Quakers' perfect memories

As recently graduated Penn pitcher Todd Roth watched Philadelphia Phillies ace Roy Halladay finish off the 20th perfect game in Major League Baseball history Saturday, he had a thought that few people who’ve ever played baseball could have had.

I’ve done that before.

Sure, Roth’s no-hitter came in middle school, but a near-perfect game as a junior in high school (it was broken up in the second-to-last inning) validated the fact that he can flirt with perfection when in top form.

And while surely other Quakers’ hurlers threw gems throughout their pre-collegiate playing days in order to make it to the Division I level, what Roth did March 24 of 2007 gave him the honor of being the Penn athlete with the most experience with no-hitters — and the most in common with Halladay, whose perfect game in Florida still has the city of Philadelphia buzzing.

That March day marked the first Ivy League start of Roth’s career, and as far as debuts go, it couldn’t have gone much better.

The righthander, a freshman at the time, threw a complete-game one-hitter at Meiklejohn Stadium — the only base knock coming on a two-out, seventh-inning single by Columbia’s Noah Cooper on a 2-1 count, Roth recalled.

“I just left the ball a little bit up in the zone just enough [for him to hit it],” he said. “When I threw it, I knew it wasn’t a very good pitch.”

Still, the college pitcher can forever say that he topped his professional counterpart in that respect. Halladay’s first near-no-hitter in the major leagues was also broken up with one out remaining, but that came in his second career start.

Coach John Cole watched Roth’s debut from the bench in ‘07, and listened to Halladay’s historic moment on the radio Saturday. While he said he was never a part of a no-hitter during his playing days, he distinctly remembered a near-perfect day during his first year as a collegiate head coach, at Rowan University in 1999.

“I had a lefthander named Mike Toews, in a seven-inning game, who was perfect for 6 and 2/3,” Cole recalled of the game he called from the dugout, “and had a 1-2 check swing that was a no-doubter that got called a ball and he ended up walking the person on a 3-2 count. That was the closest I’ve gotten.”

Indeed, the close calls seem to be just as memorable as the real deals when it comes to no-hitters. In either case, a handful of quirky superstitions come into play.

First and foremost, the words ‘no-hitter’ or ‘perfect game’ should never be uttered. Roth has had the most fun with that unwritten rule during his finest outings.

“I try to talk to guys and make them uncomfortable because I’m not uncomfortable with it,” he said. “If I can tell some guys are trying to avoid that I might go up to them and [tell] them … ‘I haven’t given up a hit yet; I’m doing pretty good, right?’”

Players, coaches and fans also typically avoid talking to the pitcher, and remain in the same seat throughout the game if it proves to be ‘good luck.’ Like Roth, Cole isn’t buying it.

“It’s kind of a youthful thing,” the 45-year-old said. “I wasn’t too much of a superstitious player and I’m definitely not a superstitious coach.”

The Red and Blue player and coach also agreed on the elements that need to be present in order for a no-hitter to occur: a favorable and consistent strike zone, good defense behind the pitcher, a low pitch count and some luck, of course.

Seven Quakers pitchers have accomplished the feat, the last being Andrew McCreery April 8, 2001.

But could those factors create that perfect environment for an Ivy League pitcher in upcoming years?

Don’t count on it, Cole says.

“Not too many Ivy League pitchers have all three pitches with tremendous command,” he explained. “[And] I think it’s harder in college because of aluminum bats. You can hit it off the end or the handle and it could go for a hit.”

In other words, Citizens Bank Park remains a Philadelphia baseball fan’s best bet when it comes to witnessing pitching history.

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