Johan Santana Will Face New York Yankees in 1st Start After No-Hitter

Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork.com reports that New York Mets left-hander Johan Santana will face the New York Yankees this upcoming Friday in his first start after tossing a 134-pitch no-hitter.

Santana recorded the first no-no in Mets history on June 1 against the St. Louis Cardinals, and earned himself an extra day of rest following the career-high pitch count.

If the Yankees remain in their scheduled rotation, right-hander Phil Hughes will get to oppose Santana on Friday night.

Hughes is coming off a gem of his own against Justin Verlander and the Detroit Tigers. He went the full nine innings while allowing just one run—a Prince Fielder solo shot—en route to a 5-1 victory for the Yankees.

All eyes will be on Santana's start, as he'll look to become the second player in major league history to pitch back-to-back no-hitters.

The only man to do so was Johnny Vander Meer, who pitched a no-no against the Boston Braves and then against the Brooklyn Dodgers in consecutive starts, accomplishing this feat in 1938—his first full season in the league.

It won't be easy for Santana to accomplish this feat. Several Yankees have solid career numbers against him.

Robinson Cano (.364), Raul Ibanez (.348) and Derek Jeter (.455) will make things difficult for the Mets' history-making lefty.

The odds are obviously against Santana, but hey, anything can happen in baseball.