The New York Yankees, the most illustrious winning sports franchise in all sports worldwide, has had their share of no-hitters in their history. They also own the only World Series perfect game in the history of baseball.
First, it’s important to know the difference between a no-hitter and a perfect game. A no-hitter seems pretty simple; you allow no hits. But there are some fine nuances. The definition, according to Baseball-Reference.com when a pitcher (or pitchers) allows no hits during the entire course of a game, which consists of at least nine innings. In a no-hit game, batters can get on base and even score, which leaves it open to you to decide whose no-hitter seems integral than another. Walks, errors, hit by pitches, passed and wild balls, and catcher interference that allows a hitter to reach or score is allowed, and it is still a no-hitter.
If you want to bring the integrity of a no-hitter up still another notch, we come to the definition of a perfect game, and it’s far easier to describe. No one gets on base, period in a nine or more inning game. In this writer’s opinion, the best no-hitter to take place in a Yankees uniform was Jim Abbott’s accomplishment on September 4, 1993. Although Abbott allowed 5 runners, none scored. He is the only pitcher to ever throw a no-hitter after being born with no right hand. Don Larsen threw the finest perfect game against the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1956 World Series. To date, it is the only perfect game to be thrown in a World Series.
A note of interest is that previous to 1991, MLB allowed no-hitters and perfect games to occur in games that only had seven innings. MLB and MLBPA (player’s union) changed that in an agreement before the 1991 season. Now they must occur in a nine or more inning game. Much to the chagrin of the Arizona Diamondbacks and their starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner, on April 25, 2021, as part of a seven-inning doubleheader on that day, Bumgarner had a “no-hitter outing.” Still, per MLB official rules, it will not be considered a no-hitter even though he had no control over the game’s length.
The New York Yankees has had 12 no-hitters, all 30 MLB teams have had 268 no-hitters recognized by MLB in the modern era. That is from 1901, when the American League was formed. According to Sporting News, the Los Angeles Dodgers (Brooklyn Dodgers) have had the greatest number of no-hitters (26). According to MLB.com, Nolan Ryan had the most no-hitters in his career (7).
Here are all the New York Yankee’s no-hitters:
- George Anthony Mogridge. April 24, 1917, against the Boston Red Sox. The final score was tied for the smallest victory, 2-1 with 3 baserunners allowed. It was the first no-hitter ever thrown at Boston’s Fenway Park. Morgridge played for the Yankees from 1915 to 1920. He accomplished his feat at the age of 28 and spent 15 years in the major leagues.
- Samuel Pond Jones. September 4, 1923, against the Philadelphia Athletics. The final score was 2-0, with 2 runners allowed. It is the only no-hitter in MLB hitter where the pitcher did not strike out a single batter. His 22 consecutive seasons pitching in one league is a major league record shared with Herb Pennock, Early Wynn, Red Ruffing, and Steve Carlton.
- Montgomery “Monte” Pearson. August 27, 1938, against the Cleveland Indians. The final score was a Yankee blowout, 13-0 with 2 runners allowed. It was in the second game of a weekend doubleheader and was the first no-hitter ever throw at Yankee Stadium.
- Allie Pierce Reynolds. July 12, 1951, against the Cleveland Indians. The final score was 1-0, tied for the smallest scoring game. He allowed 3 runners, two walks, and an error.
- Allie Pierce Reynolds. September 28, 1951, against the Boston Red Sox. The final score was 8-0 with 4 runners allowed. Reynolds is the only New York Yankee pitcher to ever have two no-hitters in his career; what made it even more amazing is that they were within the same season. He was one of only six MLB pitchers to pitch two no-hitters in the same season. Reynolds pitched for the Yankees for 8 years between 1947 and 1954. During that time, he was one of the best Yankee pitchers ever, going 131-60.
- Don James Larsen. October 8, 1956, against the Brooklyn Dodgers. The final score was 2-0 with no runners. It was the sixth ever perfect game in MLB history and the first for the New York Yankees. It was also the only perfect game during a World Series (Game 5, 1956). The odd thing is that Larsen had a five-year losing record with the Yankees, but on this one day, he was perfect. It just goes to show you why baseball is so wonderful; you never know what could happen on any given day.
- David Allan Righetti. July 4, 1983, against the Boston Red Sox. The final score was 4-0, with 4 runners allowed. The was a very special no-hitter for deceased Yankee owner George Steinbrenner as it was against his most hated team and occurred on his birthday. This is likely the first no-hitter thrown in most present-day Yankee fans’ memory.
- James Anthony Abbott. September 4, 1993, against the Cleveland Indians. The final score was 4-0, with 5 runners allowed. This is my favorite Yankee no-hitter for two reasons. Knowing the history of this player and what he achieved in his baseball career was already inspiring. He is the only pitcher to pitch a no-hitter with only one hand in MLB history. The other reason was that I was honored to be in attendance at the old Yankee stadium, far up the third tier, to witness this remarkable achievement.
- Dwight Eugene Gooden. May 14, 1996, against the Seattle Mariners. The final score was 2-0, with 7 runners allowed. This was the last non-perfect no-hitter to the thrown at the old Yankee Stadium.Â
- David Lee Wells. May 17, 1998, against the Minnesota Twins. The final score was 4-0, and it was the second perfect game thrown in Yankee history and the 15th in major league history. Wells would later admit his accomplishment was made while pitching with a hangover.Â
- David Brian Cone. July 18, 1999, against the Montreal Expos. The final score was 6-0, and it was the Yankees’ third perfect game thrown and the 16th in major league history. It was also the only perfect game to be thrown in interleague play. Notable is that it occurred on Yogi Berra day. The catcher that caught the first-ever perfect game for the Yankees. Joining him in the stands that day was the Yankees’ Don Larsen, who pitched the only perfect game in World Series history, a record still today.
- Corey Scott Kluber. May 19, 2021, against the Texas Rangers. The final score 2-0, with one runner allowed. What makes this no-hitter so remarkable is that it is the only no-hitter that was short, just a walk from becoming a perfect game. Also somewhat like Jim Abbott, Kluber overcame many struggles for the 2 time CY Young Award winner to return to form after not pitching for nearly two years.