David Cone, baseball’s pre-eminent perfect play expert, gave a quick laugh over the phone.
Cone was at his Manhattan apartment, nearly 3,000 miles from the Oakland Coliseum, when Yankees right-back Domingo Germán became the 24th pitcher in MLB history to pitch in the 11-0 win over the hapless A’s on Wednesday night played the perfect game. Despite the distance, Cone had a good idea of what to expect for Germán. And of course he did. Cone threw a perfect game for the Yankees in 1999 and the year before he was there when his best friend and teammate David Wells did the same.
“There will be a lot of autograph collectors that will be looking for him and Higgy to sign something together forever,” Cone told The Athletic, referring to catcher Kyle Higashioka. “It’s something they’re not even aware of.”
From his couch, Cone watched each and every one of the 99 shots Germán threw on his way to indelible success. He watched all nine of Germán’s strikeouts. He cheered as Germán Esteury got Ruiz to jump to third baseman Josh Donaldson for the last out of the game. He smiled as his teammates mobbed him in the infield.
And Cone thought back to the day he threw his perfect game – July 18, 1999, against the Montreal Expos at Yankee Stadium, a 6-0 win.
It’s a moment that still ranks high on Cone’s impressive resume. Sure, Cone has won five World Series titles. Yes, he pitched eight teams, including the Mets and Red Sox. He also appeared in five All-Star games, won the 1994 American League Cy Young, led the majors in wins in 1998, and led the majors in strikeouts twice. In fact, he’s one of baseball’s most respected television analysts.
Above all, Cone’s perfect game comes to the fore.
“It’s pointed out a lot,” Cone said. “It’s been played a lot on the YES Network – it’s shown at least once a year.”
Cone joked he didn’t think Germán would sleep on Wednesday night. But what about the long term?
“It’s just never forgotten,” Cone said. “It’s always there.”
Cone said he saw how the achievement of throwing a perfect play worked wonders for Wells. Cone said he saw a switch flip in Wells, who was nicknamed “Boomer” after he scored 11 goals in his perfect game against the Twins on May 17, 1998 at Yankee Stadium. Wells went into this game with a 4-1 record but had an ugly 5.23 ERA this season. After the perfect game? Wells posted a 3.10 ERA and took a 13-3 lead as the Yankees won a franchise-record 114 regular-season games and their second World Series of the 1990s.
“With Domingo,” Cone said, “it’s probably more like Boomer because that could really help him take the leap to bigger and better things.” That was the case for Boomer in 1998, he became after that day another pitcher. He’s really gained a lot of confidence and maybe that could work for Domingo too. We will see.”
Why did Wells suddenly gain confidence after his perfect game?
“I just think he was a big fan of the game,” Cone said. “He is a great collector of memorabilia. He’s kind of a history buff, especially when it comes to Yankee history. I think he understood what that meant for him. He made his own mark on history after idolizing Babe Ruth and all the Yankee greats. He saw himself at the side of these people. That gave him a lot of confidence.
“I’m not sure how that will affect Domingo, but it has to have a really positive impact on him in terms of how he feels about himself.”
Cone said he spent the night making Germán, who he got to know a bit as an analyst for YES Network and for ESPN, “really engaging.” German was in the middle of a difficult season. Germán’s uncle died just three days ago. And Germán’s last two starts had been terrible. Earlier in the season, Germán was suspended for ten games for violating the league’s sticky-stuff policy for using too much rosin, a legal substance, though Germán said at the time he didn’t realize he was against breaking the rules had no intention of destroying them.
He wasn’t even scheduled for spring training in the Yankees’ rotation schedules, but the injuries to Carlos Rodón and Frankie Montas gave him the opportunity.
And as of Thursday night, Germán may well have been best known in baseball for being suspended for a total of 81 games for violating the league’s domestic violence policy. He was granted a leave of absence in September 2019 and will serve the remaining 63 games of his suspension in 2020. At the time, it was the harshest ban imposed on a player who was investigated but never criminally charged with allegations of domestic violence.
Cone said he also saw meaning in the numbers Wednesday night. When Cone threw his perfect game, he threw 88 shots, and he did it on Yogi Berra Day in the Bronx. Berra, the Yankees’ legendary catcher, wore the number 8. As part of the celebrations that day, Don Larsen, who threw the only perfect game of the World Series in 1956 (October 8, no less), threw the ceremonial first throw. Cone was surprised that Germán had nine strikeouts in nine innings and 99 pitches.
“I look at the numbers and it means something because it’s hard enough to throw a perfect play,” Cone said, “but it’s even harder to be allowed to throw enough shots to have such a perfectly perfect play. ‘ You have to count that pitch like he did. So for me the efficiency of the whole thing was the part that made it so beautiful. There was just no fooling around. He was in full control the whole time.”
The perfect game will accompany Germán as long as he’s involved with baseball.
“It’s part of your resume now,” Cone said, “and always will be.”
(Photo by Domingo German after his perfect game: Stan Szeto / USA Today)