How many perfect games have been played in MLB history?

MLB is a game that is recognized for the sheer entertainment that it offers when the batters and the pitchers come up against each other. While the batter tries to ensure scoring freely, the pitchers look forward to making it as difficult as possible for the batters to score. However, it is a sight to watch when a perfect game is played between the two teams in Major League Baseball and we have a few instances of such games in the history of this popular game.

What is a perfect game?

A perfect game is one of the best possible contests between the two teams where the pitcher or a combination of pitchers doesn’t let the opposition batters reach first base. However incredible and unbelievable that might sound, there have been a number of games played in the history of Major League Baseball (MLB) that is recognized as perfect games.

How Many Perfect Games have been Played in the History of MLB? 

To be precise, there are 23 perfect games played so far in the history of the game and all of them have been recognized for the pitchers making it a win for their respective teams by not letting the opposition batters hit the first base. It is one of the most incredible achievements that a pitcher can get at his disposal in his playing career, making him a part of the history of Major League Baseball (MLB) forever.

The first time the term perfect game was used in the American League was in 1908, with the current definition being formalized in the year 1991. As per the current rule, if a pitcher or combination of pitchers does not let any batter of the opposition team score the first base throughout the nine innings of the game, it is declared as a perfect game in favor of the pitchers. It is one of the rarest achievements in the career of a baseball player and helps him to engrave his name in golden letters in the history of the game.

The first pitcher to reach this incredible feat was Lee Richmond, who made history by pitching a no-hitter in the game between Worcester Ruby Legs and Cleveland Blues. The left-handed pitcher ensured that the Cleveland batters were unable to score any first base while he was pitching. He achieved it on June 12, 1880, making his name go down in the history of the game with his incredible feat. However, just a few days later, John Montgomery Ward pitched a no-hitter while playing for Providence Grays against the Buffalo Bisons on June 17th, 1880.

Since then, there have been 21 more such games that are known to be the perfect ones in the history of Major League Baseball. Players like CY Young, Addie Joss, Charlie Robertson, Don Larsen, Jim Bunning, Sandy Koufax, Catfish Hunter, Len Barker, Mike Witt, Tom Browning, Dennis Martinez, Kenny Rogers, David Wells, David Cone, Randy Johnson, Mark Buehrle, Dallas Braden, Roy Halladay, Philip Humber, Matt Cain and Felix Hernandez have achieved this feat in the history of the game.