MLB Notebook: Beckett enters Dodgers lore

It's not much of a surprise that when it comes to breaking down the Dodgers' no-hitters by opponent, the Giants have suffered the most times. From Tom Lovett in 1891 through Kevin Gross in 1992, the famously antagonistic rivalry has seen six hurlers for the Dodgers' franchise finish a game with no hits surrendered. As for the other no-hitters for the Dodgers' franchise, more than a quarter of them have come at the expense of the Phillies' franchise. Dazzy Vance was the first of five to do it against the club residing in Philadelphia, etching his name in the books for his performance at Ebbets Field in the first game of a doubleheader on Sept. 13, 1925. Thirty-nine-year-old Sal Maglie fanned three Phillies in his no-no at the same ballpark in Brooklyn in 1956, and then Sandy Koufax notched his third career no-hitter at Philadelphia's Connie Mack Stadium, fanning 12 with just one walk in a masterpiece on June 4, 1964. Just six years later, Bill Singer might have been as good as Koufax was on that day in '64, as the right-hander fanned 10, walked none and saw two errors and a hit-by-pitch blemish his dalliance with perfection. And that had been it for more than 40 years, until Josh Beckett stepped onto the mound on Sunday.

Throwing his 128th pitch past Chase Utley for a called strike three, Beckett completed the first no-hitter of the 2014 season. The right-hander's no-no represents the 24th in Dodgers franchise history, with the first three of them taking place when the club was playing in the American Association. The full list: Sam Kimber (1884); Adonis Terry (1886, '88); Lovett (1891); Mal Eason (1906); Nap Rucker ('08); Vance (1925); Tex Carleton (1940), Ed Head ('46); Rex Barney ('48); Carl Erskine (1952, '56); Maglie ('56); Koufax (1962, '63, '64, '65); Bill Singer (1970); Jerry Reuss (1980); Fernando Valenzuela (1990); Gross ('92), Ramon Martinez ('95), Hideo Nomo ('96); and Beckett (2014).

Beckett is the first pitcher since the Expos' Bill Stoneman on April 17, 1969, to no-hit the Phillies in Philadelphia.

Before this game, Beckett had faced the Phillies 21 times and had held the club to a .234 batting average. The only teams he had faced more: the Yankees (29 times) and Rays (22).

Beckett has one career one-hitter on his resume: a gem he produced against the Rays on June 15, 2011. In that contest, the one hit came in the third inning.

At 34 years and 10 days old, Beckett is the oldest pitcher to toss a no-hitter since Randy Johnson (40.251) hurled his perfect game on May 18, 2004. Beckett is the oldest Dodgers hurler to no-hit a club since Maglie was 39 years and 152 days old when he kept the Phillies hitless on Sept. 25, 1956.

Of the 20 Dodgers no-hitters since 1893, Beckett's was the second -- after Gross' in 1992 -- to feature exactly six strikeouts. Rucker and Koufax (1965) share the high mark, with 14 K's apiece.

Beckett's no-hitter was the 140th in National League history (counting Roy Halladay's no-hitter in the 2010 NL Division Series.

Party on, Wain
Adam Wainwright allowed five hits in eight scoreless innings, fanned 12 against one walk, and picked up his eighth win of the season, all part of a night's work in Cincinnati as the Cardinals blanked the Reds, 4-0.

• Wainwright now has four career games with at least 12 K's and no more than one walk -- the second most for any Cardinals pitcher since 1914, with Bob Gibson's 12 still standing head and shoulder above the rest.

• Wainwright is one of 149 Cardinals pitchers since 1914 to have at least 11 starts through the club's first 50 games. His 0.852 WHIP is the lowest within the group, while his 1.67 ERA is merely the fourth lowest. In the latter department, Mort Cooper produced a 1.54 in 1943 and a 1.55 in 1942, while Gibson owned a 1.66 in 1968.

Here and there
• In the Blue Jays' 3-1 win over the A's, Edwin Encarnacion hit his 12th home run of the month and 14th overall. The 12 in May match Jose Bautista's 2010 team record for the most in this specific month. Bautista also owns the Blue Jays' team record for the most long balls in any monthly split, with 14 in June 2012.

• A game after amassing 12 runs on 19 hits in a romp over the Tigers, the Rangers again scored 12 runs, this time with 17 hits, and defeated Detroit, 12-4. It's the third time in franchise history the club has -- in back-to-back games against the same team -- produced at least 12 runs and at least 17 hits. They first did it against the Athletics in 1983 and repeated the trick against the Angels in 2004.

• In the Astros' 4-1 win over the Mariners, Dallas Keuchel threw his second complete game of the year. The left-hander, who was charged with an unearned run in the four-hit effort, owns a 4-1 record with a 1.79 ERA and a 0.744 WHIP in May. Since 1914, not too many pitchers with at least five starts in a May have finished the month with an ERA-WHIP combination as low as Keuchel's current marks; there have been 15 (not counting Keuchel), with only three southpaws among the group: Harry Brecheen (0.92 ERA and 0.641 WHIP in five May games in 1948); Tommy John (0.92, 0.733, seven May games, 1968); and John Candelaria (1.66, 0.648, five May games, 1988).

• The Giants -- behind Madison Bumgarner's seven innings of three-hit, no-walk, 10-strikeout ball -- defeated the Twins, 8-1. The game represents the fifth time in his career Bumgarner had fanned at least 10 while not issuing any walks. Those five before turning 25 years old tie the Giants southpaw with Bert Blyleven and Frank Tanana for the second most for any pitcher since 1914, with only Dwight Gooden having more (six).

• Atlanta's Julio Teheran allowed four hits in six scoreless frames, helping the Braves to a 7-0 win over the Rockies. With the outing, Teheran improved to 4-3 with a 1.77 ERA (third in NL) and a 0.943 WHIP (fifth in NL) in 11 starts. Teheran is one of 167 Braves pitchers since 1914 to have at least 11 starts through the club's first 49 games. Among this group, he ranks sixth in ERA, and fifth in WHIP. In ERA, Teheran is behind: Greg Maddux in 1994 (1.47); Warren Spahn in 1947 (1.48); Tom Glavine in 2002 (1.67); Dick Rudolph in 1919 (1.70); and Lou Fette in 1939 (1.76). In WHIP, Teheran is behind: Pat Jarvis in 1968 (0.837); Maddux in 1994 (0.837); Ed Brandt in 1933 (0.848); John Smoltz in 1996 (0.870).