Oregon's Jordan Spencer Throws No-Hitter vs. Portland

I've had the pleasure of seeing a no-hitter in person (Jonathan Sanchez, 2009). The atmosphere in the late innings is unlike anything else in sports. It's the most nervous I've ever been for a person I've never met. And tonight, on a Wednesday night in Keizer, a true freshman from Beaverton gave the fans in attendance something special to remember.

Oregon IF/P Jordan Spencer, summoned into a starting role due to the Wednesday game at Volcanoes Stadium, put together a masterful pitching performance, holding the Portland Pilots hitless in a 3-0 Ducks win. Spencer struck out five and walked none, the only baserunners of the game coming on a hit batter and an error following a dropped third strike.

The Duck offense took advantage of Portland mistakes by twice scoring on wild pitches. Ryon Healy added an RBI single for the third run of the game.

Considering Spencer entered the game with a 2/3 strikeout to walk rate, and a .326 opponent's batting average, I don't think anyone saw this coming. A flyball pitcher, 15 of the 28 Portland outs came through the air. Bill James' Game Score, which measures the dominance of a pitcher's performance, rates tonight's performance as a 95, a truly special night. Congratulations to Jordan, and Go Ducks!

UPDATE: According to the R-G's Adam Jude, this is the first ever no-hitter in Oregon Ducks history. Amazing.