Near-Perfect Archer Fires 1-Hitter, Rays Blank Astros Rays' Mcgee
Tampa Bay Rays Clips – August 21, 2015 Near-perfect Archer fires 1-hitter, Rays blank Astros By Marc Topkin, Tampa Bay Times HOUSTON — Chris Archer's Thursday night on the Minute Maid Park mound didn't begin well, a four-pitch walk to leadoff man Jose Altuve that flashed back to the struggles in his previous outing. But Archer's night couldn't have ended better, celebrating his complete-game one-hitter in the Rays' 1-0 victory over the Astros in a group jump with three other starting pitchers. "It felt awesome,'' Archer said. "There's really no better feeling than when you accomplish your goals, and it happens so infrequently. It's exhilarating.'' A Rays pitcher hadn't thrown a complete game in nearly a year, since Drew Smyly's gem at Toronto on Aug. 22, 2014, the 154 games in between the longest running streak by an American League team. But the Rays (60-61) needed Archer's masterful performance for more than a historic significance, coming off back-to-back extra-inning walkoff losses that taxed their bullpen and the news that top lefty reliever Jake McGee needed knee surgery and would miss most of, and potentially all of, the rest of the season. Manager Kevin Cash praised Archer for responding to the situation with his 98 pitch, 11-strikeout masterpiece. "It was kind of like an ace knowing what we were faced up against with our bullpen being stretched out the last two nights and he kind of took the game on his shoulders and really delivered,'' Cash said.
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