Nolan Ryan took a no-hitter into the eighth inning and wound up allowing two hits in 8 1/3 innings Sunday night as the Texas Rangers beat the California Angels 7-0.
Dave Winfield, who had been 1-for-22 lifetime against Ryan with 13 strikeouts, broke up Ryan`s bid for his eighth no-hitter with a clean single to center leading off the eighth inning on an 0-2 pitch.
”I was trying to keep it off the plate, hoping that maybe he`d chase it,” Ryan said.
Gary Gaetti led off the ninth with a double to left-center and Ryan was removed after Donnie Hill lined out to first. Kenny Rogers got the final two outs.
The 44-year-old Ryan, who went to a hospital emergency room Wednesday when he thought pain from a pulled chest muscle might be a heart attack, had a perfect game until he walked Luis Polonia leading off the seventh.
Ryan (5-4) walked one and struck out 14, the 211th double-digit strikeout game of his career and his fourth this season. At one point, he struck out seven straight batters, a Texas club record.
”It`s been a tough couple of months with all the little things that keep cropping up,” said Ryan, who was on the disabled list earlier this season with strained shoulder muscles. ”So it was good to come back and throw as strong as I did.”
His chest pains Wednesday night were found to be caused by a strained sternum muscle.
He no-hit Toronto on May 1 and was attempting to become only the fifth pitcher in major-league history to accomplish the feat twice in one season. No other pitcher has more than four no-hitters.
Chuck Finley (12-4) gave up six runs and four hits-all for extra bases-in three innings.
Texas scored six runs in the third inning. Gary Pettis ended an 0-for-22 slump with a two-out, opposite-field triple, Mike Stanley hit an RBI double, Ruben Sierra hit a two-run double and Brian Downing hit a three-run homer.
