As most of you know by now Phil Humber of the Chicago White Sox tossed a perfect game yesterday. Humber’s perfect game was the 21st perfect game in Major League history. This morning I wanted to see how close Washington’s Walter Johnson came to pitching a perfect game during his July 1, 1920 no-hit game against the Boston Red Sox.
I was amazed to find out that the Big Train missed pitching a perfect game by one error. The Big Train pitched a 
perfect game through six innings. In the bottom of the seventh inning Boston’s Harry Hooper hit a routine grounder to the Senators’ rookie second baseman Bucky Harris who misplayed the ball and allowed Hooper to reach first base.
The 24 year-old Bucky Harris went from being the star of the game when he drove in the game’s only run in the top of the seventh inning to being the scapegoat who ruined Johnson’s perfect game a half inning later
The Big Train registered his ninth and tenth strikeouts when he fanned the first two batters of the bottom of the ninth inning. Harry Hooper came to bat with two outs in the bottom of the ninth. This time Hooper almost ruined the no-hitter when he hit the ball over first base that is when the Senators’ sure handed first baseman Joe Judge made a remarkable play when he got his mitt on the ball and was able to throw the ball to Johnson who was covering first base for the third out.
Washington Senators 1, Boston Red Sox 0
Game Played on Thursday, July 1, 1920 (D) at Fenway Park
WAS A 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 - 1 7 1 BOS A 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 1
BATTING
Washington Senators AB R H RBI BB SO PO A Judge 1b 4 0 1 0 0 1 2 1 Milan lf 4 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 Rice cf 3 0 1 0 0 1 3 0 Roth rf 4 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 Shanks 3b 4 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 Shannon ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 Harris 2b 2 0 1 1 0 1 0 3 Picinich c 3 0 1 0 0 1 14 0 W. Johnson p 2 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 Totals 29 1 7 1 1 7 27 4
FIELDING - E: Harris (14).
BATTING - HBP: Rice (3); Harris (7). Team LOB: 4.
BASERUNNING - SB: Rice (31). CS: Shanks (1); Harris (8).
Boston Red Sox AB R H RBI BB SO PO A Hooper rf 4 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 McNally 2b 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 3 Menosky lf 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Schang cf 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 McInnis 1b 3 0 0 0 0 1 11 1 Foster 3b 3 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 Scott ss 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 Walters c 2 0 0 0 0 1 7 3 Karr ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 Harper p 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 Eibel ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 Totals 28 0 0 0 0 10 27 16
FIELDING - DP: 1. Walters-McNally. E: Harper (2).
BATTING - Team LOB: 1.
PITCHING
Washington Senators IP H R ER BB SO HR BFP W. Johnson W(8-8) 9 0 0 0 0 10 0 28
Boston Red Sox IP H R ER BB SO HR BFP Harper L(2-4) 9 7 1 1 1 7 0 32
HBP: Harper 2 (2).
Umpires: HP - Ollie Chill, 1B - George Moriarty
Time of Game: 1:46
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