The Perfect Game Hangover?

on June 13th Matt Cain became the 22nd pitcher in MLB history to throw a perfect game, he also set a record for most pitches to complete a perfect game. Last night for the first time this season Matt Cain failed to pitch into the 6th inning, snapping a streak of 13 games. Here is a look at how the last 4 guys to throw a perfect game fared during their next 5 starts.

Philip Humber – (0-2, 7.93 ERA) 26.1 IP, 30 H, 23 ER, 5 HR, 16 BB, 22 SO

Roy Halladay –  (2-3, 3.00 ERA) 36 IP, 41 H, 12 ER, 6 HR, 5 BB, 32 SO

Dallas Braden – (0-3, 4.49 ERA) 30.1 IP, 33 H, 15 ER, 5 HR, 6 BB, 18 SO

Mark Buehrle – (0-3, 5.89 ERA) 32.1 IP, 43 H, 21 ER, 4 HR, 7 BB, 8 SO

The four pitchers on the list combined for a win-loss record of 2-11 over 20 starts. In those starts this group reached the 7th inning or deeper in 7 of 20 games following their perfect game. Roy Halladay reached at least the 7th in four of his five starts after his perfect game.

Except for Halladay, the other pitchers on the list had at least one start where they didn’t pitch past the 5th inning.

Of the pitchers on this list, Halladay is the guy most relatable to Cain in terms of stuff and durability which would seem to bode well for Cain and the Giants.  Matt Cain wasn’t nearly as sharp last night, but that is consistent with his home and road splits. Cain has a 1.45 ERA at AT&T Park this season vs. a 3.48 ERA in 7 starts on the road. Although Cain has made the same number of starts at home as on the road, he has thrown 12 fewer innings during his road starts.

“I was probably a little amped up from it, maybe try to keep it going in a way,” said Cain, who threw 100 pitches in five innings. “I was a little energized in general. The whole time I was pitching perhaps higher up in general.”

More importantly for Cain, on a night when he struggled with control, walking a season high 4 hitters, he battled through and still managed to win his 8th straight start. Now that all the hoopla has subsided, Matt Cain should be able to get back to his old dominating self.

About these ads