It’s one of the rarest feats in the modern game, but Tacoma pitcher Casey Lawrence went the distance Thursday night, pitching a complete game against the Round Rock Express.
As one of the hottest teams in all of Triple-A baseball, going 9-1 in its last 10 games, the Rainers continued their tirade to the top of the Pacific Coast League by thrashing the Express 6-1 at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, Washington.
In a career night for the veteran pitcher, the Express were completely shuttered in the box, going a collective 2-29. Round Rock outfielders Dustin Harris and Billy McKinney were the only two batters to knock a ball past Lawrence, preventing the no-hitter.
As the three-hole hitter for the Express, McKinney’s solo home run in the first inning proved to be the only positive of the night.
Lawrence did not appear to get rattled after going down 1-0. Staying true to his game, he broke out and retired the next 20 batters he saw until Harris broke the streak with a base hit in the top of the ninth inning.
As the only man to truly get past Lawrence tonight, it was almost too perfect that the Tacoma pitcher would face McKinney as the final batter of the game. Lawrence capped the historic night, striking out the Express’ power hitter in just three pitches and picking up the Pacific Coast League’s first complete game of the season as a 37-year-old.
Ending the career night, Lawrence allowed only two hits, a single walk and six strikeouts. With the complete game, Tacoma will have a freshly stocked bullpen to ride out the last three games of the series.
In the third consecutive night allowing 10-plus hits, the Express bullpen was completely outmatched by one of the best offenses in the PCL this season.
Express pitcher Michael Plassmeyer struggled to get proper control on the mound, having a disastrous opening inning. Plassmeyer allowed six hits and four earned runs — three being home runs — after facing just the first four batters on Tacoma’s lineup.
By the end of the first inning, Round Rock’s 1-0 lead diminished to 4-1, and the Rainers rode that streak for the rest of the night. Despite putting the Express in an early hole, Plassmeyer was not pulled until the top of the sixth, allowing just two more hits down the stretch.
Round Rock will close out its series against Tacoma this weekend at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma, Washington.
