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Minor league team throws second perfect game in nine days

By Aaron Somers | Last updated Jul 14, 2025 8:18 AM ET

One of baseball's rarest feats, the perfect game, has occurred just 24 times in the long history of the major leagues. No team in the major leagues has ever thrown more than one in a single season.

The feat had never been achieved in the minor leagues either, until this month.

The Greensboro Grasshoppers, the High-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, have now pitched two perfect games in the last nine days.

The Grasshoppers got things started on July 4, visiting the Aberdeen Ironbirds (Orioles). Three Grasshoppers pitchers -- Kristian Curtis (Pittsburgh's No. 24 prospect), Jake Shirk and Michael Walsh -- combined to completely shut down the Ironbirds and lead the Grasshoppers to a 2-0 win.

On Sunday, at home against the Bowling Green Hot Rods (Rays), the feat happened again. Four Grasshoppers pitchers -- Hung Lung Cheng, Joshua Loeschorn, Shirk, and Jarod Bayless -- pitched a second perfect game in a 4-0 win.

ANOTHER GREENSBORO PERFECT GAME

9 days ago, the @GSOHoppers threw a perfecto!

Now @Pirates prospects Hung-Leng Chang, Joshua Loeschorn, Jake Shirk + Jarod Bayless combine to DO IT AGAIN ‼️ pic.twitter.com/Epd5z67se3
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) July 13, 2025

Shirk, an 18th-round pick in 2024 out of Wright State, was the only pitcher to take part in both games. He pitched an inning on Sunday and two in the July 4 game.

Outfielder Titus Dumitru was also key to both games, providing the offensive spark with a homer against Aberdeen and going 3-for-3 with a RBI versus Bowling Green.

There hadn't been a perfect game in the minor leagues outside of the developmental complex leagues since 2017. Sunday's game was the 26th no-hitter this year in the minor leagues, per MLB.com's Joe Trezza.

Greensboro enters play on Monday with the best second-half record in the South Atlantic League at 15-6.

Aaron Somers

Aaron Somers has more than a decade of experience writing about sports and has been published in numerous outlets, but baseball is and has always been his biggest passion. You can follow him on BlueSky, @AaronJSomers.

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