Yankees lefty prospect spins 6 hitless frames, strikes out 10 at Double-A

History was on the menu for the team also known as the Jersey Diners on Sunday, and Xavier Rivas served it up for six innings.

The Yankees' No. 23 prospect twirled six hitless frames and struck out 10 for Double-A Somerset in a 2-1 loss to Reading in 11 innings at TD Bank Ballpark.

Rivas' effort made him the first lefty in franchise history to spin six no-hit innings while turning in another gem for the Patriots.

Sunday marked Rivas' seventh consecutive appearance allowing two earned runs or fewer. Over that stretch, the Mississippi product has posted three scoreless outings while sporting a 1.38 ERA, a 0.80 WHIP and a .119 average against while fanning 46 over 28 2/3 frames. His 10 punchouts tied his season-high mark, bringing his total to 92, which ranks third among the Eastern League and all Yankees pitching prospects.

The 24-year-old's dominant run also comes on the heels of what was arguably his worst career outing -- when he allowed 11 runs on 11 hits over 4 1/3 innings on May 28 -- and that might not be a coincidence.

"Outings like that, they wake you up," Rivas told MiLB.com before Sunday's outing. "Not that I was complacent before, but it definitely brings out another level of intensity not wanting to get hit around like that. It showed me just how important it is to get ahead of hitters and what to do when teams start ambushing."

Against the Fightin Phils, Rivas set down the first six batters he faced before issuing a seven-pitch walk to Kehden Hettiger to lead off the third. Hettiger was stranded at third to end the inning as the 6-foot-4, 235-pound southpaw faced the minimum for the rest of his outing -- erasing Aroon Escobar (PHI No. 4) from the basepaths after a leadoff walk in the fifth by coaxing the next hitter into a double play.

After watching his ERA inflate to 7.11 after his May 28 outing, Rivas now has a 4.20 mark and a .181 average against over 64 1/3 innings this season. Sunday marked his second start without allowing a hit this season -- he tossed 5 2/3 hitless frames against the Portland Sea Dogs on June 17. That performance earned the Yankees' 2024 16th-round Draft selection Eastern League Pitcher of the Week honors, making him the first Patriots lefty to earn that recognition since 2021.

Rivas missed all of his senior season at Ole Miss after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He returned to the mound last year and recorded a 3.38 ERA while holding opponents to a .166 average and 31 percent strikeout rate, advancing from Rookie ball to High-A in his first pro season.

Although his fastball tops out at 92 mph, Rivas fools hitters with a pair of baffling secondary pitches. He does an excellent job of killing spin on a low-80s changeup with splitter action that generated a 41 percent chase rate and 57 percent swing-and-miss rate in his pro debut. Hitters also consistently swung over the top of his tight low-80s slider.

After a quick rise in his rookie campaign, Rivas hopes his recent run of success catapults him further on his journey to the Bronx.

“You never just want to be in Double-A forever, or High-A forever or wherever you’re at,” Rivas said. “You are battling being present in your shoes and enjoying where you are at but also, I want to be at Triple-A, and I want to be in the big leagues, and I think we should all want to be in the big leagues right now.”