Washington Nationals starter Jeremy Hellickson was not as sharp as a tack today -- he walked four guys -- but he had no-hitter going against the Chicago Cubs through the first five and two-thirds innings of this afternoon’s contest. And then he was lifted for a reliever.
It’s not hard to blame Nats manager Dave Martinez for taking him out. He managed two outs in the inning but he also walked the bases loaded, with the last hitter he faced -- Ben Zobrist -- walking on four straight pitches. Hellickson either lost the strike zone or lost confidence in his stuff. Either way, he was at 89 pitches, so the thing was not gonna happen anyway.
When he was lifted, the Nats were up 2-0. Then Sammy Solis came in to face Jason Heyward who promptly knocked in two with a solid single for the Cubs’ first hit of the game. It’s now tied up at two.
Life comes at you fast.