| Line 1: |
Line 1: |
| | + | A '''perfect game''' is a [[baseball]] game in which not a single batter from the losing team ever gets on base. It requires that every one of the 27 batters be retired with an out. Unlike a "no-hitter", in which batters can get on base (and even win the game) due to a walk or an error, in a perfect game no batter can get on base for any reason. |
| | | | |
| | + | As of 2013, there have been only 23 perfect games in [[major league baseball]] history, out of hundreds of thousands of games. At least two of those games (including the only [[World Series]] perfect game) have ended on questionable calls by the home plate umpire. And although several pitchers have pitched multiple no-hitters ([[Essay:Greatest Conservative Sports Stars|Great Conservative Sports Star]] Nolan Ryan leads with seven), no pitcher has ever pitched more than one perfect game in Major League Baseball. |
| | + | |
| | + | Phil Humber pitched the 21st perfect game in major league baseball history in April 2012, but he threw 6 more pitches than [[Essay:Greatest Conservative Sports Stars|Great Conservative Sports Star]] [[Jim Bunning]] did in his 90-pitch perfect game four decades ago.<ref>http://content.usatoday.com/communities/dailypitch/post/2012/04/phil-humber-pitches-perfect-game-for-white-sox/1</ref> |
| | + | |
| | + | The first perfect game was thrown on June 12, 1880, by Lee Richmond of the Worcester Ruby Legs in a 1-0 defeat of the Cleveland Blues.<ref>[http://www.baseball-almanac.com/boxscore/06121880.shtml Baseball almanac]</ref> The most recent such game was thrown by Seattle Mariners Felix Hernandez to shut out the Tampa Bay Rays on August 15, 2012. |
| | + | |
| | + | {| class="wikitable" style="width:100%" |
| | + | |+<big>List of 23 Perfect Games</big><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/history/rare_feats/index.jsp?feature=perfect_game|language=English|work=Major League Baseball|accessdate=May 31, 2010|title=Rare Feats}}</ref> |
| | + | ! Pitcher (Team) !! Opposing Team !! Score !! Date |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Lee Richmond (Worcester Ruby Legs)||Cleveland Blues||1-0||06-12-1880 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Monte Ward (Providence Grays)||Buffalo Bisons||5-0||06-17-1880 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[Cy Young]] (Boston Americans)||[[Oakland Athletics|Philadelphia A's]]||3-0||05-05-1904 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Addie Joss (Cleveland Naps)||[[Chicago White Sox]]||1-0||10-02-1908 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Charlie Robertson ([[Chicago White Sox]])||[[Detroit Tigers]]||2-0||04-30-1922 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[Don Larsen]] ([[New York Yankees]])||[[Brooklyn Dodgers]]||2-0||10-08-1956 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[Jim Bunning]] ([[Philadelphia Phillies]])||[[New York Mets]]||6-0||06-21-1964 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[Sandy Koufax]] ([[Los Angeles Dodgers]])||[[Chicago Cubs]]||1-0||09-09-1965 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Catfish Hunter ([[Oakland Athletics]])||[[Minnesota Twins]]||4-0||05-08-1968 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Len Barker ([[Cleveland Indians]])||[[Toronto Blue Jays]]||3-0||05-15-1981 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Mike Witt ([[California Angels]])||[[Texas Rangers]]||1-0||09-30-1984 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Tom Browning ([[Cincinnati Reds]])||[[Los Angeles Dodgers]]||1-0||09-16-1988 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Dennis Martinez ([[Montreal Expos]])||[[Los Angeles Dodgers]]||2-0||07-28-1991 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Kenny Rogers ([[Texas Rangers]])||[[Los Angeles Angels|California Angels]]||4-0||07-28-1994 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[David Wells]] ([[New York Yankees]])||[[Minnesota Twins]]||4-0||05-17-1998 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[David Cone]] ([[New York Yankees]])||[[Montreal Expos]]||6-0||07-18-1999 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[Randy Johnson]] ([[Arizona Diamondbacks]])||[[Atlanta Braves]]||2-0||05-18-2004 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[Mark Buehrle]] ([[Chicago White Sox]])||[[Tampa Bay Rays]]||5-0||07-23-2009 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[Dallas Braden]] ([[Oakland Athletics]])||[[Tampa Bay Rays]]||4-0||05-09-2010 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |[[Roy Halladay]] ([[Philadelphia Phillies]])||[[Florida Marlins]]||1-0||05-29-2010 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Philip Humber ([[Chicago White Sox]])||[[Seattle Mariners]]||4-0||04-21-2012 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Matt Cain ([[San Francisco Giants]])||[[Houston Astros]]||10-0||06-13-2012 |
| | + | |- |
| | + | |Félix Hernández ([[Seattle Mariners]])||[[Tampa Bay Rays]]||1-0||08-15-2012 |
| | + | |} |
| | + | |
| | + | == See also == |
| | + | |
| | + | *[https://www.economist.com/blogs/gametheory/2012/04/perfect-games-baseball ''Economist'' article on perfect games as a measure of excellence] |
| | + | *[[bias in sports]] |
| | + | |
| | + | == References == |
| | + | |
| | + | <references/> |
| | + | {{baseball}} |