What’s Wrong With This Card Solved – Lenny Barker

Several readers solved the riddle posed by this infamous card, which credited the wrong catcher. It was Catcher Ron Hassey who partnered with Lenny Barker to craft this perfect game, not Bo Diaz. Hassey enjoyed a fourteen-year big league career, logging most of his innings with the Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics and New York Yankees. I saw him play several times on the Oakland teams that won the American League Pennant in 1988 and 1990, and the World Series in 1989. I thought of him as a blue-collar player who could hit a little and had some power. He was a good one defensively, however, and he obviously called a good game.

The first reader to respond with the correct answer to this inquiry was Barb. Born in New York City and raised in northern New Jersey, she came of baseball age just as the New York Mets began fumbling their way into the hearts of millions, including hers. She left the New York Metropolitan area many years ago to settle in Bloomington, Illinois, which is more or less mid-way between Chicago and St. Louis. Barb has remained a loyal Mets fan down through the years, and continues to follow her team by watching cable television and participating in the highly regarded Facebook group, True New York Mets Fans.

Getting back to the “Perfect Game!” card and Ron Hassey, there is an interesting footnote to consider. A little more than ten years after the Barker game, Hassey caught a second perfect game. On July 28, 1991, this time as a member of the Montreal Expos, Hassey was the catcher for Dennis Martinez’ classic 2-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Passed over by Fleer in its “Perfect Game!” card, Ron Hassey will have to be content with the knowledge that he is the only catcher in the history of major league baseball to have caught two perfect games.