Two Are (Not) Better Than One

Joel Pineiro pitched a two-hit shutout against the Mets on Tuesday. Fellow blogger Greg at Faith and Fear pointed out that Luis Castillo came this close to having the only hit in a Mets one-hitter (Aaron Heilman, 2005) and the only hit in a one-hitter against the Mets (thank you Jeremy Reed). Besides that...

* It's the 64th time a pitcher has thrown a legit shutout (9 innings or more), allowing 0, 1, or 2 hits against the Mets.

* He's the first pitcher to throw a legit shutout, allowing 0, 1, or 2 hits against the Mets, since Dontrelle Willis threw a one-hitter against them for the Marlins on June 16, 2003.

* He's the first pitcher to throw a legit shutout, allowing 0, 1, or 2 hits against the Mets, in New York since Randy Johnson threw a two-hitter for the Diamondbacks on August 5, 2002.

* He's the first righty pitcher to throw a legit shutout, allowing 0, 1, or 2 hits against the Mets, since Ryan Dempster threw a one-hitter for the Marlins on May 7, 2000.

* He's the first righty pitcher to throw a legit shutout, allowing 0, 1, or 2 hits against the Mets, in New York since Jim Bullinger(!) threw a two-hitter for the Cubs on May 12, 1996. Pedro Martinez threw one against the Mets in New York 11 days earlier.

* Of those 64 legit shutouts, eight have been thrown by Cardinals, though Pineiro's was the first by a Cardinal against the Mets since John Denny in 1979 (two-hitter).

* Joel Pineiro's one strikeout ranks as the fewest by a pitcher in those 64 shutouts in which a pitcher 0-hit, 1-hit, or 2-hit the Mets. The previous mark of 2 was set by Padres pitcher Brent Strom in 1976 (two-hitter).

* The most strikeouts by a pitcher who 0-hit, 1-hit, or 2-hit the Mets is 13, by Sandy Koufax (Dodgers no-hitter, 1962) and Andy Benes (Padres 1-hitter, 1994)

* Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen once threw a two-hit shutout against the Mets, for the Expos on September 21, 1976.

* Joel Pineiro is not on this list yet. But he might be someday...

Most Shutouts vs Mets
Allowing 0, 1, or 2 Hits

3- Jim Bunning
2- Jim Maloney
2- Sandy Koufax
2- Woody Fryman
2- Ernie Broglio
2- Steve Blass

True 2-for-1 Mets fans know...The last pitcher to throw a two-hit shutout with no strikeouts is both a former Met and former Cardinal, and he threw it against the Yankees: Neil Allen (1986 White Sox).