HOUSTON – I don’t know about you, but witnessing history in sports is pretty cool to watch. Sunday in Toronto through the magic of television, we saw just that as Justin Verlander did it again at the age of 36.
Verlander’s No-No of the Blue Jays now puts him into some elite company. Only six pitchers all-time have three no-hitters and now Verlander can set his sights on the guys in front of him named Nolan Ryan and Sandy Koufax.
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We’ll pump the brakes for now but getting there will be tough and will likely mean Verlander will need to stay healthy and pitch into his 40’s which he probably plans to do.
Multiple big league no-hitters this season
This was the fourth no-hitter in the majors this year. The last one was by the Astros, a combined effort from Aaron Sanchez, Will Harris, Joe Biagini and Chris Devenski against Seattle on Aug. 3. Sanchez and Biagini did it in their first game since being acquired in a trade with Toronto.
Houston is the first team to pitch two no-hitters in a season since Max Scherzer threw a pair for Washington in 2015.
So, Astros fans, here’s some info to digest and throw it out at the office to your co-workers this week regarding the no-hitters in Astros history. It’s quite an impressive list.
Astros who threw the gems in franchise history
- Sept. 1, 2019 - Justin Verlander, Houston vs. Toronto, 2-0
- Aug. 3, 2019, Aaron Sanchez (6 innings), Will Harris (1), Joe Biagini (1), Chris Devenski (1), vs. Seattle 9-0
- Aug. 21, 2015, Mike Fiers vs. L.A. Dodgers, 3-0
- June 11, 2003, Roy Oswalt (1 inning), Pete Munro (2 2-3), Kirk Saarloos (1 1-3), Brad Lidge (2), Octavio Dotel (1) and Billy Wagner (1) at New York (AL), 8-0
- Sept. 8, 1993, Darryl Kile vs. New York (NL), 7-1
- Sept. 25, 1986, Mike Scott vs. San Francisco, 2-0
- Sept. 26, 1981, Nolan Ryan vs. Los Angeles, 5-0
- April 7, 1979, Ken Forsch vs. Atlanta, 6-0
- July 9, 1976, Larry Dierker vs. Montreal, 6-0
- May 1, 1969, Don Wilson at Cincinnati, 4-0
- June 18, 1967, Don Wilson vs. Atlanta, 2-0
- April 23, 1964, Ken Johnson vs. Cincinnati, 0-1
- May 17, 1963, Don Nottebart vs. Philadelphia, 4-1
What a list! I say there will be more to come and I’ll go as far to say I believe we may see one more this season from the Astros. I’ll go with Gerrit Cole who had 14 strikeouts in his outing against the Brewers Monday afternoon. That was his second straight 14 strikeout outing. Sit tight because it could happen.
For now, I’ll take wins and the Astros are sitting on 90 now and tied with the Yankees for the best record in the American League.
The Hunt for October is around the corner. Time to “TAKE IT BACK.”