There's Nothing Quite Like A No Hitter

We love no-hitters; we're kind of obsessed with them, actually. It's one of the reasons we love baseball more than any other sport; any time you show up at a game, there's a chance you'll see one, which is their appeal. They're rare enough to be spectacular, but they're common enough that they seem conceivable. The otherwise forgettable names of Bud Smith and Jose Jimenez are chiseled into our brain solely because they threw no-hitters. We've never seen a no-hitter in person, but every game we attend, we let out a silent sigh of disappointment whenever both teams have a hit. Not tonight ... maybe next time.

We love how the baseball world stops when someone throws a no-hitter, no matter what the circumstances or context. Mark Buehrle's no-hitter last night was like any other no-hitter — a little better than most, actually, if not quite perfect — but that is enough to make it the talk of every sports fan this morning, and will be again the next time it happens. (We'll all watch Buehrle's next start with that quiet hope he'll pull a Vander Meer.) Heck, it's enough to make you understand why people would pour beer on his head in the middle of the field. That looked cold.

Almost Perfect [South Side Sox]