Giants fans have been treated to back-to-back nights of pitching masterpieces at Oracle Park.
One night after rookie Kyle Harrison electrified the crowd with an 11-strikeout performance in his MLB home debut, veteran Alex Cobb fell one out short of a no-hitter in Tuesday’s 6-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds.
Ultimately, Cobb’s no-hit bid was broken up with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, as Spencer Steer hit a double to the right-field gap.
Cobb threw a career-high 131 pitches – which is also the highest total for any pitcher this season – and went on to finish the complete-game one-hitter. The 35-year-old struck out eight and walked one.
“It’s just surreal,” Cobb told reporters after the game. “In the moment, I was just focused on the delivery and the gameplan and executing pitches. And then it started to become real. Had some cool thoughts going through my mind about having my family here and thanking them. But it was special, for sure.”
Afterwards, Cobb reportedly told Harrison in the handshake line, “Had to top you. Sorry, kid,” via Pavlovic.
Cobb also got some stellar defense from center fielder Austin Slater, who laid out for a catch in the eighth inning and got a huge ovation from the crowd.
"I really wanted it for Cobber," Slater said. "I knew what was at stake. It was just a do-or-die play and everything was on the line, so I just went for it."
The stellar effort from Cobb also vaulted the Giants (69-63) ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks (69-64) by a half-game for the third and final Wild Card spot in the National League, with a chance to sweep the Reds on Wednesday.
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