Los Angeles Angels P Reid Detmers Records Historic Immaculate Inning Against Rangers

Los Angeles Angels pitcher Reid Detmers nailed a historic performance on Sunday against the Texas Rangers: becoming the first rookie pitcher to throw an immaculate inning and no-hitter in a single season.

Detmers struck out three Rangers — Ezequiel Duran, Kole Calhoun and Charlie Culberson — with only nine pitches to dominate the second inning of Sunday's contest, which Texas eventually went on to win, 5-2. The rookie threw his first no-hitter against the Tampa Bay Rays on May 10.

Detmers threw a career-high 12 strikeouts in seven innings — a bright spot in a tough loss for LA.

"I didn't know that, but that's pretty cool," Detmers shared in the post-game interview. "I don't really know what to say. My stuff was working and I felt good, and I got some swings and misses."

Detmers became the first rookie pitcher to accomplish both a no-hitter and immaculate inning in a season and threw the 109th immaculate inning in baseball history, as relayed by Yahoo Sports.

Since being recalled after a stint with Triple-A Salt Lake for several weeks, Detmers boasts a 1.13 ERA (1-0) in four major-league starts, allowing four runs (three earned) in 24 innings and recording 31 strikeouts.

"I treated the inning like anything else," Detmers added. "But I focused on throwing more strikes, because I was a little wild in the first. I just focused on throwing strikes in the zone, and it worked out."

Detmers joins Nolan Ryan and Garrett Richards as the only pitchers in Angels history to throw an immaculate inning.

"It is something you think about a little bit," Rangers manager Chris Woodward shared regarding Detmers' accomplishment.

The Rangers also made history through Detmers' feat: becoming the first time in MLB since the 1979 San Francisco Giants to get bitten by immaculate pitching three times in one season — the two previous occasions came against the Houston Astros in a June 15 matchup.

"After the first guy, second guy, you're like, 'Oh boy, can we just take one here?' It's something that doesn't happen very often. It's happened to us so many times, but it's more luck than anything I think," Woodward added.

Written by

Alejandro Avila lives in Southern California and previously covered news for the LA Football Network. Jeopardy expert and grumpy sports fan. Known for having watched every movie and constant craving for dessert. @alejandroaveela (on X)