Joining a list with six Hall of Famers on it and carving a piece of Giants lore more than three decades in the making, Jonathan Sanchez pitched the 13th no-hitter in Giants history Friday night.


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With an 11-strikeout gem against the Padres, Sanchez came one error away from what would have been the franchise's first perfect game in an 8-0 victory. The 110-pitch no-hitter was the first in the Majors in 2009 and put Sanchez in the same exclusive club of no-hit men among Giants with Hall of Famers Amos Rusie, Christy Mathewson, Rube Marquard, Carl Hubbell, Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry.

The Giants hadn't pitched a no-hitter since John "The Count" Montefusco's gem on Sept. 29, 1976, and there hadn't been a Giants no-hitter in San Francisco since Ed Halicki turned the trick Aug. 24, 1975, vs. the Mets. Sanchez's no-hitter, which came the day after Tim Lincecum took one into the seventh inning, was the first at AT&T Park, and the fifth by a San Francisco Giant.

Sanchez is the fourth left-hander to pitch a no-hitter for the Giants, and the first since Carl Hubbell in 1929. Marquard (1915) and Hooks Wiltse (1908) were the only other southpaws to hurl no-hitters for the Giants.

The Giants' history of no-hitters began with Rusie on July 31, 1891. Rusie threw the first franchise no-hitter at age 20, the 12th in the National League, against the Brooklyn Dodgers' Bill Terry in a 6-0 victory. A Hall of Fame right-hander nicknamed The Hoosier Thunderbolt, Rusie pitched for the Giants from 1890-98, when he won at least 20 games each season, including 36 in 1894. Rusie pitched his no-hitter while walking eight and hitting one.

Then in 1899, Rusie was traded for an up-and-coming Cincinnati pitcher by the name of Christy Mathewson -- one of the most lopsided trades of all time. Rusie pitched in only three more games after the trade, while Mathewson went on to a career of 372 wins, 78 shutouts and a 2.13 ERA.

Mathewson is also the only pitcher in Giants history to throw two no-hitters. His first no-hitter, the Giants' second, was on July 15, 1901, against St. Louis. Then, four years later, he did it again against Chicago on June 13, 1905, in a 1-0 win.

After Mathewson came Wiltse, who had a perfect game with two outs in the ninth inning of a scoreless game, but hit opposing pitcher George McQuillan with a pitch before finishing up a 10-inning no-hitter on July 4, 1908. Jeff Tesreau pitched his no-hitter on Sept. 6, 1912, his rookie season, going 17-7 and leading the National League with a 1.96 ERA that year.

Marquard (April 15, 1915 vs. Brooklyn) and Jesse Barnes (May 7, 1922, vs. Philadelphia) followed, and then Hubbell (May 8, 1929, vs. Pittsburgh) pitched what would be the last Giants no-hitter in a longer stretch than the nearly 33-year drought that ended with Sanchez's gem.

Giants no-hitters
Pitcher
Date
Opponent
Score
Amos RussieJuly 31, 1891Brooklyn6-0
Christy MathewsonJuly 15, 1901St. Louis5-0
Christy MathewsonJune 13, 1905Chicago1-0
Hooks WiltseJuly 4, 1908Philadelphia1-0
Jeff TesreauSept. 6, 1912Philadelphia3-0
Rube MarquardApril 15, 1915Brooklyn2-0
Jesse BarnesMay 7, 1922Philadelphia6-0
Carl HubbellMay 8, 1929Pittsburgh11-0
Juan MarichalJune 15, 1963Houston1-0
Gaylord PerrySept. 17, 1968St. Louis1-0
Ed HalickiAug. 24, 1975New York6-0
John MontefuscoSept. 29, 1976Atlanta9-0
Jonathan SanchezJuly 10, 2009San Diego8-0
It was another 34 years before Marichal threw his on June 15, 1963, against Houston. That same year, the Dominican Dandy led the National League in wins, going 25-8 and posting a 2.41 ERA. Marichal was a staple in the Giants rotation from 1960-73, during which time he collected six seasons of at least 20 wins.

Perry, who was incidentally the first Major League pitcher to win the Cy Young Award in both leagues, delivered his no-hitter on Sept. 17, 1968.

After Halicki's Candlestick no-hitter in 1975, Montefusco rounded out the list in '76, before the Giants' no-hitter collection stalled for another three-plus decades. "The Count" put up his no-hitter one season after being named Rookie of the Year.