Ranking the 14 Philadelphia Phillies No-Hitters
Every no-hitter is special, but some are more special than others.
When Phillies rookie outfielder Johan Rojas caught his ninth fly ball of the night last Wednesday, Michael Lorenzen completed the fourteenth no-hitter in Phillies history.
Like the previous thirteen pitching gems, Lorenzen’s no-hitter will live forever in Phillies lore.
“But is it more special than Kevin Millwood’s no-hitter,” asked no one. “Or Tommy Greene’s?”
I wasn’t sure, but I was determined to find out. The 2008philz research team jumped into action and analyzed each of the fourteen games in question. Here is the resulting official special-ness ranking of Philadelphia Phillies no-hitters, from worst to first:
14. September 1, 2014 (Cole Hamels, Jake Diekman, Ken Giles, and Jonathan Papelbon vs. Atlanta Braves)
It wasn’t hard to pick the last-place no-hitter in these rankings. The other thirteen pitching performances were solo efforts, but Hamels was pulled from this one after six innings and 108 pitches on a hot afternoon in Atlanta. Diekman, Giles, and Papelbon pitched an inning each to close it out. It’s a special game, especially in the middle of an awful Phillies season, but the group effort can’t be ranked higher than any of the other no-nos on this list.
13. September 18, 1903 (Chick Fraser vs. Chicago Cubs)
My apologies to any Chick Fraser enthusiasts out there, but someone had to be ranked this low.
Fraser was a notoriously wild pitcher, often leading the major leagues in walks or wild pitches. He hit 219 batters in his 14-year career, the second-highest total of all time. Fraser would win World Series titles with the Chicago Cubs in 1907 and 1908, but on this day the Cubbies were on the losing end of a 10-0 game against the Phils.
The effort loses style points because Fraser walked five batters and the Phillies committed four errors. Additionally, but for the no-hitter, Fraser wasn’t a particularly significant part of Phils history.
12. April 27, 2003 (Kevin Millwood vs. San Francisco Giants)
Millwood spent two seasons with the Phillies, posting a 4.01 ERA in 2003 and a 4.85 ERA in 2004. He wasn’t terrible, but his numbers were disappointing for a guy who went 18-8 with a 3.24 ERA for Atlanta in 2002.
Against the Giants on this day, however, Millwood was special. The San Fran team entered the matchup with an 18-5 record, would go on to win 100 games that season, and featured prime Barry Bonds in their lineup. Millwood mowed them down, striking out ten batters (including Bonds) while walking only three.
The Phillies had just four hits of their own in this one, and the game’s only run came on a Ricky Ledee HR in the first inning.
11. July 8, 1898 (Red Donahue vs. Boston Beaneaters)
It’s difficult to compare events that occurred 105 years apart. But Donahue’s no-hitter gets the edge over Millwood’s no-no because, while Millwood generally disappointed during his time with the Phils, Donahue improved dramatically. The latter pitcher posted a 6.00 ERA in three seasons and 79 games with St. Louis before landing in Philadelphia. In 1897, he lost an astonishing 35 games while allowing the most hits, earned runs, and home runs in baseball.
With the Phillies, however, Donahue was a completely different pitcher. He put up a 3.26 ERA in four seasons and 136 games with the good guys, and his 1898 no-hitter was the second in franchise history. The Phillies won the game 5-0.
10. May 1, 1906 (Johnny Lush vs. Brooklyn Superbas)
I missed this game because I wouldn’t be born for almost another hundred years. But from newspaper accounts at the time, 20-year-old Johnny Lush was absolutely dominant in Brooklyn that day. From the Philadelphia Inquirer:
The local batters were completely baffled by Lush’s drop curve. Crack stickers like Harry Lumley and Tim Jordan, who are effective against the ordinary good pitcher, almost sprained their backs in reaching for Lush’s portside twisters. Their efforts bordered on the ridiculous, and when even the most loyal fans saw the chances of their favorites for winning were waning they jeered them when they struck at balls which did not reach within a foot of their bats.
Lush struck out eleven and walked three in a 6-0 Phillies win. The no-hitter was the fourth in franchise history and the first by a left-handed Phillies pitcher.
9. August 9, 2023 (Michael Lorenzen vs. Washington Nationals)
It’s hard to fully assess Lorenzen’s no-no until we watch his Phillies career unfold. But he has made a great first impression. This game was just his second start with the Phils and his first start in front of the home crowd at Citizens Bank Park.
The Nationals lineup wasn’t particularly strong, but it’s worth noting that the Nationals/Expos franchise hadn’t been no-hit in 3,810 games. That was the longest active streak in the major leagues until Lorenzen’s feat.
Lorenzen threw 124 pitches in the 7-0 Phillies win, striking out five and walking four.
8. August 29, 1885 (Charlie Ferguson vs. Providence Grays)
If you’re not familiar with Charlie Ferguson, I highly recommend learning about his short but glorious career. On this day against Providence, Ferguson was particularly amazing, striking out eight as the Phillies won 1-0. The no-hitter was the franchise’s first.
7. May 23, 1991 (Tommy Greene vs. Montreal Expos)
Greene’s no-hitter is boosted in these rankings because he was in the starting rotation for the beloved 1993 Phillies. He walked seven in this game, which might otherwise drop his effort a few spots. But he struck out ten in the Phillies’ 2-0 win, and the 130 pitches he threw in the game is the highest known pitch total among the no-nos on this list. (Pitch counts for a few of the earliest games are unavailable.)
Just 8,833 fans witnessed the game live in Montreal.
6. August 15, 1990 (Terry Mulholland vs. San Francisco Giants)
Mulholland’s no-hitter has to be ranked adjacent to Greene’s. The games were less than a year apart and, like Greene, Mulholland would be a member of the legendary 1993 squad.
Until Mulholland’s performance in 1990, no Phillies pitcher had thrown a no-hitter at home since Donahue in 1898. Mulholland didn’t walk any batters, and the only runner to reach base got there on an error by third baseman Charlie Hayes. Hayes redeemed himself, however, with a great play to end the ballgame.
Mulholland threw 105 pitches and struck out eight.
5. July 25, 2015 (Cole Hamels vs. Chicago Cubs)
When Hamels took the mound in Chicago for this game in 2015, Phillies fans knew it might be his last start with the team. The Phils were rebuilding and Hamels was their most valuable remaining asset as the trade deadline approached.
But nobody could have predicted the storybook ending to Hamels’ Phillies career. The 2008 World Series MVP struck out thirteen Cubs and walked just two in his final start with the team, throwing 129 pitches in a 5-0 win.
Hamels was the first player to no-hit the Cubs in 7,931 games, dating back to Sandy Koufax’s perfect game against them in 1965.
4. June 23, 1971 (Rick Wise vs. Cincinnati Reds)
Baseball is a team sport, but in 1971 Wise came as close as a player can to winning a game all by himself. He hit two home runs during his no-hitter as the Phillies beat the Reds, 4-0.
Wise was almost perfect on the mound, walking only one hitter. The home runs make this game incredibly special on their own. But Wise’s performance is boosted in these rankings even more because of his direct tie to Steve Carlton: the Phillies acquired Lefty in exchange for Wise in February 1972.
3. May 29, 2010 (Roy Halladay vs. Florida Marlins) **Perfect game**
27 up, 27 down. Roy Halladay threw the twentieth perfect game in major league history in this one, striking out eleven in a 1-0 Phillies victory in Miami. The only run the Phils scored was unearned, as Marlins starting pitcher Josh Johnson threw a solid game of his own.
For most pitchers, a perfect game would be the ultimate career highlight. But for Doc? It wasn’t even his most impressive game in 2010.
2. June 21, 1964 (Jim Bunning vs. New York Mets) **Perfect game**
The only pitcher other than Roy Halladay to throw a perfect game for the Phillies is Jim Bunning. He accomplished the feat on Father’s Day 1964 in New York, and the game marked the Phils’ first no-hitter since Johnny Lush’s 1906 gem.
Bunning’s perfect game was the seventh in major league history. He struck out ten Mets, including seven of the last eleven batters he faced. Perhaps most impressively, Bunning needed just 89 pitches to complete the game.
1. October 6, 2010 (Roy Halladay vs. Cincinnati Reds)
What’s more rare than a perfect game? How about a postseason no-hitter. Halladay accomplished the latter feat in Philadelphia during Game One of the Phillies’ 2010 National League Division Series against the Reds.
Halladay played in thirteen major league seasons before finally pitching in a playoff game. When his opportunity finally arrived, he took full advantage of it, throwing first-pitch strikes to 25 of the 28 batters he faced and striking out eight.
At the time, Halladay’s performance was one of only two postseason no-hitters in the history of major league baseball. (In 2022 there would be a third, a group effort that we will never speak of again.) He came tantalizingly close to his second perfect game of 2010, walking just one batter. Halladay even singled in the second inning to drive in a run.
Just an incredible night from an incredible pitcher.
Carlos Ruiz deserves a note here: he caught Halladay’s no-hitter that night and made a tough play on a dribbler to get the final out. Ruiz also caught Halladay’s perfect game earlier in 2010, the 2014 combined no-hitter, and Hamels’ 2015 no-hitter, making him one of only two catchers in MLB history to catch four no-nos.
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Speaking of no-hitters…
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Tweets of the week.
I had forgotten about this JT Realmuto umpire interaction:
https://twitter.com/mccrystal_alex/status/1691533074192838657?s=20
Honestly, every team should be named like the Phillies:
Family reactions to Wes Wilson’s home run in his first career at-bat and Michael Lorenzen’s no-hitter:
https://twitter.com/JoshReynolds24/status/1689452387243868160?s=20
Twins position player Jordan Luplow imitating Craig Kimbrel on the mound before Johan Rojas takes him deep:
https://twitter.com/_piccone/status/1690178692876546048?s=20
Phillies alumni weekend is always a good time:
https://twitter.com/Aaron_Bracy/status/1690488142933987328?s=20
This week in 2008.
The 2008 Phils were 64-56 at the end of August 13, 2008, tied for first place in the NL East with the New York Mets.
The Phillies couldn’t score a run at Citizens Bank Park to start the week, losing 3-0 to the Marlins on August 7 and 2-0 to the Pirates in 12 innings on August 8. They rebounded on August 9, beating Pittsburgh 4-2. Jimmy Rollins went 4/4 with two triples and Brett Myers pitched into the eighth inning while allowing one run.
They beat the Pirates again the next night, 6-3, to win the series. Chase Utley hit his 29th home run of the season.
But on August 11, the Phils began a terrible series in Los Angeles against the Dodgers. They lost the first game, 8-6. They lost again the next night, 4-3, as Dodgers rookie Clayton Kershaw struck out a career-high eight batters in six innings. And after another loss to LA on August 13, the Phillies’ lead in the NL East was gone.
Definitely wouldn’t want to see the Dodgers in the playoffs…
Phillie you forgot about.
Jeanmar Gomez: 3 seasons with the Phillies (2015-2017), 153 relief appearances, 8-10, 4.35 ERA, 3.99 FIP, 1.43 WHIP, 2.5 BB/9, 6.4 K/9, 39 saves.
If you didn’t pay much attention to the Phils in the Jeanmar Gomez era, I completely understand. The team won 63 games in 2015, 71 games in 2016, and 66 games in 2017. Given the scarcity of save opportunities in those years, it’s a little impressive that Gomez collected as many saves as he did. Almost all of them (37) came in 2016, and no Phillies pitcher has topped that number in a season since.
The official Phillies twitter account even created a JEANMAR gif that year:
Gomez’s ERA, already up from 3.01 in 2015 to 4.85 in 2016, increased again to 7.25 after 18 games in 2017. On June 23 of that year, the team released him.
Gomez hung around the majors for another year or two, but never found more success.
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Thank you for reading and GO PHILS!
Formally petition to have the Millwood no-no ranked slightly higher, since it happened on a Phanatic’s Birthday day. (Also, I was there)
Go phils!