Other Use
For the Song who sing by Subaru Nagayoshi about the This term see Perfect Game (Subaru's Song)
Definition
To achieve a perfect game, a team must not allow any opposing player to reach base by any means: no hits, walks, hit batsmen, uncaught third strikes, catcher's or fielder's interference, or fielding errors which allow a batter to reach base.
A perfect game, by definition, is also a no-hitter, and is also guaranteed to result in a win and a shutout if the game does not go into extra innings. In leagues that use a WBSC tiebreaker (including MLB since 2020), runners are placed on second base, and in some leagues, also on first base at the start of each half inning during extra innings; this automatic runner would not cause a perfect game to be lost. Therefore, if the runner advances and scores without any batters reaching base (by means of stolen base, sacrifice, fielder's choice, etc.), and this turns out to be the winning run, then the losing team will still be credited with a perfect game, despite losing the game. A fielding error that does not allow a batter to reach base, such as a misplayed foul ball, does not spoil a perfect game. Games that last fewer than nine innings, regardless of cause, in which a team has no baserunners do not qualify as perfect games. Games in which a team reaches first base only in extra innings also do not qualify as perfect games.
The first known use of the term perfect game was in 1908; its current definition was formalized in 1991. In Major League Baseball (MLB), it has been achieved 24 times – 22 times since the modern era began in 1901, most recently by Domingo Germán of the New York Yankees on June 28, 2023 against the Oakland Athletics. Although it is possible for two or more pitchers to combine for a perfect game (which has happened 20 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.
List Perfect Game in MLB
| Pitcher (Team) | Opponent | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Lee Richmond (Wor) | Cleveland | June 12 1880 |
| John Montgomery Ward (Prov) | Buffalo | June 17 1880 |
| Cy Young (Boston) | Philadelphia | May 5 1904 |
| Addie Joss (Cleveland) | Chi White Sox | October 2 1908 |
| Charlie Robertson (Chi White Sox) | Detroit | April 30 1922 |
| Don Larsen (NY Yankees) | Brooklyn | October 8 1956 (Game 5 of World Series) |
| Jim Burning (Philadelphia) | NY Mets | June 21 1964 |
| Sandy Koufax (LA Dodgers) | Chi Cubs | September 9 1965 |
| Catfish Hunter (Oakland) | Minnesota | May 8 1968 |
| Len Barker (Cleveland) | Toronto | May 15 1981 |
| Mike Witt (California) | Texas | September 30 1984 |
| Tom Browning (Cincinnati) | Los Angeles | September 16 1988 |
| Dennis Martinez (Montreal) | Los Angeles | July 28 1991 |
| Kenny Rogers (Texas) | California | July 28 1994 |
| David Wells (NY Yankees) | Minnesota | May 17 1998 |
| David Cone (NY Yankees) | Montreal | July 18 1999 |
| Randy Johnson (Arizona) | Atlanta | May 18 2004 |
| Mark Buehrle (Chi White Sox) | Tampa Bay | July 23 2009 |
| Dallas Braden (Oakland) | Tampa Bay | May 9 2010 |
| Ron Halladay (Philadelphia) | Florida | May 29 2010 |
| Philip Humber (Chi White Sox) | Seattle | April 21 2012 |
| Matt Cain (San Francisco) | Houston | June 13 2012 |
| Felix Hernandez (Seattle) | Tampa Bay | August 15 2012 |
| Domingo German (NY Yankees) | Oakland | June 28 2023 |
