Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox pitched a perfect game today. It was only the 18th of those in...THE HISTORY OF MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL. He didn't give up a hit, he didn't walk a batter and his defense didn't commit an error. That last bit is sort of a great aspect of a perfect game that is often overlooked. His defense also played a "perfect game" and their proficiency went a long way in ensuring Buehrle's accomplishment. They won't get quite the same amount of attention, though.
There is no better example than in the top of the 9th inning when Dewayne Wise caught a would-be homerun above the top of the fence, brought it back into the field of play before bobbling it momentarily and ultimately completing the catch. What makes this all the more remarkable is that he had just been brought in a few moments earlier as a defensive substitute. This catch was made against the first batter after his entrance. That's pretty crazy, but shows that Ozzie Guillen isn't completely crazy all of the time.
It must be nice to have a day at work summed up by the word "perfect". It also must be nice to make many thousands of dollars during that day at work. Buehrle had pitched a ho-hum run-of-the-mill no-hitter before, but nobody said he was perfect that day. Today he was. Nobody says an office worker was "perfect" sitting at a desk all day or a teacher delivered a "perfect" lecture. It's rare to find such a label for waiters, lawyers, spouses or friends, so thankfully Major League Baseball has only tossed the label around 18 times in 129 years.
5 years ago
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