sentences:  The first pitcher to win nine straight games for the team was Lefty Williams in 1917, and the only one to do it since Grove was LaMarr Hoyt in 1982.On July 8, 1943, Grove nearly became one of the few pitchers in baseball history to pitch a no-hitter.In a game against the Yankees, he was one out away from pitching a no-hitter when Joe Gordon came up to bat.