Bailey twirls Bridgewater's first no-hitter

Another trophy for the mantle

Homer Bailey was one batter away from the first perfect game in DMBL history but had to settle for tossing the 12th no-hitter in league history and the first ever for the Bridgewater franchise. Bailey struck out 10 in blanking Sardine City 3-0 on Sunday at The Cannery.

It's the first no-hitter in the DMBL since August 2012 when Hopatcong's Josh Tomlin no-hit Hillsborough.

Bailey's only blemish was the sixth inning. The Mallers right-hander retired the first 17 batters before walking the No. 9 hitter, Marco Scutaro, and followed that up with a wild pitch before retiring Christian Yelich. Of Bailey's 120 pitches, 76 were strikes.

Bridgewater got their offense from a second-inning solo home run by catcher Brian McCann, an RBI single that Carlos Beltran tried to stretch into a double that ended the third, and a solo shot from Jose Reyes in the seventh. Dillon Gee went 7 innings, allowing 8 hits and 3 runs to take the loss for the Straphangers.

The almost-28-year-old (he turns 28 on May 3) has struggled in the first month of the season, twice going 4+ innings, leaving in the 3rd with an injury, and lasting just 1 inning in another start. Despite that, Bailey even his record to 1-1, lowering his ERA to 5.70, with a 1.18 WHIP. He's now fourth in the league with 11.0 strikeouts per 9 innings. The no-no is a bright spot in what's been a tough start for the Mallers, who suffered through a 10-game skid earlier and stand at 6-16 through Sunday's doubleheader.

At least the last three no-hitters in the league have been firsts for their franchises. Tomlin's was the first for Hopatcong and earlier that year, Ubaldo Jimenez and Jason Motte combined to toss Sardine City's first-ever no-no.

Greinke streak over, Vancouver bounced from first

Vancouver was knocked out of their first place tie with Bridgewater and Blue Ridge, but the bigger story was Zack Greinke's streak ending. Greinke, of course, started the season off 13-0, but couldn't hold back the Sardines yesterday. The Iron Fist had a 2-1 lead after their half of the 7th inning, but Marco Scutaro's bases-loaded double scored 3 runs for the Straphangers. Greinke's ERA ballooned to 1.87 on the season after giving up 4 runs in 7 innings.

Vancouver's loss was costly as Bridgewater defeated Amityville 8-6. Raul Ibanez was 3-4 with 2 RBIs and a double and homer as the Mallers collected 15 hits. Blue Ridge also took advantage with a 6-2 win over Team Buddah. Gavin Floyd improved to 7-3 with a strong effort, giving up 1 run in 7.2 innings and striking out 7. The Mallers hold a percentage point advantage for first place.

Las Vegas scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 9th to tie up their game against Hillsborough and send it to extra innings. Chris Davis hit a two-run single that tied up the game in the 9th. Unfortunately for the Rats, it wasn't meant to be. Ben Zobrist hit a solo homer in the top of the 11th and Ryan Madson held the fort down in the bottom half of the inning to preserve the 4-3 win.