Which Is more rare?

Question

See many consider the "Perfect Game" to be the rarest achievement in baseball, as only 17 have been pitched in the major leagues. However, recently a player for Colorado performed an unassisted triple play, this has only been done 13 times. Does this mean that the "unassisted triple play" is more rare than a "perfect game" or are they in different catigories becasue a pitcher is not a regular postion player.

Answer 1

You're assessing a single play event against a full game event, and both so rare as to be essentially random, so few have occurred over the course of some 138 years of major league baseball.

Consider the four consecutive home runs, by Boston last week, only the fifth time in history; that's even rarer. Yet three occurred in a four year span (1961-64) and the other two mere months apart (Sept. 2006, April 2007), and one of the batters was common to both (Drew). Now THAT's rare.

Or a team turning two triple plays in one game: one, Minnesota against Boston, 1990. Twins still lost, 1-0.

Or, AFAIK, there's only been one 2-9 pickoff play in history. This sort of thing just never happens... but one time, it did.

I'd rank the perfect game the more difficult even if there's been a few more in history. It's a performance-driven accomplishment, it takes consistent excellence for the entire game on the part of the pitcher and his defense (and it helps if they put up a run or two). The UTP is stunning. and a real accomplishment, but is mostly a matter of opportunity and fortuitous positioning.

Triple plays are weird-good. Typically you're in a two on, no out, potential big rally situation -- and bam!, inning's over, and you need to blink a few times before the reality sets in of what you just witnessed. (And on TV, you have to wait until after the commercials to see the replay, which is aggravating.)

Answer 2

I would say the unassisted triple play is more rare simply because all the conditions have to be a certain way for it to happen. A perfect game is always able to happen, but some games, there is never a situation that even allows for an unassisted triple play. The odds of probablilty would probably side with the UTP simply becaus eof the availibilty of specific conditions.

Answer 3

I'd still say the perfect game is rarer. The unassisted triple play is a matter of being in the right place at the right time. Tulowitski happened to be on 2nd base when it was hit to him w/ runners on 1st and 2nd. The runners took off without noticing that Tulowitski had caught it, and were easy outs.

Perfect games require a pitcher to retire 27 straight batters without walking anyone or giving up a hit. They have to rely on each of their teammates to not blemish their game...and the stress of that is unbearable because if even one pitch is thrown wrong, the perfect game is ruined. You can shake off an unassisted triple play but a chance at a perfect game...one can only wonder when it will happen again.

Answer 4

on paper obviously the unassisted triple play is more rare, but the triple play could happen in less than 3 seconds, opposed to a perfect game which is 3 hours, and 9 innings of hard grueling pitching.

Answer 5

Obviously, the unassisted triple play is more rare since more perfect games have been pitched.

Chow!!

Answer 6

The unassited triple play is rare, so is hitting for the cycle and the 4 strike outs in an inning........

Answer 7

Nolan Ryan did not pitch 3 perfect game,he pitched 7 no hitters.Still the most rare thing is the perfect game.

Answer 8

Different catagories, but both very rare.

I was at Yankee Stadium when David Cone pitched a perfect game... that's something I'll never see again in my lifetime.

Answer 9

And Chipper Jones hit into two of them, one the other night at Colorado and earlier,1996 I think. Now, I think that is rare, for the same player hit into two of them.

Answer 10

rare dosent always mean rare what they mean to say is its very rare and very very very very very hard to pitch a perfect game but its not that hard to get a triple play