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Oct 08, 1956: Don Larsen's perfect game
Perfect game from an imperfect pitcher
THE BRONX, NEW YORK - New York Yankee catcher Yogi Berra jumped into the arms of pitcher Don Larsen on this date in 1956 after Larson pitched to 27 batters and got everyone one of them out - a PERFECT GAME - 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 walks, 0 hit by a pitch, 0 reaching on a dropped third strike, nothin'. Larsen's gem gave the Yankees a 2-0 victory. They eventually beat the Brooklyn Dodgers in the best of seven series four games to three.
It remains the only perfect game (or no-hitter) ever pitched in a World Series. And until the day before yesterday (Wednesday October 6, 2010), it was the only no-hitter thrown in the postseason. Roy Halladay of the Philadelphia Phillies changed that when he no-hit the Cincinnati Reds 4-0.
Don Larsen was the last pitcher you'd expect to throw a perfect game, let alone in the World Series. It was a surprise to many that he even started the 5th game. He started game two and didn't last two innings, giving up 4 runs on one hit and 4 walks.
In a 14-year career he had just 2 double-digit winning seasons - 11 wins in '56, the year of his perfect game, and 10 wins in 1957. He had more double digit losing seasons. He lost 21 games in 1954. But Yankee skipper Casey Stengel chose Larsen to start game 5. The result led New York Daily News sportswriter Dick Young to write, "The imperfect man pitched the perfect game."
http://www.todayinbaseball.com/cms/100810-larsen
Perfect game from an imperfect pitcher
THE BRONX, NEW YORK - New York Yankee catcher Yogi Berra jumped into the arms of pitcher Don Larsen on this date in 1956 after Larson pitched to 27 batters and got everyone one of them out - a PERFECT GAME - 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 walks, 0 hit by a pitch, 0 reaching on a dropped third strike, nothin'. Larsen's gem gave the Yankees a 2-0 victory. They eventually beat the Brooklyn Dodgers in the best of seven series four games to three.
It remains the only perfect game (or no-hitter) ever pitched in a World Series. And until the day before yesterday (Wednesday October 6, 2010), it was the only no-hitter thrown in the postseason. Roy Halladay of the Philadelphia Phillies changed that when he no-hit the Cincinnati Reds 4-0.
Don Larsen was the last pitcher you'd expect to throw a perfect game, let alone in the World Series. It was a surprise to many that he even started the 5th game. He started game two and didn't last two innings, giving up 4 runs on one hit and 4 walks.
In a 14-year career he had just 2 double-digit winning seasons - 11 wins in '56, the year of his perfect game, and 10 wins in 1957. He had more double digit losing seasons. He lost 21 games in 1954. But Yankee skipper Casey Stengel chose Larsen to start game 5. The result led New York Daily News sportswriter Dick Young to write, "The imperfect man pitched the perfect game."
http://www.todayinbaseball.com/cms/100810-larsen
