Doyle takes no-hitter into eighth

About the only thing that could stop Terry Doyle on Monday was a cramp.

Doyle allowed a one-out double in the eighth inning to Matt Carson, spoiling his no-hit bid, as Triple-A Charlotte beat Rochester, 4-1, on Memorial Day.

Doyle, who exited after the base hit, struck out three and walked two. A 37th-round pick by the White Sox in 2008, he threw 50 of his 82 pitches for strikes and retired 11 straight before the double.

"I think I just threw a lot strikes early in the game and got the hitters to be a bit more aggressive. I exploited that late in the game," he said.

While warming up to open the eighth, Doyle (4-3) suffered a cramp in his left leg. He stayed out there to start the frame following a conference with Knights manager Joel Skinner, but didn't think it affected his pitching.

"I called out the coach to let him know I didn't know how much longer I could go out there," the 26-year-old right-hander said. "He gave me a shot to finish out the inning and get the no-hitter. I tried to make a good pitch and Carson got a good piece to get a double."

Doyle endured a rough offseason. After being exposed by the White Sox to the Rule 5 Draft, the Massachusetts native was selected by the Twins. He was returned to Chicago after posting a 21.60 ERA in four Spring Training appearances. His exposure and performance this spring has been a motivating factor for Doyle.

"I'm trying to show to everybody what I can do and get another chance," Doyle said. "I was a little disappointed when the White Sox didn't protect me, but this game is very humbling.

"When I heard my name called, I was excited because it was a good fit but it just didn't work out the way I hoped. I tried to buckle down and get back to pitching well."

Overall, Doyle has a 3.05 ERA and International League hitters are batting .217 against him. He's fanned 56 batters over 62 innings in 2012, good for sixth in the league, and his 1.02 WHIP ranks seventh.

Monday's outing was just the third time in 10 appearances that Doyle had fanned less than five batters, which he credited to the Rochester hitters.

"I think that they just did a good job of putting the bat on the ball," Doyle said. "Their two-strike approach is really good. They do a good job of putting the ball into play with two strikes, which is what you're supposed to do."

Leyson Septimo took over for Doyle and allowed a run on two hits over the final 1 2/3 innings for Charlotte.

Tyler Kuhn and Jordan Danks contributed an RBI apiece while Josh Phegley, Chicago's No. 20 prospect, singled and scored a run for the Knights.

Pedro Florimon, the Twins' No. 20 prospect, hit a solo homer in the ninth for the Red Wings.