Nolan Ryan never did it.
Neither did Jim Palmer, Roger Clemens, Pedro Martinez, Tom Seaver or Steve Carlton.
In fact, until young Oakland Athletics pitcher Dallas Braden tossed nine innings of perfection Sunday afternoon against the Tampa Bay Rays, only 18 hurlers in Major League Baseball history had accomplished the feat.
Of course I am talking about throwing a perfect game, something most pitchers never even do at the Little League level, let alone against the world’s best players.
But there was Braden on the hill that fateful Mother’s Day, keeping the Rays – who have the best record in the bigs – off-balance and confused throughout all nine innings of play, never allowing a single one to reach base.
And there I was, along with my father and grandfather – two individuals who have probably forgotten more about sports than I’ll ever know – watching the A’s record the last two outs in the ninth and celebrate.
We celebrated too, because, obviously, it’s not something you get a chance to see every day.
Once an unknown pitcher for a west coast squad that routinely only draws 15,000 spectators tops to its home games, Braden now has a place in sports lore.
Even Alex Rodriguez – whose feud with Braden made headlines just a few weeks ago – had to acknowledge the remarkable accomplishment this 26-year-old had just achieved.
And that’s the beauty of sports, in all honesty.
Sure there are the stars like A-Rod, Jeter and Pujols that we hear about all the time because they are consistently great, but most of Major League Baseball, along with every other professional league, is made up of role players who hardly ever get the chance to shine.
But on occasion, a guy like Braden – who could end up having a solid career but most likely will never reach the heights of a pitcher like Roy Halladay – rises above the rest and the whole world takes notice.
It’s why we play now or played when we were younger, even those who were not as talented as others, because every contest you have the chance to be a star if you catch the right breaks.
