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Mike Fiers just completed a no-hitter for the Houston Astros for his first win with the team. He finished with 10 strikeouts and 3 walks in the Astros 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Fiers’ no-hitter is the fifth of the season, and the second one in the American League. It was the first American League no-hitter that was not pitched by the Seattle Mariners since Jered Weaver no-hit the Minnesota Twins on May 2, 2012. It was also the 11th in Astros history, with the last one occurring on June 11, 2003 against the New York Yankees that featured 6 pitchers combining for the feat.
Fiers was traded to the Astros along with Carlos Gomez by the Milwaukee Brewers before the July 31 trade deadline. Prior to this start, he pitched in three games, two starts, striking out 15 in 17 innings pitched with no decision. The no-hitter marked the first time that he even pitched in the ninth inning in his career.
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This no-hitter was lacking the great play that robbed the batter of a hit. Jimmy Rollins led off the ninth inning with a fly ball that looked like it might be trouble, but right fielder Jake Marisnick ran it down on the warning track. Fiers then got Chase Utley to fly out to right before striking out Justin Turner to complete the no-hitter.
The only thing that was close to keeping Fiers from completing his first no-hitter was his pitch count. He walked a batter in each of the first three innings, but was able to pitch out of it. He topped his career high of 114 pitches and he was able to get Turner to swing and miss on pitch number 134.