SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Robbie Ray said he felt like he was in a flow state on the mound on Sunday, and it showed.
The veteran left-hander fired five perfect innings to help the Giants come within one out of a combined perfect game in a 7-1 win over the Brewers at Scottsdale Stadium.
A dominant Ray struck out eight and needed only 64 pitches to retire all 15 batters he faced in his fifth Cactus League start of the year. Carson Seymour (one inning), Tristan Beck (1 2/3 innings) and Matt Gage (one-third of an inning) then teamed up to keep the perfecto bid alive for Gregory Santos, who took over in the top of the ninth.
Santos, who was making his first Cactus League appearance since Feb. 27 after briefly leaving camp to deal with a personal matter, retired the first two batters he faced on groundouts, but he lost the perfect game after issuing a two-out walk to Cooper Pratt.
That brought up Blake Burke, who lined an RBI double down the first-base line to break up the no-hitter and finally put Milwaukee on the board.
Giants manager Tony Vitello admitted that he didn’t realize there was a perfect game going until the later innings, but he commended the overall effort from his club, which improved to 16-6-1, the best record in the Cactus League.
“Today, they just seemed to be really focused,” Vitello said. “But it helps when Robbie kind of takes the ball. He sets the tone for the game.”
Burke played for Vitello at Tennessee from 2022-24 before the Brewers drafted him 34th overall in 2024. He's No. 18 on MLB Pipeline's list of the top Brewers prospects, and while he is not in big league camp, he has regularly backed up for the Brewers in the late innings of Cactus League games this spring.
"That was the first time I've been nervous at the plate for a while," Burke said. "I felt like I couldn't even feel my legs."
What was it that raised his adrenaline? The big crowd? The no-hitter? His former college coach in the opposing dugout?
"I think it was just everything," Burke said. "I think that was the first time I was part of being no-hit that deep into a game. It was fun to be a part of and have a chance to get that at-bat. ... Big crowd, too. Towards the end, they started to get fired up. Being up at the plate right there, facing a no-hitter, that's kind of why you play. You get the energy, a little bit nervous. It's good to get reps like that because we don't get much of that before the season starts."
It’s unclear how many Spring Training perfect games there have been, though the Red Sox accomplished the feat against the Blue Jays on March 14, 2000, with the help of six perfect innings from Pedro Martinez.
Ray also worked four no-hit innings in his previous Cactus League outing against the Angels on March 9, so he technically has a combined nine-inning no-no over his last two starts.
“I felt really good with my slider,” Ray said. “I felt like I made some big strides with it today. I felt like I could throw it in any count. It just felt normal again, which is great. Honestly, the biggest thing is I wasn’t having to think about anything. I was just kind of out there in flow state and pitching. Hear the pitch, throw the pitch. I don’t have a whole lot to give you. That’s pretty good when you can do that.”
This wasn't a case of a club sending a substandard lineup to a Spring Training road game, either. The first seven Brewers hitters are locks for the Opening Day roster, and at least the first five -- Sal Frelick, Jake Bauers, Christian Yelich, Garrett Mitchell and Luis Rengifo -- figure to be regulars. Milwaukee's eight-hole hitter, catcher Reese McGuire, spent the bulk of last season in the big leagues with the Cubs. The nine-hole hitter, second baseman Cooper Pratt, is the No. 64 prospect in baseball, per MLB Pipeline.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy took a philosophical approach to his team's day at the plate.
"It's important you don't peak too soon," Murphy said.
It wasn't the lineup the Brewers would draw up against Ray in a game that mattered, with six lefties including the first four hitters. But that didn't take anything away from the performance, Murphy said.
"Credit goes to the Giants pitching, they were great today. And the catching," Murphy said.