CINCINNATI — For all the trade rumors, the Giants never actually got close to dealing Blake Snell ahead of Tuesday’s Trade Deadline. That decision was validated in historic fashion on Friday night.

A dominant Snell threw the 18th no-hitter in Giants history in a series-opening 3-0 win over the Reds at Great American Ball Park.

Taking the mound following a one-hour rain delay, Snell showed he was locked in from the start, needing only 11 pitches to strike out the side in the first inning. He didn’t stop rolling from there, racking up 11 punchouts while allowing only three baserunners to reach on a trio of walks.

Snell’s pitch count stood at 108 after he completed eight innings for the first time in his career — besting his previous career high of 7 2/3 innings — but he continued to extend himself by returning to the mound for the ninth. Snell struck out Santiago Espinal swinging with a curveball, induced a weak comebacker from Jonathan India and then coaxed a lineout from Elly De La Cruz to cap his 114-pitch gem.

Tyler Fitzgerald went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and an RBI double, and Casey Schmitt also went deep to back Snell, who now has a sparkling 0.54 ERA (two earned runs over 33 innings) in five starts since returning from the injured list.

It was the first no-hitter by a Giant since Chris Heston twirled one against the Mets on June 9, 2015. Snell became the first pitcher to no-hit the Reds since the Athletics’ Mike Fiers accomplished the feat on May 7, 2019.