Tarpons' Calderon twirls no-hitter in season debut

As Tampa's Yorlin Calderon faced Lakeland's Roberto Campos with two outs in the seventh inning of Game 2 of Wednesday's doubleheader, the right-hander had an opportunity to seal a milestone. And it was the only chance he was going to get to go the distance and finish the feat himself.

When the right-handed batter foul-tipped a 3-2 offering into the mitt of catcher Ben Rice for the final out of the game, it not only sealed a 4-0 blanking for Tampa and a sweep of the twinbill at George M. Steinbrenner Field -- but it put Calderon in the history books for a complete-game no-hitter in his season debut. Calderon worked around a pair of walks and fanned seven while accomplishing the feat.

"I don't know if he knew, but that was his last batter of the game. One way or the other," Tarpons pitching coach Grayson Crawford said. "He was right there with his pitch count, and we had somebody loose and ready to go in the bullpen, so yeah, that was it for him. I'm just really relieved and happy for him that was he was able to get it done right then and there. I'm excited for him that he was able to finish it."

🚨NO NO ALERT🚨

RHP Yorlin Calderon gets called up to Tampa and makes quite the first impression in his first start of the season!

Calderon blanked the Lakeland Flying Tigers with a complete game no-hitter.

His final line: 7.0IP, 7K, 2BB, 0H pic.twitter.com/nVD8C9Ixvj

— Tampa Tarpons (@TampaTarpons) May 26, 2022

Maybe just as astounding as the accomplishment of twirling a no-hitter after being promoted from extended spring training earlier in the day was the pace in which the 20-year-old cruised through the Flying Tigers' order. The game took just one hour and 19 minutes to complete.

"That is definitely not a mistake," Crawford said with a chuckle. "His tempo and his pace all game really dictated his success, I think. You know, he never had thrown with a pitch clock before, and we talked about strategies that we use with pitchers that are new to the pitch clock. And he really took to it. His tempo and his pace really just set the tone for the day."

Efficiency may be an understatement for Calderon's outing, as the lengthy 6-foot-3, 155-pounder retired the first 10 batters he faced on 34 pitches with four strikeouts. After a five-pitch walk, Calderon got some help from his defense. Left fielder Raimfer Salinas caught a fly ball and fired it back quickly to the righty, who relayed to first base to complete an inning-ending double play and face the minimum through four frames.

From there, Calderon set down the next nine batters in a row before issuing a two-out walk to seventh-ranked Tigers prospect Izaac Pachecho. Pacheco stole second to represent the first runner in scoring position of the day for Lakeland, but Rice was able to hang onto the 3-2 foul tip to seal the victory and the milestone.

"I think his sinker was really good," Crawford said. "The slider gave them fits all day long too. He was able to throw the slider in all kinds of counts, I think that pitch was the difference-maker. And then he was able to throw changeups in some counts where it was hitter counts, and he could pitch backwards and get weak contact and that helped him tremendously."

Calderon utilized 11 pitches or fewer to navigate through four of his seven frames -- needing 15 to get through the third and fourth and a game high of 16 in the seventh. He finished with 83 pitches, 48 were strikes.

"I think it started before the game honestly," Crawford said. "He was ultra-prepared. We have a philosophy to get these guys to understand who they are, learn their strengths, and he was very prepared and confident. He put in the work in extended spring training, and I think he just went out there and executed those things. He was never rattled."

The Tarpons' offense was equally efficient in support of Calderon, plating four runs on four hits and a pair of walks. Other than Benjamin Cowles' RBI single to left in the third, Tampa's other runs were plated on a pair of sacrifice flies and a fielder's choice.

The Tarpons also blanked the Flying Tigers in Game 1, 7-0. Tampa limited Lakeland to a single hit in that game -- a two-out single by Pacheco in the fourth.