The perfect game is an ultra rare sighting for Major League Baseball. But it is an extremely rare thing when it occurs in a playoff game. With the passing of Don Larsen recently, a lot have talked about his World Series outing in 1956.
When you think of Yankee immortality of the early 20th century, you think Ruth, Gehrig, Dimaggio, and a few others. The 50s was a continuation of how great the 40s were and guys like Mickey Mantle and Larry "Yogi" Berra continued the dominance. The closest I have seen is the second half of the 90s. They took a chance on Larsen in 1955, coming off an abysmal 54 season where he went three and 21. Arguably, his best years were with the Yankees, which he spent five years with in a 15 year career. But it was a stunner he was given a chance to pitch game 5 of the 56 World Series.
Looking at the stats, he only went an inning and two thirds in his other start. Whether he would have been ready to pitch again more than likely was a thought. He did and his recognition is through that perfect game. Two other Yankees have done that well after his, but as regular season games. Say what you will about his career, which is not a good one, but he has place in the Bronx. Nothing can change what he was able to pull off.
Larsen may not have been the go to starter, but at least his place in sports history is something you may never see again.
No comments:
Post a Comment