Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Brandon Woodruff delivered a dominant performance on Monday night, allowing only one hit across six scoreless innings to secure a 2-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.
Woodruff, activated from the injured list earlier Monday, struck out 10 batters without issuing a walk. He maintained a perfect game until the sixth inning.
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The 33-year-old also reached a personal milestone, recording his 900th career strikeout. He now ranks sixth on the franchise's all-time list with 906 strikeouts.
"Obviously pitching well is a huge boost to the team," Woodruff said.
"I wanted to be back a couple turns early, but that's probably not the best thing for me.
Just trying and give yourself the best chance for tonight to go in and pitch, feel strong, feel healthy."
Woodruff struck out Matt McLain in the third inning for the milestone. He later collected the baseball to display in his locker.
"It's cool," Woodruff said. "I don't really pay attention to that kind of stuff.
I've done it in one uniform. Some longevity into it.
Hopefully continue on that trend."
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The perfect game bid ended with one out in the sixth when Tyler Stephenson singled. It was the longest such streak of Woodruff's career.
His fastball velocity showed significant improvement, starting at 91 mph and peaking at 95 mph.
That contrasted sharply with his previous low average of 85.4 mph before his shoulder inflammation diagnosis.
"I was just really, really happy for him," Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. "Because of what he means to the club and how he goes about his business.
Six innings, one base runner. It's just a special outing.
It's pitching in its greatest form."
Woodruff had been sidelined on the 15-day injured list since May 1, a day after throwing just 21 pitches over 2 1/3 innings on April 30.
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Although initial medical imaging revealed no structural harm, the recovery required deliberate caution.
