On This Date in Sports June 1, 2012: Nohan
After 50 years and 8,020 games, Johan Santana tosses the first No-Hitter in the history of the New York Mets. The Mets and the San Diego Padres were the only teams that had never thrown a No-Hitter. The Mets had several close calls and saw former pitchers make history after leaving the Mets, including Nolan Ryan, who set a record with seven No-Hitters. Johan Santana had missed the previous season after shoulder surgery. Santana gets the win as the Mets defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-0 at Citi Field.
The New York Mets were celebrating their 50th anniversary. Struggling under the cloud of Bernie Madoff, the Mets were not expected to have a big season in 2012 but were playing well at 28-23 through the first two months. The Mets started June with a three-game series against the reigning World Champion St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals were scuffling at 27-24 for first-year manager Mike Matheny. Getting the start for the Mets was Johan Santana, who was 2-2 in his return from capsule surgery on his shoulder that forced him to miss the 2011 season.
Johan Santana, born on March 13, 1979, in Venezuela, made his debut with the Minnesota Twins in 2000. In 2003, Santana had a breakout season and finished seventh in Cy Young voting. Winning 20 games in 2004, Santana captured the Cy Young in two of the next three seasons. With free agency looming, the Twins were forced to trade Johan Santana to the Mets before the 2008 season. Santana led the NL with a 2.53 ERA in 2008 and finished third in Cy Young voting. Johan Santana pitched well over the next two years before injuries led to him missing 2011. Returning in 2012, Santana pitched well over the first two months and was 2-2 going into a Friday night start against the Cardinals.
After setting down the Cardinals in order in the first inning, Johan Santana issued two walks in the second and one in the fourth, as the game was scoreless until Kirk Nieuwenhuis scored on a sac-fly by Lucas Duda against Adam Wainwright. Daniel Murphy followed with an RBI triple to make it 2-0. Santana issued another walk in the fifth, as the No-Hitter went into the sixth inning. Controversy arose in the sixth as a ball down the line off the bat of Carlos Beltran was ruled foul. Replays showed the umpires were wrong, and it should have been a double in what was Beltran's return to Citi Field after being traded by the Mets in 2011.
The Mets padded their lead when Lucas Duda hit a three-run home run in the sixth. In the seventh inning, Queen native Mike Baxter was injured crashing into the left field wall, keeping the No-Hitter intact, as all the stars were aligning for history at Citi Field. The Mets extended their lead to 8-0 with three runs in the seventh, as manager Terry Collins faced a decision as Johan Santana's pitch count continued to rise.
Ultimately Terry Collins chose to let Johan Santana pursue history as he took the mound in the ninth inning, leading 8-0. After two flyouts, David Freese struck out to end the game, as the Citi Field erupted following the Mets' first No-Hitter. The Mets would fade in the second half, as Johan Santana's shoulder again needed surgery, which would end his career. Terry Collins expressed regret as Santana needed 134 pitches for the No-Hitter, but the Mets ace pitcher was happy to have thrown a No-Hitter.