A no-hitter in baseball is a game where a pitcher, or group of pitchers, prevents the opposing team from getting any hits over at least nine innings.

Quick Scoop: What is a no-hitter in baseball?

  • A no-hitter (or “no-hit game”) means the team on offense finishes the game with 0 hits recorded in the box score.
  • Major League Baseball says it only counts as an “official” no-hitter if the game is at least nine innings long and completed.
  • The pitcher can still allow:
    • Walks
    • Hit-by-pitches
    • Errors by fielders
    • Reaching on a fielder’s choice
      and it still remains a no-hitter, as long as no official hit is scored.
  • A no-hitter can even be thrown by multiple pitchers on the same team; this is called a combined no-hitter.

No-hitter vs. perfect game

  • In a no-hitter, some batters may still reach base (walks, errors, etc.).
  • In a perfect game, no one reaches base at all: 27 batters up, 27 batters out, with no hits, no walks, no errors, nothing.

Fun extra: You can throw a no-hitter and still lose

It sounds impossible, but a team can allow no hits and still lose if runs score on walks, errors, or other non-hit plays.

TL;DR: A no-hitter in baseball is a completed game of at least nine innings in which the pitcher(s) allow zero hits, though batters can still reach base in other ways.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.