Baseball fans, more than any other North American sports fans, have a sense of history. They understand that these things are so rare you have to cheer the player during something like this. Kudos to the Braves fans.
Randy Johnson did most things possible in baseball, won both AL and NL Cy young awards, won the world series and the perfect game. A career to be proud of.
Still to this day, I would of been fired from work if I showed up late, I wasnt missing this game. Most amazing thing I had ever seen on a ball field. I had to be clocked in by 2 mins because Randy did the unthinkable!
I was at this game -- fans started rooting for Randy around the end of the 7th, and why not? Great pitcher and dominant. Wanted to see my Braves win, but you have to cheer for a master making history when you see it happening.
I hope you have a lot of Braves fan friends, and when they ask you about that night, you tell them my Braves didn't win, but I saw Randy Johnson pitch a perfect game. And I'll never forget it.
I was at this game too. My friend's grandma bought us tickets for cleaning out her storage unit. We sat about 25 rows up from home plate. I started talking about it around the 5th inning, which is kinda silly. My friend (who was a pitcher on my high school team) laughed and said its way too early to think about it. Don't remember much about the game except the Braves fans cheering and how quiet the walk to the parking lot was. Everybody had the same stunned look in their eyes. Finished the night at a bar in Bankhead watching highlights on the TV
What's also cool is that Randy Johnson, in his Hall of Fame induction speech, expressed special appreciation for Robbie Hammock, his catcher in this game.
That's the thing for a no hitter or perfect game. You don't just need to have the right stuff on the right night, but you also need to have the right game caller. One passed ball, one missed block, one at-bat gone wrong, and the achievement is gone.
2004 = Greatest Year Ever and the Greatest Year Of My Life. Seeing Randy's perfect game on TV was so much fun. I was so happy for him and Arizona. 10 years old and times were good. I miss these days.
RJ was a super focused athlete, so he always came off as angry or serious or whatever. But even he couldn't help but laugh & smile when Robby Hammock ran to the mound like a little boy running to the Christmas tree on Xmas morning. What a great moment.
I remember watching this on TV. Awesome. Look at the crowd. A few people with cameras but mostly a crowd of fans enjoying a historic baseball moment watching it with their eyeballs not through a cellphone screen. Ahhh the good ol days. Lol
Very classy fans in Atlanta shown here and Randy is just so cool as always. His catcher is going crazy and Johnson just stands there and laughs. This gives me chills and should any real baseball fan. RJ will go down as one of the best ever his slider was unmatched and a lefty that throws in the 100mph range even 95-97 at 40 is a once in a lifetime site especially at near 7 foot tall. Just scary
I hate being the 'old guy', but one of the best things about this game is watching Randy Johnson HIT. He didn't do anything with the bat, but it was the National League and that's the way the game was played. If you were on the field, you had to hit. Except for Shohei, we'll never see that again.
gameaddict51 I love both football and baseball, football the most. But I would have to agree with him there, watching a no-hitter or perfect game in the making is one of the most exciting things you can see. But being I'm a die-hard Real Madrid fan, when they play big games, it's hard to compare it to a perfect game, but my heart beats FAST then, too.
What a classy crowd in Atlanta, cheering Randy on like that. I remember that didn't end up being a good year for the d'backs, but this was certainly a big moment.
Earlier in his career, Randy Johnson struck out 20 Cincinnati Reds. That was a National League Strikeout Record. But it never counted because Johnson pitched 10 Innings in that game.THAT WAS BULLSHIT! Johnson struck out no one in the 10th Inning.
I think that was the first time I ever saw Randy Johnson legitimately laugh when his catcher came jumping out to the mound so excited afterwards. What a great moment. "The Big Unit" was an absolute beast on the hill, and this was a brilliant performance. Always loved how intense he was. Good for him, and good for his teammates.
Brandon Fry He's the best pitcher in the modern era. The best pitcher of all time is Cy Young. He pitched a perfect game, then pitched a 1 hit shutout the very next day.
I loved watching Unit pitch. When he was young nobody knew where the ball was going, just that it was heading somewhere REALLY fast. Then he got older and the ball was still travelling at 100 mph but he had decent control. And then he got a little older and was still holding his velocity but he knew EXACTLY where the ball was going.
I remember watching this on tv. Johnson was the only reason why i became an Astros fan. Loved going to the astrodome and watching him pitch. Amazing. Will always be a fan of Johnson.
I remember watching this game my senior year in high school. What stuck with me the most was all game he was 94-97 on his fastball. That last pitch he threw clocked 101 on the gun. The guy was a true legend and was able to reach back for something extra better than anyone who's ever done it.
2-0 talk about a close game. Johnson had to be perfect this game and he was, good to see him achieve every major honour in the game. Cy Young, Perfect Game, World Series Ring.
Thank you for posting this (and all the other great games) MLBClassics. We remember when this one was tossed. Interestingly enough we stumbled across this video one day before the nine year anniversary of this gem. Cheers!
DUFFY3370 Because a 25 year old with no Cy Young Awards and 2 All Star Game appearances should be compared to Randy Johnson, who had 10 All Star Appearances, 5 CYAs, and struck out more batters per 9 innings than any other pitcher in MLB history.
What a pleasure it is to watch a really well-played game. Hampton wasn't bad (apart from that horrible missed DP, which didn't cost), but Johnson had every hitter on a string and was immaculate. Full disclosure: Braves fan here.
If Hampton had pitched this game any other night, it would’ve been recognized way more as one of the best performances of the season. But man do I love the big unit
Randy Johnson was a savage..don't think there will ever be a pitcher as dominant as him. I don't hate Chip like a lot of people do, but man i fucking miss Skip
In my opinion, the perfect game is the beat thing to watch and the hardest thing to accomplish in all of sports. Maybe a hole in one is hard too, but I'd much rather watch a perfect game for a couple hours then wait for nothing to happen in golf
Noel Granados I would say this is more skill a hole-one. I've got two and I'll be real honest it's the best swing of your life mixed with all the luck on the course at that moment. The wind has to be perfect, the green mowed just right. Tee box markers lined up to a T... the No-hitter/Perfecto is all all bout calming yourself and realizing it's just you and the catchers mit. That's the talent. Clearing your mind in this situation...
Absolutely true, and I didn’t watch every one but I know Gary Cederstrom behind the plate was no Eric Gregg, he was no pitcher’s umpire. (And that’s good, he made them earn it.)
He did such a good job of hiding his pitches. I paused in the middle of his windup and guessed at his release point whether slider or fastball and I still had difficulty.
I agree. I really have to wonder how historically bad the D-Backs would've been if he wasn't with them that year. I still remember him giving up one or two runs on numerous occassions and always getting handed the loss. 7 times that year he took a loss giving up 2 or less runs and 3 times got a no decision giving up 1 or less. Hell, 10 of his losses were when he had a quality start. That's almost unheard of.
Koufax definitely gets my vote, hands down. Randy Johnson is great too, but I would probably put Lefty Grove, Steve Carlton, and Warren Spahn ahead of him. Johnson is definitely top 5 though-- no doubt about that. Probably the greatest strikeout pitcher since Nolan Ryan.
Chris Warren Koufax also played in an era where the talent wasn't diluted with massive expansion like the era Johnson played in. Koufax also pitched in a four-man rotation unlike the five-man rotation that Johnson did. I think that demonstrates Koufax's durability and stamina as he pitched more often with a lot of complete games unlike Johnson. He had four no hitters compared to Johnson's one. It's very difficult, if not impossible, to truly compare players from different eras. I still that Koufax is better though. Just my opinion.
well spoken....koufax, obviously, is the greatest pitcher of all time...followed by grove...palmer....seaver...hunter....spahn.....marichal.....gibson....ford....carlton....
What's crazy about no hitters and perfect games... usually the other pitcher has good stuff that day too.. Hampton was pitching a very nice game take away the walks and the double/error.
Seeing the catcher jump up and down for Randy reminds me of the no hitters I was privelaged to catch in middle and highschool. Theres no better feeling as a catcher. No better seat in the house to watch the game either.
Skip says that Randy was the 4th pitcher to throw a no-hitter in both leagues, but he's actually the 5th. He failed to mention JIm Bunning, who threw a no-no for the Tigers in '58 and a perfecto for the Phillies in '64.
This was the second game of a brutal 3-game-losing-streak for Atlanta. The first game, Atlanta lost to the Brewers, as Ben Sheets threw a complete-game with 18 strikeouts, allowing only one run. This is the second game, as Randy Johnson pitches a perfecto. The next game, Brandon Webb pitches a gem against Atlanta, as Arizona beat Atlanta in extra innings. Even with their 51-111 record in 2004, Arizona had two stud starting pitchers (Randy Johnson and Brandon Webb). Brandon Webb once had a 20-game-winning-season, and he also had another season where he won the NL Cy Young.
