Boston Red Sox: A look at the top no-hitters in franchise history
By Rick McNair
A no-hitter in relief is not what one would expect, but it did happen thanks to Ruth. Ruth took the mound on June 23rd, 1917 and promptly walked the first batter. A difference of opinion with home plate umpire Brick Owens took place and Ruth was dismissed from the game. Enter Ernie Shore.
Shore was a right-handed pitcher with limited accomplishments at the major league level, although between 1914-17 Shore compiled four straight seasons of ten or more wins. The last would be 1917 when Shore went 13-10 – including his no-hitter.
The dynamics of the game was most unusual as the runner on first Ray Morgan took advantage of the situation – a new catcher entered the game as starting catcher Thomas was also tossed – and Morgan was nailed in the attempted steal. Agnew – who replaced Thomas as catcher – went three for three with two RBI.
The game continued and Senator after Senator left without establishing any residency on first base. The final tally was 26 men up and 26 men down to complete the no-hitter. Questions have surfaced over the years. Is this a perfect game? Should Shore even receive credit for a no-hitter? What is known is no one reached base and no errors were committed.
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Ruth was suspended and fined by the league after the game since he also took a swing at umpire Owens. As for Shore he eventually followed the Frazee Express and departed for the New York Yankees for two unremarkable seasons.
Sources: Baseball Almanac/Baseball-Reference