06/13/26 07:49:00
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06/13 19:47 CDT Dodgers' Yamamoto loses no-hit bid on Peters' leadoff homer for
the White Sox in the 9th inning
Dodgers' Yamamoto loses no-hit bid on Peters' leadoff homer for the White Sox
in the 9th inning
By JAY COHEN
AP Baseball Writer
CHICAGO (AP) --- Yoshinobu Yamamoto was so close. Again.
Yamamoto sailed into the ninth inning with a no-hit bid for the Los Angeles
Dodgers, but Tristan Peters hit a leadoff homer for the Chicago White Sox. The
Japanese right-hander had to settle for a dominant performance in a 7-1 victory
on Saturday.
The 27-year-old Yamamoto also carried a no-hitter into the ninth at Baltimore
on Sept. 6. He surrendered a solo homer to Jackson Holliday with two out, and
Los Angeles went on to a frustrating 4-3 loss.
This time, Alex Vesia closed it out for the Dodgers. But Yamamoto was left to
wonder about another close call.
"What I did, I didn't make it, complete it, because of the ninth inning, the
no-hitter," Yamamoto said through a translator. "But how I was pitching, I was
pretty satisfied."
Yamamoto, who was the World Series MVP when the Dodgers won their second
consecutive championship, improved to 4-0 with a sparkling 0.94 in his last
four starts. He has surrendered 14 hits and struck out 24 in 28 2/3 innings
during his win streak.
If he keeps pitching like he has been, there might be more no-hit opportunities
on the horizon.
"He can attack the plate on both sides from ball to strike probably better than
anybody I've ever seen," Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior said.
Yamamoto retired his last 22 batters while pitching eight innings in a 9-2 win
against the Angels in his previous start. Then he retired his first 23 batters
against Chicago.
The streak --- and Yamamoto's bid for a perfect game --- ended when shortstop
Mookie Betts mishandled Chase Meidroth's two-out grounder in the eighth inning
for an error.
"I'm not making any excuses. I should have made the play," Betts said.
Jacob Gonzalez bounced to second for the final out in the eighth, but Peters
hit a drive to right on a 96.6 mph fastball from Yamamoto. It was Peters' third
homer of the season.
Yamamoto departed after Edgar Quero flied to center for the first out in the
ninth. He was saluted with a standing ovation from the sellout crowd of 37,832
as he made his way off the field.
"One of the best outings we've seen from an opponent this year," White Sox
manager Will Venable said. "The stuff was outstanding. Lived on the edges. We
didn't have a ton to hit."
Yamamoto struck out seven. He threw a season-high 109 pitches, 74 for strikes.
Before the ninth inning, Chase Meidroth had the best chance for a hit for the
White Sox. He had a liner hook just foul before he struck out swinging for the
final out of the fifth.
There was a short delay before the bottom of the sixth while the grounds crew
worked on the area around the pitching rubber on the mound. But Yamamoto had no
issues when the game resumed, striking out Gonzalez on a full-count cutter
before Peters bounced to first and Quero fouled out to left.
"He was in the zone. He kept it out of the middle. I mean, kept them off
balance," Betts said. "I mean that's just Yoshi being Yoshi, you know. I'm glad
he's on our team."
___
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