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PITTSBURGH -- The San Diego Padres have gone 45 seasons without a no-hitter. Andrew Cashner nearly put a perfect end to their drought. The right-hander carried a perfect game into the seventh inning and faced the minimum 27 batters in a one-hitter that sent San Diego past the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-0 on Monday night. Cashner (10-8) retired his first 18 batters before Jose Tabata grounded a clean single into right field leading off the seventh. Tabata was erased when Andrew McCutchen grounded into an inning-ending double play, and Cashner cruised the rest of the way for his first complete game in 31 career starts. "Ive had some no-hitters broken up before and I think in previous times Ive learned to stay with my game plan and keep making pitches," Cashner said. "That was a big spot in the game with McCutchen up. I kept telling myself to keep throwing my sinker where I wanted to, even though I gave up the hit on it." The Padres, who began play in 1969, remain the only major league franchise without a no-hitter. Cashner, who has not allowed more than three earned runs in any of his last 11 starts, did not second-guess himself about throwing a sinker to Tabata. "I didnt want to get beat with my slider there," Cashner said. "I still think its a great pitch. I still think its the right pitch. Thats the way it goes." Cashner struck out seven, did not walk a batter and threw 97 pitches. He also scored from second on a single, sliding home with the second run of the game, moments before giving up Tabatas hit. Though Cashner said he had never scored from second base or slid into home plate as a professional, he did not blame that for losing the no-hitter. "Scoring that run helped keep me in the game," he said. The Pirates lost for the second time in eight games after entering the day tied for first place in the NL Central with the St. Louis Cardinals, who played later at Colorado. "Cashner was throwing three quality pitches for strikes and, most importantly, he was keeping them all down in the strike zone," Pittsburgh second baseman Neil Walker said. "Sometimes, you have games like this where the other guy just pitches a great game." Kyle Blanks, Ronny Cedeno and Rene Rivera each had two hits as the Padres won for the ninth time in 13 games. They are 17-3 in their last 20 at PNC Park. A.J. Burnett (8-11) took a shutout into the seventh but wound up with the loss. He allowed two runs and six hits in 6 2-3 innings, with three walks and eight strikeouts. "A.J. pitched a heck of a ballgame himself," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. San Diego broke through for two runs against Burnett in the seventh. Cedeno and Rivera opened the inning with singles, and Cashner bunted into a fielders choice that left runners at the corners. Will Venable hit a sacrifice fly, and Cashner scored on Jedd Gyorkos single to left. The Padres left runners in scoring position in the fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth -- but it didnt matter the way Cashner pitched. "Once you get into the fifth inning, I always think about the possibility of a no-hitter," Padres manager Bud Black said. "The way Cash was throwing, where his pitch count was, the look in his eye -- the whole everything was set up for a good game." NOTES: San Diego closer Huston Street missed the game to attend to a personal matter and is not expected to rejoin the team until Wednesday. ... Padres 1B Yonder Alonso could take batting practice with his teammates sometime during the four-game series that concludes Thursday. ... A sizeable contingent of fans made the 90-minute drive from Morgantown, W.Va., to cheer Gyorko, a native of the city and former star at West Virginia. ... The Pirates honoured RHP Tyler Glasnow and OF Andrew Lambo as their minor league player and pitcher of the year. Glasnow was 9-3 with a 2.18 ERA in 24 starts for Class-A West Virginia, and Lambo hit a combined .282 with 32 home runs and 99 RBIs in 120 games with Triple-A Indianapolis and Double-A Altoona. ... Pittsburgh LHP Jeff Locke (10-5, 3.14 ERA) starts Tuesday night against LHP Eric Stults (8-13, 4.03). Mets Jerseys 2019 . Setting United on its way to a 2-0 victory, Rooney sent the ball high from inside the halfway line over goalkeeper Adrian after just seven minutes. "Its just instinct, Ive turned and had a quick look and seen the goalkeeper off his line," Rooney said. New York Mets Pro Shop . - Vince Wilfork has played only two career games in Kansas City. https://www.cheapmetsjerseys.us/ . - Justin Turner is at his best with runners in scoring position, and he delivered again in a big spot for the Los Angeles Dodgers. New York Mets Shirts . A steady downpour and low temperatures were predicted for much of the night. No makeup date was immediately announced, although it was determined that the game will not be part of a doubleheader on Wednesday. Fake Mets Jerseys . Kyle Denbrook, a soccer player from Saint Marys University, took the CIS male athlete of the week honour. Stanley, a fourth-year business administration student from Charlottetown, scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Dalhousie on Friday and tallied again in a 1-0 win over Saint Marys on Sunday.The Toronto Maple Leafs will aim for a fourth straight win tonight when they visit the San Jose Sharks as part of their five-game road trip. The Maple Leafs road trip began with Mondays victory over the Anaheim Ducks. The game marked Toronto head coach Randy Carlyles return to Anaheim, where he served as head coach of the Ducks for six-plus seasons before getting fired on Nov. 31, 2011 and replaced by Bruce Boudreau. The Ducks won the Stanley Cup in 2007 under Carlyle, who went 273-182-61 during his time with Anaheim. Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak each registered a goal and two assists to lead Toronto to a 3-1 win over the Ducks on Monday. Paul Ranger had the other goal and Jonathan Bernier stopped 43-of-44 shots for the win. "It is nice to start off the road trip with a win," Bozak said. "We know it is going to be a really tough trip so that is a big start for us." The Maple Leafs, who are 13-12-7 on the road, also will face the Sharks, Kings, Capitals and Red Wings on their trek. Toronto enters tonight with a one-point lead over Montreal for second place in the Atlantic Division and the Leafs can extend that cushion over the idle Canadiens. The Sharks have won the last two meetings in the series with Toronto and recorded a 4-2 road win over the Maple Leafs on Dec. 3. Niemi stopped 28-of-30 shots to notch the victory and the 30-year-old netminder is 2-1-0 with a 2.01 goals against average in three career games against the Leafs. Toronto has lost six of its last seven games versus the Sharks, but the Leafs were able to halt a five-game winless streak in San Jose when they posted a 4-2 win in Silicon Valley on Jan. 11, 20111.dddddddddddd The Sharks had recorded three wins and pair of ties over five meetings from 1997-2008 before Toronto halted the skid in its last trip to San Jose. The Sharks hope to gain some additional ground in the race for the Pacific Division title, as they shoot for a third straight win tonight. Prior to the Olympic break in February, Anaheim seemed poised to run away with the Pacific crown but the Sharks have made a race of it by going 7-2-1 over their past 10 games. The Sharks enter Tuesday just four points behind the idle Ducks for first place. After beginning a four-game homestand with an overtime loss against Carolina, the Sharks have recorded consecutive wins over Pittsburgh and Montreal. The victories over the Penguins and Canadiens have pushed San Joses excellent home record to 24-4-4 this season. In Saturdays 4-0 win against Montreal, the Sharks received the only offense they would need when Tommy Wingels scored shorthanded just 2:26 into the game. It was the first of two goals on the night for Wingels, while Logan Couture added a marker and two assists. Antti Niemi held down the fort, stopping 27 shots for his third shutout of the season. "(Niemi) played great," said Wingels. "I think for the most part we kept them to the outside, but he made a couple big saves." Matt Nieto added a goal and an assist for the Sharks, who have won four of their last five home games. Next up for San Jose is a three-game road trip that is set to begin Thursday evening in Columbus. The Sharks also will visit both New York teams on the swing, taking on the Islanders on Friday before battling the Rangers on Sunday. ' ' '