Jessica Alcheh-USA TODAY Sports

This was a no-hitter regardless of how you viewed it or how many pitchers it took. The Mets waited more than 50 years for their first: Johan Santana providing the entirety of the 134 tosses on a Friday night at Citi Field. They waited nearly 10 years for the next one: also on a Friday night, also at Citi Field, but using five pitchers to deliver the 159 needed against the Philadelphia Phillies.

A quintet of Tylor Megill, Drew Smith, Joely Rodríguez, Seth Lugo, and Edwin Díaz joined Santana – unconventional, but nonetheless a unique moment in club history.

It was the first no-hitter in the majors that year, the 17th-ever combined no-no, and the only one with five pitchers used. A reason for the high pitch count, the most needed for a no-hitter since the total was widely tracked back in 1988, was thanks to six walks. But it was a slight blemish on an otherwise immaculate evening that ended in a 3-0 victory.

Megill began by holding down an imposing Phillies offense over five innings, mainly with fastballs. After 88 pitches, five strikeouts, and three walks, he was replaced to begin the bullpen relay.

Smith did not allow a baserunner in the 1.1 innings he was on the mound and fanned four. Rodríguez gave out a free pass to the first batter he faced when he came on in the seventh, but a double play ball from Alec Bohm eliminated any further threat.

Lugo finished off the eighth and left a runner stranded when he induced a pair of popups.

Díaz entered in a save situation, except a little bit extra was at stake. He wasted little time sustaining the drama. Bryce Harper, Nick Castellanos, and J.T. Realmuto each went down on strikeouts in a performance that would be reminiscent of the closer’s dominance throughout the season.

The Mets’ offense initially had difficulty in building a lead for their pitchers. After being stifled by Aaron Nola, who retired 10 straight at one point, they got to the Phillies ace in the fifth. Eduardo Escobar singled, Mark Canha doubled on a liner over the third base bag, and Jeff McNeil drove both home with a two-run single to left center, breaking the scoreless deadlock.

The lead increased in the sixth thanks to a Pete Alonso home run for the game’s final margin.

Although their respective fortunes differed in the postseason, the Mets dominated the Phillies during the 2022 regular season — winning 14 of 19 with more special occasions and remarkable finishes. Just six days later, New York orchestrated a ninth-inning rally from 7-1 down at Citizens Bank Park. Later in May, Nick Plummer tied it in the ninth with his first career hit and home run (won later by an Escobar single). Then in August, Canha’s dramatic ninth-inning blast capped a two-homer day and a wild 10-9 road win.