Sports
Ex-Blue Jays Pitcher Thomas Pannone Fires Perfect Game for Nashville Sounds
Left-hander Thomas Pannone, who once pitched for the Toronto Blue Jays, threw a perfect game in triple-A on Monday night, needing only 94 pitches to retire all 27 batters he faced over nine innings. Pannone struck out eight as the Nashville Sounds, the Milwaukee Brewers' triple-A affiliate, defeated the Durham Bulls 3-0.
According to MLB Pipeline, this marks the first perfect game by a single pitcher at the minor league level since 2017. It is also only the fifth perfect game in the International League's history, a league that dates back to 1884.
Before Monday's outing, the 32-year-old Pannone had posted a 4.67 ERA across 21 appearances for Nashville this season, with 74 strikeouts. He made one appearance for the Brewers in July, his first major league outing in three years.
Pannone previously pitched for the Blue Jays in 49 games, including 13 starts, across the 2018 and 2019 seasons. He made his MLB debut on Aug. 22, 2018, carrying a no-hitter into the seventh inning during a victory over the Baltimore Orioles. On April 14, 2019, he became one of only three pitchers in Blue Jays history to throw an immaculate inning, accomplishing the feat against the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Blue Jays designated Pannone for assignment in 2020. Since then, he has played in the organizations of the Brewers, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Angels and New York Yankees, and has also pitched professionally in Korea.