Johan Santana makes New York Mets history with club’s first no-hitter

After 35 one-hitters, the New York Mets finally joined the no-hit club on June 1 when Johan Santana pitched the team’s first one in 50 years in an 8-0 win over the St. Louis Cardinals at Citi Field. However, there will be some controversy attached to the feat since television replays showed that a foul ball in the sixth inning was actually fair. Santana ended the game with his 134th pitch which struck out David Freese after falling behind 3-0 in the count to put his name in the history book.
It’s a great way for the Mets to celebrate their 50-year anniversary and Santana thanked the fans for showing their appreciation. He said last year was tough due to injuries and he just wanted to stay healthy this season. He added that a no-hitter was the last thing on his mind. He also thanked his teammates for saving his bacon on a couple of balls which looked to be sure base hits.
Santana had a 115 pitch limit set on him by Mets manager Terry Collins to make sure he didn’t do any damage to his left shoulder, which has been surgically repaired. But Collins wasn’t about to take his pitcher out of the game with an historic no-hitter on the line. However, things looked dicey for Santana after his 119th pitch when Collins visited the mound following a leadoff walk to Rafael Furcal.
The game’s controversial moment took place in the sixth inning with former Met Carlos Beltran leading off the inning at plate for the Cardinals. It was the slugger’s first game back at Citi Field in an opposing uniform after more than six years with the Mets. Beltran hammered Santana’s pitch sharply down the third-base line. Umpire Adrian Johnson immediately called it a foul ball. On the next pitch, Beltran hit a one-hopper down the line to third baseman David Wright and was thrown out at first base.
Television replays showed that Beltran’s ball hit the foul line and should have been called a fair ball. If it had have been, Beltran would have broken the no-hit bid right then and there. After the call was made, Jose Oquendo, the Cardinals’ third-base coach got into a heated argument with Johnson. Mike Matheny, the team’s manager, then came out and joined in the debate with Johnson, but to no avail.
Santana received plenty of run support, but it came late in the game with the Mets scoring a trio of runs in both the sixth and seventh innings. They had a 2-0 lead heading into the sixth and that was expanded with a three-run homer by Lucas Duda, who finished the night with four RBIs.

Santana’s season record now stands at 3-2 with an ERA of 2.38. He finished the night by walking five batters and striking out eight. The 33-year-old from Tovar, Venezuela, has a career record of 136-71 with an ERA of 3.08. The no-hitter was his 15th career complete game and his 10th shutout.