Gothamist: 27 Up, 27 Down; Big Unit Perfect

dkp

Sat, 05 Jun 2004 00:28:11 -0500

Jzak, This info is wrong. It has never happened, but if a fielder gets an error that does not allow a baserunner, the above mentioned game of 27 up 27 down with no baserunners is a perfect game.

jzak

Wed, 19 May 2004 20:35:27 -0500

simply put ... A batter hits a foul pop . First baseman gets under the ball and drops it . It is ruled an error , even though it is a foul ball . he pitcher goes on to retire that batter . he only faced 27 hitters , gave up no hits , no walks ... but there was an error .... no perfect game ! jzak

jzak

Wed, 19 May 2004 18:03:12 -0500

The pitcher does not walk anyone . No one reaches base . His team wins in a regular 9 inning game . He faced 27 batters . But is was not awarded a Perfect game . How is this possible ? Its a tough one , but can happen . Not sure if it ever has happened ... Jzak

ChesterKatz

Wed, 19 May 2004 17:54:27 -0500

Okay, I see the 36 strikeouts point. The strike definitions still don't work though. "A" says "Is struck at by the batter and is missed" (emphasis mine). A missed ball is not a ball in play. "C" doesn't cover foul balls when the count is already at 2 strikes.

zander106

Wed, 19 May 2004 17:52:38 -0500

Oh wait, maybe I should learn to read first, esp. the part that says "No one reaches base on him." Never mind.

zander106

Wed, 19 May 2004 17:51:48 -0500

jzak, I'm going to guess that the pitcher walks a guy but then picks him off at first (or the player gets caught stealing). He'd still face 27 then, yes?

jzak

Wed, 19 May 2004 17:48:17 -0500

what a great time for some baseball trivia ... Lets see who can get this right . A pitcher faces only 27 batters in a 9 inning game . No one reaches base on him . His team wins 1 - 0 . But the pitcher did not have a PERFECT game . How does this happen ?

tien

Wed, 19 May 2004 17:47:53 -0500

chester - "a" would cover any ball put in play and "c" would cover any foul balls except the ones noted. and as far as 36 strikeouts, that could only happen if the catcher repeatedly dropped the third strike, or a wild pitch which was strike 3, or a passed ball that was strike 3, and the batter made it to first. that's a strikeout, but not an out. the runner would then be thrown out or picked off on the basepaths for an out. this would happen twice for two outs, and again for the third strikeout. after that, the pitcher would just strikeout the 4th batter in the inning. this would have to happen over all nine innings for 36 k's, which is pretty much impossible.

ChesterKatz

Wed, 19 May 2004 17:29:36 -0500

tien, that definition from MLB.com fits with my original post in that it doesn't include balls-in-play or fouls after 2 strikes. Do you know why those end up included in the official tally? I also don't see how you can have 36 strikeouts in 9 innings of play. How would that be possible?

zander106

Wed, 19 May 2004 17:02:20 -0500

Thanks for your response, tien. Obviously you're the editor so you have the final call. As far as "after Thursday" -- have ye so little faith in the Nets? And King Hippo -- LOL!

King Hippo

Wed, 19 May 2004 16:26:44 -0500

Randy Johnson doesn't pitch for a New York team YET. Never underestimate George and his desire to stockpile talent.

tien

Wed, 19 May 2004 16:19:39 -0500

zander, this is an excellent question. first off, good to know that you "love" my sports coverage...i think you might be the first person to say that. i think that the randy johnson perfect game is big enough news that it could make any news site. if you take a look at the post, daily news, and newsday covers (the times has no real cover), they all have the perfect games on there. sure, it doesn't relate to new york that much, except the tie ins at the end, but as an "editor" (i use that term very loosely), you pick and choose the story. and of course the belmont will be covered. as far as i'm concerned, after thursday, it's going to be the biggest story locally until it happens. hope this addresses some of your questions.

zander106

Wed, 19 May 2004 16:02:52 -0500

I love Gothamist, and I love tien's sports coverage, but honestly, why was this posted? Yes, it's a rare event in baseball whenever anyone pitches a perfect game. But last time I checked, Randy Johnson doesn't pitch for a New York team and the Braves are from Atlanta. I didn't see Derek Fisher's miracle shot for the Lakers on here last week, which was itself also a rare sporting event (0.4 seconds? You gotta be kidding me). So why should Randy's perfect game be on this site? At the same time, I do expect to see Belmont Stakes on this site next month, since it's in the NY area and could be history-making. I critique because I love.

tien

Wed, 19 May 2004 13:42:00 -0500

chester, here is some more info for you. feel free to read it on MLB.com. A STRIKE is a legal pitch when so called by the umpire, which_ (a) Is struck at by the batter and is missed; (b) Is not struck at, if any part of the ball passes through any part of the strike zone; (c) Is fouled by the batter when he has less than two strikes; (d) Is bunted foul; (e) Touches the batter as he strikes at it; (f) Touches the batter in flight in the strike zone; or (g) Becomes a foul tip. and, tecnically 87 strikes is possible on 9 innings. i think you can even have 135 strikes in a 9 inning game where you can face 36 hitters and strike all 36 out and not allow a single hit or walk.

ChesterKatz

Wed, 19 May 2004 13:40:35 -0500

I stand corrected -- never realized they scored it that way.

Jen

Wed, 19 May 2004 13:21:46 -0500

Yeah, Gothamist might fall short in most journalistic areas, but we do tend to follow the box score.

tien

Wed, 19 May 2004 13:17:53 -0500

jack is exactly right. just take a look at the box score. if baseball says there are 87 strikes, there are 87 strikes, no matter where the balls go.

Jack

Wed, 19 May 2004 13:14:04 -0500

They probably included the pitches that were fouled off or put into play (28 pitches). Technically, if you foul off a ball, it is considered a strike. The same for the ones that were put into play. Add those 28 pitches that to your 59 strike total and you have 87.

ChesterKatz

Wed, 19 May 2004 12:43:15 -0500

All this on 117 pitches and 87 strikes. It was actually only 59 strikes ... 87 strikes isn't possible in 9 innings. Not that I blame you for that number, I saw ESPN.com quoting 87 as well. Here's the breakdown of the 117 pitches: 59 strikes 30 balls 14 fouled off 14 in play You can see the pitch-by-pitch breakdown on ESPN.com.

Adam

Wed, 19 May 2004 09:57:28 -0500

I always liked the mullet. It made him look like the late great character actor Brion James.