...And Then There Were Three

On Saturday night, Ubaldo Jimenez pitched the first no-hitter in Colorado Rockies history. His 4-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves left only three teams in the major leagues without a no-hitter. There are the Tampa Bay Rays, who have only been in the league since 1998 and the San Diego Padres, who have also never hit for the cycle since making their debut in 1969.

The third team without a no-hitter is the New York Mets. Although the Mets have 33 one-hitters to their credit, no pitcher has kept an opponent hitless while wearing the orange and blue.

Numerous pitchers have worn the Mets pinstripes and then pitched a no-hitter after leaving the team, such as Tom Seaver, Dwight Gooden, David Cone and some Texan with the first name of Lynn. Perhaps you've heard of him. He was also known for his ability to give noogies at a moment's notice.

Someday, a Met moundsman will pitch a no-hitter before he leaves the team. Until then, Mets fans will just have to settle for 20-inning victories where they couldn't figure out how to score until the position players started taking the mound.

Maybe they should just start a position player and he'll get the Mets their first no-hitter. Stranger things have happened and they usually involve the Mets in some way. After all, the Mets could have had Ubaldo Jimenez and weren't able to sign him back in 2000. Then again, if they had, there's no way he would have thrown Saturday night's no-hitter, right?

Don't get your hopes up, Padres and Rays fans. The Mets will get their first no-hitter before you do. The man who will do it has probably not been born yet, but it will happen. Count on it!