Sterling Hitchcock was rolling right along. Then he hung the first pitch of the eighth inning on this date — June 27 — in 1998 and just like that his hunt for the Padres’ first no-hitter was over.
The Anaheim Angels’ Phil Nevin homered off Hitchcock’s hanging curve in the eighth inning, one of two hits he ultimately allowed in a 5-1 victory at Qualcomm Stadium.
“That’s the best stuff I’ve had,” Hitchcock told the Union-Tribune after the game. “The splitter has been right there for the last four or five games.”
That, however, was news to the Angels as they visited for an interleague series.