Marlins Left-Hander No-Hits Rockies Leiter Victorious Over Colorado 11-0 In Florida’s First Mound Masterpiece
Al Leiter found himself part of another jubilant mob scene Saturday night, and this time he was in the middle.
The left-hander pitched the first no-hitter in Florida’s brief history and baseball’s first this season, shutting down the Colorado Rockies 11-0.
“I’m numb. It’s like when Joe Carter hit the home run to win the World Series in 1993,” said Leiter, who pitched for the world champion Toronto Blue Jays that year. “At the time, a lot of us felt like, ‘What did we just do?’
“On a personal level, this is up there. It’s going to take a while to digest it.”
Leiter (6-2), who led the A.L. in walks and wild pitches last season while with Toronto, made his eighth N.L. start and first against the Rockies a memorable one.
“We didn’t come close to a hit, did we?” Colorado’s Dante Bichette said. “He threw hard, harder and hardest.”
As Leiter took the mound for the ninth, the crowd of 31,549 at Joe Robbie Stadium stood to cheer their local hero. The 30-year-old Leiter signed with the Marlins to be close to his home in Plantation, Fla.
Leiter, primarily a power pitcher, mixed his fastball with sliders and an occasional curve to keep the Rockies off balance. He struck out six, walked two and, true to his wild history, hit a batter. Leiter threw 103 pitches, 60 for strikes.
“I can’t describe the way I feel right now. Later, I’ll understand what I’ve accomplished,” Leiter said after taking a curtain call. “It’s jubilation and relief and exhaustion.”
The no-hitter was the first in the majors since Ramon Martinez of Los Angeles held the Marlins without a hit last July 14. Leiter is the first left-hander to pitch a no-hitter since Kenny Rogers of Texas pitched a perfect game against California on July 28, 1994.
The Marlins, who joined the N.L. in 1993 along with the Rockies, had never had a no-hitter pitched. Florida’s no-hitter leaves the San Diego Padres, the Rockies and the New York Mets as the only teams never to have a no-hitter.
Leiter, a left-hander, stayed strictly with his fastball in the ninth and got Jayhawk Owens on a grounder to first for the first out. Quinton McCracken then hit a grounder up the middle that second baseman Craig Grebeck gloved near the bag. Grebeck still had time to turn, set and throw out the runner.
With the crowd standing and hanging on every pitch, Leiter went to a full count on Eric Young before striking him out swinging.
Charles Johnson homered and Terry Pendleton had five RBIs for the Marlins.