SEATTLE -- The clubhouse celebration that awaited John Means was more than 50 years in the making for the Baltimore Orioles and more like a playoff berth being clinched rather than a Wednesday in May.
Only a wild pitch in the dirt kept the Orioles from celebration perfection. That's how dominant Means was in throwing the major leagues' third no-hitter of the season in Baltimore's 6-0 victory over the Seattle Mariners.
A franchise still in the midst of a rebuild and little to celebrate in recent seasons was happy to put the spotlight on its tall lefty who overmatched the Mariners with an array of unhittable fastballs, breaking pitches and a deadly changeup.
No, it wasn't perfection. But it was about as close as it comes.
"I never really thought I'd be here. I'd always write MLB player when I was a kid on the on the sheet when asked you when you what you wanted to do when you're older, but I never thought it was a reality," Means said. "And now that it is, and now I'm able to throw this, it's crazy and I don't even know how to describe it."
Means lowered his ERA to 1.37 and became the first individual Orioles pitcher to toss a no-hitter since Jim Palmer against Oakland on Aug. 13, 1969. Baltimore's previous no-hitter came on July 13, 1991, when Bob Milacki, Mike Flanagan, Mark Williamson and Gregg Olson combined for a 2-0 victory at Oakland.
Means (4-0) struck out 12 and walked none. Seattle's only baserunner was Sam Haggerty after he raced to first swinging on a curveball in the dirt for strike three with one out in the third inning. The 1-2 pitch bounced away from catcher Pedro Severino and ended up being the only blemish that separated Means from a perfect game.
Means pitched the first non-perfect no-hitter in which the opposing team did not reach on a walk, hit by pitch or error, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
YANKEES 6, ASTROS 3 Giancarlo Stanton homered and knocked in four runs as New York beat Houston.
INDIANS 5, ROYALS 4 Josh Naylor homered in the ninth inning, sending Cleveland to a victory over Kansas City.
RANGERS 3, TWINS 1 Hyeon-Jong Yang struck out seven of the first nine batters he faced and eight overall in 31/3 innings to lead Texas in a victory over Minnesota.
TIGERS 6, RED SOX 5 (10) Jeimer Candelario hit a tiebreaking three-run home run in the 10th inning, and Detroit held off Boston.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
CARDINALS 4-2, METS 1-7 Tomas Nido hit a two-run home run, powering New York over St. Louis in the second game of a doubleheader. St. Louis won the opener as Paul DeJong hit a two-run home run and Paul Goldschmidt had a home run off Marcus Stroman.
ROCKIES 6, GIANTS 5 Jon Gray tossed six strong innings and helped himself with an RBI single, and Colorado held off San Francisco.
MARLINS 8, DIAMONDBACKS 0 Adam Duvall hit his fifth home run and finished with four RBI as Miami defeated Arizona.
BRAVES 5, NATIONALS 3 Marcell Ozuna hit Atlanta's third grand slam in four games and the Braves beat Washington.
PHILLIES 5, BREWERS 4 Didi Gregorius hit his eighth career grand slam as Philadelphia beat Milwaukee.
PADRES 4, PIRATES 2 Jake Cronenworth hit a go-ahead, two-run single in the sixth inning and San Diego beat Pittsburgh.
CUBS 6, DODGERS 5 (11) Anthony Rizzo capped Chicago's two-run 11th inning with an RBI single, and the Cubs beat Los Angeles.
INTERLEAGUE
REDS 1, WHITE SOX 0 (10) Cincinnati's Joey Votto fractured his left thumb in the Reds' victory over Chicago. Votto was hit by Dallas Keuchel's (Arkansas Razorbacks) pitch in the fourth inning. Votto is not expected to need surgery, but could miss up to a month. Jesse Winker hit a winning single in the 10th inning.
Wednesday’s games
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Colorado 6, San Francisco 5
St. Louis 4-2, NY Mets 1-7
Miami 8, Arizona 0
Atlanta 5, Washington 3
Philadelphia 5, Milwaukee 4
San Diego 4, Pittsburgh 2
Chicago Cubs 6, LA Dodgers 5 (11)
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Baltimore 6, Seattle 0
NY Yankees 6, Houston 3
Detroit 6, Boston 5 (10)
Texas 3, Minnesota 1
Cleveland 5, Kansas City 4
Tampa Bay at LA Angels, (n)
Toronto at Oakland, (n)
INTERLEAGUE
Cincinnati 1, Chicago White Sox 0 (10)
