Wow! Felix Hernandez was already an elite pitcher in professional baseball when he woke up today… but today, I’ve never seen better. It was unbelievable!!! He is a big-game pitcher with amazing stuff and he continued to baffle the Rays from the words “play ball!”
It is the first perfect game thrown by a Seattle Mariners pitcher; the 4th no-hitter in club history. I remember when Felix got really close in Boston in 2007 (Daisuke Matsuzaka’s US debut). That ended up being his only 1-hitter to date. I remember thinking “he’ll get a no-no someday soon”. The nearly 5 1/2 year wait is finally over. We finally got to see The King get his no-hitter… with a cherry on top.
Despite the the recent trend over the last couple of seasons, perfect games are not easy! There’s a reason this is *only* the 23rd game of its nature. My mind is numb. My fandom is going bonkers!
Felix Hernandez’s perfect game marked the first time in MLB history that three perfect games have been tossed in the same season. The Mariners are the first team to have a perfect game against them, and then for them in the same season.
This was the third time in four seasons the Rays had a perfect game pitched against them, following efforts by Dallas Braden (OAK) in 2010 and Mark Buehrle (CHW) in 2009. You can’t make this stuff up. Baseball is a game of numbers and that may sometimes turn fans off, but for a stat geek like me, it’s the sh*t!
The only thing missing from today is Dave Niehaus getting to call this one. I have a strong feeling Dave is smiling down on Seattle today. Reaching the World Series is one thing he wanted more than anything else for this franchise but a perfect game had to be high up there as well. We’ll get there one day, Dave. I also know my Nana is cheering her heart out somewhere right now too. I wish you were here, Nana… we would be sharing a tear or two over this amazing accomplishment right now.
What an incredible day! So proud of Felix, so proud for the only team I have ever loved. We’ve had more bad than good over the last few seasons, but special things like this bring it all into focus. We love this game no matter what. We care, we watch, we cheer. On this day, as a member of Mariners Nation, this one is for us! This is for us to celebrate and we shall.
King Felix, this city is forever yours.
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More No-Hitter Facts:
29 of the 30 active MLB franchises have thrown at least one no-hitter, with only the San Diego Padres without one.
As of Felix Hernandez’s perfect game on August 15, 2012, there have been 256 official no-hitters in the history of the American and National Leagues. 23 of them have been perfect games and two have come in the postseason (including one perfect game).
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