Jake Odorizzi was part of group perfection. The 23-year-old right-hander, gained in a six-player trade with the Kansas City Royals in December, pitched seven hitless innings Sunday as part of the Durham Bulls’ second no-hitter in the club’s International League history during a 2-1 victory over the Pawtucket Red Sox at McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket, R.I. Relievers Frank De Los Santos (2/3 inning), Kirby Yates (one inning) and Jeff Beliveau (1/3 inning) also contributed to the effort.
"The approach was the same as every game," Odorizzi told MiLB.com. "I was just throwing the fastball and mixing in my other stuff, trying to keep guys off-balanced.
"That's basically what we did today. I left some stuff up today, and the one or two times they hit balls decent, they were right at guys. It was one of those days when everything was going right." Durham, the Tampa Bay Rays’ Triple-A affiliate, gave up eight walks in the victory, which improved the Bulls to 20-10. Odorizzi struck out three and walked four, and Yates was the lone Durham pitcher to surrender a run.
Odorizzi is 3-0 with a 2.65 ERA in six starts this season. He participated in spring training with the Rays in Port Charlotte, Fla., before being optioned to Durham on March 12. Odorizzi gave up five runs and eight hits in five innings with Tampa Bay this spring.
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