Would Dee Gordon have caught Jonathan Lucroy’s no-hitter spoiler?
The Miami Marlins needed something positive on Friday to take their minds off Dee Gordon’s 80-game PED suspension.
Enter 26-year-old left-hander Adam Conley, who answered the call by nearly making history.
[Related: Bryce Harper doesn’t want Dee Gordon’s 2015 batting championship]
Making only his 16th career start, Conley fired 7 2/3 innings of no-hit baseball in Miami’s 6-3 win against the Milwaukee Brewers. The only thing that stood between him and a chance at history was his high pitch count. Manager Don Mattingly elected to pull Conley with 116 pitches, leaving it up to reliever Jose Urena to record the final four outs.
Ironically, it turns out the only thing that may have kept Urena from completing history was Dee Gordon’s absence. With one out in the ninth inning, Jonathan Lucroy broke up the no-no with a soft pop up to short right field that just barely eluded the reach of new second baseman Derek Dietrich.
Given Gordon’s speed and his defensive prowess, it’s possible he would have raced back and made a sprawling catch. Of course, there are a lot of factors involved. It’s tough to say with any certainty that one thing or another would have happened, but Mattingly feels like that’s a play Gordon probably would have made.
It’s a reminder that the Marlins will not be able to completely put Gordon behind them. He’s too important a player and does too many things that they’ll miss, including fielding his second base position very well. He’s a guy they’ll never replace, but they’ll have to keep moving forward. Having a pitcher step forward like Conley did on Friday is what will make that easier.
Though he didn’t complete the no-hitter, the focus belongs on Conley. He was absolutely brilliiant for extended stretches, including retiring 12 straight to begin the game. He was only legitimately threatened in the fourth inning, when Milwaukee loaded the bases with no outs. Domingo Santana started the inning by reaching on an error, then Conley walked both Jonathan Villar and Ryan Braun.
Conley managed to escape by striking out Jonathan Lucroy and getting Chris Carter to hit into an inning-ending double play.
It takes a slow heartbeat to work through a difficult jam without faltering. Once Conley did though, he got locked back in and started mowing down Brewers hitters. Conley ended up allowing five baserunners, including four walks, while striking out seven.
All things considered, it was one of the craziest games we will see all season. It included the Brewers turning a triple play and then nearly turning a 6-0 ninth-inning deficit into an improbable rally. It only ended when Jonathan Villar struck out as the go-ahead run with the bases loaded.
It was a wild night in Milwaukee, and perhaps only the first of several for Miami as it adjusts to life without Dee Gordon.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
