Padres’ Dylan Cease has no-hit bid through 8 innings against Nationals

WASHINGTON (AP) — Dylan Cease of the San Diego Padres has not allowed a hit through eight innings against the Washington Nationals.

Cease has thrown 103 pitches, including 63 strikes, and has faced one batter over the minimum.

The 28-year-old right-hander has allowed only three baserunners. Lane Thomas walked with one out in the first inning and was caught stealing, then reached on another walk in the fourth but was erased on Jesse Winker’s double-play grounder. CJ Abrams walked leading off the seventh and was stranded at second base.

The closest Washington has come to a hit was when Juan Yepez lofted a fly to shallow center leading off the fifth inning. The ball popped out of second baseman Xander Bogaerts’ glove and center fielder Jackson Merrill was there to snare it before it hit the ground.

Bogaerts also bobbled a ball while making a diving stop of Keibert Ruiz’s grounder with one out in the eighth inning but recovered in time to throw out the catcher at first.

Cease entered with two complete games in 144 big league starts, both shutouts: a seven-inning three-hitter against Detroit on April 29, 2021, and a nine-inning one-hitter vs. Minnesota on Sept. 3, 2022, when Luis Arráez lined a single to right-center with two outs in the ninth inning.

His season high is 113 pitches over seven scoreless innings at the Chicago White Sox on May 8, which matched his career high.

San Diego leads 3-0 on Ha-Seong Kim’s three-run single in the first inning.

The only no-hitter so far this season was thrown by Houston’s Ronel Blanco against Toronto on April 1.

Joe Musgrove is the only Padres pitcher to throw a no-hitter, on April 9, 2021.