Volquez Makes History: Ranking The Miami Marlins No-Hitters

No-No No 2: Sanchez Silences Diamondbacks 9/6/06 

This seems like a good time to clarify that beating the Diamondbacks is not a requirement to count as a Miami Marlins no-hitter. The Fish have done so twice, after all. According to ESPN, the last time this happened to Arizona prior to today was during the game we’re about to discuss.

In any event, Anibal Sanchez’s stifling of the Diamondbacks in September of 2006 holds a special place in my heart. Chiefly because I was there to see it.

My first year out of college, and working a real job, afforded me the opportunity to blow plenty of money on things like baseball and football tickets. And while the money I spent watching Daunte Culpepper “play” quarterback might as well have been thrown out the turnpike window, the 2006 Miami Marlins were a blast. Six members received an NL Rookie of the Year vote, and if Sanchez had played the whole season, he might have just beat Hanley Ramirez out for the final nod.

As a small gesture of thanks for taking me to many, many games growing up, I treated my family to tickets to a baseball game. Five of us headed out to the stadium to watch the young rookie pitch, the only pitcher I hadn’t managed to catch live to that point. Whether it pays to be nice, whether there’s such a thing as karma, or it was just a flukey coincidence, I’ll leave up to you. But I’ll cross my fingers this inspires you to do something selfless for someone, perhaps even channeling your inner Marlins Man. Because the reward was the third greatest game I ever attended.

The drama from this one stemmed mainly from the fact that this game kind of mattered. The win put the Marlins back over .500 for the season, and at a time when they were still alive for a surprise postseason berth. There was also a steady barrage of fantastic defensive plays in this one. Incredible dives by Miguel Cabrera and Josh Willingham come to mind- helping to create the feeling that this game could be special.

There was also a key error in the game, one originally called a hit on an extremely poor call. I can remember staring at the scoreboard waiting, hoping for a reversal, and the announcement being very casually made midway through. Myself and a family friend caught the significance right away, but until it was over, my dad thought it was just a shutout. Being a superstitious baseball fan, the last thing I was discussing was the no-hitter. So I got to watch it, and then break the news. Exciting stuff. Getting to share the experience live, see how so many different people reacted to and acted during those final three innings, made for great baseball theater. Fun people watching too.

Six strikeouts, four walks, that one error, and just 103 pitches in a 2-0 victory in an important game all help put Sanchez near the top of the list. Not quite the top though. That honor is reserved for our last entrant.