Pinch yourselves, folks. You're not dreaming.
50 years. 8,019 games. No no-hitters.
Until tonight.
Johan Santana and his rebuilt shoulder threw 134 pitches. Terry Collins had made it clear that Santana’s limit was 110 pitches, maybe 115. But when you are the New York Mets. And you’ve never thrown a no-hitter in 50 years. And you have a no-hitter in progress after 7 innings. With Johan Santana on the mound.
Pitch counts be damned.
If Terry Collins took Santana out after the 7th inning, no matter how logical, no matter how good his intentions, no matter how much Sandy Alderson would have preferred it – he never would have been able to manage in New York again. It was an emotional decision – as we the fans would have made – but it needed to be made.
And Santana got some help. Former Met Carlos Beltran smoked a liner down the third base line. It barely cleared the third base bag, then nipped the outside edge of the chalk. It should have been a fair ball and a base hit. But it wasn’t. Young third base umpire Adrian Johnson called the ball foul. He didn’t have the benefit of instant replay. It happened in the blink of an eye. Yes, he missed the call, just as the official scorer missed the call in 1985, when Keith Moreland dribbled a ball to third base that should have been ruled an error. But it was called a hit. In 2001, Glendon Rusch was the victim of a similar play when an error on Lenny Harris was ruled a hit.
Yes, the breaks work both ways.
The biggest play of the game came courtesy of Mike Baxter, who risked life and limb to rob Yadier Molina of the game’s first hit.
Santana got the ball up to Molina. He ripped it to deep left. I, and every other Mets fan, cursed his name in unison. Molina does it to us again, that so-and-so.
But Baxter went back – you could see it in his eyes – I’m not going to let this ball drop. He made the catch, and he crashed into the wall, full bore, with no regard for his own well being. He was taken out of the game with a shoulder contusion, but Mike Baxter, the Queens native, will be forever loved by Mets fans.
Santana gutted out the last two innings – seemingly getting stronger – fooling the best lineup in the national league – the world champs. Each Cardinals hitter stepped to the plate, more and more demoralized. Johan didn’t overpower St. Louis, he outwitted them. He showed them what a maestro he is.
And he struck out the NLCS and World Series MVP, David Freese, to nail it down.
The first no-hitter in Mets history. And of any current Mets pitcher, who else would you want to do it but Johan Santana? He’s done nothing but deliver the entire time he’s been here, and now he’s shown the baseball world that that the tear of the anterior capsule of the shoulder is not the end of your career – it’s just the beginning.
Johan Santana has reached chosen-one status – like Paul Muad-dib in Dune – if you saw this in a movie, you wouldn’t believe it – but EL GOCHO BELIEVE IT! This is real life.
And the Mets have finally pitched a no-hitter.
There will be more coverage to come from WMays600, who was at Citi Field tonight!
12 comments
Daniel Stein-Sayles
6/1/2012-11:43pm at 11:43 pm (UTC -4)
Only 18 years without a no-hitter for me, but hearing Howie Rose making the final call was a top two moment in the history of the Mets for me. Great pitcher, great game, great season already.
Daniel Stein-Sayles
6/1/2012-11:44pm at 11:44 pm (UTC -4)
What makes it crazier is that I don’t even think this is the best game he has pitched for the Mets. I will always remember the second to last game in 2008 where Santana proved right there he is one of a kind
gategem
6/2/2012-12:26am at 12:26 am (UTC -4)
A half century for me.
Stick
6/2/2012-12:44am at 12:44 am (UTC -4)
old fart!
Paul Festa
6/2/2012-1:02am at 1:02 am (UTC -4)
That’s the beauty of it – 18 years, 50 years, in my case, 41 years – it’s no less awesome. Johan’s performance tonight spans the generations.
Stick
6/1/2012-11:49pm at 11:49 pm (UTC -4)
and he did it without even breaking 90, at least for the portion of the game I watched on gameday.
and Dan, you correctly point out that there is a certain amount of “luck” in getting a NH. plenty of guys have pitched amazing games with the only hit or 2 being weak (dribblers, bloops), and some NHs had plenty of ropes right at people and great catches.
Stick
6/1/2012-11:54pm at 11:54 pm (UTC -4)
and lost in the shuffle? the Mets are in position to be in 1st place tomorrow. They are only 1 game out of the lead now.
and someone let Knog know, so far the June death march? They are doing OK on it!
srt
6/1/2012-11:59pm at 11:59 pm (UTC -4)
I don’t know what was better – The title of this post ‘The Chosen One’, or the post itself.
Well done, Paul.
Greatest game I’ve seen as a Met fan in too long to remember. The Mets first no hitter, than none other than Johan Santana on the mound.
I’ll say it again: Worth. Every. Penny.
Paul Festa
6/2/2012-1:03am at 1:03 am (UTC -4)
Thank you, SRT, you are too kind. This post was from the heart.
Stick
6/2/2012-12:19am at 12:19 am (UTC -4)
on a side topic, assuming Baxter needs to DL, who the heck do they have left to call up? Could get johnson back, but I think the only OF on the 40 man is Legares?
Mr North Jersey
6/2/2012-10:47am at 10:47 am (UTC -4)
Awesome read Paul.
gategem
6/2/2012-2:14pm at 2:14 pm (UTC -4)
Paul in the light of day I would say you, like the rest of us, were a trifle excited and it shows in your article.
BTW I believe Baxter would catch that ball even if the Mets were down 8-0. If you’re an outfielder that shies away from the wall then you get a reputation like Bobby Abreu in Philadelphia.
Too illustrate the vagaries of the no hitter consider Bobo Hollomon a pitcher for the St. Louis Browns (later they would move to Baltimore and become the Baltimore Orioles). Hollomon at the age of 30 pitched only one year in the majors. In 1953 he pitched in 22 games, started 10 and only completed one. His record was 3W, 7L, 5.23ERA, 65.1IP, 69H, 59BB, 1.821WHIP. Yet in the first game he ever started he pitched a no-hitter against the Philadelphia Athletics.