27 Men Out : Baseball's Perfect Games

Rating:
Summary: Odd Juxtapostion of Perfect Pitching and Labor History
Review: Michael Coffey has written a fascinating book about one of baseball's rarest feats -- the perfect game. Coffey is at his best when he surveys the events of each perfect game and as he identifies the place of such a game in the context of each pitcher's career. Along this way we gain delightful little tidbits and trivia, such as Cy Young walking off the mound after his perfect game, not fully understanding the significance of his accomplishment until his first baseman commented, "Nobody came down to see me today." Coffey creates memorable images of superstars and journeyman alike: the beloved yet tragic figure, Addie Joss, the carousing Don Larsen, the studious and intense Jim Bunning, the talented and enigmatic Sandy Koufax, and the Nicaraguan hero, Dennis Martinez.

So why only three stars? The problem with this book is that Coffey overextends when he tries to connect the perfect game with the labor history of major league baseball. The former is full of joy and serendipity. The later is dark with elements of greed, bitterness, and envy. Quite simply, the two don't mix well within the same book.

But this should not stop most baseball fans from enjoying the stories behind each perfect game. Too bad this volume is already published, for I would have liked to have read Coffey's insights into the character and career of the newest member of the perfect game club, Randy Johnson.

Rating:
Summary: More than baseball
Review: One of the great things about this book is its survey of American history during the years each of these perfect games was pitched. Perhaps those that complain about the high salaries of today's ball players might benefit from learning about how earlier great players were indentured servants to greedy owners. Too bad the book was published just weeks before Randy Johnson's perfect game.

Rating:
Summary: Randy Johnson 2004
Review: Other records with this game: Most carreer games between no-hitters, and oldest player to pitch a PG.

Rating:
Summary: Perfect Pitching and Fielding in Context
Review: Perfect games had always left a sour taste in my mouth since I first watched Don Larsen of the Yankees twirl one at my favorite team, the Dodgers, in the 1956 World Series. The Dodgers came within inches several times of breaking up the perfect game and winning the contest. I was disgusted when the game was over. The Dodgers hit him hard all day and had nothing to show for it. Well, since there had only been three earlier "perfect games" at that point, I could rack it up to a quirk of fate. But it began to become annoying when two other pitchers also had perfect games against the Dodgers (Tom Browning and Dennis Martinez) while only one Dodger, the great Sandy Koufax, had one to his credit.

Perfect games seem to happen all of the time now. There have been 7 since 1981. Seeing that Bill James had written a foreword to this book, I thought perhaps I could learn more about what makes these unusual performances happen. What I learned was an eye-opener and I recommend this book to all baseball fans.

First, I had forgotten that you have to be the winning pitcher in a complete game that goes at least nine innings to have a perfect game. Poor Harvey Haddix (12 perfect innings), Pedro Martinez (he came out before the game was complete), and Ernie Shore (27 perfect outs in relief). Their remarkable efforts don't count.

Second, I didn't know very much about most of the games. This book filled me in. Some of the efforts seem to have been helped by players who were in a hurry to get out of town, umpires with enormous strike zones and meeting up with weak-hitting teams at the end of the season. So not all perfect games are equal.

Third, some of these pitchers names didn't mean anything to me. How well do you know Addie Joss, Charlie Robertson, Len Barker and Kenny Rogers? I was glad to learn more.

Fourth, there are some great pitchers who have finished perfect games. It was a nice treat to read more about them, especially Cy Young who doesn't come in for much discussion these days.

The unexpected surprise in the book was that Mr. Coffey also made connections between the developments in the game of baseball and these pitching masterpieces. So I had a chance to learn more about when 60 feet six inches became the distance from the plate to the rubber, when underhanded pitching ended, and the early battles among start-up leagues. I also learned many interesting things about the development of Latin American players. You will probably have other nice surprises as well.

The games themselves are described in interesting detailed ways, without becoming too developed. You find out about the close calls (3-0 counts, hard hit shots that are almost fair, balls that are snagged by lunging infielders and close plays at first) as well as the demeanor the players and fans. It's a little like being there.

Speaking of being there, Mr. Coffey was inspired to write the book after taking his young son to see David Cone's perfect game in 1999. That game is especially interesting to learn about since it includes Mr. Coffey's personal reminiscences.

With the all-star break coming up soon, I recommend that you read this book during off-days. I found it so fascinating that I doled out the chapters to read only one a day. It was more delightful that way.

Play ball!