THE ALMOST PERFECT NIGHT

THE ALMOST PERFECT NIGHT

On a beautiful summer evening eleven years ago, everything was perfect. Until it wasn’t.

Detroit Tigers pitcher, Armando Galarraga, was having a phenomenal night on the mound.  He had retired 26 of the first 27 batters he faced.  The elusive perfect game was one out away and well within reach.

Then, the unthinkable happened.

Veteran umpire, Jim Joyce, incorrectly ruled that the Indians’ batter, Jason Donald, reached first base safely on a ground ball.  A disappointed Galarraga finished with a one-hit shutout.  Joyce, knowing he blew the call, sincerely apologized to the Tigers’ pitcher.

Minutes after he left the field, reporters asked Galarraga how he felt about Joyce’s mistake. 

(How would you respond in this situation?)

Galarraga simply replied, “Nobody’s perfect. Everybody’s human. I understand.” 

Nobody’s perfect.

Two words that sum up the human experience. 

Real people, like you and me, are messy, rough around the edges, and far from flawless.

Chances are, I don’t have to convince you of this.

You’re well aware of your imperfections, aren’t you?

And for that matter, everyone else’s too.  

Not only that but each day we’re bombarded by headlines from our far from perfect world.

But don’t miss the underlying, implicit dimension of Galarraga’s response that night- 

Grace.

The word means, “undeserved favor or kindness.”

We don’t hear much about grace anymore, especially in the cutthroat society in which we live.   

The word sounds like an ancient relic from years past, as outdated as a rotary phone.

But grace is just as amazing and relevant today as it’s ever been. 

On that nearly perfect night, Galarraga extended grace to the unfortunate umpire.

In fact, both men would be lauded for the way they handled the entire situation: Galarraga, for demonstrating forgiveness and grace. Joyce, for accepting responsibility and owning his mistake.  Years later, they would even write a book together aptly titled, Nobody’s Perfect. 

And so, this story brings us face to face with two realities of life-

1. None of us are perfect.
2. We all need grace.

Let’s explore these two fundamental truths.