Former Brewer spotlight: Juan Nieves

Not only was last Tuesday the 38th anniversary of the only solo no-hitter in Milwaukee Brewers history, but the pitcher who completed it was at American Family Field for the occasion. Juan Nieves, now an assistant pitching coach for the Detroit Tigers, was fittingly in Milwaukee on the anniversary of the no-hitter that he threw for the Brewers back in 1987.

However, while the highlight of Nieves' career came on a single day in April nearly four decades ago, there's more to his Brewers' story than the 27 hitless-outs that he covered against the Baltimore Orioles on April 15, 1987. His is a story of adapting to change, making history, and unfortunately, enduring tragic injuries. Let's take a deeper look at Nieves' Brewers career, which has had a lasting impact on the organization and the game of baseball.

Nieves rises to the major leagues at the young age of 20

Originally hailing from Santurce, Puerto Rico, Nieves ended up playing high school baseball at a boarding school in Avon, Connecticut, after the baseball team for the Avon Old Farms school traveled to Puerto Rico and was convinced to take a chance on the then 15-year-old Nieves, who was already turning heads, according to Gordon Edes of ESPN. At Old Farms, Nieves went 19-1 with a 1.05 ERA and gained plenty of attention from MLB Scouts. Eventually, Nieves chose to sign with the Brewers organization, and three years later, he was pitching in the big leagues.

Although Nieves posted a 4.92 ERA in his first major league season, he played an important role for the 1986 Brewers, making 33 starts in a rotation that was headlined by AL Cy-Young runner-up Teddy Higuera. Additionally, Nieves posted four complete games and three shutouts during the 1986 season; the latter was the sixth most in all of baseball.

Nieves' most memorable start came the following April in his second start of the 1987 season. Ironically, he was coming off a start in which he allowed eight hits and six earned runs to the Texas Rangers. But on April 15, 1987, with Bill Schroeder behind the dish, Nieves threw the first and only solo no-hitter in Brewers history. Take a walk down memory lane with the video below, and don't forget to properly thank left-fielder Jim Paciorek for his amazing catch early in the game any time you are remembering Robin Younts' game-ending diving grab in center.

To this day, Nieves is one of just three Puerto Rican pitchers to throw a no-hitter, with the other two coming from John Candelaria of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1976 and Jonathan Sánchez of the San Francisco Giants in 2009. And while the Brewers achieved a two-pitcher no-hitter in September of 2021, thanks to the services of Corbin Burnes and Josh Hader, Nieves' gem in 1987 remains the only solo no-hitter in Brewers history.

Unfortunately, the story of the rest of Nieves' career is a tragic one. After making 33 starts for the Brewers once again in 1987, Nieves started to experience tiredness in his left shoulder during the 1988 season, limiting him to half the amount of starts he made in the previous two seasons. The following spring training, the injury turned worse, with Nieves experiencing a torn rotator cuff that prevented him from ever pitching in the big leagues again. After just three seasons in the majors, Nieves' career was over.

However, Nieves, who has now been coaching in MLB for nearly two decades, maintains a positive outlook on the game of baseball as a whole, and has continuously expressed how blessed he feels to still be a part of it. In an interview last summer with David Laurila of FanGraphs, Nieves said, "I’ve been blessed. I’m very grateful that I’m still in the game. I’ve been coaching a lot longer than I played, and I’m very honored and grateful for this game. I’ve been able to meet a lot of great people. I’ve also seen a lot of young men become not only very good players, but do things like become parents. I’ve seen them become good human beings.”

Current Brewer comparison: DL Hall

Both southpaws whose careers have been greatly impacted by injuries, Nieves and DL Hall possess eerily similar career numbers. They each spent time as starting pitchers and as relievers. They each struggled with walks, and while Hall does possess more strikeout ability than Nieves did, this is partially due to the way the game has changed, with an increased emphasis on missing bats that didn't exist as predominantly 40 years ago.

Although Hall is once again on the 60-day IL after missing a considerable amount of time due to injury last season, Brewers fans are hoping to see their notable trade acquisition from an offseason ago back on the mound soon. While it remains to be seen if Hall will rejoin the team as a starter or a reliever, the Brewers have attempted to build him up as a starter on several occasions and clearly think he is up for the task. Who knows, maybe Hall will be the next Brewers pitcher to toss a solo no-hitter, taking Brewers fans by surprise the same way Nieves did in Baltimore on April 15, 1987.