For a pitcher in baseball, there is such a thing as throwing a perfect game.
It’s rare, but it can happen.
If it were to happen, it would mean that the opposing team didn’t get a single hit.
In baseball terms, a perfect game is called a “no hitter,” or sometimes just a “no-no.”
On July 8, 2026, Dylan Cease of my beloved Toronto Blue Jays almost had a “no-no”.
After 117 pitches, he finally gave up a hit on his 118th.
What I found fascinating, was a question that he asked the on-field reporter, Hazel Mae, when she interviewed him after the Jays won that day.
Before I get to his question, another quick thing about pitching.
As a pitcher, having a high number of strikeouts in a game makes you a bit of a badass.
Especially when you get multiple against the same hitter. It means that the hitters just couldn’t figure you out that day.
Strikeouts get announced more loudly, they have flashy animations on TV, they have the coolest umpire reactions, and they’re usually part of a headline stat in the post-game conversation.
During his interview that day, Dylan Cease said the following to Hazel Mae:
“Uhh you know when you start seeing stuff like that, you’re like man, maybe it is my day today, so, I don’t know ... (then he pauses for a brief moment and asks) ... how many strikeouts did I have?”
Of all the questions Dylan may have been asking himself on the mound that day, “How many strikeouts do I have?” was not one of them.
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David Chang knows a lot about cooking.
When he opened his first restaurant, Momofuku, he did so with minimal decor, backless chairs, no coffee, and no desserts.
As he explains in his memoir, Eat a Peach, it was simply because, “I couldn’t afford any of that shit.”
He goes on to say, “...but it was also because I wanted people to feel the energy of a fast-paced eatery. I wanted to turn tables quickly, without seeming like we were rushing diners out the door. It’s all about channeling the energy in the direction you want it to go. No amount of fancy decor can match the atmosphere of happy people eating.”
While he didn’t write this, it’s probably safe to say that of all the questions David Chang was asking himself when he opened his first restaurant, “How can we make it look fancy?” was not one of them.
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When you ask yourself a question, you’re opening a tab that your brain becomes increasingly desperate to close. In that way, questions channel our energy.
We should spend time asking ourselves the right ones.
home run thinking here Shum!!!