Before giving up a solo home run to Angel Taylor Ward in the top of the ninth inning, Blue Jays pitcher Bowden Francis was three outs away from recording the second no-hitter in team history.
Toronto's 3-1 win over Los Angeles was Francis' time to shine, as he recorded a career-high 12 strikeouts on 117 pitches. The right-hander's eight-plus-inning effort comes on the tail end of being named American League Player of the Week last week after going 2-0 with a 0.64 ERA in two starts.
Francis was greeted with a standing ovation when he made way for Chad Green after giving up his first hit.
Here's everything to know about Francis, who almost threw a memorable no-no for the Canadian side.
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Who is Bowden Francis?
Francis is a 28-year-old righty for the Blue Jays. He made his major league debut in 2022 with Toronto after spending several years in the Brewers farm system. Milwaukee took him in the seventh round of the 2017 MLB Draft and traded him to Toronto in 2021 as part of the Rowdy Tellez-Trevor Richards deal.
Named for Bobby Bowden, Francis was announced as a member of the Blue Jays 2024 pitching staff at the beginning of the season. This year, he has already played in more games and thrown nearly twice as many innings as in his first two seasons with Toronto combined.
Bowden Francis stats
So far in 2024, Francis has the second-lowest ERA of Toronto's starters, appearing in 22 games and starting eight. Saturday's eight-inning outing did nothing but cement the 28-year-old as a valuable member of the Blue Jays' rotation.
| GP | GS | Record (W-L) | ERA | WHIP | IP | K | BB | H | ER |
| 22 | 8 | 7-3 | 4.02 | 1.07 | 71.2 | 70 | 19 | 58 | 32 |
Blue Jays no-hitter history
With a full nine no-hit innings today, Francis would have completed the Blue Jays' second no-hitter ever and its first since 1990. That game was pitched by Dave Stieb against the Cleveland Indians.
In 2010, Toronto's Brandon Morrow came quite close to recording a no-hitter, as well. He got within one out of the feat against the Tampa Bay Rays before Evan Longoria knocked a single through the infield.
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Bowden Francis near-no-hitter highlights
Here are some of the best highlights from Francis' near-no-hitter today against Los Angeles.