What should have been a historic win for the Miami Marlins was almost a devastating defeat.
On Sunday, Marlins starter Eury Perez was closing in on baseball immortality against the Athletics, coming within six outs of the 25th perfect game in MLB history. On just 92 pitches, he retired 21 consecutive batters and struck out eight.
However, that didn't stop Marlins manager Clayton McCullough from pulling Perez in favor of Lake Bachar for the bottom of the eighth inning. After all, this was Perez's third start since coming off the injured list with a right gracilis strain.
Even with this in mind and the Marlins wanting to play things safe, this decision by McCullough prompted loud boos from the A's crowd in Sacramento. Fans chanted "Shame!" when Bachar walked Lawrence Butler, the very first batter he faced, on five pitches to end the perfect game bid; Joshua Kuroda-Grauer followed with a single to break up the combined no-hitter.
From there, what looked like an easy win for the Marlins turned into a nail-biter. Bachar failed to record a single out and allowed five runs, including a grand slam to Jonah Heim, before being pulled for Michael Peterson, who finished the inning without any more damage. Miami added an insurance run in the top of the ninth on Liam Hicks' RBI groundout, and this immediately proved crucial as the A's scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth against closer Pete Fairbanks.
The Marlins had a commanding 8-0 lead before Perez was pulled, but ended up barely hanging on for a 9-8 win. Even though the victory completed a three-game sweep in Sacramento and put Miami a season-high seven games over .500, that was overshadowed by the controversial decision to pull a starter in the middle of a potentially legendary performance.
After the game, McCullough spoke with the media and defended his decision by seeing it as a long-term move for Miami's season ahead.
"Going into this game, 90 [pitches] plus a batter was a pitch count I felt comfortable with him coming back off the time on the IL, and with us looking to play beyond the regular season, Eury's going to be an important part of that."
Perez himself also defended his manager's decision. "They don't know the inside of what's going on [with my injury]," the 23-year-old said to Marlins reporter Stephen Strom.
After struggling to a 5.33 ERA in his first 10 starts of the season and dealing with his IL stint, Perez has been turning his season around. Since being activated, he's pitched 17 innings and allowed just two runs on five hits over three starts, with 17 strikeouts against four walks. Even with control issues over the course of 2026, Perez boasts a rock-solid 1.10 WHIP and is holding opposing hitters to a .197 batting average.
Regardless, sacrificing the chance to throw a perfect game will always be a brutally difficult choice, even if it's supposedly for the good of the team. As mentioned before, only 24 pitchers have ever achieved perfection; Domingo German is the most recent pitcher to accomplish the feat, doing so for the New York Yankees against the then-Oakland Athletics on June 23, 2023. Before him, the last perfect game came from Seattle Mariners ace Felix Hernandez on August 15, 2012.
"He had it really going today, I totally get it," McCullough said. "There was a part of my heartstrings pulling at his opportunity to keep on going, but I think I have to think about Eury and our organization, our team, and what's best moving forward to give us a chance to continue winning games."
Ultimately, the Marlins have continued to win after posting an MLB-best 20-6 record in June. They're tied with the St. Louis Cardinals for the final Wild Card spot in the National League, and if Perez continues to pitch like he did on Sunday, they could have a legitimate shot at October baseball even if it came at a heartbreaking cost.
