Phillip Humber Perfect Game: Power Ranking Every Perfect Game in MLB History

Phillip Humber's perfect game was one of beauty.

The Chicago White Sox pitcher surprised many with his ability to throw a perfect game, as he's never been known to have power stuff.

But, just like the 20 pitchers before him to accomplish the feat, all it took was one perfect day where the conditions were perfect, the batters cooperated and the defense was on point.

Although it's hard to compare perfect games, I decided to go ahead and take a stab at it, power ranking all 21 perfect games in history, based off number of strikes, number of total pitches, team and lineup pitchers faced and various other factors.

Here's a look at my rankings.

Note: The rankings only reflect official perfect games.

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21. Addie Joss, Cleveland Naps

Date: Oct. 2, 1908

Opponent: Chicago White Sox

Final Score: Cleveland Naps 1, Chicago White Sox 0

There was nothing too spectacular about Addie Joss' perfect game.

He made quick work of the White Sox, using 74 pitches while striking out three.

The amazing thing about Joss' work was that he got 16 of his 27 outs via a ground out.

Still, it was nothing too spectacular, but is still a perfect game.

20. Lee Richmond, Worcester Ruby Legs

Date: June 12, 1880

Opponent: Cleveland Blues

Final Score: Worcester Ruby Legs 1, Cleveland Blues 0

Lee Richmond threw the first perfect game in major league history.

He struck out five batters and got 14 ground ball outs.

Other than that, not too much is available on the game.

19. John Montgomery Ward, Providence Grays

Date: June 17, 1880

Opponent: Buffalo Bison

Final Score: Providence Grays 5, Buffalo Bison 0

John Montgomery Ward was a good pitcher for the Providence Grays.

In fact, he was so good, he was the only pitcher on his team.

Ward pitched his perfect game five days after Lee Richmond.

He also had five strikeouts and 14 groundouts in the game.

18. Dennis Martinez, Montreal Expos

Date: July 8, 1991

Opponent: Los Angeles Dodgers

Final Score: Montreal Expos 2, Los Angeles Dodgers 0

Martinez took 96 pitches, with 66 strikes, to record his perfect game.

Near the end of his career at 36 years old, Martinez struck out five batters, but had three batters take it to a 3-2 count.

In the Dodgers lineup facing him were Darryl Strawberry, Brett Butler and Mike Scoiscia, with Butler being the only one of the three that struck out.

17. Mark Buehrle, Chicago White Sox

Date: July 23, 2009

Opponent: Tampa Bay Rays

Final Score: Chicago White Sox 5, Tampa Bay Rays 0

Mark Buehrle has been known for some incredible plays and pitching performances during his career, but his perfect game against the Rays tops them all.

Buehrle threw 116 pitches, but 40 of them were balls, so efficiency wasn't his strong point on the day.

The left-hander struck out six batters, including Evan Longoria and Carlos Pena.

Of the 27 outs, 11 were via the groundout.

16. Dallas Braden, Oakland A's

Date: May 9, 2010

Opponent: Tampa Bay Rays

Final Score: Oakland A's 4, Tampa Bay Rays 0

Dallas Braden's perfect game goes down as my favorite out of all of the 21.

If for nothing else, the embrace he had with his grandmother, who was battling breast cancer, was simply priceless.

Braden threw 109 pitches with 77 of them being strikes. Of those 77 strikes, 47 of them were because of contact.

Overall, he struck out six batters, including B.J. Upton and Willy Aybar twice.

15. Charlie Robertson, Chicago White Sox

Date: April 30, 1922

Opponent: Detroit Tigers

Final Score: Chicago White Sox 2, Detroit Tigers 0

Charlie Robertson pitched the fifth perfect game in history, striking out six in the process, with Ty Cobb being one of those.

Robertson also got 11 groundball outs and took 90 pitches to retire 27 Tigers.

The perfect game would also be the last in MLB for 34 years.

14. Tom Browning, Cincinnati Reds

Date: Sept. 16, 1988

Opponent: Los Angeles Dodgers

Final Score: Cincinnati Reds 1, Los Angeles Dodgers 0

Tom Browning pitched the only perfect game against a team that won the World Series that same year.

But, for one day, the Reds were better.

Browning got seven strikeouts on 100 pitchers, getting John Shelby to fan three times, while Kirk Gibson struck out twice.

During the next season, Browning almost became the first pitcher to throw two perfect games in a career, as he retired the first 24 batters of a July 4 game against the Phillies before giving up a leadoff double to begin the ninth.

13. Kenny Rogers, Texas Rangers

Date: July 28, 1994

Opponent: California Angels

Final Score: Texas Rangers 4, California Angels 0

This was almost the perfect game that never was.

Leading off the bottom of the ninth inning, Rex Hudler drove a ball to center field, with the Rangers' Rusty Greer making a diving catch to preserve the perfect game.

Rogers wasn't as efficient with his pitches, throwing 34 balls out of the 98 pitches he threw.

However, he did get eight strikeouts, including Bo Jackson three times and Jim Edmonds twice.

12. Phillip Humber, Chicago White Sox

Date: April 21, 2012

Opponent: Buffalo Bison

Final Score: Chicago White Sox 4, Seattle Mariners 0

Phillip Humber is another one of those feel good stories.

Seven years after having Tommy John surgery, Humber threw his on Saturday.

Humber got nine strikeouts for his efforts, as he threw 96 pitches. Of those, 67 were strikes.

Ironically, Humber got 13 flyball outs, which is the most by any pitcher who has thrown a perfect game.

The last out will go down as the most controversial out, as Brendan Ryan had a check swing that was low and out of the zone.

Instead of running to first base right away when the ball got past the catcher, Ryan showed disgust looking back and yelling at the umpire as he finally started running.

Too bad. Had he started running immediately, he might have ruined the perfect game. Instead, he argued.

11. Cy Young, Boston Americans

Date: May 5, 1904

Opponent: Philadelphia A's

Final Score: Boston Americans 3, Philadelphia A's 0

Philadelphia A's manager Connie Mack said that Cy Young's perfect game was the best game he ever saw pitched, as not a single ball was hit hard by A's batters.

Young recorded eight strikeouts and nine groundouts in the game.

10. David Wells, New York Yankees

Date: May 17, 1998

Opponent: Minnesota Twins

Final Score: New York Yankees 4, Minnesota Twins 0

The infamous drunk game by David Wells goes down as either the greatest day of his life or the stupidest day of his life, depending on how you look at it.

Regardless, he still threw a perfect game, and to do it when he was drunk makes it that much more of a feat.

Wells struck out 11 batters, using 120 pitches to record all 27 outs. Of those 120, 79 were strikes, with 45 being because of contact.

9. Roy Halladay, Philadelphia Phillies

Date: May 29, 2010

Opponent: Florida Marlins

Final Score: Philadelphia Phillies 1 Florida Marlins 0

Some may say that Roy Halladay's perfect game isn't ranked high enough, but when you're measuring feats like this, the difference is mere pitches.

Halladay recorded his 27 outs in 115 pitches with 11 strikeouts. Of those, 72 were strikes.

The main reason for putting Halladay at No. 9 is the fact that seven hitters reached three-ball counts.

That's too close for comfort.

He also has the distinction of joining Sandy Koufax of being the only pitchers to win the Cy Young award and throw a perfect game in the same season.

8. David Cone, New York Yankees

Date: July 18, 1999

Opponent: Montreal Expos

Final Score: New York Yankees 6, Montreal Expos 0

This perfect game was meant to be for David Cone.

It was Yogi Berra Day at Yankee Stadium, and Berra and Don Larsen were there for the ceremonial first pitch.

Cone's perfect game was interrupted by a 33-minute rain delay, but that didn't stop him.

Cone took 88 pitches and struck out 10 batters, with 68 of those being strikes.

Of the 11 batters he faced, only two finished the game having not struck out.

7. Catfish Hunter, Oakland A's

Date: May 8, 1968

Opponent: Minnesota Twins

Final Score: Oakland A's 4, Minnesota Twins 0

Catfish Hunter took 107 pitches to get his perfect game, striking out 11 in the process.

Two batters, Harmon Killebrew and Bruce Look, struck out three times each.

During the game, Hunter also went 3-for-4 with a double and three RBI.

The perfect game was a way to welcome the A's to Oakland, as it was only 25 games into their tenure in the city.

6. Jim Bunning, Philadelphia Phillies

Date: June 21, 1964

Opponent: New York Mets

Final Score: Philadelphia Phillies 6, New York Mets 0

Jim Bunning's perfect game happened on Father's Day, and he defied all logic throughout the game.

Normally, when a no-hitter is going on, a pitcher's teammates don't talk about what's going on. They just leave him alone.

Instead of following that logic, Bunning talked with his teammates about it throughout the game, keeping them loose.

During the game, Bunning only had 90 pitches and struck out 10, including three by Jim Hickman.

5. Len Barker, Cleveland Indians

Date: May 15, 1981

Opponent: Toronto Blue Jays

Final Score: Cleveland Indians 3, Toronto Blue Jays 0

Len Barker took 103 pitches to complete the perfect game and struck out 11.

Of the other 16 outs, nine were from ground balls.

It also had the distinction of being the first perfect game thrown in which designated hitters were used.

4. Mike Witt, California Angels

Date: Sept. 30, 1984

Opponent: Texas Rangers

Final Score: California Angels 1, Texas Rangers 0

Mike Witt took 94 pitches and struck out 10 en route to a perfect game on the last day of the season, the only time that's ever been done.

He got 12 ground outs to go along with his 10 strikeouts.

3. Randy Johnson, Arizona Diamondbacks

Date: May 18, 2004

Opponent: Atlanta Braves

Final Score: Arizona Diamondbacks 2, Atlanta Braves 0

This is the one that's the most sour for me being a Braves fan, but you have to give credit where credit is due.

Randy Johnson's perfect game made him the oldest pitcher (40 years, 256 days) to throw a perfect game, and the only one over 40.

Of the 27 outs, 13 came by way of the strikeout, with nine coming on ground outs.

Johnson threw 117 pitches, with 87 of them being strikes and 46 because of contact.

It was a sad day as a Braves fan to see this happen, but it definitely was warranted for the way he was pitching that day.

2. Sandy Koufax, Los Angeles Dodgers

Date: Sept. 9, 1965

Opponent: Chicago Cubs

Final Score: L.A. Dodgers 1, Chicago Cubs 0

Sandy Koufax struck out 14 en route to his perfect game, taking 113 pitches to do so.

Of the rest of the outs, only four came via a groundout, marking the least amount of ground outs in perfect-game history.

The game also marked the first perfect game at night, had the fewest number of hits (one) and fewest number of base-runners by both teams (two) in any game in MLB history.

Cubs pitcher Bob Hendley was equally as good in the game, giving up only one hit, which did not figure into the scoring of the game.

1. Don Larsen, New York Yankees

Date: Oct. 8, 1956

Opponent: Brooklyn Dodgers

Final Score: New York Yankees 2, Brooklyn Dodgers 0

Don Larsen gets the top spot for the sole reason that he is the only pitcher to throw a perfect game in the World Series.

Sure, others may have taken less pitches and thrown more strikes, but none did it on a bigger stage than Larsen when he took 97 pitches to put down 27 Brooklyn Dodgers batters in Game 5 of the World Series.

Of his 97 pitches, only 27 were balls, and only once did he get to a full count.

Larsen struck out seven different batters in the game, with Jackie Robinson being one of the three batters he didn't strike out.

Although Larsen isn't a Hall-of-Fame pitcher, for one day in one World Series, he showed he could pitch the best game of his career on the biggest stage.