The Hickory Crawdads did something on Saturday night that doesn't happen very often. They had four of their pitchers combine for a no-hitter against the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers at LP Frans Stadium. It was only the seventh no-hitter in Crawdads history.
This is part of the reason why I love baseball. We see history and rare feats being made all the time, and a combined no-hitter like this underscores just how special the game can be and how unpredictable it is.
Right-hander AJ Russell got the start for the Crawdads and was fantastic. He pitched 3.1 innings, striking out 5 batters and getting 12 whiffs on just 47 pitches, 30 of them for strikes.
Geury Rodriguez was the first out of the bullpen, navigating through traffic to keep the hit column clean by throwing 1.1 innings with 4 walks and 1 strikeout on 34 pitches, including 18 strikes.
J.D. McReynolds maintained the momentum in his 1.1 innings of work, striking out 3 batters and collecting 7 swings and misses to earn his second hold of the season. McReynolds was highly efficient, throwing 11 of his 13 pitches for strikes.
Jormy Nivar then took the ball and locked down the final 3.0 frames to finish the game and earn the victory. Nivar threw 42 pitches, landing 28 for strikes, while allowing just 1 walk and striking out 2 with 7 swings and misses of his own to secure the milestone for the staff.
While the pitching staff kept Kannapolis off the board, the Hickory lineup provided plenty of support, scoring 5 runs on 12 hits and 2 walks.
Infielder Angel Arredondo got the Crawdads on the board in the second inning. Arredondo launched a solo shot on a full count for his 6th home run of the season. He finished the night 1-for-4.
Hickory expanded its lead in the bottom of the fifth inning. Outfielder Hector Osorio, who was just named the Carolina League Player of the Month for May, singled to bring home a run and push the lead to 2-0. Osorio finished the evening 1-for-3 with an RBI, a walk, and a stolen base.
Immediately following Osorio's single, the Crawdads manufactured another run on the basepaths. With Osorio breaking to steal second base, Daniel Flames stole home as part of a double steal to make it a 3-0 game.
Flames and Marcos Torres led the multi-hit performances for the lineup, as both players put together 3-hit games and scored 2 runs apiece. Flames drove in a run and picked up a stolen base on his swipe of home, while Torres added a stolen base of his own to bring his season total to 21. Yolfran Castillo rounded out the multi-hit efforts for Hickory, going 2-for-5 on the night.
With the victory, Hickory continues to control its own destiny in a tight first-half division race. The win keeps the Crawdads atop the Carolina League’s South Division standings.
The Crawdads and Cannon Ballers wrap up their series at LP Frans Stadium this afternoon, with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m.
The Combined No-Hitter Line Score:
AJ Russell: 3.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 SO (47 pitches/30 strikes, 12 swings and misses)
Geury Rodriguez: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 1 SO (34 pitches/18 strikes, 4 swing and misses)
J.D. McReynolds (Hold, 2): 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO (13 pitches/11 strikes, 7 swings and misses)
Jormy Nivar (Win, 3-0): 3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO (42 pitches/28 strikes, 7 swings and misses)
