PHOENIX — San Diego’s Blake Snell has thrown six hitless innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night.
Snell is trying to throw the ninth no-hitter in the big leagues this season, which would break a record set in 1884. The left-hander has already thrown 91 pitches, striking out nine and walking two.
Snell cruised through the early innings, blowing past an overmatched D-backs lineup with 97 mph fastballs and pinpoint breaking balls. He struck out seven of eight batters in a particularly dominant stretch that lasted from the second to the fourth innings.
The Padres have a 3-0 lead.
Arizona rookie Tyler Gilbert threw the majors’ most recent no-hitter on Aug. 14. That no-hitter was also at Chase Field against the Padres.
The Chicago Cubs threw a combined effort June 24. The other no-hitters this year were thrown by San Diego’s Joe Musgrove (April 9), Carlos Rodón of the Chicago White Sox (April 14), Baltimore’s John Means (May 5), Cincinnati’s Wade Miley (May 7), Detroit’s Spencer Turnbull (May 18) and the New York Yankees’ Corey Kluber (May 19).
Most of those gems were thrown before MLB cracked down on the use of sticky foreign substances by pitchers in late June.
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