell short, as Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Bowden Francis has taken a no-hitter into the ninth inning twice in the past two months, only to lose both times on a leadoff home run.
Beau Brieske got the job done as the starter, getting the first four Orioles batters out before AJ Hinch called up rookie Brant Hurter to do some volume work. Hurter proceeded to pitch five perfect innings before failing in the eighth on a walk to Adley Rutschman to lead off the inning.
That was all it took for Hunch to pull Hurter, who had 71 pitches, to replace Brenan Hanifee, who finished the innings unscathed. Hurter’s final line was 5 2/3 innings pitched, with no hits, one walk and a career-high eight strikeouts.
Not bad for a former seventh-round pick making his eighth major league appearance.
The ninth inning belonged to Holton, who struck out Emmanuel Rivera and pinch-hitter Coby Mayo before Henderson walked to the plate. The Detroit crowd was ready to see history, and instead got another MVP-worthy feat from the shortstop.
