Yoshinobu Yamamoto was nearing major league history on Saturday afternoon.
Mookie Betts doomed any chances of that, however.
The Dodgers shortstop booted a routine grounder in the bottom of the eighth inning against the White Sox in Chicago, ending any chance the star right-handed pitcher could achieve baseball immortality in the Los Angeles’ 7-1 win.
Already with two outs in the frame, Yamamoto induced a ground ball from Chase Meidroth. Betts shuffled to his left and got in perfect position to field it, but the grounder bounced off him and caromed toward second baseman Santiago Espinal, who bobbled the ball and dropped it without being able to make a throw.
Yamamoto got out of the rest of the inning unscathed, so a no-hitter was still intact in the ninth. But Tristan Peters ended that chance at history with a lead-off solo homer.
The Dodgers hurler, had he thrown the perfect game, would have become the 25th pitcher to do so in MLB history and the first since ex-Yankees right-hander Domingo German did so in 2023.
Instead, Yamamoto’s effort will likely become just a small footnote in baseball history in the Dodgers win at Rate Field.
For Betts, who shifted to shortstop full-time last year, it marked just his second error of the season after having seven last year.
Betts has been mired in a slump at the plate this season, but he went 3-for-5 with three runs scored on Saturday.
The 2018 American League MVP’s average (.196) and OPS (.611) still remain far below career norms.