8 unbelievable stats, facts from Miley's no-no

Wade Miley was unhittable on the mound in the Reds' 3-0 victory on Friday night, rendering Cleveland silent at the plate and putting himself into the record books. It’s the fourth no-hitter of 2021, and the second time the Indians have been on the losing end of one. When Amed Rosario reached on a Nick Senzel error in the sixth inning, it seemed like we might be in for another no-hitter that would’ve been perfect, save for one play, but Miley later walked Cesar Hernandez in the same frame.

There have been four no-hitters already this year, which means more healthy servings of fun facts and stats to contextualize them. Here are eight about Miley’s no-no.

1) It was the 17th no-hitter in Reds franchise history, and the team’s first since Homer Bailey threw his second in two years, on July 2, 2013, against San Francisco -- a game Cincinnati also won, 3-0, and which also featured a delay (though the culprit was lighting, not weather). The club’s 17 no-hitters are tied with the Giants for second-most among National League teams, trailing the Dodgers (23), and fourth-most overall.

2) For the Indians, the trend of being on the other side of history continues. It’s the 13th time they’ve been no-hit in franchise history -- but the first time it’s happened twice in a season, after they were no-hit by Carlos Rodón on April 14. Cleveland is the third team in MLB history to be no-hit twice within its first 31 games of a season, joining the 1917 White Sox and the 1884 Pittsburgh Alleghenys of the American Association, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. It's also the eighth team to be no-hit twice in a span of 21 games or fewer in a single season. And it’s worth noting, with so much season left: No team has been no-hit three times in a season.

3) This is just the second time in Major League history that there have been at least four no-hitters through May 7 in a season -- along with 1917, when there were five through that calendar date. The last no-hitter before Miley’s was John Means’ -- on May 5. It’s the shortest span between no-hitters across the Majors since 1990, when there were two no-hitters on the same _day_, on June 29 (Fernando Valenzuela and Dave Stewart).

4) Miley allowed just one batted ball with an expected batting average above .390 during his historic night: a lineout to Franmil Reyes in the fifth inning with an expected batting average of .720. He allowed an average exit velocity of 84.7 mph, continuing a trend for Miley, who entered Friday with an average exit velocity allowed of just 83.6 mph, second-lowest in the Majors (minimum 75 batted balls).

5) Prior to Miley’s no-no, the last no-hitter at Progressive Field was thrown by Angels right-hander Ervin Santana against the Indians on July 27, 2011. Santana gave up an unearned run in the first inning, due to an error by the shortstop and a wild pitch, but beyond that, only one Cleveland batter reached base -- Lonnie Chisenhall walked in the eighth inning. Santana struck out 10 on 105 pitches (76 strikes).

6) Before the Indians were no-hit for the second time this season Friday night, the last time a team was no-hit twice in the same season was in 2019, when the Mariners were on the wrong end of combined no-hitters by the Angels (July 12) and the Astros (Aug. 3).

7) This is the fourth no-hitter on May 7 in MLB history. Mike Fiers no-hit the Reds on May 7, 2019, Justin Verlander no-hit the Blue Jays on that date in 2011, and Jesse Barnes no-hit the Phillies on May 7, 1922.

8) Home-plate umpire Lance Barksdale celebrated a first, too, on Friday night -- his first no-hitter behind the plate. He had been an umpire at other bases in no-hitters, but never at home plate. His career began at the MLB level in 2000, and he was promoted to full-time in '06.