Miami Marlins’ Henderson Alvarez pitches against the Detroit Tigers in the first inning of an interleague baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2013, in Miami. Alvarez threw a no-hitter in the Marlins 1-0 win.MIAMI – With the bases loaded, two outs and the score 0-0 in the bottom of the ninth, Henderson Alvarez stood in the Miami Marlins’ on-deck circle, bat in hand, hoping to complete his no-hitter.
Alvarez had blanked the Detroit Tigers for nine innings – and briefly, mistakenly thought he had pitched a no-hitter. But the Marlins needed a run for him to achieve the feat.
“I was nervous and anxious,” he said through a translator. “I started praying, ‘Please give us a run.’ I was hoping for a wild pitch.”
That’s exactly how Miami scored. Giancarlo Stanton crossed the plate standing up when a breaking ball skipped to the backstop, and Alvarez had his no-hitter, beating the Tigers on the final day of the regular season Sunday, 1-0.
Alvarez – who had been due to hit next – took off his batting helmet and began to celebrate with teammates in the on-deck circle while still wearing his batting gloves. When the happy hopping scrum finally broke up, pitcher Jose Fernandez came away holding Alvarez’s uniform top.