BALTIMORE -- The Twins didn't end up completing the no-no, but that doesn't take anything away from the incredible circus catch left fielder Eddie Rosario made to keep Kyle Gibson's no-hit bid intact through six innings on Saturday night. Gibson would exit after six no-hit innings, with the O's getting their first hit with two outs in the eighth when Jonathan Schoop singled off reliever Thomas Pressly in Minnesota's 6-2 win.
With two outs in the sixth, the Twins nearly lost that no-no when Trey Mancini smacked a hard liner on a 2-2 changeup. Rosario broke in to make a sliding attempt on the sinking liner. The ball popped out of his glove as he slid, but he was able to corral it with his bare hand for the third out, much to the excitement of Gibson. Rosario, however, said he didn't know Gibson was throwing a no-hitter until he heard the crowd's reaction and came back into the dugout.
"I thought I caught the ball, but when the glove hit the [ground], the ball went up," Rosario said. "But I saw everything. It was like it was in slow-motion."
Gibson couldn't help but smile in amazement as he walked off the mound after what turned out to be his 102nd and final pitch. He walked five and struck out seven but didn't give up any hits in his first outing of the year.
"It's a lot of fun watching those guys play out there," Gibson said. "It's something that they work on quite a bit, coming in on a ball and tipping it up and making sure they don't panic. We've got a really good outfield. But hopefully we don't have to see a lot of those plays."
Twins manager Paul Molitor said he didn't even see Rosario make the catch, as he gave up on it once he saw the ball pop up in the air because it looked like it was going to get past Rosario after it hit his glove.
"To be honest, when I saw it pop up, I shifted to the baserunners," Molitor said. "My angle made it look like it hit him and was going to continue on. And then I heard everybody cheer, and I had to watch the replay. It was a nice recovery."
It was rated as a three-star catch by Statcast™, as he took 2.9 seconds to make the play and needed to cover 28 feet, giving it a catch percentage of 63 percent. Mancini said the catch was indicative of the game.
"It was pretty fitting," Mancini said. "It was a great catch. I've got to tip my cap to him right there. It was a great heads-up play, even if the ball pops up like that. Just snag it. It's a great catch. I wish it wasn't me who hit it."
It was the second solid defensive play behind Gibson, as third baseman Miguel Sano also made a running catch in shallow center in the second inning while playing in a shift near second base.
"He kind of took charge," Molitor said. "I think people are a little hesitant to get close to him when he's moving in the outfield."