▲ Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Los Angeles Dodgers Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto narrowly missed out on a historic milestone late in the game.
Yamamoto started in the away game against the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago, Illinois, on Sunday (June 14), pitching 8⅓ innings of one-run ball to earn his 7th win of the season (4 losses).
Yamamoto had been on a perfect game streak, retiring 23 consecutive batters without allowing a hit or a walk from the start of the game. However, his momentum was halted by an error from shortstop Mookie Betts with two outs in the 8th inning.
A routine grounder hit off Betts' glove and deflected toward second base.
Although the ball rolled toward second baseman Santiago Espinal, who was covering, Espinal was unable to secure it properly.
The play was officially ruled an error on Betts.
After allowing his first baserunner of the day and ending his perfect game bid, Yamamoto remained composed and induced a groundout to finish the inning. He returned to the mound for the 9th, looking to secure his first career MLB no-hitter.
However, he surrendered a solo home run to right field to the first batter, Tristan Peters, which was the only hit he allowed all day, ending his no-hit bid.
Yamamoto retired the next batter with a flyout before handing the mound over to Alex Vesia.
Yamamoto, who achieved two no-hitters in Nippon Professional Baseball, previously came close to a no-hitter in a game against the Baltimore Orioles last year, only to lose it with two outs in the 9th inning after giving up a home run.
Instead, in his previous outing against the Los Angeles Angels, Yamamoto retired 45 consecutive batters, including 22 in a row, tying the second-longest streak in history.
The record for most consecutive batters retired is 46, set by former San Francisco Giants pitcher Yusmeiro Petit in 2014.
Led by Shohei Ohtani's 14th home run of the season (a solo shot), the Dodgers cruised to a 7-1 victory.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.