Francisco Lindor of the New York Mets delivered a dramatic moment in Major League Baseball when his home run during the ninth inning shattered the Toronto Blue Jays' no-hit bid. The game, held at Rogers Center in Toronto, saw Bowden Francis come tantalizingly close to achieving a no-hitter before Lindor's crucial homer tied the score 1-1.
The Mets capitalized on the momentum, scoring an additional five runs, including a standout triple by Francisco Alvarez. Although the Blue Jays managed to add another run later in the game, it wasn't enough to overturn the Mets' commanding 6-2 victory.
'It felt really good,' Lindor remarked after the game. 'It was one of those hits that I could tell the vibes in the dugout were lifted. Everything was going his way until the last pitch he threw.'
Lindor's home run came off Francis' 111th pitch of the season, marking the second time the 28-year-old pitcher has thrown over 100 pitches in a single season since his MLB debut in 2022. Francis expressed his frustration, saying, 'With that many pitches, I felt like I had to empty the tank with heaters and let him put the ball in play.'
This isn't Francis' first heartbreaking loss of a no-hitter. Earlier in the season, Taylor Ward of the Los Angeles Angels ended Francis' no-hit bid with a leadoff homer in the ninth inning. Francis now joins the ranks of pitchers like Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, who also lost two no-hit bids in the ninth inning during a single season back in 1989.
'It sucks for him that it's happened twice in the same fashion,' Jays' manager John Schneider commented following the game.
The Mets (80-66) secured their 80th win of the season, positioning themselves ahead of the Atlanta Braves (79-67) by one game in the race for the final National League wild-card playoff spot.
Reference(s):
Francisco Lindor ends Blue Jays' no-hit bid with a homer in 9th
cgtn.com
