On this date in 1997, Mike Mussina fell tantalizingly short of baseball history in an excellent start against the Indians. It was
Friday, May 30, 1997, and Moose thrilled the hometown crowd at Oriole Park at Camden Yards by retiring the first 25 Cleveland batters in order. The O's built a 3-0 lead on single runs in the first, third, and sixth innings, with their runs scoring on RBI singles by Rafael Palmeiro and Brady Anderson as well as a fielder's choice grounder by Cal Ripken. But with one out in the ninth inning, Sandy Alomar Jr. spoiled Mussina's perfect game bid by lining a single to left field. Baltimore's ace rebounded nicely, striking out pinch hitter Brian Giles and leadoff man Marquis Grissom to end the game and preserve the one-hit shutout. In all, he whiffed 10 batters and improved his record to 7-1. The Orioles, meanwhile, boosted their team record to 35-15, increasing their American League East division lead over the second-place Yankees to a whopping 8.5 games. Moose never did toss a no-hitter in his career, but he had a pretty good run of it anyhow.
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