For eight innings, it looked like the Monday, May 18 game against the Los Angeles Angels would be historic for the Athletics and starting pitcher J.T. Ginn. It ended up being a massive gut punch for both the pitcher and his team.
Ginn completed eight no-hit innings for the Athletics. In the top of the ninth inning, he was staked to a 1-0 lead on an RBI single from Lawrence Butler. So, Ginn took the mound for the ninth inning, just three outs away from a no-hitter.
Those three outs never came.
Things Unraveled Quickly for J.T. Ginn and the Athletics
Adam Frazier, the No. 9 hitter for the Halos, led off the bottom of the ninth inning. Early in the at-bat, Wayne Randazzo, calling the game for Angels Broadcast Television, noted that Frazier was “Maybe the last guy you wanna see in this Angel lineup with a no-hitter going.”
Color analyst Mark Gubicza agreed, saying that Frazier “is gonna make contact somewhere.”
Those comments proved prophetic. While Ginn did start the at-bat with a pair of strikes, Frazier lined his 0-2 offering up the middle for a single.
Frazier’s single not only broke up the no-hitter but also put the tying run on base and the winning run at the plate. The Angels removed Frazier from the game for pinch-runner Jose Siri. But as it turned out, speed was not necessary.
Zach Neto was up next for the Angels. Unlike Frazier, Ginn quickly got behind Neto, throwing a pair of balls; the second was initially called a strike but later overturned on an ABS challenge. Neto drove the first pitch after the challenge to deep center.
Athletics’ center fielder Henry Bolte ran out of room as the ball sailed over the wall for a two-run walk-off Homer.
In four pitches, Ginn went from throwing a potential no-hitter to the ultimate hard-luck loser.
Baseball Fans Reacted Strongly to the Heartbreaking Near Miss
Shortly after the game, Chris Caray, who calls the A’s on NBC Sports California, summed up the tough finish.
“Heartbreaking. Brutal. Frustrating,” Caray said on X. “All words you can use to describe this outcome. What WILL get lost in this outcome is that J.T. Ginn SHINED in his start and has been excellent recently. This loss was truly defined by two pitches in a glimmering outing. On to tomorrow.
Others expressed similar sentiments of sympathy for Ginn.
Ginn also reacted to the tough loss.
“Obviously, tough game he said,” H/T Uprooted Oakland. “It’s just the nature of the game that we play. I attacked the zone and, you know, I’ll live with that.”
It’s the right attitude to have. Certainly, Ginn made both Frazier and Neto beat him. Still, it’s hard to imagine the emotions changing so quickly and drastically in a regular-season game.
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