When Jake Arrieta of the Chicago Cubs threw a no-hitter last week, it was the sixth in 81 days and the 250th no-hitter of the modern era. The major league record for no-hitters in a single season is seven.
Given that an average season has roughly two no-hitters, the fact that three seasons’ worth came in such a short span could make even close watchers of the game wonder if something unusual was going on.
Have no-hitters become more common? Is offense continuing its recent descent from the heights of the steroid era? Or is it just a blip?