Pitcher perfect

The last time I came to Chicago I watched Carlos Zambrano take a no-hitter into the 9th at Wrigley Field against San Diego. He blew it, and the Cubs ended up losing, which of course pleased me despite the fact that I've always wanted to witness a no-hitter. Well, today the Sox made up for what the Cubs couldn't do and then some.

I have a goal of seeing every MLB team play at home (I say it that way because with the way teams change stadiums there's no way I can keep up with every stadium). I'd done two Cubs games, so when I saw that the Sox were at home during my trip to Chicago this week, I knew a trip to the Southside was in order.

I should mention that results aside, I really enjoyed the game. You all know how I feel about the Cubs, and I love how gritty the Sox fans are. The stadium is nice too. I had a great seat -- first row, upper deck in the middle of the first base line.

And oh, by the way, Mark Buehrle pitched a perfect game.


Baseball fans I know get the significance of that. But for those of you who don't, let me explain. Mark Buehrle, a pitcher for the White Sox pitched an entire game in which not only did no one get a hit, no one even successfully reached first base. No walks, no hit batters. Everyone was out on either strikes or a pop out. (Or because of this really, really amazing home run-robbing catch by DeWayne Wise).

No-hitters are a pretty big deal as there are only two or three a year. But in 130 years of Major League Baseball (and counting today's), there has only been 18 perfect games. EIGHTEEN. And I saw one of them.

By the 8th inning, the crowd was on its collective feet and screaming at every single strike. Not every out. Every strike. There was electricity in the air at U.S. Cellular Park, and the El train was abuzz all the way back to the city.

The ridiculous thing about being there to witness it is you feel like you played a role in it. Like, despite the fact that it was pure chance that you selected that day to randomly go see a baseball game, you should still be congratulated for being there. And I was there :)