Francisco Córdova (born April 26, 1972) is a Mexican former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to and causing it to be stronger, faster or more Fine motor skill, dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dext ...

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

Career

On January 18, 1996, Córdova was signed by the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

as an amateur

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. He made his major league debut on April 2, 1996. The following year, on July 12, , at a sold out

Three Rivers Stadium Three Rivers Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, from 1970 to 2000. It was home to the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL) ...

, he pitched nine innings of a combined 10-inning

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...

for the Pirates.

Ricardo Rincón Ricardo Rincón Espinoza (born April 13, 1970) is a Mexican former professional baseball relief pitcher. Career Rincón was a left-handed specialist who spent nearly his entire career as a middle reliever and setup pitcher. In his 11-year c ...

pitched the 10th inning. The Pirates won the game on a dramatic three-run,

pinch hit In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, Am ...

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

in the bottom of the 10th by Mark Smith. This game pitched by Córdova and Rincón is recognized as the only combined, extra-inning no-hitter in modern MLB history and is the last no-hitter in Pirates history to date. Córdova would go on to post an 11–8 record that season. He would post a 13–14 record in , to go with a 3.31

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

. His career was shorted by arm troubles. After going through reconstructive elbow surgery in 2001, and missing the entire 2002 season, he signed with the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

before the 2003 season, but failed to make the team after spring training and he retired with a 42–47 record. After his MLB stint, Cordova pitched in his native

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

from 2002 through 2011 with the

Mexico City Tigres The Tigres de Quintana Roo (English: Quintana Roo Tigers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico. The team is part of the Southern Division (). The team has won twelve championships to date: ...

, the Mexico City Diablos Rojos, and the

Petroleros de Minatitlán The Petroleros de Minatitlán (English: Minatitlán Oilers) was a AAA-level baseball team playing in the Mexican League. Their homefield was the Parque 18 de marzo de 1938 in Minatitlán, Veracruz Minatitlán is a city in the List of states of ...

References

External links

1972 births Altoona Curve players Baseball players from Veracruz Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Mexico 20th-century Mexican sportsmen Mexican expatriate baseball players in the United States Nashville Sounds players Baseball players at the 2003 Pan American Games Pan American Games bronze medalists for Mexico Pan American Games bronze medalists in baseball Pittsburgh Pirates players Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Algodoneros de Guasave players Diablos Rojos del México players Petroleros de Minatitlán players {{Mexico-baseball-bio-stub