Michael Lorenzen Threw a No-Hitter, but His Cleats Stole the Show

Baseball may be slower-paced than some other sports, but it's still capable of producing magic moments. One of those arrived on Wednesday night, when Michael Lorenzen took the mound in Philadelphia.

The pitcher, who moved at the trade deadline and was making his second start for the Phillies, threw a no-hitter. To make things even sweeter, his mother, wife and daughter were in the stands for his first home start.

And while the performance and the emotional aftermath garnered plenty of attention, something else stole the spotlight: a simple pair of white shoes.

How could footwear matter that much, especially when compared to a no-hitter? Let's break it down.

Lorenzen put on show in unique Vans cleats

For the most part, cleats are a practical necessity for professional athletes. The last thing anyone wants to do is slip during a crucial moment. In recent years, though, baseball players have used their shoes to show a bit more personality. Lorenzen is no exception.

On Wednesday, he took the mound in Philadelphia wearing what appeared to be a pair of white, fabric Vans. While the details were all there, down to the red heel tag, Lorenzen wasn't actually wearing skate shoes. They were unique spikes.

And while those shoes probably wouldn't work for other players—the right-hander told Foul Territory that "it'd be tough to wear them [in another position] just for the lateral stuff"—but that didn't cause a problem against the Washington Nationals.

Lorenzen threw 124 pitches on the night and issued four walks but retired 27 Nationals without surrendering a hit. He's 2-0 with his new team.

His Vans got plenty of social media attention

Understandably, the no-hitter itself made plenty of headlines. Looking beyond the box score, though, plenty of baseball fans noticed the hurler's unique choice of footwear.

After the game, the National Baseball Hall of Fame tweeted that Lorenzen's Vans were heading to Cooperstown. That image received more than 5,000 likes and had been viewed more than 350,000 times as of Thursday morning.

That wasn't the only acknowledgment, though. Complex Sneakers shouted out the pitcher's choice of spike, and The Athletic mused that Lorenzen might be "the most stylish pitcher to throw a no-hitter."

Vans are nod to Lorenzen's roots

While wearing Vans on the mound seems like a savvy sartorial choice, Lorenzen's shoes aren't about making a splash on social media. Instead, they're a way to show his personality in what can be a conservative sport.

In the Foul Territory interview, he tied things back to his California roots.

"I wanna wear whatever I wanna wear," he said. "And I grew up skateboarding. I grew up in SoCal. Vans was, the first shop was literally created three blocks from my house. So I was like, 'Man, I grew up wearing Vans all the time. I'm gonna wear some Vans.'"

And now those Vans are headed to Cooperstown, where they'll be permanently attached to Lorenzen's name.