One of the most improbable no-hitters in Major League Baseball history happened 30 years ago this month when Dwight “Doc” Gooden got the only one of his career.
Pitching for the New York Yankees, the ex-Met who had battled drug addiction, suspension and injuries blanked the Seattle Mariners 2-0 on May 14, 1996.
Gooden almost didn’t pitch because his father was undergoing open heart surgery the next day in Florida.
But he did, and turned in a gritty performance of between 134 and 136 pitches, with 5 strikeouts and six walks. There is not a consensus among published reports as to how many pitches Gooden threw that night when automatic pitch-count trackers were still years away.
He was around 110 pitches through 8 innings and due up in the 9th were three eventual Hall of Famers – Alex Rodriguez, Ken Griffey Jr. and Edgar Martinez. Gooden walked A-Rod, got Griffey to ground out and walked Martinez. A wild pitch put the tying run on 2nd base. But Gooden struck out Jay Buhner and Paul Sorrento popped out to Derek Jeter and Doc had his no-no.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Doc Gooden’s only no-hitter, for the Yankees in 1996
Reporting by Jonathan Bandler, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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