Indians starter Trevor Bauer no-hit the Toronto Blue Jays for the first seven innings of their game Thursday. But while Bauer was unhittable, he was also uncharacteristically wild, walking six batters while striking out eight in the effort.
By the end of the seventh, Bauer had 117 pitches on his ledger — a total he had surpassed only five times in 150 career starts, and never this early in the season. So where many pitchers might object to getting yanked from a game with a chance at history, Bauer understood Terry Francona’s decision to turn it over to the bullpen. Blue Jays infielder Freddy Galvis singled off closer Brad Hand to start the ninth, ending Cleveland’s bid for a combined no-hitter.
Here’s Bauer after the game:
“It was the right decision,” the pitcher said. “116 pitches is a lot for any time of the year. I just got myself in trouble — a lot of deep counts, a lot of free passes.”
Here’s Francona:
“I didn’t want to take him out,” Francona said. “I told him, ‘I hate it.’ He goes, ‘I hate it, too, but I know it’s the right thing.’ I care too much about him and about this organization to hurt somebody.”
That sentiment — “I hate it, too, but I know it’s the right thing” — is pretty much exactly what an organization should want from a pitcher in that situation. Pulling guys from no-hitters is sort of a necessary evil in contemporary baseball, and it’s probably a testament to the trust built up between Bauer and the Indians.
Arguably no pitcher in the game studies the craft as thoroughly and analytically as Bauer does, and arguably no team in the sport has done a better job developing, employing and optimizing starting pitching as the Indians have over the past few years.
The Indians, their fans, and Bauer all would’ve loved a complete-game no-hitter Thursday. But the goal isn’t to pitch no-hitters in April, it’s to win the World Series in October. And Francona’s decision, as Bauer knew, represented the right one for keeping a frontline starter healthy for the long haul.
