Cleveland's Parker Messick flirted with the no-hitter that the Guardians franchise has been searching for over the past four-plus decades on Thursday night, but ultimately failed to complete the job when Juan Brito hit a single in the ninth inning. After four no-nos across Major League Baseball in 2024 no team was able to complete one last season. Six have gotten as far as the final frame before they were thwarted.
No-hitters exist in a unique place. They are unquestionably impressive. Yet no one knows what to do with a combined one. Some would say it shouldn't even count. In an era where every arm that steps on the mound has amazing stuff and batters are not prioritizing contact, an argument could be made that they've lost some of their luster.
But the excitement remains. When someone is clean through five or six innings, the mind begins to wander and curiosity grows. We want to see if that pitcher—or his friends out of the bullpen—can complete the job.
No-hitters are also fairly random. One need not be an All-Star to throw one. Some of the game's greatest never realize the feat. There's certainly no guarantee that fans of a specific team will see one even if they watch every game for years whereas the Astros have tossed four since 2022.
So there's great inequity among franchises in terms of no-hitter history. Messick was attempting the first for Cleveland since 1981. They are one of three clubs in baseball that have only seen one conducted in their uniform.
This is the longest such drought in baseball, as you'll see in the chart below.
When was each MLB team's last no-hitter
| Team | Date | Pitcher | Opponent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cubs | Sept. 4, 2024 | Shota Imanaga, Nate Pearson and Porter Hodge | Pirates |
| Giants | Aug. 2, 2024 | Blake Snell | Reds |
| Padres | July 25, 2024 | Dylan Cease | Nationals |
| Astros | April 1, 2024 | Ronel Blanco | Blue Jays |
| Phillies | Aug. 9, 2023 | Michael Lorenzen | Nationals |
| Tigers | July 8, 2023 | Matt Manning, Jason Foley and Alex Lange | Blue Jays |
| Yankees | June 28, 2023 | Domingo Germán | Athletics |
| Angels | May 10, 2022 | Reid Detmers | Rays |
| Mets | April 29, 2022 | Tylor Megill, Drew Smith, Joely Rodríguez, Seth Lugo, Edwin Díaz | Phillies |
| Brewers | Sept. 11, 2021 | Corbin Burnes and Josh Hader | Guardians |
| Diamondbacks | Aug. 14, 2021 | Tyler Gilbert | Padres |
| Reds | May 7, 2021 | Wade Miley | Guardians |
| Orioles | May 5, 2021 | John Means | Mariners |
| White Sox | April 14, 2021 | Carlos Rodón | Guardians |
| Athletics | May 7, 2019 | Mike Fiers | Reds |
| Mariners | May 8, 2018 | James Paxton | Blue Jays |
| Dodgers | May 4, 2018 | Walker Buehler, Tony Cingrani, Yimi García, Adam Liberatore | Padres |
| Marlins | June 3, 2017 | Edinson Vólquez | Diamondbacks |
| Nationals | Oct. 3, 2015 | Max Scherzer | Pirates |
| Twins | May 3, 2011 | Francisco Liriano | White Sox |
| Rays | July 26, 2010 | Matt Garza | Tigers |
| Rockies | April 17, 2010 | Ubaldo Jimenez | Braves |
| Red Sox | May 19, 2008 | Jon Lester | Royals |
| Pirates | July 12, 1997 | Francisco Cordova and Ricardo Rincon | Astros |
| Rangers | July 28, 1994 | Kenny Rogers | Angels |
| Braves | April 8, 1994 | Kent Mercker | Dodgers |
| Royals | Aug. 26, 1991 | Bret Saberhagen | White Sox |
| Blue Jays | Sept. 2, 1990 | Dave Stieb | Guardians |
| Guardians | May 15, 1981 | Len Barker | Blue Jays |
Some of the names on this list are just perfection. There are some one can remember vividly and others that are just a little flicker. It once again just goes to show how one never knows what they're going to see—or not see—when they make it out to the ballpark.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as When Is the Last Time Each MLB Team Threw a No-Hitter: Surprising Droughts and Forgotten Names.
