OAKLAND, Calif. — A light malfunction almost stopped Mike Fiers’ night from getting started. A high pitch count nearly prevented him from finishing it.

Good thing Fiers was allowed to take the mound and stay there all game because he made history doing it.

Fiers overcame the early delay and managed the high workload to pitch his second no-hitter of his career, getting help from two spectacular defensive plays from his Oakland Athletics teammates to shut down the Cincinnati Reds 2-0 Tuesday night.

“Amazing. That’s really all I can really say,” Fiers said. “Things like this just happen.”

This one almost didn’t.

A bank of lights in left field was only partially lit before the scheduled start of the game, leading to a delay of more than 90 minutes before the teams and umpires determined there was enough light to play a full game.

Then after getting through seven innings with 109 pitches, Fiers was told by Manager Bob Melvin that one more baserunner would end his night even if he still hadn’t allowed a hit. He then breezed through the final two innings, following up his 2015 gem for Houston against the Dodgers with a 131-pitch masterpiece to become the 35th pitcher with multiple no-hitters in his career.

“I’m just really thankful for him leaving me in and trusting me,” Fiers said. “I told him I felt great. I felt like everything was working. It wasn’t a matter of being tired. I had adrenaline at that point.”

He walked two, struck out six and ended the 300th no-hitter ever in the majors by fanning Eugenio Suarez with a big curveball.

The A’s poured out of the dugout to mob Fiers in celebration after the final out in front of a few thousand fans remaining after the lengthy delay. Fiers tipped his hat to the crowd and raised his arms in triumph as he walked off.

“It was a great night obviously for him, for our fans, everyone wants to see a no-hitter,” Melvin said. “It was no fun for me once he got past 120 pitches, I promise you that. But he deserved it.”

The 33-year-old Fiers (3-3) raised his lifetime record to 57-58. The right-hander began the night with a 6.81 ERA this season, and has been a journeyman for much of his career.

A journeyman with a special place in the record book, that is.

“It’s pretty cool,” Fiers said. “I saw a little bit of the list. I’m just grateful to be here and get the opportunity to play. I remember when I was getting drafted I wasn’t too high on the charts. I was a guy throwing 88 to 90 (mph) down in South Florida. I’m one in a million down there. … I’m just blessed to be here.”

The first no-hitter of the 2019 season didn’t come without tense moments as Fiers was bailed out by back-to-back great defensive plays in the sixth inning. Second baseman Jurickson Profar ran a long way to making a diving catch on Kyle Farmer’s popup into short right field for the second out, prompting Fiers to throw up his arms in celebration.

Joey Votto followed that with a deep drive, but flashy center fielder Ramon Laureano reached above the fence to pull the ball back and rob the Reds star of a home run.

This was the 13th no-hitter in the history of the Athletics’ franchise, which started in Philadelphia, moved to Kansas City and shifted to Oakland. Sean Manaea pitched the previous no-hitter for the A’s on April 21, 2018, at home against Boston.

Fiers became the seventh pitcher to throw no-hitters for multiple teams – Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson and Cy Young are among the others. Ryan pitched a record seven no-hitters overall.

Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Homer Bailey and Arrieta are the other active big leaguers with two no-hitters.

CUBS: The Cubs vowed to indefinitely ban the fan who used what appeared to be a racist hand gesture behind an African American television reporter who was on the air.

“The individual responsible will not be welcome back at Wrigley Field,” Cubs spokesman Julian Green said.

The Cubs were still working to identify the fan following the incident Tuesday while the Cubs were facing the Miami Marlins. Green said the team had figured out the fan’s seat location but he was not the season-ticket holder and when security responded, the fan was no longer there.

Doug Glanville of NBC Sports Chicago, a former major league outfielder who played three seasons for the Cubs, was standing beside a dugout discussing the Cubs’ surging offense when the bearded fan seated in the background started gesturing.

Wearing a gray Cubs sweatshirt and blue pants, he made an upside-down “OK” sign near Glanville’s head during the broadcast. The gesture associated with the juvenile “circle game,” where someone tries to trick a friend a friend or sibling into looking at it and then punch their opponent in the shoulder. But it has also become a white supremacy sign.

“It doesn’t matter either way,” Green said. “This was bad judgment on the part of the individual. Whether sophomoric behavior or some other stunt, to use that in connection with a respected journalist, who happens to be African American, and doing his job to deliver enjoyment to our fans is ignorant. It has no place (at) Wrigley Field.”

• Shortstop Addison Russell is rejoining the Cubs after completing a 40-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy and spending extra time in the minors to get ready.

The Cubs recalled Russell from Triple-A Iowa and he was set to start at second base Wednesday night and bat eighth against Miami. Russell was eligible to rejoin the team May 3 against St. Louis at Wrigley Field, but the organization opted to give him more time with the minor league club.

PHILLIES: Team chairman David Montgomery passed away at age 72 after a lengthy battle with cancer.

Montgomery’s Phillies career began in 1971, working in the ticket office during the day and helping operate the scoreboard at night. He soon became the marketing director and then director of sales.

Montgomery became the team’s executive vice president after the 1981 season, then became chief operating officer in 1992. He remained in that position until being promoted to general partner, president and chief executive officer in 1997.

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