Why a no hitter does not make one great.

The following list strenghtens an opinion that I've held for a long time, that a no-hitter is 1) not a prerequisite for SP's into the hall, and 2) does not automatically make one a "great" pitcher.  The basis for the argument is that a one or two-hitter is equally good, and the "no" part is usually largely determined by luck.  What I'm saying is that a pitcher who repeatedly allows three or fewer hits over a career s better than a pitcher who has one no-hitter and otherwise "pretty good" numbers.

• Derek Lowe
• Hideo Nomo
• Clay Buccholz
• Jon Lester

Yes, these guys were all Red Sox when they did it.  That is not a knock, merely coincidental.  Nomo I think makes my case the best.  There are a TON of pitchers out there who can have "no-hit stuff" any given time out, but who, IMO, are not really special compared to the greats.

Agree/Disagree?

It makes you the best pitcher in baseball that night.

I don't hear anyone saying Jim Abbott was an all timer.

Maybe there isn't as much reverence of the no-hitter as I thought...but I've seen a lot of "should pitcher x make the hall" where the lack of a no-hitter was used for the negative, and I've seen a lot of "this kid pitched a no-hitter = future hall of famer" arguments too.

Actually, looking at the list, none of the guys to do it since Randy Johnson in '04 look like anything particulalrly special to me.  I'm not saying these guys are "bad" so no one jum on me for tearing them down but...

Anibal Sanchez, Mark Buehrle, Justin Verlander, and the two guys from above don't look to me like they will have hall-of-fame careers.  That's obviously debateable since none of them has been around that long.

Does anyone have info for me on the 2003 no-hitter of the Yankees?  I forget about that one.  Did Oswalt get hurt or something?

Here, try these:

http://www.astroland.net/sixpitchernohitter.html

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/boxscore/06112003.shtml

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=230611110

Yes there is luck in it, but its also saying you had ALL the stuff that night! You might not be good ever again but for that one night everything clicked.

Check this out::

Out of the top pitchers this decade

• Randy Johnson
• Johan Santana
• Greg Maddux
• John Smoltz
• Pedro Martinez
• Josh Beckett
• C.C.
• Jake Peavy
• ( + acouple more I just cant remember)

Only 1 has had a no-hitter, and thats Randy Johnson who had a no-hitter and a perfect game.

Klingon - thanks for the links.  I could've looked it up myself, but I was lazy.

detroitbrewers - good insights.  I love the "his own form of greatness" observation.  I wasn't trying to tear down the accomplishment, just use it for a lanching point for a separate but related issue: how much weight is given to the no-hitter in determining hall status.

So kudos to John Lester and everyone else who ever pitched a no-no.  It is definitely a special moment in his life and the life of Sox fans.

Totally agree with this post. A no-no is not the indication of a great pitcher. It just means for that game you were dominant enough (or lucky enough ) to perform this task. Pitchers with multiple no hitters usually have a better claim to the title of great, particularly if the games were seperated by a few years.

I was at Burt Hooten's no hitter in Wrigley and while he had some good years, I wouldn't place the great label on him. The day he pitched was miserable. Frigid cold, a light mist falling through out the game and the Pirate hitters looked like they were more interested in getting back int