The No-Hit Twins — Buchholz and JON LESTER! |

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The No-Hit Twins — Buchholz and JON LESTER!

By Administrator | May 19, 2008

This evening, Jon Lester became the first Red Sox left-handed pitcher to throw a no-hitter since July 14, 1956, when Mel Parnell beat the Chicago White Sox at Fenway Park, 4-0.

With the accomplishment, Lester joins Clay Buchholz as Red Sox young guns who have thrown a no-hitter at Fenway Park within the last year… Buchholz threw his no-hitter last September 1st against the Baltimore Orioles in his second major league start.

Tonight’s game marked another first for Lester: incredibly, it was his first complete game in the major leagues.

He threw 130 pitches — 86 for strikes (the nearly 2:1+ strike-to-ball ratio that I espouse as being the benchmark for excellence in an outing). He threw first-pitch strikes to nineteen of the twenty-eight batters he faced.

Tonight’s no-hitter was the eighteenth in Red Sox history… it was the fifth no-hitter by a Red Sox southpaw [Jesse Tannehill in 1904, Dutch Leonard twice (in 1916 and 1918), Parnell in 1956, and now Jon Lester]

It was the eleventh no-hitter at Fenway Park — the ninth by a Red Sox pitcher.

With tonight’s game, Jason Varitek became the FIRST catcher in MLB history to catch four no-hitters (Hideo Nomo in 2001, Derek Lowe in 2002, Clay Buchholz in 2007, and now Jon Lester in ‘08). And lest we forget, he was within one out of catching a fifth no-hitter when Curt Schilling shook him off in Oakland last season.

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As with Buchholz’ no-hitter last season, a Red Sox rookie made a spectacular defensive play to help save the no-no.

Last year, it was Dustin Pedroia ranging up the middle to snag a Miguel Tejada shot that appeared destined for center field… after fielding the ball, Pedroia jumped to his feet, spun and threw a strike to first base to get the O’s shortstop by a foot.

Tonight, it was Jacoby Ellsbury’s turn to save a no-hitter. In the fourth inning, Kansas City outfielder Jose Guillen hit a line drive into right-center field that sliced and dipped as it progressed towards right field. Ellsbury got a tremendous jump on the ball, used his speed to catch up to it, and dove to catch the ball — catching it only eight-to-ten inches from the Fenway Park turf.

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Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester became members of SOX1FANation in 2007

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Lester has been through a lot in the last twenty-four months…

In August, 2006, he was diagnosed with a treatable form of anaplastic large cell lymphoma. He began chemotherapy treatments the following month and finished those treatments just before Christmas of the same year.

He was one of the first players to arrive at spring training in the Spring of 2007, saying at the time that it was “just nice being normal… working out… getting back to that everyday routine”.

He returned to action in a spring training “B” game on March 6th.

After a series of minor league rehab starts and battling through some early-season injuries, he pitched in his first regular season game in Cleveland on July 23rd — a game he won by limiting the Indians to two runs over six innings (the Red Sox won 6-2).

As the season progressed, he slowly became stronger… the season culminated when he started and won the final game of the 2007 World Series in Colorado.

The 2008 season has been a bit of a struggle… not that his overall numbers have been horrible (he was 2-2, 3.95 entering tonight’s game), but from the perspective that he has often struggled to throw strikes, keep his pitch count low, and get deeper into game…

Until tonight.

Congrats, Jon!

Topics: Miscellaneous |

5 Responses to “The No-Hit Twins — Buchholz and JON LESTER!”

larry bodin Says:
May 19th, 2008 at 11:38 pm
Hi JB,

Congratulations to Jon Lester on his no hitter. It is indeed an accomplishment for any pitcher; it is even a greater accomplishment considering what Jon Lester went through.

I was at the game in Baltimore when Nomo threw his no hitter. The crowd was truly electric. All of the fans, both Red Sox and Orioles fans, were standing and cheering each pitch in the 9th inning. I kept the ticket stub from that game to have a memory and a conversation piece.

I can just imagine the atmosphere at Fenway tonight. This was a great night and a great story.

Larry
Lester’s No-Hitter the Tip of the Iceberg « Imaginary Diamond Says:
May 20th, 2008 at 2:14 am
[...] points out that Jason Varitek made history behind the plate, [...]
Dustin Hockensmith Says:
May 20th, 2008 at 2:18 am
Hi, stumbled upon your site doing a blog search for Jon Lester. I’m not a Sox fan, but can really appreciate the passion that you have for them. Love all those places that license plate appears, too!
Armenian Eagle » Jon Lester Throws No Hitter At Fenway Park Tonight Says:
May 20th, 2008 at 8:47 am
[...] about a Red Sox no hitter last season? Well, here’s another one for you. Jon Lester threw a no hitter tonight against the Kansas City Royals in a 130 pitch effort. It was the first no hitter since Clay Buchholz [...]
Ciaran Smith Says:
June 1st, 2008 at 10:27 pm
It was an awesome game to go to…you never know what you might witness when you go to Fenway. My mom and I got to be there for Lester’s no hitter—Priceless!