Rob Lep and STATS Sports talks with New York Yankees legend David Cone about his perfect game, playing for Joe Torre, and more.
in 1999, New York Yankees legend David Cone pitched the 16th perfect game in Major League Baseball history.
He now serves as a baseball analyst for the YES Network and co-wrote the book “Full Count” with MLB reporter and analyst Jack Curry, which was released in May 2019. It hit the New York Times bestseller list soon after it was released.
Cone is a five-time All-Star, five-time World Series champion, American League Cy Young Award winner in 1994, etc.
Cone’s manager with the Yankees was none other than Joe Torre, who held his annual Foundation Gala in New York City last month.
“We’ve been through so much together over the years,” Cone told Elite Sports New York. “So much history there. Just the utmost respect for him”
“He’s [Torre] the most even-keeled professional guy you’d ever want to be around. He commanded respect because he didn’t demand it. It sounds like a cliche but that’s the way he operated, the way he handled himself controlled the room”
On July 18, 1999, Cone pitched the 16th perfect game in major league baseball history.
https://vimeo.com/387879291
“Great day. It was Yogi Berra Day. So much history there,” Cone recalled. “Yogi meant so much to the Yankees. It was his first day back in 15 years. Don Larsen threw out the first pitch. I’m just so thankful that I’m connected to those guys forever. Each year I remove from that I appreciate it more.”
Twenty-seven up and 27 down. He induced a flyout from Orlando Cabrera to third baseman Scott Brosius in foul territory to end the game.
“Relief. There’s so much anxiety when you’re in a game like that. You worry about blowing it you try to think of positive thinking but you still think about it.”
The 2019 Yankees won 103 games, clinching their first American League East division title since 2012.
They also broke the single-season record with over 30 players on the injured list.
“Amazing year from top to bottom for all the injuries,” Cone said. “The most in history. You’ve never seen a team go through what they went through…. even the play-by-play guy went down. They were a couple of plays away from going to the World Series.”
Before the official penalties came down on the Houston Astros in their sign-stealing scandal going back to the 2017 MLB season, Cone gave his perspective on the controversy.
“I’m interested to see what the investigation comes out at the end,” Cone admitted. “This has been going on since the history of baseball. There was electronic sign-stealing at the turn of the century in the 1920s. I’m sure it’s not gonna go away anytime soon”
