Dirk Lammers is a veteran journalist who began rooting for the New York Mets in the early-1970s when the team’s no no-hitter count was barely 2,000 games old. Lammers has since turned his research into Baseball’s No-Hit Wonders: More Than a Century of Pitching’s Greatest Feats (Unbridled Books) and NoNoHitters.com, where he maintains the Internet's largest archive of no-hitter information.
Four years ago today, on March 1, 2012, Boston Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek announced his retirement. Varitek was the first major league catcher behind the plate for four no-hitters. (Carlos Ruiz tied the record in 2015). Here are Varitek’s four: 1 Hideo Nomo Boston Red Sox (AL) Wednesday, April 4, 2001Boston Red…
No major-league pitcher has ever thrown two perfect games in a year, but one major-league outfielder has bowled two of them. The Boston Red Sox’s Mookie Betts has notched two 300s this off-season on the alleys, setting a mark that no MLB hurler has matched on the mound. For a list of the 23 non-bowling…
Fifty years ago today, Los Angeles Dodgers aces Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale refused to report to camp in Vero Beach, Florida, and began their holdout for a multi-year deal giving them a total of $1 million. The dispute was apparently over the length of the contract more than the pitchers’ potential $167,000 annual salaries,…
Hilton Smith and Bernardo Baró, two Negro League pitchers who threw no-hitters, were both born on this date. Baró, born on this date in 1896 in Cárdenas, Cuba, tossed a no-no for the Cuban Stars of Havana during the first game of a Sunday doubleheader on July 21, 1918. Baró held the Indianapolis ABCs hitless…
Happy 32nd birthday to the Detroit Tigers’ Anibal Sánchez, who threw a no-hitter for the Florida Marlins in 2006. On Wednesday, September 6, 2006, Sánchez no-hit the Arizona Diamondbacks for a 2-0 win at Pro Player Stadium. His feat broke the longest no-hitter drought in Major League baseball history in terms of number of games…
Happy 129th birthday to Grover Cleveland Alexander, one of the greatest pitchers not to throw a no-hitter. Alexander compiled a 373-208 record with a 2.56 ERA over a 20-year career with the Philadelphia Phillies, the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals. “Ol’ Pete” came close to a no-no in 1915. He was dominating the…