Dylan Cease offers surprising assessment after recent launch

Dylan Cease threw a no-hitter earlier this season, but what he did in the Padres' 4-0 win over the Astros on Wednesday was arguably his masterpiece.

Cease allowed two hits in 8.1 innings after retiring the first 15 batters he faced.

“This one is way up there,” Cease said. “I mean, the no-hitter and the near-no-hitter and this one are probably in the top three.”

“I think that's fair,” manager Mike Shildt said of the idea that Cease was as good Wednesday as he was two months ago when he held the Nationals hitless. “I mean, that's hard to say, right? I mean, he throws a no-hitter and to say he was better — but you know, Dylan Cease is a pretty special talent.”

When Cease left the field after the eighth inning, many of the sellout crowd at Petco Park gave him a standing ovation. They rose again when he took the mound to start the ninth inning and again when he left the field after an error by Xander Bogaerts that looked like a game-ending double play.

It would have been Cease's fourth career shutout. In September 2022, he missed a no-hitter with the White Sox, allowing two batters in that game and three walks in his no-hitter.

“I really wanted to finish it,” Cease said. “It's just part of the game. I wish I had made Dubón a better offer.”

What stood out about Wednesday's game was that Cease effectively shut down the Astros, the AL's best hitting team. They had come into the game with a team average of .261 and three of their first four batters had a batting average of .297 or higher.

“He pitched well and hit everything,” Dubón said. “It was his night. He's a good pitcher. We battled and Framber gave us a chance to win, and it's a tough matchup.”

Cease didn't allow a baserunner on Wednesday until Jason Heyward's grounder found its way through the right side at the top of the sixth inning. He didn't walk a batter and struck out five.

The 28-year-old right-hander threw more than 11 pitches in just three innings and never struck out more than 15 in any inning.

By the end of the eighth inning, he had thrown 92 pitches without anyone warming up during the Padres' long half-inning.

When it came to deciding which start was better between his no-hitter and Wednesday's, Cease didn't hesitate to answer.

“In terms of execution,” Cease said, “this one was probably better.”