John Lee Richmond (or simply Lee Richmond) (born May 5, 1857 in Sheffield, Ohio - died October 1, 1929 in Toledo, Ohio) was a left-handed pitcher who threw the first perfect game in major league baseball history. He played for the Worcester, Massachusetts Worcesters (no nickname). The game was played at the Worcester Agricultural Fairgrounds near the intersection of Sever St. and Highland St. in Worcester. The game was played on June 12, 1880, and the second perfect game came just 5 days later, pitched by Monte Ward. In his perfect game, Richmond struck out five, allowed only three balls to be hit out of the infield, and, remarkably, got one of his 27 outs when the right fielder threw the batter out at first base. Worcester beat Cleveland 1-0, with the only run scoring on an error by the Cleveland second baseman. Sometimes called J. Lee Richmond, in a 6-season career, statistics show that he was 75-100 with a 3.06 ERA in 191 games, 179 starts. 161 of those starts were complete games, 8 of them shutouts, and one of those his famous perfect game. He had 552 strike outs in 1583 career innings pitched. After leaving baseball, Richmond became a doctor and later a professor.
Preceded by: none Perfect game pitcher June 12, 1880 Succeeded by: Monte Ward External links
Biography at Galanis Sports Data Statistics at Baseball Reference Game box score at Baseball Almanac Site with links to a biography of Lee Richmond, and scorecards for both teams from his perfect game
