The 24-year-old was two outs away from the no-hitter
Patrick Sandoval pitched the game of his life, as he took a no-hitter into the ninth inning. He was two outs away, but unfortunately he couldn’t pull it off. The Angels will still take it, as they picked up the 2-1 win over the Twins.
Sandoval finished the game with 13 strikeouts, a career-high. His 8 1⁄3 innings pitched were also a career-high for the 24-year-old.
He was in cruise control from the beginning. After one inning he had 11 pitches and after three innings he had only 36. Through the first three innings he only had three strikeouts, it wasn’t until later when he practically became untouchable for the Twins.
Sandoval struck out three in the fifth inning and then struck out two in sixth inning, giving him nine strikeouts on the night with only 79 pitches. An 11-pitch inning in the seventh and then an 11-pitch inning in the eighth gave him 100 pitches through eight no-hit innings.
He began the ninth by striking out Jorge Polanco, putting him just two outs away from the no-no. On the first pitch to Brent Rooker, he doubled to right field for the first hit of the night. Sandoval then recorded a groundout, putting him one out away from the shutout victory.
With his pitch count at 108, Angels manager Joe Maddon opted to go with Raisel Iglesias to get the one-out save. He allowed a double to Josh Donaldson, putting the tying run at second base and bringing the game-winning run to the plate. On a 3-2 pitch, Iglesias got Miguel Sano to strike out swinging.
For the game, Sandoval got 21 swing-and-misses. 13 of those came on his changeup, which was working for him all night.
The Angels’ lone offense came in the first inning, but it was all they needed. Shohei Ohtani hit a double, ending his recent rough stretch at the plate. Ohtani came in to score courtesy of a fielders choice from Justin Upton, putting the Angels up 1-0. Jose Iglesias then doubled in the second run of the game to give LA a 2-0 lead. Over the final eight innings of the game, the Angels recorded only two hits.
Sandoval continues to impress this season for the Angels. His ERA on the year is 3.52, and he’s allowed three runs or less in 10 starts. Certainly a bright spot for the Angels’ starting rotation moving forward.
Saturday particulars
WP: Patrick Sandoval (3-4) 8 1⁄3 IP, 1 ER, 13 SO
LP: Jose Berrios (7-5) 7 IP, 2 R, 0 ER, 4 SO
SV: Raisel Iglesias (21) 1⁄3 IP, 1 H
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