Major League Baseball (MLB) was about to write another historic chapter in its more than 150 years of history. In the second duel of the series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Minnesota Twins, starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw was charged with the possibility of getting the perfect game. However, after seven innings and six outs left, manager Dave Roberts took the ball out of his hands and sent Alex Vesia to the back. The decision was condemned by David Faitelson.
Through his Twitter account, the ESPN journalist lashed out at the controversial manager of the team where Julio Urías plays. In his publication, he noted that baseball has lost popularity in the United States and that “a feat of a 'perfect game' collaborates to attract and catch fans. Managers watch another game. Dave Roberts may have let Clayton Kershaw try. It's a shame,” he said.
Kershaw's case was not the only one in the 2022 season, but it was the most controversial one. In his presentation duel in the campaign, the legendary left-handed pitcher had a solid start and gave no room for the batters he faced to get into the base.
Throughout the seven innings, the pitcher used 80 pitches to knock out 21 players in a row. In his appearance he hit 13 strikeouts, three rivals made him connect more than five sets and only allowed three more to hit the field, although none of them could make it to first base. So, six outs after signing the perfect game number 24 in history, Roberts took him out of the match.
His place was taken by Alex Viesa, who was in charge of pitching on the eighth roll with a chocolate, but he tarnished Kershaw's perfect stat by allowing a hit without a race. The closing of the match was led by Justin Bruihl, who closed the score in seven races for the Dodgers against zero for the Twins. That's how the Los Angeles team scored their third win of the season.
Throughout history in MLB, only 23 perfect games have been made. The first record was in 1880, when Lee Richmond became the pioneer. In 1904 Cy Young became third, while Kenny Rogers was the 14th pitcher to do so during the 1994 season. The last to register on the list was Venezuelan Felix Hernandez, who won it in 2012 when he was pitching for the Seattle Mariners.
In that sense, by preventing Kershaw from becoming the 24th pitcher of the list, fans broke out on social media against Roberts. And it is not the first time he has done something similar. In September 2016, he retired Rich Hill despite having surpassed seven innings perfectly. That case and Kershaw's are the only ones recorded since 1901.
For his part, beyond recriminating Roberts's decision, Kershaw supported the strategist's decision. “I knew my launch count wasn't going to be 100. It's a hard thing to do, to get out of a game when you're doing something like that. We're here to win. It was the right decision,” said the experienced pitcher after the match.
The Dodgers will see action again on Thursday, April 14, when they make their home presentation as they receive a visit from the Cincinnati Reds. Julio Urias could appear again in the first series of the ninth angelina as a local, where he must claim his role as stellar pitcher and reverse the painful defeat he suffered against the Colorado Rockies on April 10, 2022.
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