The San Diego Padres are no longer the only team in the major league that has no shots. And for that I can thank local product Joe Musgrove, who turned his first career without blows in a 3-0 victory over Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field on Friday night.
Musgrove’s output, which included 10 hits and just one baserunner – on a pitch hit in the fourth inning – broke Padres’ regular-season game run of 8,206.
Musgrove, 28, retired the top 11 Rangers hitters in order, then dropped Joey Gallo and retired in the next 16. He started the bottom nine at 103 pitches, a worrying number of pitch given the attention that managers express with pitchers shortened season.
Nine pitches later, however, Musgrove made history.
David Dahl replaced him with second baseman Jake Cronenworth, Leody Taveras hit a taper back to the mound, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa gave way to Ha-Seong Kim, who temporarily replaces the injured Fernando Tatis Jr.
Musgrove grew up in El Cajon, California, about 15 miles from San Diego and threw 15 scoreless innings in his first two starts for the Padres.