High School Pitcher Not Perfect, But Throwing Four Straight No-Hitters Is Close

Expecting that the feats of a high school athlete are going to receive tantamount coverage to that of a Major League Baseball player is patently ridiculous. Still, in the wake of the hubbub of yesterday’s perfect game by Dallas Braden (pictured), it’s probably worth noting that John Kukuruda, a California high school pitcher presently has a string of four no-hitters going.

⇥Kukuruda began his streak April 16 in a five-inning, 10-0 defeat of Esparto. His other no-hitters were also abbreviated by a 10-run mercy rule: April 23, six no-hit innings for a 10-0 defeat of Biggs; April 30, five no-hit innings in a 11-0 win at Los Molinos; Friday, a five-inning, 10-0 defeat of Hamilton (Hamilton City). He also had 1⅓ no-hit relief innings May 4 in a 19-0 defeat of Esparto.Though his four no-hitters include a relief appearance and average only slightly more than four innings per appearance, it’s still enough to break the California state record of three consecutive no-nos. He needs his team to win a playoff game on Friday to have an opportunity to extend his state record. The national record stands at six consecutive no-hitters, which was set by Chris Taranto in 1961 and tied by Tom Engle in 1989.

Prior to the streak, Kukuruda had been having a mixed senior season, having notched a 2-2 record through six starts, with his coach admitting he had been overthrowing in some situations. Now, Kukuruda is gushing about the droves of scouts appearing at his games. Not bad for a guy who was hoping only to exceed his brothers, currently playing for junior college teams.

(H/T to Sportress of Blogitude)

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