Chicago Cubs righthander Alec Mills threw the 16th no-hitter in franchise history in a 12-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers Sunday.
Chicago Cubs righthander Alec Mills threw the 16th no-hitter in franchise history in a 12-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers Sunday.
Mills struck out five Brewers, walked three and needed 114 pitches to complete the no-hitter. He got Jace Peterson to ground out to shortstop Javier Báez for the 27th and final out of the game.
Jake Arrieta threw the previous two Cubs' no-hitters, most recently in 2016 against the Reds in Cincinnati. In 2015, he threw his first no-no in Los Angeles against the Dodgers.
Sunday's victory was the sixth of Mills' career. The record for fewest victories prior to a no-hitter is held by Burt Hooton, who tossed his no-no for his second big-league win.
It's been a long journey for Mills. The 28-year-old joined the Cubs in 2017 after the Royals designated him for assignment that February. Kansas City selected him in the 22nd round of the 2012 MLB draft out of the University of Tennessee at Martin, where he was a walk-on.
Mills is the second pitcher in MLB to throw a no-hitter this season. White Sox ace Lucas Giolito threw the 19th no-hitter in White Sox history against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Aug. 25.
This is the first time both Chicago ball clubs have recorded no-hitters in the same season.
Following the no-hitter, Mills' record improves to 5-3 on the season with a 3.93 ERA. The Cubs (28-20) stand 3.5 games ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals for first place in the NL Central. With the loss, the Brewers fall to 20-24 and are 6 games behind the Cubs for third in the division.