Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes saw his no-hit bid against the Colorado Rockies broken up in the seventh inning on Tuesday night by Mickey Moniak’s clean single. The reigning National League Cy Young Award winner struck out 10 and walked none while facing the minimum 19 batters before Moniak stepped to the plate with one out in the seventh. Moniak hit a sinking line drive to left-center that bounced in front of centerfielder Oneil Cruz. Skenes retired the next two batters to preserve a 2-0 lead. The 23-year-old Skenes’ only miscue before Moniak singled came when he hit Troy Johnston on the left foot with a 2-1 pitch in the fifth. Johnston was caught trying to steal second, ending the inning. Skenes threw 62 of 89 pitches for strikes through seven innings. He struck out his first six batters before Willi Castro led off the third by laying down a bunt. The bunt went right back toward Skenes, who easily scooped it up and threw to first as the crowd at PNC Park booed. Only three Rockies have managed to get the ball to the outfield before Moniak’s hit, none of which came particularly close to falling safely. The Pirates haven’t thrown a no-hitter since Francisco Córdova and Ricardo Rincón combined in a 10-inning victory over Houston on July 12, 1997. Reporting by The Associated Press.
Read the full article here
