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SAL Aberdeen IronBirds

4 Pitchers Combine for Third No-Hitter in IronBirds History and First in Aberdeen

July 23, 2024 - South Atlantic League (SAL)
Aberdeen IronBirds News Release


The Aberdeen IronBirds made history with their 4-0 win over the Wilmington Blue Rocks this past Friday night when pitchers Zach Fruit, Deivy Cruz, Preston Johnson, and Kyle Virbitsky, along with catcher Adam Retzbach, teamed up for the third no-hitter in franchise history, and first at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium.

Fruit started and went the first four and two-thirds innings. He opened the game with a strikeout and a walk, then retired the next 13 batters to end his night, the most consecutive batters set down by an IronBirds pitcher this season. Cruz was the first call to the bullpen, and although he walked two of his first three batters, he pitched one and one-third hitless innings with three strikeouts. Johnson was up next, and he was dominant, retiring all six batters he faced with five strikeouts to send the no-hit bid to the ninth inning. Virbitsky got the call for the ninth and induced two quick groundouts, setting up a movie-like scene for the final out. Blue Rocks outfielder Jared McKenzie stepped into the left-handed batter's box and after two quick strikes, Virbitsky got McKenzie swinging on a high fastball to finish off an historic night in Aberdeen. The four pitchers, with Retzbach's guidance behind the plate, combined for 11 strikeouts and only allowed three baserunners in front of a season-high crowd of 5,587 fans.

At the plate, the IronBirds scored all four of their runs over the first four innings and collected seven hits. Enrique Bradfield Jr., Tavian Josenberger, and Carter Young each had two hits, Mac Horvath hit an RBI single, and Reed Trimble and Retzbach each walked twice.

Before Friday, the most recent IronBirds no-hitter came on June 18, 2022, on the road at Jersey Shore. Peter Van Loon (5 innings), Daniel Lloyd (3 innings), and Xavier Moore (1 inning) combined to no-hit the BlueClaws in a 6-0 win, with Ramon Rodriguez catching. Before that, the first no-hitter in team history came in a 7-0 win on August 12, 2019, on the road at Vermont, when the Birds were still the Orioles' short-season NY-Penn League affiliate. Jake Lyons (5 innings), James Ryan (3 innings), and Kyle Martin (1 inning) tossed the no-hitter with future MLB All-Star, Adley Rutschman, behind the plate.

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The Birds went on to drop the final two games of the series, 8-5 and 5-3, respectively. Game 2 on Saturday featured a lot of back-and-forth scoring, especially in the early frames, and went 10 innings. Randy Florentino led the way with a 3-for-3 night that included a double, two singles and a hit by pitch. Bradfield Jr. had two hits for his second-straight multi-hit effort and extended his season-long hitting streak to seven games. He also added two more stolen bases to his single-season franchise-record total. In Game 3 on Sunday, the Birds took a two-run lead into the ninth inning but couldn't hold on. Jackson Baumeister started for the Birds and turned in one of his best outings of the season. Baumeister racked up a career-high eight strikeouts in four innings and generated 20 swings and misses, the most by any pitcher at High-A. Offensively, Douglas Hodo III ripped an RBI double in the first and Maxwell Costes crushed a solo home run in the fifth, but that was it for the scoring.

The IronBirds open a six-game road series at Jersey Shore today that goes through Sunday. After another off-day next Monday, the IronBirds are back at home for six games against the Brooklyn Cyclones from Tuesday, July 30 through Sunday, August 4. To purchase tickets and for more information about upcoming games and promotions, visit www.gorionbirds.com or call 410-297-9292.

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