Perfect timing by Parra on diving catch

DENVER -- Gerardo Parra made the defensive play that preserved Kyle Freeland's no-hitter in the eighth inning on Sunday at Coors Field, although Freeland ultimately lost his chance at history with one out in the ninth when Melky Cabrera hit a single for the White Sox. Colorado won the game, 10-0.
"He made an incredible play and I immediately gave him applause for it," Freeland said. "He came flying in after it and knew what was on the line, and I knew every single one of my teammates was gonna do everything they could to get an out."
White Sox second baseman Yolmer Sánchez led off the top of the inning with a sinking line drive to left field, and Parra laid out to grab it. Freeland then struck out Omar Narváez and Willy García for the next two outs.
"I thought I had a little bit of a chance for the ball to fall," Sanchez said. "At this ballpark, it's big."
Parra's catch was a 4-star play, per Statcast™, and had just a 29 percent catch probability. The distance needed to make the catch was 72 feet and Parra had a 4.2-second opportunity time. He had a sprint speed of 28.9 ft/sec, well above the 27.0 ft/sec average. For the season, Parra is 3-for-5 on 4-star catches, and he also has one 5-star catch.
The Rockies have one no-hitter in franchise history, by Ubaldo Jiménez on April 17, 2010, vs. the Braves. Though Freeland fell short Sunday of a no-hitter, teammate Charlie Blackmon said he knew his pitcher had a chance at history after Parra's catch.
"Usually I don't get really excited until the eighth inning, just because the game's so hard," Blackmon said. "When you think about it, it's almost impossible to go that long without giving up a hit."