Eleven Masterpieces: Yankee Stadium’s No-Hitters

The number 11 has a prominent place in human history, both real and imagined. The First World War ended on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. Apollo 11 was the first manned spacecraft to land on the moon. And in the popular Netflix series Stranger Things, the fate of 1980s humanity rests on the supernatural powers of a teenage girl named Eleven.

Eleven is also the number of no-hitters fashioned on the hallowed ground of the original Yankee Stadium. Five before the mid-1970s renovation and six after. Eight were crafted by the Yankees and three by their opponents. All were shutouts, completed in regulation (nine innings).

Only Fenway Park and Dodger Stadium have witnessed more no-hitters than the original Yankee Stadium, with 14 and 13 respectively.1 Fifteen years and six World Series championships accumulated between Yankee Stadium’s opening and its first no-hitter, in 1938.2 The end of the millennium and a pair of World Series victories passed between Yankee Stadium’s last no-hitter, in 1999, and its closing.

The eight Yankee pitchers who threw Yankee Stadium no-hitters include:

• One World Series hero pushing the envelope on limited rest (Monte Pearson).
• Another nursing a balky elbow (Allie Reynolds).
• A selfish playboy who found World Series perfection (Don Larsen).
• A young southpaw upset by an All-Star snub (Dave Righetti).
• A one-of-a-kind inspiration branded an under-achiever (Jim Abbott).
• A fallen prodigy who honored his gravely ill father by playing (Doc Gooden).
• Two well-traveled Davids, one who followed in the footsteps of a pair of free-spirited legends (David Wells), and another who shared the spotlight with a long-absent giant (David Cone).

Opposing pitchers who no-hit the Yankees at the original Yankee Stadium include a fireballing icon unhappy with premature news of his decline (Bob Feller), a hard-luck pitcher helped by a diligent official scorer (Virgil Trucks), and five Houston Astros relievers who combined to bring a nascent no-hitter to fruition after the starter (Roy Oswalt) went off with a nagging injury.

No pitcher contributed to more than one no-hitter at Yankee Stadium but two catchers have caught a pair of them. Yogi Berra was behind the plate for Reynolds’ and Larsen’s, and Joe Girardi caught Gooden’s and Cone’s. Hall of Fame catcher Bill Dickey never caught one, but his little used backup, Joe Glenn, did, calling signs for Pearson’s no-hitter on a day that Dickey had off.

 

 

Every team that played in a Yankee Stadium no-hitter, except for the 1952 Tigers, had at least one future Hall of Famer in its lineup. One of them, Derek Jeter, along with Paul O’Neill, are the only players to appear in four Yankee Stadium no-hitters. Jeter and O’Neill are joined by Bernie Williams as the only players in the winning lineup for three of them. Phil Rizzuto is the only player to appear in the losing lineup for more than one.

Yankee Stadium no-hitter lineups have also included some surprises. Long-time Oakland A’s shortstop Bert Campaneris played in Abbott’s as a Yankee third baseman,3 and Mr. Red Sox, Johnny Pesky, played shortstop for the Detroit Tigers in Trucks’. An influential left-handed hitting Yankee named Babe also saw action in Trucks’ no-hitter but it was Loren Babe, an early mentor to Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa, not Babe Ruth.4

No ballplayer has made his major-league debut in a Yankee Stadium no-hitter. Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Lemon played his sixth game as a Cleveland Indians outfielder in Feller’s no-hitter, two weeks before making his major-league mound debut. A 21-year-old Manny Ramirez, well before being Manny, saw his third major-league game turn into Righetti’s no-hitter.

Red Sox catcher Aaron Robinson is the only player to have played his last game in a Yankee Stadium no-hitter.5 Robinson’s final at-bat, during Reynolds’ no-hitter, produced a deep fly ball that “caused the most alarm” to fans rooting for that no-hitter, according to the New York Daily News.6 Umpire Babe Pinelli, behind the plate for Don Larsen’s perfect game, retired immediately after the 1956 World Series, telling reporters “Why go on? I won’t see a better pitched game.”7

GAME SUMMARIES

A brief synopsis of each no-hitter follows, including the circumstances, and in some cases emotions, leading up to the game. Detailed descriptions of these games can be found in the pages of this publication or online in the SABR Research Collection, within the Games Project no-hitter archive.

#1 — August 27, 1938. Monte Pearson downs former mates on two days’ rest in first Yankee Stadium no-hitter

New York Yankees 13, Cleveland Indians 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 7K, 2 BB, 29 BF, UNK pitches

Frequent rain during the 1938 season forced the Yankees to play 10 doubleheaders between August 12 and August 27, the last five on consecutive days. In the final game of that twin bill gantlet, Monte Pearson, a surprise winner over Carl Hubbell in Game Four of the 1936 World Series, no-hit the Cleveland Indians on two days’ rest.8 Winner of his last nine decisions, Pearson had last been defeated by those same Indians, nine weeks earlier. Perfect for the first three innings, Pearson walked two batters to start the fourth, then retired the final 18 he faced. Two home runs each by Tommy Henrich and rookie Joe Gordon paced a Yankees offense that gave Pearson a 13-run cushion for the final two innings. Bruce Campbell, whose three-run home run sealed Pearson’s last loss, lined out to left fielder George Selkirk for the final out of the game.

#2 — April 30, 1946. Bob Feller proves critics wrong, gets second career no-hitter

Cleveland Indians 1, New York Yankees 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 11K, 5 BB, 32 BF, 133 pitches9

The day after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, Cleveland Indians ace Bob Feller joined the US Navy for a tour of duty that lasted until August 1945. When Feller lost two of his first three starts in 1946, a newswire story suggested he was in decline.10 Feller disagreed. “It maddened me as nothing ever written about me had before.” “I … promised myself that the Yankees would get everything I could throw when I met them [on April 30].”11 On that day, Feller navigated around five walks and two Cleveland fielding errors for the first Yankee Stadium no-hitter by a visiting pitcher.12 The game was scoreless until Indians catcher Frankie Hayes hit a one-out home run in the top of the ninth. On the final play of the game, second baseman Ray Mack stumbled to his knees before gathering the ball and throwing to first for the out.13 Two days later, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the newspaper that first claimed Feller had declined, ran an editorial apologizing for its “unsound judgment in the Feller-is-slipping incident.”14

#3 — September 28, 1951: Allie Reynolds overcomes balky elbow to become the first AL pitcher to hurl two no-hitters in a season

New York Yankees 8, Boston Red Sox 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 9K, 4 BB, 30 BF, 119 pitches15

Recurring elbow problems kept Allie Reynolds, winner of Game Two in the 1950 World Series, from pitching in a single spring-training game in 1951, and at times limited him to bullpen duty throughout the season. But in July 1951, Reynolds no-hit his former teammates, the Cleveland Indians, 1-0 at Cleveland Stadium. Two months later, Reynolds no-hit the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium in the second game of a doubleheader to become the first American League pitcher to throw a pair of no-hitters in the same season.16 The 8-0 win also clinched for the Yankees at least a tie for the AL pennant. Reynolds walked four and struck out nine, his second highest strikeout total for the season. With two out in the ninth, Ted Williams lofted a foul pop behind home plate that catcher Yogi Berra muffed. On the next pitch, Williams popped another pitch foul that Berra caught in front of the Yankee dugout. Asked afterward, Reynolds said “My arm never hurt for a minute.”17

#4 — August 25, 1952: Virgil Trucks tosses his second no-hitter of the season, thanks to a diligent official scorer

Detroit Tigers 1, New York Yankees 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 8K, 1 BB, 30 BF, UNK pitches

Virgil Trucks had thrown a two-hitter, a one-hit shutout, and a no-hitter (the last two against the Washington Senators) and carried an ERA 0.12 below league average, but when he stepped onto the field at Yankee Stadium on August 25, 1952, his record for the Detroit Tigers was a dismal 4-15. In the bottom of the third inning, Tigers shortstop Johnny Pesky bobbled a Phil Rizzuto grounder that official scorer (and New York Times sportswriter) John Drebinger first ruled an error, then changed to a hit.18 Unsure about his decision, Drebinger called the dugout and spoke to Pesky, who said he should’ve caught the ball.19 Moments before the Tigers rallied in the seventh to take a 1-0 lead, Drebinger reversed himself again and declared the play an error.20 One out after the Rizzuto play, Trucks had walked Mickey Mantle, but he didn’t allow another Yankee to reach base. He retired Hank Bauer for the game’s final out on a “sizzling one-hopper” that almost knocked down Detroit second baseman Al Federoff.21

#5 — October 8, 1956: An imperfect Don Larsen is perfect in Game Five of the 1956 World Series

New York Yankees 2, Brooklyn Dodgers 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 7K, 0 BB, 27 BF

When Don Larsen walked into the Yankees locker room before Game Five of the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers, he found a warm-up ball in his locker, signifying that manager Casey Stengel had picked him to start the game. Also in his locker was a court order directing Larsen, the Yankees and Commissioner Ford Frick to show cause why his upcoming World Series share should not be held to cover unpaid child support.22 A notorious playboy,23 Larsen had secretly wed a Baltimore woman pregnant with his child two years earlier, then abandoned them so that he could continue “a life of free and easy existence.”24 Betrayed by his own wildness in frittering away a six-run Game Two lead, Larsen was flawless in Game Five. He went to a three-ball count on only one batter and struck out seven. A two-out solo home run in the fourth inning by Mickey Mantle gave Larsen the only run he’d need, and Mantle’s backhanded stab of Gil Hodges’ drive to left-center field an inning later proved the defensive play of the game. Larsen recorded the game’s final out by striking out pinch-hitter Dale Mitchell with a high fastball that Mitchell tried to check his swing on, but couldn’t. Shortly after his perfect game, Larsen settled his delinquent child-support issue out of court.25

#6 — July 4, 1983: Dave Righetti rebounds from All-Star snub to no-hit the Red Sox on Independence Day

New York Yankees 4, Boston Red Sox 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 9K, 4 BB, 29 BF, 132 pitches26

When southpaw Dave Righetti was left off the initial American League roster for the 1983 All-Star Game, he was disappointed. When Righetti was passed over to replace an ailing Ron Guidry on the All-Star roster because his July 4 fill-in start for Guidry would leave him only one day’s rest before the All-Star Game, he got mad.27 Righetti channeled his anger against the Boston Red Sox that day for the first Yankee Stadium no-hitter since Don Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series. He collected nine strikeouts while walking four, including giving two free passes to Jim Rice, who’d clubbed four home runs in his last three games. Wade Boggs, on the way to his first of five AL batting crowns, swung at and missed a Righetti slider to end the game. Afterward Righetti portrayed his performance as a gift for his mother, whose birthday coincided with the coming All-Star Game. “I won’t be there, but this is a much better present anyway.”28

#7 — September 4, 1993: Jim Abbott bounces back to no-hit the Indians

New York Yankees 4, Cleveland Indians 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3K, 5 BB, 30 BF, 119 pitches, 9 swinging strikes, 1 line drive

In December 1992, the Yankees acquired pitcher Jim Abbott, a former Sullivan Award winner, Olympic champion, and top-three finisher for the 1991 American League Cy Young Award. Born without a right hand, Abbott had taught himself how to pitch and play his position as well as anyone. In mid-August 1993, Abbott’s middling record for a Yankee team unable to break away from the pack in the AL East prompted Yankees beat writer Jack Curry to call him an underachiever.29 Pummeled soon after in Cleveland (allowing seven earned runs and 10 hits over 3⅔ innings), Abbott responded in his next start by no-hitting the Indians at Yankee Stadium. Abbott’s gem started off inauspiciously, as his first pitch sailed wide of catcher Matt Nokes. He walked five batters and struck out only three. The Yankees gave Abbott a 3-0 lead in the third inning, on a little league home run by Dion James that began with a single through Cleveland pitcher Bob Milacki’s legs and ended with throwing errors by center fielder Kenny Lofton and third baseman Jim Thome. Lofton proved a villain leading off the ninth, when he tried to bunt for a hit. After the ball rolled foul, Abbott retired the side in order.

#8 — May 14, 1996: Doc Gooden honors his father by playing and no-hitting the Mariners

New York Yankees 2, Seattle Mariners 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 5K, 6 BB, 33 BF, 134 pitches, 10 swinging strikes, 3 line drives

Days before Doc Gooden’s May 14, 1996, Yankee Stadium start against the Seattle Mariners, he learned that his father, Dan, would be having open-heart surgery for complications associated with diabetes, gout, and kidney failure. Gooden had manager Joe Torre’s blessing to miss his start, but realized that his father would want him to “take the baseball and pitch.”30 Gooden, a Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Award winner released before his 30th birthday by a New York Mets franchise no longer willing to tolerate his struggles with drug addiction, followed his heart to no-hit a talent-laden Seattle Mariners lineup. Yankees center fielder Gerald Williams made the play of the day in the first inning, backhanding a tracer hit by 20-year-old Alex Rodriguez31 in the top of his glove raised high. “Like he was scooping ice cream out of the sky.”32 Gooden walked six batters in the game, and saw a hard-hit grounder that ricocheted off Martinez’s chest in the sixth ruled an error. With the tying run on second base, Gooden retired Paul Sorrento for the final out of the game on a popup to Derek Jeter. Doc made it to Tampa the next morning, just as Dan’s successful surgery began.

#9 — May 17, 1998: David Wells becomes the second pitcher from Point Loma High to pitch a perfect game at Yankee Stadium

New York Yankees 4, Minnesota Twins 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 11K, 0 BB, 27 BF, 120 pitches, 14 swinging strikes, 0 line drives

On May 16, 1998, the cast and crew of Saturday Night Live, along with invited guests that included New York Yankees pitcher David Wells, attended a season-ending wrap party. At 5 o’clock the next morning, a “drunk, exhausted, reeking [and] reeling” Wells dropped into his bed at home, “a comatose heap.”33 Later that day, he threw the 15th perfect game in major-league history and the first by a Yankee since Don Larsen’s in the 1956 World Series. Wells, like Larsen a graduate of Point Loma High School in San Diego, had rooted for the Yankees since childhood, and idolized Babe Ruth — so much so that during a Yankee Stadium game in June 1997 he wore a Ruth game-worn hat, earning himself a $2,500 fine.34 Wells spent 15 seasons with four different organizations before becoming a Yankee after the 1996 season. He fanned 11 and thoroughly dominated an underwhelming Minnesota Twins lineup that included future Hall of Famer Paul Molitor, hampered by a left shoulder injury,35 and a cleanup hitter (Marty Cordova) who had no home runs in 100 plate appearances. Bernie Williams led the Yankees offense, scoring in the second inning after a leadoff double, hitting a solo home run in the fourth, and doubling in the seventh to start a two-run rally that closed out the Yankees scoring. After recording the final out, Wells rode off the diamond on the shoulders of his teammates, waving his regulation Yankees hat.

#10 — July 18, 1999: David Cone is perfect on Yogi Berra Day

New York Yankees 6, Montreal Expos 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 10K, 0 BB, 27 BF, 88 pitches, 18 swinging strikes, 0 line drives

In February 1985 George Steinbrenner declared Yankee manager Yogi Berra’s job secure,36 then fired him 16 games into the season. Outraged, Yogi vowed to “never return to Yankee Stadium as long as The Boss is in charge.”37 Thirteen years later, a dying Joe DiMaggio pushed Steinbrenner to reconcile with Berra.38 To honor Berra’s legacy, the Yankees scheduled Yogi Berra Day for July 18, 1999.39 Don Larsen threw out a ceremonial first pitch before that afternoon’s contest with the Montreal Expos, then gave way to Yankees starter David Cone. Wearing his age (36) on his back and the Yankee Clipper’s uniform number (5) on his sleeve, Cone threw the third perfect game in Yankee history. He struck out 10 and never once went to three balls against an inexperienced and inexpensive Montreal lineup,40 none of whom had ever faced him in a regular-season game. The defensive play of the game happened in the top of the first, as Yankees right fielder Paul O’Neill robbed Terry Jones of a hit with a sliding catch.41The Yankees gave Cone a five-run lead in the second inning, highlighted by two-run home runs by Ricky Ledee and Derek Jeter, who hit his into Monument Park.42 Cone threw only 88 pitches, the fewest in a perfect game since 1908.43

#11 — June 11, 2003: Five Astros relievers hold the Yankees hitless after an early injury to starter Roy Oswalt

Houston Astros 3, New York Yankees 0

Pitching line: 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 13K, 3 BB, 33 BF, 151 pitches, 21 swinging strikes, 2 line drives

As Roy Oswalt approached second base on May 15 with his first extra-base hit of the 2003 season, he stumbled, landing him on the disabled list with a strained right groin for the third time in his career.44 His third start after coming off the DL ended with the Astros throwing a combined no-hitter over the Yankees on June 11, 2003 at Yankee Stadium. Oswalt’s first inning was perfect, but he reinjured his groin two pitches into the second. Five Astros relievers — Flushing, New York, native Peter Munro, 2001 draft pick Kirk Saarloos, rookie Brad Lidge, set-up man Octavio Dotel, and closer Billy Wagner — allowed six Yankees batters to reach base, none via base hit. The last Yankee to reach base got there on a third-strike wild pitch by Dotel in an inning in which he struck out four batters swinging.45 The Astros offense scored early and often, leading 4-0 after three innings and 8-0 by the ninth. After the game, George Steinbrenner told reporters he felt Houston tried to humiliate the Yankees by using so many pitchers to protect a large lead. “I was just trying to win the game,” said Astros manager Jimy Williams in response.46

COMPARING YANKEE STADIUM NO-HITTERS

Each Yankee Stadium no-hitter was one-of-a-kind as compared with the other 10. As the number 11 comes from the Old English word endleofan, which means “ten and one left over,”47 it’s appropriate that one game stands above the rest: Don Larsen’s perfect game, fashioned during a World Series. David Cone’s perfect game was breathtaking for being completed with the fewest pitches of any Yankee Stadium no-hitter (88). David Wells pitched his perfect game in front of the largest crowd of any regular season no-hitter at Yankee Stadium (49,820).

Dwight Gooden allowed the most walks (6), against a lineup with more 150 OPS+ batters than any other (3). Monte Pearson enjoyed the largest cushion, a 13-run lead during the last two innings of his no-hitter. Jim Abbott pulled off the greatest turnaround, having allowed seven earned runs in his previous start, more than any other Yankee Stadium no-hit author had. Bob Feller and Virgil Trucks pitched in the tightest contests, winning their no-hitters 1-0, with Feller pitching the most innings without a lead (8), and Trucks retiring the most consecutive batters to finish a non-perfect-game no-hitter (20).48

Allie Reynolds’ no-hitter was the only one to clinch a piece of a pennant. Dave Righetti’s was the only one to end with that season’s batting champ at the plate (Wade Boggs). The no-hitter thrown by Roy Oswalt et al. took the most time (2 hours 52 minutes), included the most strikeouts (13) and needed more pitchers than any other in major-league history (6).49

The question remains: How do the Yankee Stadium no-hitters stack up against one another? For the six no-hitters thrown before 1988, official pitching statistics for games are limited to the number of batters faced, innings pitched, strikeouts, and walks (classic metrics). Starting in 1988, official statistics also included the number of pitches thrown, number and percent that were strikes, how many of those were swinging vs. contacted vs. called, number of groundouts vs. fly outs and how many line drives were hit. All of the no-hitters in the original Yankee Stadium came before the current Statcast era, in which the type, spin rate, and movement of every pitch are tracked, the velocity, direction, and angle of ascent of every struck ball are recorded, and the expected outcome of every ball struck fair (hit or out) is calculated from a probabilistic analysis that relies on thousands of previous outcomes.50

We can compare original Yankee Stadium no-hitters against one another by using classic pitching metrics plus a few advanced metrics developed in the last few decades that can be applied retroactively.

COMPOSITE BATTING AVERAGE COMPARISON

Gary Belleville, in SABR’s Spring 2021 Baseball Research Journal, attempted to answer the question of who threw the greatest regular-season no-hitter in the modern era. To do so he used the composite batting average of the lineup that was no-hit to quantify a sort of improbability for each no-hitter.51 For every no-hitter from 1901 through 2021, Belleville calculated a composite batting average (cBA) for the lineup that was no-hit, using each batter’s year-end batting average, neutralizing it for that team’s home ballpark effects, weighting it based on the number of at-bats in the game by each batter, and adjusting it by one-year park factors for hits associated with the ballpark where the no-hitter took place. The higher the cBA, the more improbable the no-hitter and, by Belleville’s rationale, the greater the feat.

Using Belleville’s cBA values for each of the original Yankee Stadium no-hitters, Doc Gooden’s no-hitter against the 1996 Seattle Mariners comes out on top, followed by Monte Pearson’s.

Gooden’s no-hitter was ranked ninth all-time by Belleville among nine-inning nonperfect no-hitters between 1901 and 2021. No other original Yankee Stadium no-hitter falls in his top 50.

 

 

None of the three Yankee perfect games cracked Belleville’s list of the top 10 perfect games, but they do fall together in chronological order, occupying 12th, 13th, and 14th place. Comparing perfect games on the basis of the defeated team’s composite on-base percentage rather than cBA might produce a different ranking, an analysis left to a future publication.

Tabulated alongside cBA in the table here are Game Score (GS) values, as listed by Baseball-Reference.com. Devised by Bill James in the 1980s, GS credits starting pitchers for innings pitched and strikeouts, and subtracts for hits, walks, and runs allowed. While useful in comparing typical starts, it’s of lesser value in comparing complete-game no-hitters to one another: Score differences become simply differences in net strikeouts minus walks. Thus, Larsen’s seven-strikeout perfect game carries an identical score to Trucks’ eight-strikeout, one walk not-quite-perfect game. More significantly, unlike Belleville’s cBA metric, GS doesn’t take into account the strength of an opposing team’s lineup or the contribution of relief pitchers.

ALMOST

Fifteen no-hitters were broken up in the ninth inning at the original Yankee Stadium. Seven Yankee pitchers (six starters and one reliever replacing a future Hall of Famer) lost Yankee Stadium no-hitters in the ninth, as did eight opposing pitchers. Only one, Billy Rohr of the 1967 Boston Red Sox, came within a single out of making the Yankee Stadium no-hitter list a dozen strong.

Horace Clarke, whose average-ness is often cited as emblematic of the Yankees’ late-1960s descent into mediocrity, broke up three potential Yankee Stadium no-hitters in the ninth inning over a four-week span in the middle of the 1970 season. That feat has earned Clarke a place in Yankee Stadium no-hitter lore, alongside Monte Pearson and those who followed him.

LARRY DeFILLIPO is a retired aerospace engineer who worked on numerous spacecraft and launch vehicle projects in his career, including the Cassini mission to Saturn, the New Horizons mission to Pluto, and the Antares launch vehicle, which delivers cargo to the International Space Station. He lives with his wife, Kelly, a retired geologist, in Kennewick, Washington, near their two young grandchildren. He joined SABR in the late 1990s, digitized Deadball Era box scores for Retrosheet and wrote his first baseball article for the 2005 edition of The National Pastime. He has written several articles for SABR’s BioProject and over 20 stories for SABR’s Games Project. In addition to his baseball research efforts, he is a volunteer tax return preparer for AARP.

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The author is grateful for help from Gary Belleville in guiding him to his cBA calculations for modern-era no-hitters.

 

SOURCES

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author utilized game summaries published in the New York Times, New York Daily News, and hometown newspapers of the opposing teams, including the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Detroit Free Press, and Houston Chronicle. The list of no-hitters broken up at Yankee Stadium in the ninth inning was based upon Stew Thornley’s Lost in the Ninth monographs posted at milkeespress.com/lostninth.html. The author also utilized player and game details from Baseball-Reference.com, retrosheet.com, stathead.com, baseball-almanac.com, and baseballsavant.mlb.com, as well as ballpark history information from seamheads.com/ballparks.

 

 

NOTES

1 Ring Central Coliseum in Oakland, California, formerly known as Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, has also hosted 11 no-hitters in its 55 years as home to the Oakland Athletics.

2 At that time, only four major-league ballparks had gone longer without a no-hitter; Pittsburgh’s Forbes Field (29 years), Cleveland’s League Park IV (21 years), Washington’s Griffith Stadium (20 years), and Pittsburgh’s Exposition Park III (17 years). Not a single no-hitter was ever thrown at Forbes Field in its 62 years as home to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

3 It was the last of 11 no-hitters in which Campaneris appeared, the most of any ballplayer between 1956 and 2008. “No-Hitter Involvement Since 1956,” July 30, 2008, Recondite Baseball website, http://reconditebaseball.blogspot.com/2008/07/no-hitter-involvement-since-1956.html, accessed September 25, 2022.

4 La Russa credits Loren Babe with teaching him much about managing when La Russa was a minor-league player-coach under Babe in the mid-1970s. “I was a player/coach for a great man named Loren Babe, and it was just like an awakening. He showed me things about managing — and I thought I was a player who paid attention over the years. I had no clue at all what was involved with managing.” Trucks’ no-hitter came in Babe’s sixth major league game. Tony La Russa page, Baseball Hall of Fame website, https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/larussa-tony, accessed September 26, 2022.

5 Brooklyn’s Jackie Robinson and Dale Mitchell retired after the 1956 World Series, but did play in the Series after Larsen’s perfect game.

6 Joe Trimble, “Reynolds, Vic Triumph, 8-0, 11-3,” New York Daily News, September 29, 1951: 28, 31.

7 Larry Gerlach, “Babe Pinelli,” SABR BioProject, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/babe-pinelli/, accessed March 19, 2023.

8 Pearson had thrown a nine-inning complete game in his last start. He last had two days off between starts two years earlier, but it had been five years since he did so coming off a nine-inning start.

9 Pitch count as reported in the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Associated Press, “133 Feller Pitches Brings No-Hitter,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 1, 1946: 19.

10 “Feller Slipping?,” Hazelton (Pennsylvania) Plain Speaker, April 27, 1946: 10.

11 Bob Feller, Bob Feller’s Strikeout Story (New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1947), 226.

12 Floyd Clifford “Bill” Bevens, who took the loss in this game, came within one out of his own no-hitter in Game Four of the 1947 World Series.

13 Mack also earned an assist on the last play of Feller’s Opening Day no-hitter in 1940, making a sparkling play to knock down a line drive hit by White Sox right fielder Taft Wright. Joseph Wancho, “Ray Mack,” SABR BioProject, accessed March 19, 2023, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/Ray-Mack/.

14 “We Apologize,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 2, 1946: 10.

15 Pitch count as reported in Gregory H. Wolf, “September 28, 1951: Allie Reynolds throws his second no-hitter of the season,” SABR Games Project, accessed March 19, 2023.

16 Reynolds’ feat had been matched to that point only by Johnny Vander Meer of the 1938 Cincinnati Reds.

17 Shortly after the World Series, Reynolds announced that he would not undergo surgery to remove bone chips from his right elbow. “I was pitching so well down the stretch that I don’t think it necessary to have an operation.” There’s no record of Reynolds ever having surgery on that elbow over the rest of his playing career. “Reynolds Delays Operation on Arm,” New York Times, October 17, 1951: S39.

18 Drebinger later said he’d changed his initial decision to a hit “upon the insistence of several colleagues.” John Drebinger, “Detroit Star Wins at Stadium, 1 to 0,” New York Times, August 26, 1952: 16.

19 Drebinger, “Detroit Star Wins at Stadium, 1 to 0.”

20 Drebinger reportedly directed that his revised decision be announced over the public-address system during the top of the seventh inning. Since the Tigers were rallying at that time, the announcement was held off until they were done batting. “Trucks Wins 2nd No-Hitter of Year, 1-0,” Detroit Free Press, August 26, 1952: 19.

21 “Detroit Star Wins at Stadium, 1 to 0.”

22 “Larsen’s Wife Petitions Court to Withhold His Series Share,” New York Times, October 9, 1956: 55.

23 Larsen was characterized in newspapers as “more concerned for good times than good games,” and San Diego Union sports editor Jack Murphy called Larsen a “pitcher previously known for living as though every day were New Year’s Eve.” Teammate Mickey Mantle described Larsen as “easily the greatest drinker I’ve known and I’ve known some pretty good ones in my time.” Lew Paper, Perfect: Don Larsen’s Miraculous World Series Game and The Men Who Made It Happen (New York: New American Library, 2009), 12; Kirk Kenney, January 1, 2020, “Don Larsen, Who Pitched Perfect Game for Yankees in ’56 World Series, Dies at 90,” San Diego Union-Tribune, January 1, 2020, https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/mlb/story/2020-01-01/don-larsen-perfect-game-yankees-1956-world-series-point-loma-high-dies-at-90, accessed September 22, 2022.

24 Paper, Perfect: Don Larsen’s Miraculous World Series Game, 17.

25 Mrs. Larsen continued to seek whatever portion of his estimated $5,400 to $8,100 World Series share the courts would allow but that proceeding was quietly removed from the Bronx Supreme Court calendar a week later. “Only One Cloud Over Larsen’s Day; Touch on 2d Don Too,” New York Daily News, October 9, 1956: 3, 4; Dick Young, “Herman Perfect Man; He Didn’t Give a Sign,” New York Daily News, October 9, 1956: 51; “Court Cleans Larsen’s Slate,” New York Daily News, October 16, 1956: 41.

26 Pitch count reported in Murray Chass, “Righetti Pitches First Yankee No-Hitter Since 1956,” New York Times, July 5, 1983: B9-B10.

27 An assistant to MacPhail labeled Righetti a “worthy replacement” but made clear he wouldn’t be Guidry’s replacement since he was on course to have only one day’s rest before the All-Star Game. When Tippy Martinez was announced as Guidry’s replacement, Righetti was flabbergasted. “I wanted to replace Ron Guidry, because I thought I deserved it off my pitching. I wasn’t picked, and that’s the way it goes. I tried to use the anger (I had) against the Red Sox,” Righetti later explained. “Guidry Lost to All-Stars,” New York Times, July 2, 1983: 27; Eric Compton, “Hot Righetti Was Driven by AL Snub,” New York Daily News, July 5, 1983: 68.

28 Compton, “Hot Righetti Was Driven by AL Snub.”

29 Jack Curry, “A Pennant Tries to Grow in the Bronx,” New York Times, August 20, 1993: B9.

30 Dwight Gooden and Ellis Henican, Doc: A Memoir (New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013), 153.

31 The press would begin calling Rodriguez “A-Rod” the very next week. The nickname was taken from the shortened version of his name that Rodriguez wrote on his Mariners equipment bag. “A-Rod lifs [sic] M’s to 7-3 win,” Longview (Washington) News, May 20, 1996: 23; Alan Cohen, “Alex Rodriguez,” SABR BioProject, accessed March 19, 2023, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/alex-rodriguez/.

32 Doc: A Memoir, 155.

33 David Wells with Chris Kreski, Perfect I’m Not (New York: Harper Collins, 2003), 274.

34 Wells, who paid $35,000 for the hat, had asked manager Joe Torre for permission to wear the hat before the game, but was turned down. As of February 2022, the hat, which Wells put up for auction in 2012, was worth over $537,000. Mike Thomas, “What Happened to the $35K Yankees Hat David Wells Wore for 1 Inning?” February 25, 2022, Sportscasting.com, https://www.sportscasting.com/what-happened-to-the-35k-yankees-hat-david-wells-wore-for-1-inning/, accessed August 27, 2022.

35 Yankees MSG network TV broadcast of May 17, 1998 game, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfREpwb6mPM, accessed September 1, 2022.

36 Bill Madden, “Steinbrenner Says Yogi’s Job Is Safe for the 1985 Season,” New York Daily News, February 21, 1985: 64.

37 David Goldiner, “Burying the Bitterness,” New York Daily News, January 6, 1999: 3.

38 Bill Gallo, Owen Moritz, and Bill Hutchinson, “Yogi, Boss Lovefest Prompted by Joe D.” New York Daily News, January 7, 1999: 5.

39 When Yankees manager Joe Torre heard that Yogi’s day would fall on Joe’s 59th birthday, he jokingly told Berra “Screw your day, that’s my birthday.” Ralph Vacchiano, “Even on Joe’s Birthday, Yogi Takes Cake,” New York Daily News, July 18, 1999: 58.

40 The Expos team payroll was described as $10 million ($75 million less than the free-spending Yankees), during the Fox TV broadcast of the game. Fox TV Broadcast of July 18, 1999 game, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwod7qO4y40, accessed September 3, 2022.

41 After the play, broadcaster Tim McCarver remarked, “A right-handed thrower doesn’t get to that ball.” Fox TV Broadcast of July 18, 1999 game.

42 Fox TV Broadcast of July 18, 1999 game.

43 Addie Joss of the Cleveland Naps needed only 74 pitches in his October 2, 1908, perfect game against the Chicago White Sox.

44 Jose De Jesus Ortiz, “Oswalt Hopes Shot Keeps Him off DL,” Houston Chronicle, June 13, 2003: 10.

45 Dotel was the first Astros pitcher to strike out four batters in an inning since NL Cy Young Award winner Mike Scott did it in 1986. The last pitcher to fan four in one inning at Yankee Stadium was Chuck Finley of the Anaheim Angels on May 12, 1999.

46 Tyler Kepner, “Steinbrenner Saves Barbs for Opposing Manager,” New York Times, June 13, 2003: D5.

47 “the number eleven,” Britannica website, https://www.britannica.com/science/the-number-eleven, accessed September 25, 2022.

48 In his next start against the Yankees, on September 17 at Detroit’s Briggs Stadium, Trucks allowed eight runs, seven earned, in 3⅓ innings. Since 1876, only three pitchers have allowed more runs to a team they’d no-hit when next they started against them. Trucks remains the only pitcher to throw two no-hitters in a season in which he had a losing record. Larry DeFillipo, “Adonis Terry,” SABR BioProject, accessed on March 19, 2023, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/adonis-terry/.

49 It was also the only Yankee Stadium no-hitter in which the visiting team had a better record coming into the game than did the Yankees.

50 The combined no-hitter thrown by three Houston hurlers against the Yankees on June 25, 2022, the first no-hitter at the new Yankee Stadium, would be a candidate for comparison to contemporary no-hitters using Statcast data.

51 Gary Belleville, “Who Threw the Greatest Regular-Season No-Hitter since 1901?” SABR Baseball Research Journal, Spring 2021.