The Class A Advanced California League is known for its hitter-friendly ballparks and high-scoring games. That wasn't an issue for Andrew Moore on Friday, though, as the Mariners' No. 10 prospect spun seven hitless innings for Bakersfield in a 10-0 shutout against Lake Elsinore.
Moore issued one walk and struck out three in his fourth start of the year for the Blaze, during which he threw 70 of his 97 pitches for strikes and induced 10 ground-ball outs. The performance netted the 21-year-old his first win of the season, and he's kept the opposing team off the board in three of his four outings.
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The Blaze dropped the no-hit bid when reliever Ryan Horstman allowed a single with two outs in the top of the eighth inning.
The Mariners selected Moore in with the 72nd overall pick last June, after he posted a 27-9 record, 2.10 ERA and 251 strikeouts at Oregon State. The right-hander's success as an amateur carried over into his professional debut, when he pitched to a 2.08 ERA and 43/2 K/BB ratio over 39 innings (14 appearances/eight starts) for Class A Short Season Everett.
Moore's showing in the Northwest League prompted the Mariners to aggressively assign him to Bakersfield this year for his first full season -- bypassing the Class A level entirely -- and, so far, he's done nothing but reward the organization with his strong start. After four turns and 23 2/3 innings in the Blaze's rotation, Moore owns a 1.14 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 15/4 K/BB ratio.