Nomo Has a Real Gem of a Debut

By the fourth inning, a line was forming about 20 yards from the Baltimore Orioles’ dugout just outside the clubhouse video room. The visitors were frantic to uncover the mystery of Hideo Nomo.

They never learned.

In his debut for a Boston Red Sox team torn apart by injuries and intrigue since spring training, Nomo pitched the first no-hitter in Camden Yards history and the first in 36 years for his angst-ridden franchise. The Japanese contortionist and his disappearing forkball beat the Orioles, 3-0, on Wednesday before a crowd of 35,602 that by night’s end cheered his every trick.

“It was a nightmare,” said Oriole second baseman Jerry Hairston, victimized for three of Nomo’s 11 strikeouts. “I had some great swings at pitches I thought I couldn’t miss. But it wasn’t there.”

Nomo, 32, signed a one-year, $4.5-million contract last winter. The pitching-thin Orioles, uncertain about Nomo’s durability, were among the clubs that passed on him. Nomo then emerged from a winless spring to throw the second no-hitter of his career at a lineup that never adjusted to his vanishing split-finger pitch or less-than-overpowering fastball.

“Guys were coming up here [to the video room] to see what was happening,” Manager Mike Hargrove said. “Everybody was swinging ahead of his fastball.”

Nomo walked three and was hurt by one error. He benefited in the ninth inning from second baseman Mike Lansing’s catch of Mike Bordick’s pop fly into shallow center field.

“As soon as I saw it, I put my head down,” Lansing said. “I knew I had to go all out and get there. . . . He had worked so hard to get that far. I didn’t want him to lose it at that point.”

Nomo then retired Delino DeShields on a routine fly to left field, his teammates swarmed him and Camden Yards stood in appreciation.

“I felt pretty good throughout the game as I was going into the ninth inning,” Nomo said through interpreter Chang Lee. “I wasn’t really nervous but I had the same thought throughout the game. I wasn’t thinking too much. I trusted the catcher to follow his lead.”

“I didn’t second-guess anything we did,” said catcher Jason Varitek. “We had a good mix. We kept hitters off-balance. We got ahead. We got a few high strikes called but it’s an ongoing adjustment for everyone.”

The fourth pitcher to throw no-hitters in both leagues, Nomo no-hit the Colorado Rockies while with the Dodgers on Sept. 17, 1996, after a two-hour delay because of cold. Wednesday’s night’s game was delayed 43 minutes by a power outage that darkened the ballpark and the B&O; warehouse.

After his first no-hitter, Nomo bounced to the New York Mets, Milwaukee Brewers and Detroit Tigers. He got the support he needed Wednesday from first baseman Brian Daubach, who had a solo homer and two-run shot against Sidney Ponson.

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Circuit Breakers

Pitchers who have thrown no-hitters in both leagues:

CY YOUNG

* AL--May 5, 1904, with Boston Red Sox vs. Philadelphia, 3-0; June 30, 1908, with Boston Red Sox at New York, 8-0

* NL--1897, with Cleveland Spiders vs. Cincinnati, 6-0

JIM BUNNING

* AL--July 20, 1958, with Detroit Tigers at Boston, 3-0

* NL--June 21, 1964 with Philadelphia Phillies at New York, 6-0, perfect game.

NOLAN RYAN

* AL--May 15, 1973, with Angels, at Kansas City, 3-0; July 15, 1973, with Angels, at Detroit, 6-0; Sept. 28, 1974, with Angels, vs. Minnesota, 4-0; June 1, 1975, with Angels, vs. Baltimore, 1-0; June 11, 1990, with Texas Rangers, at Oakland, 5-0; May 1, 1991, with Texas Rangers, vs. Toronto, 3-0

* NL--Sept. 26, 1981, with Houston Astros, vs. Dodgers, 5-0

HIDEO NOMO

* AL--April 4, 2001, with Boston Red Sox, at Baltimore, 3-0.

* NL--Sept. 17, 1996, with Dodgers at Colorado, 9-0.