Blue Jays Pitcher Comes Within Three Outs of No-Hitter, but Angels' Taylor Ward Ends the Bid with a Home Run

TORONTO — Bowden Francis might have missed history by three outs, but he still received a standing ovation from the Rogers Centre crowd as he walked off the mound and into the dugout after the best outing of his career in the Toronto Blue Jays’ 3-1 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday.

Francis was brilliant over eight innings, carrying a no-hitter into the ninth. At an all-time-high pitch count, Francis needed three more outs to have his name etched in history. But on a 3-2 count, Angels leadoff hitter Taylor Ward hit a fastball to deep centre field. Daulton Varsho gave it chase, but the ball was out of reach, even for him, and bounced atop the wall for a home run.

Thus ended Francis’ bid to become the second Blue Jays pitcher to throw a no-hitter. Instead, he ended the game allowing one run on one hit over eight innings with three walks and a career-high 12 strikeouts.

As Blue Jays manager John Schneider took the ball from him after he gave up the solo shot to Ward, the manager told his starter, “Just stay present right now, and as part of this day, enjoy what you’re about to hear from the crowd.” On cue, the 34,011 fans stood and cheered as Francis walked off the field. The right-hander acknowledged the ovation by directing a peace sign toward the stands.

“That was huge,” Francis said of the ovation. “I have chills now. The crowd here is one of the best, and never take it for granted.”

Even without the no-no, Francis’ performance continues an impressive run for him lately as he makes the most of a second opportunity in the starting rotation.

Bowden's 100th career strikeout is his SIXTH of the day 👏 pic.twitter.com/QHbhY2y7tz

— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 24, 2024

Francis originally earned a rotation job to begin the season, but he wavered early on, pitching to a 12.96 ERA in his first two starts. He was moved to the bullpen and then spent time on the injured list. Later, he was optioned to the minors to rebuild his innings load.

Now in the rotation once again as the Blue Jays’ focus turns to auditioning their young players, Francis is taking advantage of a take-two. Since the 28-year-old rejoined the rotation on Aug. 7, he has been exceptional, going 3-0 in his last three starts with a 0.82 ERA (2 ER/22.0 IP), three walks, 27 strikeouts, a 0.36 WHIP and a .070 opponent batting average. Francis was named the American League player of the week for his performance during the week of Aug 12-18.

As a result of his recent strong stretch, he has put himself back in the conversation to be part of the Blue Jays’ rotation next year and beyond.

Saturday, Francis was facing the Angels for the second time in two weeks, but that wasn’t an obstacle for the Blue Jays starter who opened the first inning by striking out the side on 11 pitches. Throughout the game, he continued attacking the hitters with his splitter, fastball and breaking balls, even to his very last pitch, when he challenged Ward with a 3-2 fastball.

“You never know when days like this are going to unfold,” Schneider said. “He did everything pretty much to a T. (Got) strikeouts, (got) a double-play ball with a sinker, held his stuff — probably ran out of a little bit of gas, maybe, in the eighth (or) ninth. But, just split, fastball, everything was working. It’s one of those nights. A lot of credit to (Brian) Serven, too, to be part of that. And I give Bowden a lot of credit for going after Ward 3-2 with a heater. It was pretty special.”

As Francis got deeper into the game without giving up a hit, the rest of the team gave him space, as is customary during these types of outings.

“I tried to keep everything the same as he was coming in. You don’t really think about it till you get really past six,” the Blue Jays manager said.

Schneider never once checked in with his starter, even as his pitch count continued to dip into uncharted territory. Before Saturday’s game, Francis’ season high was 95 pitches, but Schneider and pitching coach Pete Walker agreed that Saturday’s game “was his until he gave up a hit,” the manager said.

Francis, meanwhile, was trying to remain focused throughout. He was meditating between innings and went through his self-affirmations, reminding himself to keep attacking and pitching like it was a scoreless game. Eventually, as he got beyond the seventh and eighth innings, it crossed his mind that he’d never pitched this late into a game before, and he wondered if the manager would let him keep going. But he tried to flush those thoughts, reasoning it wasn’t in his control.

“Let’s just keep attacking, because the universe is going to play out whatever happens,” he said of his mindset. “I’m just prepared for whatever.”

The Rogers Centre crowd was already on its feet as the ninth inning began, hoping to witness history, and Francis took the mound to a raucous applause. After a first-pitch ball, Francis got ahead of Ward when he fouled off two consecutive pitches. But Francis tossed two balls to make it 3-2. On a four-seamer away, Ward swung and sent the ball to centre field, where Varsho tracked it.

“I thought Varsh was going to climb the wall and do something crazy, as you always see with no-hitters, but no such luck,” Schneider said.

The ball bounced atop the barrier and gave the Angels their first hit and run of the afternoon.

On Francis’ day of brilliance, it was the only pitch he wanted back. But even without the no-hitter, his outing was something to be proud of.

“We all know at the beginning of the season, things weren’t going his way,” said Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who hit a solo home run in the eighth. “The last four or five outings, he’s been incredible. Today was unbelievable. The guy, he works very hard. He works very hard every day, and I feel very proud of him right now.”

There is a tinge of disappointment at falling short of the no-hitter, but Francis was happy with how he stuck to his plan in the ninth.

“The human nature is to grab on the negative. I just keep thinking about that last pitch,” the starter said. “But I wasn’t scared at all. I was trying to attack, and it was just one of those things that didn’t go my way, but I felt like I was in attack mode, and he put a good swing on it.”

Bigger picture, though, Francis is finding his stride and embracing his opportunity to start. He might have missed history Saturday, but he continues to gain momentum in his goal to be a major-league starter.

“I feel like you can build on each outing, confidence-wise. Physically, mentally, I feel like I’m in a good spot; I’m in a groove,” Francis said. “But with that being said, I think I got to stay on my toes, don’t ever step back and think I have this figured out because this game will humble you quick. So, I think just be grateful for the outing, be grateful for everyone around me, and then get ready in five days.”

(Photo of Bowden Francis and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: Cole Burston / Getty Images)

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Kaitlyn McGrath is a staff writer for The Athletic, covering the Toronto Blue Jays. Previously, she worked at the National Post and CBC. Follow Kaitlyn on Twitter @kaitlyncmcgrath