Way To Go, Matt Garza!

After being on the losing end of TWO no hitters this season (one being a perfect game, no less!), the Rays have reason to celebrate. Matt Garza tossed the first no hitter in Rays history on Monday Night, shutting down the Tigers.

The contest started out as quite the pitchers duel, as Detroit's Max Scherzer kept the Rays hitless into the sixth inning. He ended up loading the bases without a hit, giving up two walks plus an error by catcher Gerald Laird, and then Matt Joyce hit it out for a grand slam. So much for Scherzer's no-no.

This is Garza's first no-hitter, and his second complete game of the season. He's already 11-5 this year, which is his best record so far. In 2008, he finished 11-9, so he's on pace to get more wins than he's ever had before if he keeps pitching the way he has been lately. But he's not concerned with himself at this point, he's got his eye on taking the AL East. Last night he was quoted as saying:

It's the first no-hitter I've ever had. It's great I was the first one to do it [in Rays history]. It's a young franchise and I have a feeling they're going to have many more to come. But I can't put enough emphasis on it how big the win was. We are trying to win the [American League] East, we're not just trying to win a couple games -- we're trying to win the East and make it known. It was a great way to start the homestand.

The Rays are currently 3 games behind the first place Yankees, and are currently riding high on a 3 game winning streak. They're also in the lead in the Wild Card standings, 5 games ahead of Boston, so there is a fairly good chance they'll land themselves in the post-season if they keep playing the way they have been. In any case, congratulations, Matt Garza!