The New York Yankees entered the day winning 12 of their last 15 games, but we didn’t see the typical Bronx Bombers show up to Yankee Stadium on Saturday afternoon. With the Houston Astros in town for the third game of a four-game series, the Yankees left all their bats at home, leading to an ugly day at the ballpark.
While the final score shows that the Astros took down the Yankees 3-0, the actual story of the game was the incredible pitching performance from Houston. The Yankees had a total of just 30 plate appearances on the day, thanks to a combined no-hit effort, in which Astros pitchers combined for just three walks.
Here’s how it all transpired.
Cristian Javier’s gem leads to no-hitter for Houston Astros
While Astros pitcher Cristian Javier has had two other starts this season in which he didn’t allow any hits, they both consisted of three-inning appearances. Saturday’s performance was much better, giving Javier an unforgettable experience.
Entering the game, the Yankees had the best on-base percentage in baseball at .326. But that was before the ‘Stros pitched a shutout, in which only three base-runners touched first base, all coming via walks.
Although it wasn’t a traditional no-hitter with one pitcher doing all the work, most of the damage was done by one person, specifically Cristian Javier.
- Cristian Javier: 7 IP, 1 BB, 13 K, 115 pitches
- Hector Neris: 1 IP, 2 BB, 20 pitches
- Ryan Pressley: 1 IP, 2 K, 15 pitches
In the end, the Astros combined for the 317th no-hitter in MLB history. The last time the Astros pitched a no-hitter was Justin Verlander’s gem on September 1, 2019, against the Toronto Blue Jays and it was the 14th no-hitter in Astros history.
While the Yankees have been no-hit eight times in their prestigious history, it’s the first time they’ve failed to get in the hit column since 2003. According to Bob Nightengale, the Yanks had the best winning percentage (.732) of any team to be no-hit at least 50 games into the baseball season.
Not a bad day to be at the ballpark unless you’re a Yankees fan of course.