15 Years Ago
Brandon Morrow pitched 8.2 no-hit innings, leading the Blue Jays to a 1-0 victory. It was likely the best pitching performance I have ever witnessed.
With two outs in the ninth, Evan Longoria hit a ground ball between second and first. Aaron Hill made an outstanding effort to reach the ball and got his glove on it, but it deflected into right field. Even if he had fielded it cleanly, he wouldn’t have had a play at first. Hill hoped the official scorer would call it an error, but it was ruled a hit.
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Morrow struck out 17 batters—just one shy of Roger Clemens’ franchise record—and walked only two, facing four batters above the minimum. His 100 Game Score tied for the fourth-best since the start of the lively ball era in 1920. Only Kerry Wood (105), Nolan Ryan (101, vs. the Blue Jays), and Sandy Koufax (101) have posted better scores. That’s remarkable company.
He threw 137 pitches—risky for a pitcher with his injury history. I would have taken him out after the hit, but instead, he struck out Dan Johnson to end the game. Most managers would have pulled him after the single (and 132 pitches), but Cito Gaston wanted him to finish the complete game on the mound.
The no-hitter was nearly broken up in the top of the ninth when Jason Bartlett hit a fly ball to deep center, but Vernon Wells made a spectacular catch at the wall. If not for the no-hitter, I’m sure Vernon would have played it off the wall instead. He ended up with a dislocated toe but missed only one game. With 17 strikeouts, our defense wasn’t often tested, but Vernon’s catch was as good as any you’ll see.
Offensively, the Jays managed just five hits. Their lone run came in the first inning: Yunel Escobar drew a one-out walk after DeWayne Wise lined out, moved from first to third on a groundout, and scored on a single by Vernon Wells. Morrow made that early run hold up.
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Another memorable moment was Jose Molina’s stolen base—his only steal of the season. He would go on to steal two more the following year and finished his 15-year career with 20 stolen bases.
Ultimately, it was Morrow’s day. In my recap, I wrote:
For Morrow, it was his first complete game and his first shutout. And he is just 26; he’ll have more days like this.
I was wrong.
Brandon went on to pitch in 100 games for the Blue Jays, making 93 starts and posting a 34-31 record with a 4.40 ERA over five seasons. After Toronto, he played for the Padres, Dodgers, and Cubs. Notably, he appeared in all seven games of the 2017 World Series with the Dodgers.
His final season was 2018. Over his career, he appeared in 334 games (113 starts), with a 51-43 record, 40 saves, a 3.96 ERA, 368 walks, and 877 strikeouts.
The Hill play:
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