Bowden Francis Flirts with No-Hit Glory Again
For the second time in his last four starts, Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Bowden Francis was tantalizingly close to etching his name into baseball history. On a balmy night at Citi Field, Francis delivered eight masterful, hitless innings against the New York Mets, only for fate to intervene yet again. Leading off the ninth inning, Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor crushed a homer, ending Francis’s no-hit bid and sparking a rally that saw the Mets ultimately secure a 6-2 victory.
Francis’s performance had the makings of a late-season classic. Through eight innings, he demonstrated pinpoint control and efficiency, epitomized by a quick eighth inning in which he retired the side on just six pitches. Though his strikeout numbers were modest—Francis fanned only one batter over his eight innings—his suppression of Mets hitters underscored the craftsman-like precision that has made him one of the most intriguing pitchers of the season.
It was a familiar heartache for Francis, who eighteen days earlier lost another no-hit bid in the ninth inning—this time to a home run by Taylor Ward of the Los Angeles Angels. Such near-misses, however disappointing, highlight the sterling form he's exhibited of late. In four of his last six starts, Francis has surrendered zero or just one hit, each outing lasting at least seven innings. Over an impressive stretch spanning 43 innings, Francis has conceded a mere 12 hits.
The fact that Lindor’s homer came in the ninth inning, reflecting the sheer improbability of Francis’s task, should not overshadow the significance of his performance. Indeed, the Mets’ ninth-inning surge ensured that Francis’s efforts were consigned to a footnote, but his ability to consistently flirt with no-hit bid elevates him into the realm of the extraordinary.
For the Mets, Lindor's homer was more than just the end of Francis’s flirtation with immortality. It was the ignition for a crucial victory that bolstered their grip on the third and final National League wild-card spot. The win also had a historical undertone: The Mets' triumph came with the largest run gap by a team being no-hit through eight innings since the Chicago White Sox stunned the Yankees in 1990.
Francis’s near no-hitter could have been the fifth such feat of the 2024 MLB season. Just a week prior, Shota Imanaga and two Chicago Cubs relievers combined to no-hit the Pittsburgh Pirates, underscoring the rarity and difficulty of the achievement Francis twice narrowly missed.
For Blue Jays fans, the closest thing to a consolation prize remains Dave Stieb's no-hitter on September 2, 1990, the last such milestone for the franchise. As remarkable as Francis’s recent run has been, it serves as a reminder of both the difficulty and the allure of pitching’s most elusive gem.
Yet, in a season so often framed by the performative histrionics of towering sluggers and flashy closers, Francis’s understated dominance grants him a special kind of reverence. His recent outings magnify not only his capability but also the cruelty intrinsic to pitching: in the space of moments, glory can be usurped, dreams dashed by the long ball.
Looking ahead, Francis’s near-misses position him as a pitcher to watch closely as the season reaches its climax. His remarkable consistency and ability to deliver under pressure signals that it may not be long before he flips the script and excels where he has narrowly fallen short.
Whether or not Francis captures that elusive no-hitter, his recent performances have already etched his name alongside the season’s top highlights. Bowden Francis remains a pitcher to be feared and revered, each start bringing the promise—and the thrill—of what might be.