More impressive: Four home run game or Perfect Game

[George H Ruth]

Four homers: 16 times (once since 2003)

Perfect game: 21 times (five times since 2003, including four since 2009)

what is more impressive in your opinion, and why?

[quagmire]

Perfect game. A pitcher completely shutting down the lineup for 27 outs in a row is a lot more impressive. You have to make your pitches perfectly, rely on your defense to get the outs, etc. A four HR game is impressive too, but it doesn't have the same variables as a perfect game has.

[ol' aches and pains]

For four homers, you need one incredibly locked-in hitter. For a perfect game, you not only have to pitch perfectly, but eight other guys have to play flawless defense behind you. I believe the perfect game is more difficult to accomplish, but both are equally amazing feats.

[Edgartohof]

Perfect game but 4 HR is still amazing. I remember Mike Cameron doing it and it was an amazing to have gotten to watch that. Maybe 5 HR would be more impressive than a perfect game because it was require bad management, bad pitchers and a hitter who is locked in for a long time.

[dominik]

both needs a great performance but also a lot of luck. if you hit the ball a little lower you will pop it up. same is true for the perfect game.

[pheasant]

4 HRs, usually means about 7 rbis on average. This to me is more impressive. On the flip side, a team with a player hitting 4 HRs has gone 14-2 whereas a team that had a pitcher that tossed a perfect game has gone 21-0.
In that sense, a perfect game is more valuable.

I still stand with my vote: 4 HRs is more impressive than a perfect game.

[ipitch]

For me, it would depend on the perfect game (the number of Ks, the number of balls that were hit hard, etc). If a 8 line drives are hit and they are all caught, did the pitcher really pitch that great?

[Honus Wagner Rules]

If Len Barker can pitch a perfect game how impressive can it be?

gal_perfect-len-barker.jpg

[GiambiJuice]

If Len Barker can pitch a perfect game how impressive can it be?

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The same can be said for Mark Whiten.

[Honus Wagner Rules]

The same can be said for Mark Whiten.

Well Whiten retired with a 102 OPS+. Barker retired with a 93 ERA+. Plus Whiten had the cool nickname "Hard Hittin' ". Barker's middle name is "Harold".

[GiambiJuice]

Well Whiten retired with a 102 OPS+. Barker retired with a 93 ERA+. Plus Whiten had the cool nickname "Hard Hittin' ". Barker's middle name is "Harold".

Well, I reckon you've got me there :-)

[SHOELESSJOE3]

On another note, it appears that the 4 homer game is more difficult.

At the start of every game there are only two players with the potential to pitch a perfect game, both opposing pitchers.
At the start of every game there are in most cases 3 or maybe 4 hitters on both teams with the potential to hit 4 home runs.

Despite the better odds of a 4 homer game, there have been 5 more perfect games than there have been 4 homer games.
I did not use the number of 9 batters with the potential to have a 4 homer game because in most line ups there are usually 3 or 4 heavy hitters that could do it.
Of course the batter would have to step in to the box at least 4 timess.

Have not given it much thought and there may be something I've missed, but on the face of it, the odds seem to favor the 4 homer game but that has not been the case.

[SHOELESSJOE3]

If Len Barker can pitch a perfect game how impressive can it be?

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We know the story in the game of baseball, on any day............................................... ...
No shock here, Len did do it.

[doctor_gogol]

Armando Galarraga pitched one too (technically). He's not much of a pitcher otherwise. But his perfect game is still very impressive.

They are both amazing but a perfect game is so much more complicated.

But all this is really just opinion.

[Honus Wagner Rules]

We know the story in the game of baseball, on any day............................................... ...
No shock here, Len did do it.

I still remember watching the highlights. This was years before the Internet and we didn't have cable TV in our home. I was only 12 yead old. What I remember about the Barker highlights is how empty Cleveland Stadium was. The official attendance was just 7,290!

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CLE/CLE198105150.shtml

By the way I was joking about Len Barker and the non-impressiveness of his perfect game.