Feller’s third no-hitter ties record
In 1936, 17-year-old Bob Feller was scouted by Cy Slapnicka and signed to a Cleveland Indians contract for one dollar and an autographed baseball.
Fast forward 15 years, and Feller had become one of the biggest stars in the game – and an American hero.
On July 1, 1951, Feller became the third pitcher in American League or National League history to record three no-hitters when he defeated the Detroit Tigers.
Feller joined Larry Corcoran and Cy Young in that club – but both Corcoran and Young had thrown no-hitters prior to the advent of the Modern Era (the birth of the American League) in 1901.
“I think the idea (of a no-hitter) began to sneak up on the crowd about the same time and I could hear the buzzing out on the mound,” Feller told the Cleveland Plain Dealer after the game. “I tried to keep it in the back of my mind, bearing down and concentrating on one batter at a time.”
Feller also credited his infielders – Bobby Ávila, Al Rosen and Ray Boone – for key defensive plays that kept the no-hitter alive.
“I think there were four or five balls that might have been hits if they hadn’t made great plays,” Feller told the Cleveland Press.
Feller had his last dominant season in 1951, going 22-8 (leading the AL in wins) with a 3.50 ERA over 249.2 innings. He finished fifth in the AL Most Valuable Player voting, the fourth-and-final time of his career he would crack the Top 5 in that balloting.
A flame-throwing phenomenon when he debuted with Cleveland in 1936, Feller led the big leagues in strikeouts as a 19-year-old two years later. He tossed his first career no-hitter when he shut down the White Sox on Opening Day in 1940, then added his second no-hitter in 1946.
In between, Feller became the first professional athlete to enlist in the military during World War II, volunteering just days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Feller served as a gun captain aboard the USS Alabama.
Feller missed the 1942, 1943 and 1944 seasons completely due to his military service but was discharged in 1945 with two months left in the season. He returned to Cleveland and regained his form by posting a 5-3 record with 59 strikeouts across his nine starts.
Feller was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962 during his first year of eligibility, joining Jackie Robinson that year as the first first-ballot Hall of Famers since the original Hall of Fame Class of 1936.
Over 18 seasons and 570 games, Feller went 266-162 with 2,581 strikeouts and 44 shutouts and was an eight-time All-Star.
Khadifi Madison was the spring 2026 Jim Murray Scholars intern at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
