Since the Mets finally got over the hump to record a no-hitter last week, the question has been “What took them so long?” After all, they have had no shortage of capable pitchers over the years, including several who had no-hitters for other teams, Nolan Ryan, Tom Seaver, Dwight Gooden, David Cone and Al Leiter among them.
But, actually, it’s a lot more than several – 16 pitchers who have played for the Mets have thrown no-hitters for another team or teams, but not for the Mets. So, why is that? After the jump, I’ll take a look at ballparks and see what (if anything) might be learned.
First off, here is that list of one-time Mets who tossed a no-hitter elsewhere, ordered by years as a Met.
| Rk | Yrs | From | To | Age | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Seaver | 12 | 1967 | 1983 | 22-38 | Ind. Seasons |
| 2 | Dwight Gooden | 11 | 1984 | 1994 | 19-29 | Ind. Seasons |
| 3 | Al Leiter | 7 | 1998 | 2004 | 32-38 | Ind. Seasons |
| 4 | David Cone | 7 | 1987 | 2003 | 24-40 | Ind. Seasons |
| 5 | Nolan Ryan | 5 | 1966 | 1971 | 19-24 | Ind. Seasons |
| 6 | Bret Saberhagen | 4 | 1992 | 1995 | 28-31 | Ind. Seasons |
| 7 | Mike Scott | 4 | 1979 | 1982 | 24-27 | Ind. Seasons |
| 8 | Don Cardwell | 4 | 1967 | 1970 | 31-34 | Ind. Seasons |
| 9 | Philip Humber | 2 | 2006 | 2007 | 23-24 | Ind. Seasons |
| 10 | Scott Erickson | 1 | 2004 | 2004 | 36-36 | Ind. Seasons |
| 11 | Kenny Rogers | 1 | 1999 | 1999 | 34-34 | Ind. Seasons |
| 12 | Hideo Nomo | 1 | 1998 | 1998 | 29-29 | Ind. Seasons |
| 13 | John Candelaria | 1 | 1987 | 1987 | 33-33 | Ind. Seasons |
| 14 | Dock Ellis | 1 | 1979 | 1979 | 34-34 | Ind. Seasons |
| 15 | Dean Chance | 1 | 1970 | 1970 | 29-29 | Ind. Seasons |
| 16 | Warren Spahn | 1 | 1965 | 1965 | 44-44 | Ind. Seasons |
Interesting list of pitchers. Admittedly, many played for the Mets only briefly, but others were Mets for the largest and best parts of their careers. But, was it just being a Met? Or, did visiting teams also have trouble pitching no-hitters against the Mets?
In the tables that follow, I’m showing common names for major league parks (whose names now change with regularity). The statistics presented are for the entire history of the ballpark, even if major renovations or re-configurations have occurred. Also, for the earliest ballparks, I’m not guaranteeing I have all of them, but I do believe most are shown.
No-hitter data, by the way, come from Retrosheet’s no-hitter log, and ballpark data from www.ballparks.com.
So, here are no-hitters thrown in the Mets home ballparks.
[table id=51 /]
So, doesn’t appear there have been many no-hitters thrown against the Mets at home. But, are there any parks that have been worse? Well, here are the ballparks since 1901 where a no-hitter has never been thrown.
[table id=52 /]
So, there you have it. Forbes Field is the toughest place to pitch a no-hitter, hands down. But, Shea Stadium doesn’t seem too far behind as only Forbes Field on this list was in service longer than the average time between no-hitters at Shea.
And, here are the rest, sorted by the average time between no-hitters for each ballpark. You can scroll through or sort and search this table according to your preferences.
[table id=53 /]
As was suspected, Shea is among the toughest parks in which to pitch a no-hitter, placing near the bottom on this list in average time between no-hitters.
Surprises:
- Only one no-hitter in 59 seasons of play at Griffith Stadium, usually regarded as a pitcher-friendly ballpark.
- More no-hitters at Fenway (definitely a hitters park) than at any other ballpark
Not so surprising:
- Astrodome, Oakland Coliseum and Dodger Stadium all near the top of the list
- Wrigley Field, Baker Bowl and Camden Yards near the bottom of the list
Finally, how do the Mets rank compared to other teams.
[table id=54 /]
So, now that the Mets are off the schneid, only the Padres are still looking for their first no-hitter. In terms of no-hitter frequency relative to seasons, the Astros and Angels are on top.
