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Jaret Edwards: Ohio High School Pitcher Strikes Out Every Player He Faces In Game

By Aaron Homer
Published on: 04:42 PST, May 15, 2016

Jaret Edwards, an Ohio high school pitcher, has done something that may never be repeated: He struck out every batter he faced.

As the Cleveland Plain Dealerreports, Edwards, who oddly enough plays for St. Edwards, was facing John Marshall in their Division I Strongsville Sectional championship game. After five innings, with his team ahead 10-0, the so-called “Mercy Rule” was invoked, and the game was declared over.

But more impressive than his team’s offensive performance was Edwards’ performance on the mound: He struck out all 15 batters he faced. Eleven went down swinging, the other four looking.

That’s not just a perfect game — it’s a perfect perfect game.

Unfortunately for Jaret, because the game was called in the fifth inning, he didn’t get the chance to play nine innings and perhaps get a chance to strike out all 27 opposing batters. He also missed the chance to go for the Ohio record for the number of strikeouts in a single game by a high school pitcher, which, according to USA Today, is 21.

By comparison, in the major leagues, the single-game strikeout record is 20, a record shared by Kerry Wood (who did so as a Cub in 1998), Max Scherzer (who did so as a Tiger in 2016), and Roger Clemens (who fanned 20 with the Red Sox in 1996).

Similarly rare for a pitcher is a perfect game: It’s only happened 23 times in Major League Baseball, most recently in 2012. Even the Chicago Cubs’ Jake Arrieta, arguably the most dominant pitcher in the MLB right now, has never thrown a perfect game (he’s come close a few times, most recently taking a perfect game into the 8th inning in 2014).

Speaking to reporters about his amazing feat, Jaret Edwards, who has committed to play baseball for George Washington University, said that he kept his emotions in check during the best game of his career — so far.

“I usually don’t smile on the mound, but when I got the last strikeout, I smiled. It was a pretty relieving moment.”

Jaret’s coach, Matt Rosinski, had nothing but praise for his young charge.

“He wasn’t ahead on every batter. It takes extreme concentration because if you miss a pitch, it’s a walk. It was just absolutely amazing. I’d never heard of this before and I’ll probably never see it again in my lifetime.”

It’s an impressive feat to top off an impressive season: Jaret is 4-1 on the season with 0.96 ERA, has struck out 57 batters in 45 innings, walked 14, and given up 26 hits this season.

Jaret’s commanding strikeout performance is the second impressive pitching feat from a high school athlete this season. Earlier this month, according to USA Today, Pittsburgh-area pitcher Zach Bowen threw back-to-back perfect games.

“After the first one, it was cool coming into school and seeing how everyone knew about it before I even told anyone. Even on the bus ride down to the field, everyone was joking, ‘Why don’t we try to get a second one?’ I blew it off, knowing it wasn’t likely it would happen… I wasn’t expecting it. I was just expecting to throw a good game. I knew after the first game, I was still thinking about it. Around the third inning, I started considering it was a possibility.”

Do you think Jaret Edwards has a chance at being a player in the Major Leagues? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

[Image via Brocreative/Shutterstock]

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