Has anyone ever pitched a perfect 81 pitch game?
Contents. Without that Monday in October, Don Larsen is an 81-91 pitcher with 14 big league seasons to his credit. But on Oct. 8, 1956, Larsen carved his name into the American sports landscape by pitching the first perfect game in postseason history.
No, no pitcher in major league history has thrown 2 perfect games. Some pitchers who have thrown one perfect game have come very close to throwing a second, but each one allowed one batter to reach base in their second attempt. Examples of this scenario include Cy Young, Sandy Koufax, and Mark Buehrle.
A screwball is a breaking ball designed to move in the opposite direction of just about every other breaking pitch. It is one of the rarest pitches thrown in baseball, mostly because of the tax it can put on a pitcher's arm.
Seventy years ago on this date, he pitched one of the more ridiculous games in organized baseball history. The Pirates Minor Leaguer, at just 19 years old, struck out 27 batters, while giving up no hits, in a regulation nine innings. It's the only time that's ever been done at the professional level.
He is tied with Bob Feller for the most one-hitters, with 12. Ryan also pitched 18 two-hitters. Despite this, he never pitched a perfect game, nor did he ever win a Cy Young Award. Ryan is one of only 29 players in baseball history to have appeared in MLB games in four different decades.
As a result, Aroldis Chapman is credited with throwing the fastest pitch in MLB history. On Sept. 24, 2010, Chapman made MLB history. Then a rookie relief pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds, the fireballer unleashed a fastball clocked at 105.1 mph by PITCH/fx. MLB later bumped that up to 105.8 mph.
Wise one-upped them on June 23, 1971, and nobody has done it since. The same number of pitchers have slugged two homers on the same day they threw a complete-game shutout. The list: Milt Pappas (1961), Pedro Ramos (1962), Sonny Siebert (1971) and Wise.
IP | W | RA9-WAR |
---|---|---|
5,914 | 417 | 156.3 |
On April 23, 1964, Ken Johnson of the Houston Colt . 45s became the first pitcher to throw a nine-inning no-hitter and lose. In fact, he is still the only individual to throw an official (nine-inning) no-hitter and lose.
Each team was allowed to designate up to two pitchers who would be permitted to throw spitballs. After the 1920 season, the use of the spitball was banned with the exception of a group of 17 existing spitballers, who became legacy spitballers and allowed to throw the pitch legally until they retired.
What MLB pitch is illegal?
An illegal pitch may be quick pitch (i.e. a pitch made before the batter is properly set in the batter's box), a pitch made while the pitcher is not in contact with the pitching rubber, or one in which he takes an extra step while making his delivery.
Bill "Spaceman" Lee threw an eephus referred to as the "Leephus", "spaceball" or "moon ball". Pitching for the Boston Red Sox in Game 7 of the 1975 World Series, the Red Sox were up 3–0 when, on a 1–0 count, Lee threw an eephus pitch to Tony Pérez with a runner on base.

Hayden Deal of the Rome Braves threw perhaps the first two-pitch, three-out inning in MiLB history | MLB.com.
Has any batter ever made all 3 outs in an inning? Not in the majors, but it happened in Independent League ball when Bryan Caruso of the North Shore Spirit made all three outs in the fifth inning against the New Jersey Jackals on August 16, 2003. The Spirit sent 19 batters to the plate in the inning and scored 13 runs.
What is the longest home run of all time? Here is the longest verified home run in professional baseball history! In 1987, Joey Meyer, playing for the Triple-A Denver Zephyrs, launched this ball an astonishing 582 FEET! The media could not be played.
Just as he had in 1964, Gibson pitched a complete-game victory in Game 7, against Cy Young winner Jim Lonborg, who pitched a 1-hitter in Game 2.
According to the baseball documentary "Fastball", Nolan Ryan's final fastball, which he threw at age 46, was clocked at 98 MPH. Yep, you read that right.
Steve Carlton, one of most proficient major league pitchers not to throw a no-hitter, was elected to the Hall of Fame 23 years ago today. The 329-game winner never even reached the ninth inning with a no-hitter intact, but he holds the modern-day National League record for one-hitters with six.
Aroldis Chapman: 105.1 MPH
Aroldis Chapman reached 105.1 on the gun last season in his rookie season with the Reds while pitching out of the bullpen. Something tells me it's not the last we see of Chapman.
Over nearly 145 years of professional baseball, no player was tougher to strike out than Hall of Fame shortstop Joe Sewell. In 7,132 career at-bats, Sewell heard the umpire say “Strike three” just 114 times. That's one strikeout for every 63 at-bats, or once every 17 games, or in just .
Who throws the fastest fastball in baseball?
Helsley brought the heat in San Diego and registered the fastest pitch in the majors so far this season. SAN DIEGO — Cardinals reliever Ryan Helsley set a new standard for throwing heat in 2022 against the Padres on Thursday.
Facing the Cleveland Indians, Galarraga retired the first 26 batters he faced. His bid for a perfect game was ruined one out short when first-base umpire Jim Joyce incorrectly ruled that Indians batter Jason Donald reached first base safely on a ground ball.
Five home runs in a game has been achieved four times: Pete Schneider (1923), Lou Frierson (1934), Cecil Dunn (1936) and Dick Lane (1948). In the pre-professional era, Lipman Pike also hit five home runs in 1866.
Nolan Ryan has the record, all in all, and this was from Doppler Radar. His pitch was measured at 108.1 miles per hour. With the equipment used today, the record is held by Aroldis Chapman, at 105.1 mph.
1. Jhoan Duran, RP, Twins. Duran is the only pitcher in MLB averaging better than 100 mph on his fastball, and he's been a dominant reliever for Minnesota. He has a 2.81 ERA and 36/4 K/BB in 25.2 innings with four saves.
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The hardest pitches to hit in Major League Baseball
- Dinelson Lamet's slider.
- Adam Wainwright's curveball. ...
- Zach Davies' changeup. ...
- Dallas Keuchel's cutter. ...
- Marco Gonzales' fastball. ...
The following year on June 11, 1938, Vander Meer pitched a no-hitter against the Boston Bees. Four days later against the Brooklyn Dodgers in what was the first night game ever held at Ebbets Field, he threw another no-hitter, becoming the only player in major league history to throw two straight no-hitters.
B.J. Ryan, a pitcher, once earned a win without actually throwing a pitch.
Seven times a team has been no-hit and still won the game: two notable victories occurred when the Cincinnati Reds defeated the Houston Colt .
By lubricating the ball—with saliva, Vaseline, hair grease, or something else—the pitcher can throw a pitch that slides off his fingers without generating too much backspin. A greased-up pitch behaves kind of like a split-fingered fastball—it drops to the ground faster than a typical pitch.
Is an underhand pitch legal in MLB?
An MLB umpire confirmed pitching underhand is allowed.
The reason why the spitball was banned was that it was regarded as doctoring a baseball. And everything that was considered doctoring a baseball was banned on this day in 1920. Throwing the spitball before that 10th of February 1920 was a common thing. Many pitchers did it.
1. Sandy Koufax, Los Angeles Dodgers.
Bamboo is very strong and durable, but is not approved for MLB use and requires a BBCOR certification mark for organized play. Birch - Birch bats are a good option for someone who wants the aspects of both maple and ash bats.
Alternatively, it is possible for a pitcher to enter a situation where there are two runners on base and no outs. He could throw one pitch that results in a triple play, and for that one pitch he would be credited with a full inning pitched.
As far as the technology of the time could tell us, Nolan Ryan threw a 100 mph fastball. Randy Johnson was clocked as high as 102.
VBR | PLAYER | AVG |
---|---|---|
1 | Manny Machado (SD – 3B) | .440 |
2 | Taylor Ward (LAA – LF,CF,RF) | .365 |
3 | Willy Adames (MIL – SS) | .259 |
4 | Aaron Judge (NYY – CF,RF,DH) | .311 |
Jacob deGrom – New York Mets
He throws the hardest slider, averaging 91.6 mph with the second highest whiff rate of any pitch, trailing only Craig Kimbrel's knuckle-curve. The most amazing trait about his slider is the ability to get swings without ever throwing it in the zone.
Well, according to MLB scribes, only one other player has ever hit for the home run cycle. That was Tyrone Horne, who accomplished the feat on July 27th, 1998 (coincidentally enough for another Cardinals Double-A affiliate, the Arkansas Travelers).
These additional criteria are what make it so difficult for this feat to be accomplished, as pitchers have thrown zero pitches in an inning 26 times, but only twice has a pitcher officially earned a win without throwing a pitch.
What is the lowest pitch count in MLB history?
Charles Henry "Red" Barrett (February 14, 1915 – July 28, 1990) was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played 11 total career seasons in the National League. He played for the Cincinnati Reds, Boston Braves and St. Louis Cardinals. He pitched the shortest complete game by fewest pitches (58) in history.
"The White Sox hit seven home runs during Saturday's game against the Blue Jays at U.S. Cellular Field, and made dubious history in the process. Those seven long balls, all amazingly of the solo variety, were not enough to prevent a 10-8 loss.
Fifty-nine different players have hit two home runs in an inning of a Major League Baseball (MLB) game to date, the most recent being Gleyber Torres of the New York Yankees on September 21, 2022.
Four players — Chuck Finley, A. J. Burnett, Zack Greinke, and Craig Kimbrel — have accomplished the feat more than once in their career; no player has ever struck out more than four batters in an inning.
1966 - Tony Cloninger hits two grand slams and drives in nine runs as the Braves blowout the Giants at Candlestick Park, 17-3. Cloninger is the first National League player to hit two grand slams in a game and is the first pitcher ever to drive in nine runs.
That honor goes to Coors Field. Even though it is the league's largest ballpark, the altitude in Denver helps sluggers get extra distance on their fly balls. So far in 2022, Coors Field ranks first in ESPN's MLB Park Factors for home runs, meaning it helps batters homer more than any other ballpark.
Stanton belted the first 500-foot homer in Statcast™ history by extending way up the Coors Field bleachers in the left-center power gap. It took a Stanton-ian combination of a 115.8-mph exit velocity and a very low 18-degree launch angle for Stanton to reach that part of the park.
No pitcher has ever thrown more than one. The perfect game thrown by Don Larsen in game 5 of the 1956 World Series is the only postseason perfect game in major league history and one of only three postseason no-hitters.
Johnson, at 40 years, was the oldest pitcher in MLB history to throw a perfect game, surpassing Cy Young who was 37 when he threw his perfect game in 1904.
Odds of seeing a perfect game were 4.8% a year, meaning that a 20-year span would likely get one and no more.
What is the most pitches pitched in a game?
Nolan Ryan threw 235 pitches in one game.
There have been two instances when a pitcher has had a perfect game through nine frames, but then lost it in extra innings. In 1959, Harvey Haddix of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitched twelve perfect innings before losing the no-hitter and the game to the Milwaukee Braves in the 13th.
Nine-inning no-hitters in a losing effort
Unlike a perfect game, in which no batters reach base, in regular no-hitters batters can reach base in other ways, such as a walk, an error, or a hit batsman, thus it is possible for the team pitching the no-hitter to lose.
Necciai is best remembered for the unique feat of striking out 27 batters in a nine-inning game, which he accomplished while playing with the Class-D Appalachian League team, the Bristol Twins , on May 13, 1952.
For home plate umpire Pat Hoberg, he was able to stay on an even keel and call a "perfect game" in Game 2 of the World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros on Saturday.
Although it is possible for several pitchers to combine for a perfect game (which has happened 19 times in MLB no-hitters), every MLB perfect game so far has been thrown by a single pitcher. Nippon Professional Baseball's 2007 Japan Series ended with a combined perfect game.
This 35.1 MPH Frank Schwindel pitch is the slowest (known/measured) MLB pitch to ever get hit for a home run!
Based in Iowa, Perfect Game USA is a small hospitality company with only 125 employees and an annual revenue of $3.4M. Team sport for decades to come.
Six position player pitchers have earned a win since 1961: John Baker in 2014, Rocky Colavito in 1968, Davis in 2012, Brent Mayne in 2000, Wilson Valdez in 2011, and Luis Torrens in 2022.
But that's a fairly recent measuring stick in Major League Baseball. Consider 46 years ago today — June 14, 1974. Nolan Ryan of the California Angels threw 235 pitches but was not involved in the decision in the Angels' 4-3, 15-inning victory over the Boston Red Sox.
What is the hardest pitch to pitch?
Each baseball player has their own specialties. However, the two pitches that stand out to be the hardest to hit are the splitter and the slider. This conclusion is backed by research that has been done to detect the whiff rate for various pitches.
The rarest type of triple play, and one of the rarest events of any kind in baseball, is for a single fielder to complete all three outs. There have only been 15 unassisted triple plays in MLB history, making this feat rarer than a perfect game.