Means Tosses No-Hitter in Doubleheader Sweep
July 31, 2015 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Delmarva Shorebirds News Release
SALISBURY, Md. -- The Delmarva Shorebirds delighted the home crowd with an incredible pitching performance against the Charleston RiverDogs on Friday night. John Means spun a seven-inning no-hitter in the 4-0 opener, and three Shorebirds combined for a 2-0 shutout in the nightcap.
Game one belonged to Shorebirds' starter John Means. The left-hander gave up three baserunners all night, a hit by pitch, a walk and a throwing error. Jomar Reyes made a clutch sliding grab at third base for a line drive double play to end the fifth. In the seventh, Means got a popout and flyout before ending the no-hitter with a strikeout of Austin Aune.
Means' performance was the Shorebirds' first official no-hitter since Matt Achilles defeated the Hagerstown Suns on April 27, 1998. Means struck out six batters in a career-high seven innings, becoming the first Shorebird to eight wins this year.
The offense gave Means more than enough support with two runs in the second, sparked by four consecutive singles. In the third, Cam Kneeland drilled a two-out RBI triple, his team-high fifth triple of the season. T.J. Olesczuk rolled an RBI single through the right side of the infield for a 4-0 lead in the sixth.
The pitching staff continued its domination in the nightcap. Making his Shorebirds' debut, Tanner Scott pitched three scoreless innings in the start. Ivan Hernandez went 2.2 scoreless frames, before Garrett Cortright came on for a four-out save. In total, Shorebirds' pitchers allowed three hits in 14 innings pitched on Friday night in back-to-back shutouts.
The middle of the order did enough damage in game two for a 2-0 win. Cam Kneeland led off the fourth with a double, scoring on a single by Yermin Mercedes. Jomar Reyes mashed a double over Aune's head in center field, scoring Mercedes for a 2-0 lead. Justin Kamplain pitched a complete game for the RiverDogs in the defeat.
With Friday's results, Delmarva has now thrown ten shutouts on the season as a pitching staff. The Shorebirds pulled into second place in the Northern Division as Lakewood lost to West Virginia, 9-2.
Delmarva will try to extend their winning streak to five games on Saturday night. Right-hander Dariel Delgado (4-2, 3.61) starts for Delmarva against left-hander Rony Bautista (1-3, 5.44). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium.
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