Matt Garza Too Perfect in Historic Bid

by R.J. Anderson on Apr 30, 2009 10:40 PM EDT

Some pitchers have the ability to put together games in such dominant fashion that you have to see them to appreciate it. Matt Garza has been a member of this team for nearly 18 months and he's put together a few of them already. The Miami and Texas regular season games and ALCS game seven reign supreme, but tonight's game is right there.

You never really know what you're going to get with Garza. His stuff is ridiculous. There are some nights, like tonight, where he can ride his fastball all night long because of the velocity and break. Throw in a slider that sits around 85 and a curve that sits 10 ticks lower, and Garza has a fantastic arsenal from which to attack.

Tonight Garza had it all working, getting 10 swinging strikes on 108 pitches.

A perfect game is so rare and such a delicate accomplishment that it's hard to attribute the ability to pitch one as an ability at all. To throw a perfect game requires an equilibrium of luck, fairy dust, star alignment, and potentially Dusty Baker dust. Garza came excruciatingly close to throwing a game wetter than the Perfect Storm...and then it all ended on the weakest hit ball against him all night. There's something beautiful about that moment. Not the failure itself, but the fact that Garza done in by throwing a pitch so well that Jacoby Ellsbury could only muster faint contact.

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Garza pounded the strikezone all night on the first pitch, as you can see above, and really put the Sox in a whole from the get-go. He used his slider, which arrived at the plate in about 0.440 seconds, perfectly in union with his fastball, 0.407 seconds. That's not much of a time span to make up your mind about swinging, especially not when the pitches are breaking like this:

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Odds are, Garza will never throw a perfect game at the major league level. The same can be said for about 99% of the population. That's not an indication of a lack of talent or skill; it's simply an insane prophecy that has came true 17 times in more than 105 years. That's not a 1% chance, or a 0.01% chance, those would be too kind of odds. To throw a perfect game is to be the ultimate outlier in history.

Garza didn't throw a perfect game tonight, but that's because he was too perfect.

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Comments

Thanks Matt

I felt like this team had a hangover and just needed to be challenged. They were playing with no passion. I hope that this is the begining of the turn-around. Matt really stepped up, tonight. C’mon Sonny.

by Lithia Rays on Apr 30, 2009 10:50 PM EDT reply actions

Indeed

Tonight’s game was pretty much the polar opposite of last night. The team came out and definitely looked like they had a purpose. This is the kind of baseball I want to watch. They can lose and that’s fine, but going out like they did last night where they just seemingly didn’t care is unwatchable baseball. This was a good response to that game.

They always pick up their game against Boston; so hopefully this will be the end of the slump.

"Where we all wait in earnest with pudding in hand for the Upton comet to sail through the roofed skies, so that we may meet Him."

by kericr on Apr 30, 2009 10:54 PM EDT up reply actions

so hopefully this will be the end of the slump.

Me, too.

by Lithia Rays on Apr 30, 2009 10:58 PM EDT up reply actions

And Hopefully

Sonny does not give up 7 ER tonight.

Need more series wins.

"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base."
~Dave Barry

by PriceMultiCyYoungs on May 1, 2009 7:47 AM EDT up reply actions

You finally called them Miami!!

Good for you:):)

Honestly, that was brilliant. MC Hammer said it right when he said U Can’t Touch This! Tonight, Matt was an Untouchable. Brilliant!

Put Tampa Bay back on our road uniforms!!

by joedobr on Apr 30, 2009 10:51 PM EDT reply actions

Where is your graph showing that the Rays hitters decided to hit the ball where the defense wasn't?

In Play, Out(s)

by Top Gun Numba 1 on Apr 30, 2009 10:52 PM EDT reply actions

There's only so much room on a graph...

"Don't test the cannon"! screamed Matt Garza after b.J. Upton throws another failed attempt of scoring by a tag-up!

by raysbball on Apr 30, 2009 11:28 PM EDT up reply actions

Except when we had Craw on 3rd and he lined out to Lugo

Shoulda bunted.

Do what you love to do and give it your very best. Whether it's business or baseball, or the theater, or any field. If you don't love what you're doing and you can't give it your best, get out of it. Life is too short. You'll be an old man before you know it.

-Al Lopez

by Sandy Kazmir on May 1, 2009 12:52 AM EDT up reply actions

A message from DRB Heaven

(unravels scroll)

Fuck you tranny lover

(flies away as an angel)

Swav or Die.

by SRQman on May 1, 2009 1:40 AM EDT up reply actions

The only angel you could ever be is Angel Rodriguez

This Puerto Rican from down the block that will suck your dick for a dime. He’s got issues and stop posting ginger we want to get a streak together.

-Al Lopez

by Sandy Kazmir on May 1, 2009 10:20 AM EDT up reply actions

MAJOR LEAGUE HITTERS CAN CONTROL WHERE THE BALL GOES.

by Suttree on May 1, 2009 1:45 AM EDT up reply actions

Its not a MLB skill

Its a skill human beings with two arms and two legs have. Apparently your amputation has robbed you of that important skill. It is really amazing what human beings can do. Open our hips, close them, stand up, move our arms in some ridiculous ways. I do feel sorry for you that you aren’t able to experience it.

Instead I recommend that you get the Fred McGriff/Tom Emanski video. I’m sure they have kids practice hitting the ball the other way.

by matthan on May 1, 2009 8:27 AM EDT up reply actions

Thankfully I was fortunate enough to miss that fight yesterday.

But I think I can boil this down.

Ideally, a hitter can influence where a hit goes. Anyone just swings wildly hoping to make contact is either a nobody or Gabe Kapler.

But a hitter cannot pick the exact spot he wants to hit it. He can pick a zone and try to aim it there. But depending on the pitch he gets, that may be impossible. Hence, sitting back and waiting for the right pitch.

by ReasonableDoubt on May 1, 2009 9:23 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs