Back in June of 1995, nearly a quarter-century ago now, Pedro Martinez of the Montreal Expos pitched what perhaps was one of the greatest games in Major League history. He did it in San Diego, against the Padres at old Jack Murphy (now SDCCU) Stadium. Martinez, the Hall of Famer, retired the first 27 Padres he faced that night, striking out nine en route to a perfect....well, wait a minute.
While Martinez was spinning his gem, Padres right-hander Joey Hamilton also was pitching well that night, allowing only three hits and no runs over nine innings. So even though Pedro had wiped out 27 straight hitters, the game was scoreless, rather than over. Montreal would score in the 10th on the an RBI single by Jeff Treadway off Padres reliever Brian Williams, so now, finally Martinez was sitting on the verge of history.
He never got there. Bip Roberts, San Diego's leadoff hitter in the bottom of the 10th, doubled off Martinez and broke up the bid for perfection. Let history show that, in somewhat typical Padre fashion, they never got Roberts home as Expos reliever Mel Rojas retired the next three Friars to close out a 1-0, 10-inning victory.
Though he would accomplish as much as anyone who pitched during his generation, Pedro Martinez never would go on to throw a no-hitter. Neither would another Hall of Famer, a contemporary of Martinez, Greg Maddux. No no-no for him, either. Might as well be in good company.
The Padres' franchise, as you most certainly know by now, set a dubious Major League mark on Thursday night, making it through their 8,020th game as a franchise without having had someone throw a no-hitter. No franchise, from its inception, has ever gone longer.
And to that I say....so what?
Nearly six years after Martinez's San Diego masterpiece, A.J. Burnett of the then Florida Marlins pitched one of the worst games in major league history, also in San Diego and also at old Jack Murphy Stadium. Burnett walked nine -- nine! -- batters that night, yet his game-worn cap and a baseball from that performance are on display in Cooperstown at the National Baseball Hall of Fame. That's because he, unlike Pedro before him, did not allow a hit, winning 3-0.
You see, that's the thing about a no-hitter. Many times a game that's not one is better-pitched than one that is one. As a matter of fact, there is probably no more arbitrary achievement in all of sports than pitching a no-hitter. It's as lucky as some semi-retired old hack knocking in a Hole In One at your local Country Club when the golf pro there has never had one. Who's the better golfer?
Anyway, the Padres and their fans shouldn't be concerned in any way about this odd (non)-achievement. Shouldn't even give it a second thought. Would it be cool if a Padre ever threw a no-hitter? Of course it would. And somebody probably will. (Maybe even soon if Chris Paddack keeps pitching the way he has). But if not, there are more important matters at hand.
In baseball history, there have been 300 no-hitters thrown, the last coming a little more than a week ago by Mike Fiers of the Oakland Athletics. Not exactly a household name, Fiers now his pitched two of 'em in his career. Noted Cy Young threat Homer Bailey also has pitched two. And a guy by the name of Johnny Vander Meer of the Cincinnati Reds once pitched two in a row (talk about a record that will never be broken, you'd have to throw three no-hitters in a row to top it).
Bobo Holloman also pitched a no-hitter. Came pretty easy to him. The St. Louis Browns' hurler did it in his first major league start, back in 1953. Then he won exactly two more games the rest of his career. So what does that prove? Nothing, really.
Nevertheless, there is some infamy attached to the Padres' pursuit of immortality (yes, for some reason it's true. If you pitch a no-hitter, you're somehow immortalized). But to me, more than anything else, it's just somewhat surprising that fate has yet to tap a Padre on the shoulder. So be it. The Colorado Rockies (Ubaldo Jimenez), New York Mets (Johan Santana), Milwaukee Brewers (Juan Nieves), Toronto Blue Jays (David Stieb) and Tampa Bay Rays (Matt Garza) all have one no-hitter. The most interesting of those was the one thrown by the Brewers' Nieves, who's no-hit performance was capped off by Hall of Famer Robin Yount's full-out diving catch, while skidding along the grass, in deep right-center field.
And so it goes. The Padres are the only franchise without one. They also went nearly as long without having a player hit for the cycle until Matt Kemp finally accomplished that feat in Colorado a few years ago. Wil Myers has done it since, and hardly anybody really lifted an eyebrow. Nobody has ever hit for the cycle at Petco Park. Just another anomaly.
So pitch on Padres, and pitch well. And may the no-hitter Gods eventually, at long last, finally find you lacking. Until then, revel in some of the company you're in.