Tigers Fall Victim To History, Held Hitless Versus Yankees
By: Will Burchfield
@burchie_kid
The Tigers made history today, the wrong kind of history, when they were no-hit in a 3-0 loss to the Yankees in Lakeland, Fla.
"You don't want to get no-hit," Brad Ausmus told reporters afterward, "whether it's spring training, the regular season, or wiffleball in the backyard."
Three Yankees pitchers had a hand in the achievement, including Masahiro Tanaka, who started the game and racked up six strikeouts over 4.1 innings.
It was the first no-hitter in Lakeland since 2009 and, according to nonohitters.com, the first no-hitter in Grapefruit League play since the Braves silenced the Astros in 2015.
Chasen Shreve relieved Tanaka and recorded the final two outs of the fifth inning before Jordan Montgomery took the baton to the finish. The only three Tigers to reach base were Nick Castellanos and J.D. Martinez, both of whom walked, and Dominic Ficociello, who took first on an error.
The final line for the trio of Tanaka, Shreve and Montgomery: zero runs, zero hits, two walks, nine strikeouts. They celebrated their achievement in muted fashion.
Tanaka has been a mystery to Tigers hitters this spring.
It was the fourth time in spring training history that the Tigers were held hitless. It also happened in 1960 versus the Pirates, 1973 versus the Royals and 2009 versus the Marlins.
