On Tuesday, May 18, 2004,

Randy Johnson Randall David Johnson (born September 10, 1963), nicknamed "The Big Unit", is an American photographer and former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (1988–2009) for six teams, primarily the Seattle M ...

, pitching for the

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB)

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...

, threw a

perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...

, beating the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

2–0 at

Turner Field Turner Field was a baseball stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia. From 1997 to 2016, it served as the home ballpark to the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). Originally built as Centennial Olympic Stadium in 1996 to serve as the c ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

before a crowd of 23,381. Johnson, at 40 years, was the oldest pitcher in MLB history to throw a perfect game, surpassing

Cy Young Denton True "Cy" Young (March 29, 1867 – November 4, 1955) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Born in Gilmore, Ohio, he worked on his family's farm as a youth before starting his professional baseball career. Young entered th ...

who was 37 when he threw his perfect game in 1904. This was baseball's 17th perfect game, with

David Cone's perfect game On Sunday, July 18, 1999, David Cone of the New York Yankees pitched the 16th perfect game in Major League Baseball (MLB) history and the third in team history, and the first no-hit game in regular season interleague play. Cone pitched it against ...

having been the 16th in 1999.

Johnson's Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational corporation founded in 1886 that develops medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and consumer packaged goods. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company i ...

perfect game was the seventh in National League history ( the predecessor being

Dennis Martínez José Dennis Martínez Ortiz (born May 14, 1955), nicknamed "El Presidente" (The President), is a Nicaraguan professional baseball pitcher. Martínez played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, Montreal Expos, Cleveland India ...

in 1991) and the first ever Diamondbacks' no-hitter.

Background

Going into the game, Johnson had a

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of matc ...

of 3–4 with a 2.83

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA) in eight games during the 2004 season. On April 16, 2004, Johnson pitched a

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

against the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

Game summary

The game started at 7:36 p.m. EDT in front of 23,381 fans at

. The game was televised nationally by TBS as part of the Braves' TV contract and on FSN Arizona in the Diamondbacks' local market. Johnson's

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

for the game was

Robby Hammock Robert Wade Hammock (born May 13, 1977) is an American professional baseball former catcher and current coach. He was formerly a longtime player and later quality control and catching coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Playing career Hammock wa ...

, who was playing his second season in the Majors. Johnson later praised Hammock stating, "I only shook ammockoff two or three times...He called a great game. The thing is he was probably the most excited guy in the

clubhouse Clubhouse may refer to: Locations * The meetinghouse of: ** A club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal ** In the United States, a country club ** In the United Kingdom, a gentlemen's club * A ...

, and I'm happy for that. He's come a long way." The last batter of the game was

pinch-hitter In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, America ...

Eddie Pérez, who

struck out In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is denote ...

on a

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. "Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thro ...

. Johnson struck out 13 batters, the third-most strikeouts in an MLB perfect game behind

Sandy Koufax Sanford Koufax (; born Sanford Braun; December 30, 1935) is an American former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966. He has been hailed as one of t ...

's 14 strikeouts in

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

and

Matt Cain Matthew Thomas Cain (born October 1, 1984), nicknamed "The Horse", "Big Daddy", "Big Sugar" and "Cainer", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career for the San Francisco Giants ...

's 14 strikeouts in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

. The perfect game was Johnson's second

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...

. His first was in 1990 for the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

. Johnson's perfect game was the first in the MLB since

David Cone David Brian Cone (born January 2, 1963) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher, and current color commentator for the New York Yankees on the YES Network and WPIX as well as for ESPN on Sunday Night Baseball.New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

, and the first in the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

since

of the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

on July 28, 1991. Johnson, who was 40 at the time, surpassed

as the oldest pitcher to throw a perfect game in MLB history. Young, who achieved the feat in 1904, was 37 at the time. The play that came closest to being a hit was

Mike Hampton Michael William Hampton, Jr. (born September 9, 1972) is an American former professional baseball player. Hampton played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a pitcher from 1993 through 2010. He pitched for the Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, New ...

's second at-bat in the sixth inning when a chop ground ball dribbling left of the second base bag resulted in Alex Cintrón performing a do-or-die running grab and throw to first baseman

Shea Hillenbrand Shea Matthew Hillenbrand (born July 27, 1975) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and first baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Gia ...

for the out.

Game statistics

;General reference
May 18, 2004 Arizona Diamondbacks at Atlanta Braves Play by Play and Box Score
''Baseball-Reference.com'' Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved August 4, 2010.

Line score

Box score

BATTING *2B: Cintron 2 (9, Hampton, Hampton). *TB: Tracy 2; Hillenbrand; Finley; Bautista; Cintron 5. *RBI: Cintron (11), Tracy (15). *2-out RBI: Cintron, Tracy. *Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Hammock, Hillenbrand, Bautista, Kata 2. *GIDP: Gonzalez, L. *Team LOB: 9. FIELDING *E: DeRosa (8, fielding), Estrada (1, drop ball), Hampton (1, throw). *Outfield assists: Jones, A (Hammock at 3rd base). *DP: (Hampton-Garcia-Franco).

Other info

*Pitches-strikes: Johnson 117–87, Hampton 107–71. *Ground outs-fly outs: Johnson 7–7, Hampton 13–8. *Batters faced: Johnson 27, Hampton 38. *Umpires: HP: Greg Gibson. 1B:

Bruce Dreckman Bruce Michael Dreckman (born August 7, 1970) is an American umpire in Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed o ...

. 2B: Gerry Davis. 3B:

Larry Poncino Larry Louis Poncino (born February 3, 1957) is a former umpire in Major League Baseball. His Major League umpiring debut came on July 11, 1985, and his last game was on September 30, 2007. He umpired in the 2006 American League Division Series; ...

. *Weather: 72 °F (22.2 °C), cloudy. *Wind: 5 mph, Out to CF. *Time: 2:13. *Attendance: 23,381. *Venue:

Reactions

, the

of Johnson's perfect game:

Robin Yount Robin R. Yount (; born September 16, 1955), nicknamed "the Kid", and "Rockin' Robin", is an American former professional baseball player. He spent his entire 20-year career in Major League Baseball as a shortstop and center fielder for the Milwau ...

, the

bench coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisi ...

of the Diamondbacks: Luis Gonzalez,

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

for the Diamondbacks:

Bob Brenly Robert Earl Brenly (born February 25, 1954) is an American baseball sportscaster and a former professional baseball player, coach and manager. He played the majority of his Major League Baseball career as a catcher with the San Francisco Gian ...

, Diamondbacks

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

Footnotes

* Eddie Pérez

pinch hit In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, America ...

for

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

in the bottom of the ninth

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team ...

References

External links

Randy Johnson's Perfect Game — MLB.com: History

Full game
on YouTube, courtesy of MLB Vault, an official MLB account {{Atlanta Braves 2004 Major League Baseball season Johnson, Randy Arizona Diamondbacks Atlanta Braves May 2004 sports events in the United States 2004 in sports in Georgia (U.S. state) 2004 in Atlanta Sports competitions in Atlanta