Buchholz One Better (Than Schilling)

The first Red Sox rookie and only the third pitcher to do it in his first two starts, 23 year old Buchholz threw his first major league no-hitter for his second big league win. It was the 17th no-hitter in Red Sox history, and the 20th no-hitter thrown by a rookie in the history of organized ball.

Buchholz needed only 115 pitches to put down the sorry Baltimore Orioles, racking up nine strikeouts along the way. The difference-maker tonight was Buchholz's changeup, dropping from a directly overhead arm slot and hidden release point to hit the dirt and make even experienced hitters look foolish.

The only other pitchers to toss a no-no within their first two starts were Bobo Holloman in 1953 with the St. Louis Browns and Wilson Alvarez in 1991 with the Chicago White Sox. Unfortunately, the early successes of both pitchers didn't necessarily punch the tickets to Cooperstown for them. Holloman had only one season in the bigs, going 3-7 with a 5.23 ERA. Alvarez was certainly better, a 14 year career ending in 2005 with a 102-92 career record and 3.96 career ERA. With any luck, Buchholz will have a long, successful career in Boston.