Being born and raised in Michigan, my husband and I continue to follow the Tigers and the Lions even though we moved away many years ago. Tonight, Tiger pitcher Armando Galarraga pitched a PERFECT GAME. This was the 1st perfect game in Tiger History -- or it would have been. My husband says a perfect game is extremely rare and only happens every 5 or so years. Tonight Armando pitched it perfect. However the umpire made a very bad call. On the last play of the game, the 1st base umpire called the runner safe, even though the replay clearly shows the runner was out. Some players would become hysterically angry if an ump made a bad call like that, especially for something as important as a history making perfect game. Armando did not get angry. He was gracious and forgave the umpire for his mistake. What a gentleman. What a good sportsman!Armanda is an immigrant from Venezuela. He is 28 years old. He made his debut with the Texas Rangers in 2007 and was traded to the Tigers in 2008.
detroit free press reports:
Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga denied perfect game on blown call by umpire Jim Joyce -- Umpire admits he missed call that would have ended game
By either inches or because of a missed call, right-hander Armando Galarraga missed throwing the first perfect game in Tigers history tonight. Galarraga had retired all 26 Cleveland hitters when, with two out in the ninth, rookie Jason Donald sent a grounder into the second-base hole. First baseman Miguel Cabrera broke and fielded the ball and threw to Galarraga covering first. First-base umpire Jim Joyce ruled that Donald was safe. Galarraga could only break into a smile. Manager Jim Leyland argued the call. Television replays appeared to show that Galarraga had caught the ball and touched the bag before Donald got there. The veteran ump regretted it.
“I just cost that kid a perfect game,” Joyce said. “I thought he beat the throw. I was convinced he beat the throw, until I saw the replay.” “It was the biggest call of my career,” said Joyce, who became a full-time major league umpire in 1989.
Galarraga retired the next hitter, Trevor Crowe, to complete the one-hitter. It would have been the sixth no-hitter in Tigers history and the first since Justin Verlander in 2007. But in none of the previous five no-hitters had the Tigers pitcher retired all 27 hitters in order, as Galarraga nearly did tonight.
Dee,
ReplyDeleteWhat a horrible call!!! The replay shows him out by at least three feet. The ump choked under pressure. This would have been the third perfect game this season, and strangely, the second in four days.
I feel so bad for the kid losing this once in a lifetime chance because the ump choked under pressure. He displayed amazing class especially considering the situation of losing out on an once in a lifetime opportunity and etching his name forever in the record books.
This reminds me when the Cubs' Milt Pappas walked the 27th and last batter in his quest for perfection back in the early '70s. Pappas to this day blames the home plate ump for blowing the call. Pappas later said that he called the ump every name in the book in English and then in Greek. I watched that game on WGN when I was a teen growing up in Chicago. Who can forget a game like that?
Perfect games are rare. Since 1900, there have been five entire decades where a perfect game had not been pitched during the regular season (teens, '30s, '40s, '50s,'70s).
Marco Gonzales pitched Rocky Mountain High school to the state championship by wining 4 games and hitting a 3 run homer. Ubaldo Jimenez started this season with the Colorado Rockies with an 11-1 record with an ERA less than one. I don't know if he managed to win another to set a new record. He had one no hit game and a perfect game along the way.
ReplyDeleteSee the Ubaldo Jimenez story here
ReplyDeleteEveryone in this debacle has been professional, polite and courteous. Says a lot for the game
ReplyDeleteThought you might be interested in sharing this article with your readers about a college-bound student declaring undocumented U.S. status
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ocregister.com/articles/status-251774-undocumented-judge.html
that guy is HOT! look at him!
ReplyDelete