SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The San Francisco Giants came tantalizingly close to baseball perfection during Sunday’s spring training matchup, nearly completing a perfect game before the Milwaukee Brewers spoiled the historic bid in the final inning.
With just one out needed for perfection, Giants pitcher Gregory Santos issued a walk to Cooper Pratt in the ninth inning. The drama continued as Blake Burke stepped to the plate and, with a two-strike count against him, smashed a run-scoring double to break up both the perfect game and no-hit attempt. Santos recovered to strike out José Anderson and seal the victory.
The near-miss capped off a dominant pitching performance in San Francisco’s 7-1 triumph. Left-handed starter Robbie Ray worked five innings and recorded eight strikeouts, combining with four relief pitchers to fan 11 Milwaukee batters total. Ray has been impressive this spring, posting a 1.23 ERA while striking out 15 batters across five appearances.
No-hitters during spring training games remain uncommon occurrences. Last March, the Baltimore Orioles managed to complete one against Pittsburgh.
The outstanding pitching display came amid concerning news about Giants prospect Hayden Birdsong, whose MRI results showed a Grade 2 strained right forearm and sprained ulnar collateral ligament, according to multiple reports. The young pitcher is currently considering his treatment options, MLB.com reported.
“It’s certainly not best-case scenario, but hopefully we get best-case scenario of the unfortunate circumstances,” manager Tony Vitello commented Sunday morning, according to NBC Sports Bay Area.
