Mark Buehrle's Perfect Game

The Chicago White Sox Pitcher Throws His Way Into History

Jul 24, 2009 Elvira Nieto

For only the 18th time in Major League Baseball history, a perfect game was pitched.

Throwing a perfect game is one of the hardest feats in professional sports. Chicago White Sox pitcher Mark Buehrle can now add his name to the very short list of greats who have accomplished just that – pitching a perfect game.

Only the 18th time in major league history, and second time in White Sox history that a perfect game has been thrown, Chicago bested the Tampa Bay Ray’s with a score of 5-0.

The Last Time Baseball Saw a Perfect Game was 2004

The last time a pitcher managed to shut down all 27 opposing players one after the other was in May 2004 when then 40-year-old Randy Johnson threw a perfect game for the Arizona Diamondbacks against the Atlanta Braves. When looking at the American league, the accomplishment of a perfect game was last seen in 1999 when David Cone led the New York Yankees to victory over the Montreal Expos.

Center-fielder Wise Preserves Buehrle's Perfection

In the top of the ninth, defensive replacement at center field, Dewayne Wise, made a leaping catch at the wall to steal away a homerun from the Rays' Gabe Kapler. Even the hearts of non-Sox fans stopped momentarily as Kapler’s drive kept heading further and further out.

Mark Buehrle Makes History

The 30-year-old Buehrle made his major league debut as a relief pitcher in 2000. The following year, he became one of the White Sox starting pitchers. The south-paw pitcher threw a no-hitter against the Texas Rangers in April 2007. And had it not been for the fifth inning walk of slugger Sammy Sosa, Buehrle would have made baseball history against the Rays in more ways than one by being the only pitcher ever to throw two perfect games in a career.

Buehrle is only the 24th pitcher in major league history to pitch multiple no-hitters as well as being only the 6th pitcher to pitch a perfect game having another no-hitter to his credit. Four of the other five perfect game/no-hitter pitchers are now in enshrined in Cooperstown in the Baseball Hall of Fame – Cy Young, Addie Joss, Jim Bunning, and Sandy Koufax .

At the post-game press conference, White Sox manager Ozzy Guillen said that the entire club was overjoyed, the coaches were crying and that the perfect game “couldn’t have happened to a better guy”. For his part, Buehrle expressed shock and disbelief.

Congratulatory Call from Famous Chicagoan

Chicago White Sox fan and President of the United States, Barak Obama, took time out from pushing for health care reform to personally call Mark Buehrle to congratulate him on his historic feat.

Sources:

ESPN

MSNBC

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