Arizona Diamondbacks left-hander Patrick Corbin entered Tuesday's start against the San Francisco Giants on a roll. In his first three appearances, he'd held opponents to 13 hits and five runs across 18 innings -- he'd done so while notching 25 more strikeouts than walks.
Nonetheless, Corbin almost found a way to outdo himself on Tuesday. He carried a no-hit bid deep into his outing, coming within four outs of securing the third in Diamondbacks history. Alas, despite all of Corbin's hard work, he lost the no-hitter when Brandon Belt hit a ball weakly against the shift on a check swing:
Corbin went on to complete the game without allowing another baserunner, giving him nine one-hit frames. He struck out eight and walked just once, all the while tossing 100 pitches.
Corbin's breaking balls were particularly effective: he threw 52 of them, generating 14 whiffs and an additional eight called strikes. Comparatively, Corbin notched four whiffs and 13 called strikes on 48 fastballs.
Patrick Corbin becomes the first pitcher to throw a one-hit shutout vs. the Giants on 100 pitches or fewer since ... Woody! Kirk Rueter did it for Expos on Aug. 27, 1995
— Andrew Baggarly (@extrabaggs) April 18, 2018
Though the Diamondbacks have existed only since 1998, Corbin's no-hitter would have been the franchise's third no-no. The first, a perfect game, was spun by Randy Johnson in May 2004. The second belonged to Edwin Jackson, who infamously walked eight batters on 149 pitches.
