Medina falls two outs shy of no-hitter

Adonis Medina had already been pitching beyond his 19 years. Taking a no-hit bid into the ninth inning Monday was the latest, greatest example of that.

Philadelphia's No. 16 prospect pitched 8 1/3 hitless innings and didn't allow a run for the third consecutive start as Class A Short Season Williamsport blanked Auburn, 5-0. He struck out four and walked one.

Outside of a fielding error by shortstop Arquimedes Gamboa to start the fourth inning, Medina (2-0) retired all 24 batters he faced before walking No. 11 Nationals prospect Blake Perkins with one out in the ninth. Daniel Johnson Jr. worked an eight-pitch at-bat, fouling off three straight two-strike pitches before breaking up the no-hitter with a single into right field. The hit ended Medina's night after 99 pitches. 

"He just mixed his pitches," Crosscutters pitching coach Hector Berrios said. "He knew that this team came out swinging a lot at the fastball in the first two games, and he took advantage of that. He threw his share of fastballs, too, but he once he set the tone with that, he used his off-speed pitches to great effect. 

"In the ninth, he got that first guy [Darryl Florentino], but as anybody who has played this game knows, there's a lot of pressure, especially with what he was doing. Johnson really fought him and did a great job of fouling off pitches. He got a changeup and pushed it through the four-hole." 

The start still was a continuation of Medina's excellent debut in the New York-Penn League. Through his first three starts, has given up six hits and six walks while striking out nine in 21 innings for the Crosscutters. The opposition has hit just .088 against him through 68 at-bats.

"He commands the baseball very well," his coach said. "He's able to throw all of his pitches for strikes and that's what keeps him from being out over the plate. His fastball command is great and that's really what it boils down to is commanding all three of his pitches. He's also added a slider to the mix." 

Berrios got to know the 6-foot-1, 185-pound right-hander during extended spring training. He said he's not at all surprised by what he's seeing.

"He's a student of the game," he said. "He asks a lot of questions, he's very intuitive and he's doing some real advanced stuff for his age. He's got a free and easy delivery and repeats it well. It helps him throw the ball where he wants to for the most part.

"The consistency factor is what I want to see from start to start. He's really focused and locked in on being able to command and not overthrow. He stays within himself, and as a result, he's gotten off to a great start."

Left-hander Jeff Singer completed the shutout by retiring the last two batters in the ninth.

Gregori Rivero bolstered Medina with his first homer of the season and three RBIs.

Weston Davis (1-1) allowed two runs on three hits and a walk in five innings for the Doubledays.