A.J. Burnett was lucky to still be on the mound in the ninth inning on this date — May 12 — in 2001, when the Florida Marlins’ 24-year-old right-hander redefined effectively wild.
Thirty-six Padres came to the plate. Nine were walked. Another was hit. None safely put a ball in play in the Marlins’ 3-0 win in front of 41,811 at Qualcomm Stadium.
“I’ve never seen anything like that,” Marlins manager John Boles said afterward. “I’ve never seen a no-hitter with nine walks, a hit batter and a wild pitch.”
No one had.
Making the second start since returning from a stress fracture in his right foot, Burnett walked one more than the Reds’ Jim Maloney had in a 10-inning no-hitter against the Cubs in August 1965.