Syracuse Chiefs starter Craig Stammen is still remembering what could have been Friday night when he came within one out and two strikes of a no-hitter.
Stammen beat the Gwinnett Braves 5-0 in a seven-inning game, allowing only a two-out base hit to Josh Anderson.
"He was terrific. He got groundball outs like we have seen before and was in total control," said Chiefs play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti of Stammen's performance.
Of Stammen's 21 outs, 12 were ground balls.
Stammen told...Syracuse Chiefs starter Craig Stammen is still remembering what could have been Friday night when he came within one out and two strikes of a no-hitter.
Stammen beat the Gwinnett Braves 5-0 in a seven-inning game, allowing only a two-out base hit to Josh Anderson.
"He was terrific. He got groundball outs like we have seen before and was in total control," said Chiefs play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti of Stammen's performance.
Of Stammen's 21 outs, 12 were ground balls.
Stammen told me he was close and obviously wanted that no-hitter. The hit came on a 0-1 pitch and the pitch ended up a little lower than he wanted it. He said he was second-guessing himself a little and wished he had thrown a sinker instead.
Stammen also said he had given up just four infield singles in his other start and the pair of solo HRs came in a park what felt like "Little League"-like dimensions in Charlotte: 325 down the line and 400 to center.
Stammen is now 1-0 with 2.70 ERA in a pair of minor league starts.
As Brian Oliver from NatsFarm.com told me Friday, it's a good thing for Stammen that the organization thinks so highly of him that they want him to be a starter and not a reliever at this point in his career. They could have easily put him in the bullpen but they believe he has starter stuff and Friday's near no-no will only help him get back to the Nats on a quicker pace.
If the Chiefs game rolls along today, Stammen will be on with me live on "Nats Insider" at 5:30 p.m. on WFED, Federal News Radio 1500 AM.
