Dodgers hitless streak longest in NL in decades

While Josh Beckett’s no-hitter Sunday got all of the attention, the Los Angeles Dodgers managed a Memorial Weekend milestone unmatched in the NL in decades.

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The streak actually preceded Beckett’s no-hitter, and started in the Dodgers’ loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. Paul Maholm, pitching for the Dodgers, retired four batter without allowing a hit to finish the game, despite hitting a batter and balking once.

Of course, Beckett would go on to dominate the Phillies the next night, on the way to the Dodgers’ fifth no-hitter against Philadelphia.

The next night, the Cincinnati Reds came to town, and were promptly taken to school by the freshly activated Hyun-Jin Ryu.

Ryu rendered the Reds hitless for seven innings, before third baseman Todd Frazier ended Los Angeles’ back-to-back no hit bid. The Dodgers were hit hard in the eighth inning, nearly blowing their four run lead, before ultimatly putting the kibosh on Cincinnati’s comeback attempt.

Ryu actually looked to one-up his teammate Beckett, as he flirted with a perfect game until Frazier’s hit. The Dodgers would have become the first team in Major League history to toss two consecutive no-hit games.

All in all, the Dodgers—or more specifically Paul Maholm, Josh Beckett, and Hyun-Jin Ryu—combined for a total of 17 and one-third hitless innings. In the past 34 years, this feat has been matched by only other team—the 2012 Los Angeles Angels squad.