Definition

Noun: 1. A baseball game in which a pitcher does not allow any opposing player to reach base: In baseball, a "perfect game" is an exceptionally rare and difficult achievement where a pitcher (or a combination of pitchers) prevents every batter on the opposing team from reaching base during the entire game. This means no hits, no walks, and no batters hit by a pitch, and no opposing player reaches base due to an error or a fielder's choice. It requires a minimum of 27 batters faced and 27 outs recorded.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The pitcher threw a perfect game, retiring all 27 batters he faced.
  • Achieving a perfect game is considered one of the greatest feats in baseball.
  • Fans cheered as the final out secured the first perfect game in the team's history.

Advanced Usage

• "to pitch a perfect game": This is the standard verb collocation used to describe the action of achieving this feat.
  • Only a handful of pitchers have ever pitched a perfect game in Major League Baseball.

Variants and Related Words

• No-hitter (noun): A related but distinct achievement where a pitcher (or pitchers) allows no hits over the course of a complete game. Batters may reach base via a walk, error, or being hit by a pitch, so a no-hitter is not necessarily a perfect game. All perfect games are no-hitters, but not all no-hitters are perfect games.

Synonyms

• Flawless game (informal): Emphasizes the absence of mistakes or allowances.
• 27-up, 27-down: A descriptive phrase referring to the result of all 27 batters being retired in order.

Noun

1. a game in which a pitcher does not allow any opposing player to reach base