Whitefield breaks up no-hitter in 8th as Blue Wahoos fall to Biscuits

Aaron Whitefield walked to the plate in the eighth inning Friday, fully aware of dugout anxiety caused from the Pensacola Blue Wahoos being hitless.
He reminded himself to keep his same focus.  
"It's more about you don't want to press too hard on yourself to change anything… just go right back to your routine," said Whitefield, who had struck out in two previous at-bats. "At that stage, it's really just locking it in and making something happen."
He did.
Whitefield, who grew up in Australia, broke up the Montgomery Biscuits combined, no-hit bid with his one-out single, then scored moments later on Travis Blankenhorn's double in the right-center gap, providing a measure of solace in the Blue Wahoos' eventual 4-2 loss at Blue Wahoos Stadium.
The remaining home crowd, which had endured a near-one hour weather delay, stood and cheered Whitefield's ground-ball single, knowing it had erased the biggest zero on the scoreboard.
In franchise history, the Blue Wahoos had produced three no-hitters, led by now-Cincinnati Reds pitcher Tyler Mahle's memorable perfect game in 2017 while with Pensacola, but never the other way.
"Unfortunately, we couldn't get more runs, but it triggered into something," said Whitefield, referring to the Blue Wahoos scoring in the final two innings. "I think (breaking up no hitter) is more of a relief from the players' side of things.
"It's like, 'Thank God.' Getting that one (hit) out of the way is kind of everyone letting their hair down a little bit and getting hits after that."
For the second night, this game was played with sustained wind whipping in from center field and nearby Pensacola Bay, as part of fringe effect from Tropical Storm Barry off the Louisiana coast.
"The conditions were tough. You couldn't put the ball in the air because it goes nowhere," Whitefield said.
The Biscuits starting pitcher, Riley O'Brien, had breezed through five innings, aside from allowing four walks. He struck out seven batters as part of not allowing a hit.
"We had some loud outs, but he also got us with strikeouts," Whitefield said. "He executed his plan and we didn't adapt till later on."
Reliever Brian Shaffer began the sixth inning and kept the no-hitter going through the seventh. The no-hit bit was kept alive by a sensational diving stop by first baseman Taylor Walls, who robbed Blue Wahoos' first baseman Lewin Diaz of a hit in the sixth inning.
In the eighth, the Blue Wahoos' Brian Navarreto led off with a fly out, increasing the nervous tension, when Whitefield stepped to the plate. His hard grounder through the hole between first and second was a no-doubter hit but also his first to ever break up a late-game no hitter.
"I think we had a run-in with these guys in Fort Myers (while playing in Class A Florida State League), where it was the seventh or eighth (innings) on a no-hitter, but it wasn't me breaking it up," said Whitefield, who began the season with the Fort Myers Miracle. "You're up there just trying to put something in play, hit it hard and hope it goes our way and it did.
"The first couple at-bats didn't go my way, but I felt good and just left it in there for that last at-bat."
The Biscuits, who have the best overall record in the Southern League (58-34, 14-8 second half) had thrown three no-hitters in their 16-year history, the last being in 2016. With their win Friday, they took a 2-0 series lead and have now won five games in a row, eight of their last nine.
The Blue Wahoos (48-44 overall), who dropped two games under .500 (10-12) in the second half, have lost seven of their last eight games, after winning six in a row.
"The last six or seven games we've played were close, one run losses, unfortunately a couple runs there (Friday)," Whitefield said. "It's just getting those bats working early. That's the biggest key."
The Blue Wahoos got another quality start from Randy Dobnak, who threw four scoreless innings before hitting leadoff batter Tristan Gray in the fifth inning. It led to a run when David Rodríguez singled with two out to score Gray.
Dobnak (4-1), who absorbed his first loss with the Blue Wahoos, pitched into the seventh.
He gave up a single, then a double with one out in that inning, but could have been out of the jam if not for a pair of errors on the same ground ball force out play, enabling two runs to score. The Blue Wahoos made three errors in the game.
For the 22-year-old Whitefield, who grew up in Brisbane, Australia and played for the Brisbane Bandits in the Australian Baseball League, playing amid windy conditions is nothing unusual.
"My winter league team at home, it's every day," said Whitefield, laughing, who began his career playing men's fast-pitch softball before signing with the Twins in 2015. "But for a hitter, it's a little depressing, because you know if I crank one in the air, it's just going to hang up.
"Now, as an outfielder, it's fun. But it's part of the game. You just have to make the adjustment. We made it late (Friday), but if it happens again, we know what to expect."