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The Toronto Blue Jays are a Major League Baseball franchise based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Formed in 1977, they play in the American League East division. Pitchers for the Blue Jays have thrown 1 no-hitter in franchise history, which was accomplished by Dave Stieb on September 2, 1990 after losing three no-hit bids with two outs in the ninth inning.[1] A no-hitter is officially recognized by Major League Baseball only "when a pitcher (or pitchers) retires each batter on the opposing team during the entire course of a game, which consists of at least nine innings".[2] No-hitters of less than nine complete innings were previously recognized by the league as official; however, several rule alterations in 1991 changed the rule to its current form.[3] A no-hitter is rare enough that only one team in Major League Baseball has never had a pitcher accomplish the feat.[a]
The umpire is also an integral part of any no-hitter. The task of the umpire in a baseball game is to make any decision "which involves judgment, such as, but not limited to, whether a batted ball is fair or foul, whether a pitch is a strike or a ball, or whether a runner is safe or out… [the umpire's judgment on such matters] is final."[4] Part of the duties of the umpire making calls at home plate includes defining the strike zone, which "is defined as that area over homeplate (sic) the upper limit of which is a horizontal line at the midpoint between the top of the shoulders and the top of the uniform pants, and the lower level is a line at the hollow beneath the kneecap."[4] These calls define every baseball game and are therefore integral to the completion of any no-hitter.[5]
The manager is another integral part of any no-hitter. The tasks of the manager include determining the starting rotation as well as batting order and defensive lineup every game.
No perfect games, a special subcategory of no-hitter, have been thrown in Blue Jays history, but it came closest on August 4, 1989 when Stieb gave up a double to the Yankee's batter Roberto Kelly with two outs in the ninth and he later scored by the next batter.[6] As defined by Major League Baseball, "in a perfect game, no batter reaches any base during the course of the game."[2]
List of no-hitters in Blue Jays history [edit]
| ¶ | Indicates a perfect game |
| £ | Pitcher was left-handed |
| * | Member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum |
| # | Date | Pitcher | Final score | Base- runners |
Opponent Cleveland | Catcher | Plate umpire | Manager | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 2, 1990 | Dave Stieb | 3–0 | 4 | Cleveland Indians | Pat Borders | Drew Coble | Cito Gaston |
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See also [edit]
Footnotes [edit]
- a The only team without a no-hitter in franchise history is the San Diego Padres.[8]
References [edit]
- ^ "Toronto Blue Jays Franchise History". ESPN. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ a b "MLB Miscellany: Rules, regulations and statistics". MLB.com. Major League Baseball. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ Kurkjian, Tim (June 29, 2008). "No-hit win makes no sense, except in baseball". ESPN. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ a b "Umpires: Rules of Interest". MLB.com. Major League Baseball. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ Bronson, Eric. Baseball and Philosophy: Thinking Outside the Batter's Box, Pgs 98–99. ISBN 0-8126-9556-9. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ "Toronto Blue Jays". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ "September 2, 1990 Toronto Blue Jays at Cleveland Indians Play by Play and Box Score". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ "No Hitters Chronologically". Retrosheet.org. Retrosheet, Inc. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
External links [edit]
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