Juan Marichal Perfect Game Bid 1964
Marichal's near-perfect masterpiece at Candlestick Park, a no-hitter that fell just one out short of perfection.
With the Giants holding a 2-0 lead and Marichal pitching flawlessly through eight innings, the atmosphere was electric with the possibility of history being made. The moment ultimately fell just short when Houston's Ken Hubbs reached base on a fielding error in the ninth inning, breaking the bid for perfection. Despite the collapse of the perfect game dream, Marichal completed a no-hitter and secured a 2-0 victory, cementing this contest as one of the most dramatic and talked-about games in Giants franchise history.
- Location
- Candlestick Park, San Francisco
- Pitcher
- Juan Marichal (Giants)
- Opponent
- Houston Colt .45s
- Outcome
- No-Hitter (2-0 Win)
- Key Moment
- 8th Inning: Perfect Game Bid; 9th Inning: Broken by Error
Lore & Background
The game against Houston took place during the Giants' final years at their wind-swept home before moving to the Bay Area's modern era. The tension was palpable as Marichal retired batter after batter with surgical precision, silencing the crowd who watched in bated breath for a potential perfect game. The narrative of this game is defined by its tragic near-miss. The moment Ken Hubbs reached first base on an error by third baseman Bob Aspromonte, the dream of perfection evaporated instantly.
In Their Own Story
The fog rolled off the Pacific, clinging to the wooden benches of Candlestick Park as Juan Marichal stood on the mound. His high leg kick was a rhythmic metronome against the silence of a crowd holding its breath. Eight innings had passed without a single Houston batter finding the grass or the dirt outside the strike zone. The scoreboard read 2-0, but it was the zeros that mattered most. As the ninth inning began, Marichal looked at his catcher, Willie McCovey, and nodded. One more out. Just one more to etch his name forever in the pantheon of perfection.
Reader's Guide
The game unfolded as a masterclass in pitching dominance. Marichal struck out batters and induced weak grounders throughout eight complete innings, retiring all 24 Houston hitters he faced. The tension peaked entering the ninth inning with the perfect game bid alive. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Ken Hubbs stepped to the plate. A sharp grounder was hit toward third base, but Giants third baseman Bob Aspromonte mishandled the ball, allowing Hubbs to reach first safely. The perfect game bid ended instantly on that fielding error. Marichal did not falter. He struck out the next batter and induced a groundout from the final hitter, retiring all 27 batters he faced after the error. The Giants won 2-0, preserving Marichal's no-hitter and leaving fans with a memory of how close they came to witnessing perfection.
Did You Know?
- The error that broke the perfect game bid was committed by third baseman Bob Aspromonte, a veteran infielder for the Giants.
- This remains one of only two no-hitters thrown by a Giant pitcher at Candlestick Park before the team moved to AT&T Park.