Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Michael Lorenzen makes history as he throws 14th no-hitter in franchise history against the Washington Nationals
- Lorenzen ended the Nationals’ no-hitter-less streak of over 3,800 days
- He became the first pitcher to throw a no-hitter on his home debut since 1960
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Michael Lorenzen threw the 14th no-hitter in Philadelphia Phillies history, a staggering performance in only his second start with his new team, which defeated the Washington Nationals 7-0 on Wednesday night.
The 31-year old Lorenzen (7-7) struckout five batters, walked four and improved to 2-0 since being acquired from Detroit at the trade deadline for a minor leaguer.
As a result, Lorenzen became the first pitcher to throw a no-no in his home debut for a team since Don Cardwell did so for the Chicago Cubs in 1960.
Lorenzen grounded out Lane Thomas to lead off the ninth inning and strikeout Joey Menese.
The crowd of 30,406 erupted as Lorenzen struck out Dominic Smith on a flyball on his 124th pitch to end the game. Lorenzen flipped his cap back and was harassed by his teammates during a rowdy party at the plate.
Michael Lorenzen has thrown the 14th no-hitter in Philadelphia Phillies history
Lorenzen struckout five batters and walked only four batters in the entire game
He became the first player to throw a no-hitter on his home debut since Don Cardwell in 1960
Lorenzen’s mother Cheryl and wife Cassi cried in the stands during the final out as Cassi held their baby daughter June.
The Phillies acquired the right-hander to stabilize their rotation as the defending National League champions battled the San Francisco Giants for the top wild card spot.
Lorenzen pushed his pitch count to the point that it was doubtful that Phillies manager Rob Thomson would let him finish the game. But he kept the ball and became the first Phillies pitcher to throw a no-hitter since Cole Hamels on July 25, 2015 against the Cubs. Hamels retired last week.
“Maybe I should have worn a body armor,” Thomson said when asked if he had knocked out Lorenzen.
Washington had no hit for the first time in 19 seasons since the franchise’s move from Montreal.
That franchise also had the longest streak preventing a no-hitter at 3,810 games. The new longest no-no-hitter streak rests with the Los Angeles Angels with 3,760 games.
This no-hitter broke the Nationals streak of having avoided more than 3,800 days of no-hitters
Lorenzen just transferred to the Phillies on a trade deadline from the Tigers
He was selected as an All-Star in Detroit this season – with a 3.23 ERA and 93 K’s this season
Lorenzen, an All-Star this season for the Tigers, last week threw a two-run ball in his Phillies debut in eight innings.
Lorenzen spent much of his career as a reliever for the Reds, but in the past few seasons, he was exclusively a starter for the Tigers and Los Angeles Angels.
The no-hitter was the fourth in the majors this season. Houston’s Framber Valdez threw one against Cleveland on August 1.
New York Yankees right-hander Domingo Germán threw a perfect game on June 28 in Oakland, and Detroit’s Matt Manning, Alex Lange and Jason Foley threw a combined no-no against Toronto on July 8.