The Philadelphia Phillies acquired Michael Lorenzen at the trade deadline in hopes of bolstering their starting rotation as they make a playoff push.
In only his second start with the team, he pulled home the winning goal in a 7-0 win over the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night in Philadelphia.
Lorenzen’s outing was the fourth no-hitter of the season and came just eight days after the previous one, in which Framper Valdez of the Houston Astros allowed just one game and faced minimal hitters against the Cleveland Guardians. And it was a month after Justin Verlander chided that more and more batters were a combined effort by many pitchers as a result of the limits of the field.
Both no-nonsense since Verlander’s comments have been solo efforts, but Lorenzen has a more treacherous path to history than Valdez. He entered the ninth inning with 111 pitches, already a season-high, and had already walked four batters.
Complete the no-hitter by having Nationals first baseman Dominic Smith fly to quarterback Johan Rojas. Lorenzen ended up with 124 runs, surpassing right fielder Griffin Canning of the Los Angeles Angels, for the most runs of any pitched in a game this season.
Rookies these days typically throw about 100 pitches per game, and concerns about tiring out pitchers with a large number of pitches have led some managers to pull the plug on unsuccessful bids. Last season, for example, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts removed superstar Clayton Kershaw left field from a cold April game in Minnesota after seven perfect innings, even though he only threw 80 pitches.
But with the Phillies leading by seven runs against the Nationals, the last-place finisher in the National League East, coach Rob Thompson can leave Lorenzen in the game for a finish of 14th in franchise history.
After the bout, Thompson told reporters that Smith may have been Lorenzen’s last hit regardless of the outcome.
“Maybe I should have put a bulletproof vest on,” Thompson said of the potential consequences he would have faced if he had finished off Lorenzen.
Lorenzen’s teammates jeered him after the final and his mother and other family members celebrated in the stands. In a post-match television interview, he choked when asked how his father, who died in 2016, would react.
He would just say, Atta boy. Way to end it.
Lorenzen, a right-handed man, joined Philadelphia earlier this month via a trade from Detroit, where he was in his first season. He was the necessary performer for the Tigers at last month’s All-Star game in Seattle, pitching two-thirds of an inning in relief in his All-Star debut.
He joined a slow-starting Philadelphia team this season after making the 2022 World Series. Struggling first baseman Reece Hoskins tore a knee ligament in spring training, and star defenseman Bryce Harper didn’t get into his first season until May after recovering from Tommy surgery. John.
The Phillies entered the month of July with a winning record but third in the NL East. They have since risen to second place to claim one of the wild card spots in the league.
Choosing a trade in Lorenzen’s favour, Philadelphia increased their power. Its staff ranks in the top five in the NL in opponents average, walks and batted per innings per innings, and ERA despite playing its home games at Citizens Bank Park generally friendly and a team that has a league average defense.
Lorenzen made his major league debut with Cincinnati in 2015, starting 21 games before becoming a full-time assistant over the next six seasons with the club. A college outfielder at California State, Fullerton, Lorenzen occasionally hits and plays field with Cincinnati. 233 career average with seven home runs and 6 starts at center field in 2019.
Overtime for him as an outfielder fizzled out in 2020 and 2021, with the entry of NL designated hitter and injured Lorenzen for parts of 2021. Seeking to be a full-time starter, he joined the Angels in 2022 and left his two-way exploits to someone else (Shuhei Ohtani). On Wednesday, at least, it seemed like a great choice.
“Alcohol enthusiast. Twitter ninja. Tv lover. Falls down a lot. Hipster-friendly coffee geek.”