Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Dylan Cease shared his reaction after nearly no-hitting the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday afternoon.
Cease was incredible as the Blue Jays defeated the Giants 10-0. He went eight innings, striking out 11 Giants and only giving up one hit, a single to Giants leadoff hitter Heliot Ramos in the bottom of the ninth inning. By then, Cease had thrown 118 pitches, and Blue Jays manager John Schneider removed him from the game to a standing ovation from his teammates in the Blue Jays’ dugout.
Cease was looking to become only the second Blue Jays pitcher ever to have a no-hitter after Dave Stieb first did it on September 2, 1990. Cease has actually pitched a no-hitter before, against the Washington Nationals when he was with the San Diego Padres on July 25, 2024, so he’s been here before.
He got close, but in the end, Ramos got him for a single, and history wasn’t made. But it was still an absolutely unreal performance by Cease, who is in the running to start for the American League in the MLB All-Star Game next week.
Dylan Cease Reacts to Near No-Hitter
Speaking to reporters, including Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi, after the game, Cease shared his reaction after coming within three outs of no-hitting the Giants.
“It’s impossible for it not to be in your mind,” Cease said of his thoughts entering the ninth inning.
“I spin the ball well, they probably know that, and I’m thinking (Ramos) is probably going to be looking for a slider at some point. I figured if I go a couple of heaters and then sinker in, (it would) surprise him. I wish I got it a little more in, but good batter got a hit, it’s baseball. Could have been a groundball one day. It’s a hit today. It’s all it is really.”
Cease actually thought he had superior stuff against the Giants than he did when he no-hit the Nationals in 2024, bluntly stating, “I think I was better today.”
John Schneider Comments on Dylan Cease
According to Schneider, he was willing to let Cease go as long as he could if the no-hitter was still intact, even though by the time he was pulled, he had hit his career-high of 118 pitches.
“Dylan came in after the sixth and said, ‘I got 120,’ and I said, ‘OK.’ And then after the seventh, he said, ‘I got 130.’ It was his until he gave up the hit. Just really fun to watch him execute, good pace, good stuff. Awesome day for him,” Schneider said.
Pitching coach Pete Walker also praised Cease.
“There are times when he’s pretty deliberate with his delivery, it gets slow, that’s when he overthinks it and can get in trouble mechanically. Today he had great tempo. I thought his turn toward home plate was on time and he was in a great position. I felt like his delivery was really under control. And those are the things we’ve been focusing on and he did a great job with it,” Walker said.
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