On June 11, 2003, the Houston Astros threw a combined no-hitter against the New York Yankees in the Bronx. Just over 19 years later, history repeated itself.
While the 2003 no-hitter featured six pitchers, the Astros only needed three this time. Cristian Javier did most of the work, going seven innings before being pulled after throwing a career-high 115 pitches. Héctor Neris handled eighth inning duties and got into some trouble by walking two hitters, but got through the inning without allowing a hit when Aaron Judge hit into a fielder’s choice for the third out.
3 more outs!
Watch @MLBNetwork to see if the @Astros can complete the no-hit bid. https://t.co/15EatBXUTp pic.twitter.com/mqfd5ErWaD
— MLB (@MLB) June 25, 2022
That cleared the stage for Ryan Pressly, who closed out the no-hitter in the ninth inning, last retiring Giancarlo Stanton.
https://twitter.com/thecomeback/status/1540793787869384706
Entering Saturday, the Yankees had MLB’s best record and led the league in runs scored, OPS and OPS+. Any no-hitter is notable. It’s even more notable when it comes against that kind of opponent. With that in mind, this effort caught the attention of the MLB world.
No-hitter in the Bronx, against the Yankees.
I did not expect to type those words at any time in 2022. @MLBNetwork @MLB
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) June 25, 2022
They did it. The Astros have no-hit the Yankees, with Cristian Javier (7 innings), Héctor Neris & Ryan Pressly throwing Houston's second combined no-hitter at Yankee Stadium, in a 3-0 win.
Astros are the only team to no-hit the Yankees since 1958, and both have been combined.
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) June 25, 2022
Like clockwork, every 19 years and 14 days, a group of Astro pitchers no-hits the Yankees.
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) June 25, 2022
Someone needs to revise the Yankees Wikipedia page to reflect their actual owners, the Houston Astros
— Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) June 25, 2022
It's interesting to see the Yankees actually play a good team this year.
They can't keep up.
— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) June 25, 2022
The Yankees entered today's game with a record of 52-19 (.732).
That is the highest win percentage ever for any AL/NL team entering a game in which they were no hit (min. 50 games into a season).
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) June 25, 2022
After a nightmarish loss on Thursday night, the Astros have made a big, big statement the past two games, especially with no-hitter.
— Mike Francesa (@MikeFrancesa) June 25, 2022
Javier went seven innings, walked one and struck out 13 hitters. Neris walked two and struck out one in his inning of work. Pressly pitched a perfect ninth inning, striking out two before the game-ending groundout from Stanton.
The series between these two American League powerhouses started terribly for the Astros, who blew a three-run ninth inning lead in a walk-off loss on Thursday. Since then, things have gone smoother. Houston defeated the Astros 3-1 on Friday, allowing only five hits. Now, the Astros have thrown a no-hitter and ensured that they’ll do no worse than split the four-game series in the Bronx.
About Michael Dixon
About Michael:
-- Writer/editor for thecomeback.com and awfulannouncing.com.
-- Bay Area born and raised, currently living in the Indianapolis area.
-- Twitter:
@mfdixon1985 (personal).
@michaeldixonsports (work).
-- Email: mdixon@thecomeback.com
Send tips, corrections, comments and (respectful) disagreements to that email. Do the same with pizza recommendations, taco recommendations and Seinfeld quotes.