San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Alex Cobb (38) talks it over with San Francisco Giants catcher Patrick Bailey (14) and teammates during the ninth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Oracle Park. Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Giants pitcher loses no-hitter in dramatic fashion

By Michael Carpenter | Last updated 8/30/23

In his 12th season in the MLB, San Francisco Giants pitcher Alex Cobb was on the verge of an achievement that most pitchers dream of Tuesday night.

With two outs in the top of the ninth inning San Francisco Giants pitcher Alex Cobb stood on the mound preparing to throw pitch number 125 to Cincinnati Reds second baseman Spencer Steer, a career-high for the 35-year-old right-hander.

Throwing a no-hitter Cobb left a splitter over the heart of the plate, and Steer crushed it over the right fielder's head for a run-scoring double ending both the no-hitter and the shutout for Cobb.

Alex Cobb was THIS CLOSE to a no-hitter pic.twitter.com/rU4JzniGwo
— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) August 30, 2023

With a highlight play by outfielder Austin Slater in the top of the eighth to keep the no-hitter alive, fans were hoping that rookie outfielder Luis Matos could make the play to save the no-hitter but he was just out of reach.

AUSTIN SLATER OMG pic.twitter.com/011EvtpVNS
— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) August 30, 2023

Ending the night with 131 pitches, it was the most in the MLB since 2019 and the most by a Giant since 2016.

Selected to his first All-Star game this season, Cobb has continued to give the Giants solid innings with a 7-5 record including a 3.57 ERA and two complete games across 141.1 innings pitched.

A rotation headlined by pitchers Logan Webb and Cobb, the recent promotion of Giants' top pitching prospect left-hander Kyle Harrison has added another element that could give teams trouble.

With it being such a heartbreaking way to lose the no-hitter, Cobb still delivered a huge win for the Giants as they fight it out for a wild-card spot in the National League with the season winding down.

At 69-63, they find themselves in a tie for the final wild-card spot with division-rival Arizona Diamondbacks and have the Reds close behind.

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