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Perfection. It’s what we all strive for, isn’t it? We’re all told practice makes perfect, but for most things in life, perfection cannot be reached; just something to attain to. However, Mark Buehrle proved today that baseball is one of the few things in life where, rare though it may be, perfection can be obtained. Buehrle threw the 18th perfect game (16th in the modern era) in baseball’s storied history for the Chicago White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field against the high-powered Tampa Bay Rays lineup. Perfect game. Even the name inspires a bit of awe. It's one of those accomplishments in sports where the only appropriate reaction seems to be a reflective step back and a tip of the cap.
Where did the term “perfect game” come from? Well, as is the case with most things in the formative days of baseball history, the term had at least a start with Henry Chadwick. He began to use the term “model games” to refer to contests with few hits, errors and runs scored. This term found its way into the papers, as the Chicago Tribune referenced John Ward’s perfect game on June 17, 1880 a few days later as being “called a ‘model’ game - that is, a game equally devoid of base hits and errors.”
So what goes into a perfect game? It’s not an official part of the rulebook, but it’s defined well by Paul Dickson in The New Baseball Dictionary: "A no-hitter in which no opposing player reaches first base, either by a base hit, base on balls, hit batter, or fielding error; i.e., the pitcher or pitchers retire all twenty-seven opposing batters in order." In a nut shell: 27 up, 27 down.
As far as history goes, the first perfect game that we know about was thrown by James “Pud” Galvin on August 17, 1876 at a tournament in Ionia, Michigan. It didn’t attract too much attention, though the feat is made even more incredible when you factor in his other game that same day. Oh yes, Galvin’s perfect game was his second start of the day; his first was another no-hitter where the only baserunners reached on account of errors. So he came a few errors within doing twice in a day what had never been done before.
Now there’s a reason Galvin’s perfect outing didn’t attract too much fanfare. In 1845, the first compiled rules of baseball were laid down on paper by the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York City. Rule Nine states: “The ball must be pitched - not thrown - for the bat.” The rule simply means the pitcher’s job was to let the batter hit the ball (and “pitching” the ball meant throwing it essentially underhand, without bending the elbow; think of a softball pitch today). While Galvin’s perfect game was 30 years after these rules were outlined, the idea that the pitcher would try to get the batter out was still a relatively new concept, and one that had some opposition at that.
It would be almost four years later when the first Major League perfect game would be thrown by Lee Richmond on June 12, 1880. Pitching for the Worcester Worchesters (quite the original name...can you imagine the Chicago Chicagos or the Detroit Detroits today? Neither can I.), his perfect game was kept intact when a single to right was erased when right fielder Lon Knight threw out the hitter at first base.
Below is a list of all 18 perfect games in Major League History (click to expand)
Notes: Don Larsen's perfect game is still the only no-hitter or perfect game pitched in the playoffs or World Series.
The list is courtesy of baseball-almanac.com. The page (linked below) also contains the box score for every perfect game pitched, as well as other relevant information such as near misses, “unofficial” perfect games, pitch counts for the pitchers in these perfect games, and so on. http://www.baseball-almanac.com/pitching/piperf.shtml
Sources:
Morris, A Game of Inches (Vol. 1)
http://www.baseball-almanac.com/pitching/piperf.shtml
Dickinson, The New Baseball Dictionary
Where did the term “perfect game” come from? Well, as is the case with most things in the formative days of baseball history, the term had at least a start with Henry Chadwick. He began to use the term “model games” to refer to contests with few hits, errors and runs scored. This term found its way into the papers, as the Chicago Tribune referenced John Ward’s perfect game on June 17, 1880 a few days later as being “called a ‘model’ game - that is, a game equally devoid of base hits and errors.”
So what goes into a perfect game? It’s not an official part of the rulebook, but it’s defined well by Paul Dickson in The New Baseball Dictionary: "A no-hitter in which no opposing player reaches first base, either by a base hit, base on balls, hit batter, or fielding error; i.e., the pitcher or pitchers retire all twenty-seven opposing batters in order." In a nut shell: 27 up, 27 down.
As far as history goes, the first perfect game that we know about was thrown by James “Pud” Galvin on August 17, 1876 at a tournament in Ionia, Michigan. It didn’t attract too much attention, though the feat is made even more incredible when you factor in his other game that same day. Oh yes, Galvin’s perfect game was his second start of the day; his first was another no-hitter where the only baserunners reached on account of errors. So he came a few errors within doing twice in a day what had never been done before.
Now there’s a reason Galvin’s perfect outing didn’t attract too much fanfare. In 1845, the first compiled rules of baseball were laid down on paper by the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York City. Rule Nine states: “The ball must be pitched - not thrown - for the bat.” The rule simply means the pitcher’s job was to let the batter hit the ball (and “pitching” the ball meant throwing it essentially underhand, without bending the elbow; think of a softball pitch today). While Galvin’s perfect game was 30 years after these rules were outlined, the idea that the pitcher would try to get the batter out was still a relatively new concept, and one that had some opposition at that.
It would be almost four years later when the first Major League perfect game would be thrown by Lee Richmond on June 12, 1880. Pitching for the Worcester Worchesters (quite the original name...can you imagine the Chicago Chicagos or the Detroit Detroits today? Neither can I.), his perfect game was kept intact when a single to right was erased when right fielder Lon Knight threw out the hitter at first base.
Below is a list of all 18 perfect games in Major League History (click to expand)
Notes: Don Larsen's perfect game is still the only no-hitter or perfect game pitched in the playoffs or World Series.
The list is courtesy of baseball-almanac.com. The page (linked below) also contains the box score for every perfect game pitched, as well as other relevant information such as near misses, “unofficial” perfect games, pitch counts for the pitchers in these perfect games, and so on. http://www.baseball-almanac.com/pitching/piperf.shtml
Sources:
Morris, A Game of Inches (Vol. 1)
http://www.baseball-almanac.com/pitching/piperf.shtml
Dickinson, The New Baseball Dictionary
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