One Strike Away

Who the hell is Yusmeiro Petit? I kind of wondered the same thing after I heard last night’s news. If you didn’t hear what happened, Petit on the Giants was one out away, one strike away from a perfect game before giving up a hit to Diamondbacks third baseman, Eric Chavez. It was so close too; Hunter Pence just missed the catch in right, as it lands on one hop. Petit would retire the next batter and get the win in a 3-0 game in San Francisco. 

 

Losing a bid for a perfect game with one out away sucks. Petit became the 12^th pitcher in MLB history to do so, the last one actually coming this season with Yu Darvish vs. Houston. Here are the 10 others that lost their perfect game at the very end:

·         2010: Andres Galarraga vs Cleveland (remember this game? This was the game that Jim Joyce botched the call at the end to lose it for Andres. Joyce would go on to win Umpire of the Year, ironically).

·         2001: Mike Mussina vs Boston

·         1990: Brian Holman vs Oakland

·         1989: Dave Stieb vs New York Yankees

·         1988: Ron Robinson vs Montreal

·         1983: Milt Wilcox vs Chicago White Sox

·         1972: Milt Pappas vs San Diego (I actually met Milt, his perfect game was lost on a walk, and he would go on to get a no-hitter, the last no-hitter at Wrigley)

·         1958: Billy Pierce vs Washington

·         1932: Tommy Bridges vs Washington

·         1908: Hooks Wiltse vs Philadelphia

I don’t know about you, but let’s look into the present to figure out who these guys are. We already know who Yu Darvish is, so might as well look at Petit. 

Who is this guy? The 28-year old righty has a career 5.19 ERA in six years in the big leagues. He did not play in 2010 and 2011, and has dealt with injuries in his career. This year, after being called up from AAA a few weeks ago, he is 3-0 with a 2.05 ERA in three games started, striking out 30 and having a 7.50 K/BB ratio. He used to play for the D-Backs, so it’s funny that he did it against his former team. He throws his fastball about half the time, but his slider is also a deadly weapon when thrown well. 

Is there any potential in this guy? Maybe? Remember, as weird as it sounds, if a pitcher throws a perfect game, they sometimes aren’t a good pitcher. There were seven no hitters/perfect games last year. Felix Hernandez, Matt Cain, and Jered Weaver threw one each, and they were some of the best pitchers last year. Johan Santana also threw one, and is historically an amazing player, but finished 6-9 with a 4.85 ERA that year. Homer Bailey threw two in a row (the last in 2012, and the first in 2013), which nobody saw coming. Then there’s always my personal favorite: Phillip Humber threw a 4-0 perfect game for the White Sox against Seattle, but finished 5-5 with a 6.44 ERA. This year with Houston, Humber is 0-8 with an 8.27 ERA.

While Petit is still a below-average pitcher (career 5.19 ERA pitcher), he has deviated with the starting rotation and bullpen, and is much better as a starter. Plus, with the Giants out of playoff contention, it gives him (and the rest of the team) a relaxed state because they don’t have to deal with trying to get into the playoffs, thus they perform better (just ask Ryan Dempster).

I would like to see him do well. He could be a good part of the Giants rotation that needs to do something with Barry Zito. Remember that he is 28 years old, but is pitching in his prime right about now.

Email me at statsbuddy42@gmail.com for any questions/comments/concerns.

-Evan Boyd