Wednesday night, San Francisco Giants was perfect on the mound against the Houston Astros. Cain also struck out 14 Astros in the Giants’ 10-0, tied for the most strikeouts in a perfect game.
Cain’s perfect game marks the 22nd in MLB history and the second of the 2012 season. Philip Humber tossed a perfect game on April 21st against the Seattle Mariners.
Cain’s perfect game also marks the fifth MLB no-hitter in 2012: April 21- Philip Humber, Chicago White Sox v. Seattle Mariners, May 2 – Jered Weaver, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim v. Minnesota Twins, June 1 – Johan Santana, New York Mets v. St. Louis Cardinals, June 8 – Kevin Millwood (6 IP), Charlie Furbush (2/3 IP), Stephen Pryor (1/3 IP), Lucas Luetge (1/3 IP), Brandon League (2/3 IP), Tom Wilhelmsen (1 IP), Seattle Mariners v. Los Angeles Dodgers.
Of course, every perfect game and no-hitter comes with a few great defensive plays and the most notable from Cain’s perfecto came in the 7th inning with RF Gregor Blanco in a dead sprint diving catch on the warning track.
There have been great catches in MLB history, but to me, none are better than those which preserve perfection. I rank Gregor Blanco’s catch #2 all-time, next Dewayne Wise’s home run stealing catch in the 9th inning of Mark Buehrle’s perfect game in 2009.
The second half of this article’s title is a bit sarcastic, as I am a huge fan of great pitching performances, but it sure is difficult to believe there have already been two perfect games and five no-hitters thrown in the MLB in 2012… It’s only June 14th!
