Keaschall's Pinch-Hit Single in Ninth Breaks up No-Hitter, Saints Fall 7-1
IL St. Paul Saints

Keaschall's Pinch-Hit Single in Ninth Breaks up No-Hitter, Saints Fall 7-1

Published on July 31, 2025 under International League (IL)
St. Paul Saints News Release


TOLEDO, OH - A whirlwind day for many nearly turned into a complete disaster for the St. Paul Saints. They failed to get a hit through eight innings for just the second time in franchise history, but avoided their second ever no-hitter courtesy of a Luke Keaschall pinch-hit single with one out in the ninth, but the Saints fell for the third straight time to the Toledo Mud Hens losing 7-1 on Thursday night at Fifth Third Field.

Saints starter Marco Raya and Mud Hens starter Troy Watson went toe-to-toe early on. Raya struck out the first two batters he faced and went through the first three innings without allowing a run. Meanwhile, Watson retired the first seven men he faced before a one out walk in the third. He would retire the next two hitters to go hitless through the first three innings.

With the game scoreless in the fourth, the Mud Hens grabbed the lead with the first two hitters of the inning as Justyn-Henry Malloy singled to left and that was followed by a two-run homer to right from Jace Jung, his 11th of the season, making it 2-0. That would be all Raya would allow going 6.0 innings allowing two runs on six hits while walking two and striking out six. He threw a career-high 93 pitches, the first time in his career he's thrown more than 86 pitches in his career, 55 for strikes. He got 12 swings and misses.

Watson allowed a one out walk in the fourth before retiring the next seven hitters as he went 6.0 no-hit innings while walking two and striking out six.

Tanner Rainey took over for the Mud Hens in the seventh and didn't have great control. He walked the leadoff man before getting a double play. He then proceeded to walk the next two hitters before getting Aaron Sabato to fly out to end the game.

Geoff Hartlieb took over in the eighth for the Mud Hens and pitched a perfect inning of relief.

The game was blown wide open in the eighth as the Mud Hens sent 10 men to the plate and scored five runs. Hao-Yu Lee led off with a single to center and took third on a single by Trey Sweeney. A sacrifice fly from Malloy made it 3-0. After a walk to Jung, Akil Baddoo made it 4-0 with an RBI single to right-center. Ryan Kreidler followed with an RBI single to left increasing the lead to 5-0. Trei Cruz finished the scoring with an RBI single to right and an error in right field by Anthony Prato scored a second run putting the Mud Hens up 7-0.

Hartlieb came out to finish off the game as the Saints were on the verge of being no-hit and it looked like it might happen when Payton Eeles hit a shallow fly ball to right to start the inning, but Workman made an incredible head first diving play to rob Eeles of a hit. Keaschall, who didn't start the game, got a scheduled pinch-hit opportunity as he came in for Austin Martin. On a 3-0 pitch, Keaschall lined a clean single into left breaking up the no-hitter. That took the pressure off the Saints and Edouard Julien and Jonah Bride followed with singles, the latter breaking up the shutout.

The Saints have only been no-hit once in a nine-inning game in franchise history, April 13, 2022 vs. Indianapolis at CHS Field. They were also no-hit in a seven-inning game in game one of a doubleheader at Iowa on July 11, 2021.

The same two teams meet in game four of a six-game series at Fifth Third Field at 6:05 p.m. (CT). The Saints send RHP José Ureña (0-2, 3.57) to the mound against Mud Hens RHP Sawyer-Gipson Long (0-1, 5.09). The game can be heard on KFAN Plus, 96.7 FM.

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International League Stories from July 31, 2025


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