Snake-bit Miller flirts with no-no for second time
Right-hander loses bid in 8th, winless stretch extends to 16 starts
ATLANTA -- Braves right-hander Shelby Miller often reminds manager Fredi Gonzalez that he threw 160 pitches twice in high school.
"I'm not doing that with him in the Major Leagues," Gonzalez quipped after Atlanta's 2-1 win over the Diamondbacks at Turner Field on Sunday.
Miller took a no-hitter into the eighth inning, when D-backs shortstop Nick Ahmed broke up the no-hit bid with a bloop single to right on Miller's 105th pitch. After giving up a single to pinch-hitter Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Miller was lifted for Ross Detwiler and received a no-decision.
"Obviously, Fredi knows what he's doing as a manager, and I kind of knew when I gave up that hit that I was coming out," Miller said.
Sunday's start was one of Miller's best performances since coming within an out of no-hitting the Marlins in Miami on May 17. Since then, though, he has endured a 16-start winless streak thanks to a lack of run support. It is the longest winless streak for a Braves pitcher since Jo-Jo Reyes went 18 straight starts without a win in 2008.
• Cut4: Miller makes no-look grab
Miller has posted a 3.03 ERA during his winless stretch, but the Braves have only mustered 15 runs for the 24-year-old.
"He had good stuff today," D-backs manager Chip Hale said of Miller. "He had no-hit stuff. Just happy we were able to not get no-hit there."
The Braves manufactured a run to give Miller a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fifth, thanks to an Ahmed fielding error on a Michael Bourn grounder.
Video: ARI@ATL: Peterson scores on Ahmed's fielding error
Miller struggled with his command at the outset, walking the first two batters to start the game. After striking out Paul Goldschmidt, Bourn made a sensational diving catch in left field on David Peralta.
Video: ARI@ATL: Bourn makes great diving grab in foul ground
"Oh man, he's amazing," Miller said of Bourn. "That play was one of the best catches I've ever seen playing baseball. That's awesome to see him, you know, guys are diving all over the place for us. That's how this team is."