Close But No Cigar: McKenzie Loses Perfect Game Bid, Cabrera Remains at 499 HR

On August 11, Miguel Cabrera hit his 12th home run of the 2021 season. This was the 499th of the future Hall of Famer’s decorated 19-year MLB career. Fans awaiting number 500 were disappointed on Sunday as the opposing starter for the Cleveland franchise, Triston McKenzie, took a perfect game into the 8th inning.

The young Cleveland pitcher’s bid for MLB history also fell short. With just four outs between McKenzie and the first perfect game in Major League Baseball since Félix Hernández‘s masterpiece against the Tampa Bay Rays on August 15, 2012, Harold Castro singled into right field. This ended McKenzie’s bid for perfection and the opportunity to record the second MLB no-hitter in as many days. He would have to settle for earning the victory in the deepest start of his major-league career thus far, allowing no runs on one hit with 11 strikeouts over 8.0 IP. Cabrera finished the game 0-3 with two strikeouts (box).

The 11-time All-Star will have another chance on Tuesday against Dylan Bundy (2-9, 6.17 ERA) when the Los Angeles Angels visit Detroit to begin a three-game series. Game time will be 7:10 PM ET at Comerica Park in Detroit. Casey Mize (6-6, 3.66 ERA) will take the ball for the home team. MVP favorite Shohei Ohtani (7-1, 2.93 ERA) is slated to start for the Angels on Wednesday night, which offers the potential for plenty of fireworks. Will Miggy hit his milestone dinger off the Japanese phenom?

In addition to 499 career home runs, Cabrera has 2,951 hits. The season is hitting the home stretch, but there is still time for him to reach both the 500 HR and 3,000 hit milestones this season.

Featured Image: Miguel Cabrera, 1st baseman for the Detroit Tigers, batting at Chase Field in Phoenix, AZ, USA on June 9,2017 by Keeton Gale / Shutterstock.com.