RIP Phil Niekro

MrHaroldG · 12-27-2020, 01:34 PM

https://sports.yahoo.com/mlb-braves-...174218268.html

swoboda · 12-27-2020, 02:13 PM

Just saw this another HoFer has passed on.

I liked him as a player for the obvious reason, watching that knuckler float around and cause batters to flail away and miss, or more often make poor contact. He has the big career totals, but I did not view him as a HoFer during his career. Rest in peace.

BMW · 12-27-2020, 03:04 PM

Rest in peace, Phil.

I was just reading about his 300th win, and how he pitched the game without his knuckleball (he estimates the threw it 3 times, the rest were screwballs and fastballs).

Here's an article from that win, which also surpassed Satchel Paige's record for the oldest pitcher to throw a shutout.

Amazin69 · 12-27-2020, 04:51 PM

Of course.

I was watching MLB Network's excellent "Lost Icons" documentary last night (which covered the deaths of Seaver, Brock, Kaline, Gibson, Ford and Morgan), and I was thinking they were tempting fate, because 2020 wasn't over yet.

I mean, 2016 was awful for the entertainment industry, and it didn't let up at the end, with George Michael (not the Sports Machine guy) checking out on December 25 and then the double-dose of Carrie Fisher on the 26th and her mom, Debbie Reynolds (likely out of grief), two days later. MLB isn't out of the woods yet. (Remember, this year got off to a "perfect" start with Don Larsen checking out on New Year's Day.)

Au revoir, Knucksie. It should be remembered that in the 1960s, knuckleballers were thought of as relief pitchers (as with Hoyt Wilhelm and Eddie Fisher [not Carrie's dad] among others), and Niekro had to battle to get a chance to start. (Late-in-career knuckleballer Jim Bouton references his own struggles on this issue in Ball Four.)

A great career considering the late start he got, and how rancid the Braves were for most of the 1970s. A class act from start to finish.

(In April of 1987, I was at a double-header in Baltimore in which the Indians started Steve Carlton and Niekro in the two halves. Didn't do so well [Cleveland was an utter flop that season], but it was fun to see.)

Déjà Bru · 12-28-2020, 03:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by swoboda

Just saw this another HoFer has passed on.

"Phil Niekro is the seventh member of the Baseball Hall of Fame to die this year."

Déjà Bru · 12-28-2020, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BMW

Here's an article from that win, which also surpassed Satchel Paige's record for the oldest pitcher to throw a shutout.

The projection for Dwight Gooden to have 451 wins by age 40 made me smile. Actual total: 194. We all know the primary reason why. It was natural, though, to succumb to excessive exuberance about him at the time. Niekro won his 300th game on the last day of the season in 1985. Gooden had won 41 games in his first two years in the league and he was only 20 years old.

Back to Niekro, though. This guy was old. Old! He was 46 when he won that game and he played a couple of years more before retiring.

"Defying age, of course, is part of the magic of the knuckleball. Hoyt Wilhelm, the other knuckler with a plaque in Cooperstown, retired at 49. Charlie Hough was 46, Tim Wakefield 45, R.A. Dickey 42."

He was also one of the last of dying breed:

"The website Fangraphs, which tracks every pitch, counted only three pitchers who threw the knuckleball in 2020: Erik Kratz, Todd Frazier and Bryan Holaday, position players moonlighting as pitchers at the end of blowouts."

Another indication of longevity:

"Niekro was 27 before he reached the majors for good, in August 1966, but his mastery of that one pitch gave him a staggering kind of durability. He had just 31 victories by his 30th birthday, and 287 thereafter . . . Niekro would finish with 5,404 innings, fourth on the career list behind Cy Young, Pud Galvin and Walter Johnson, who were all born in the 19th century."

In the spring, I might dig out my mitt and ball and try my hand at the knuckler in the backyard.

ProStrategyFootball · 01-06-2021, 06:43 PM

I grew up in Columbus and went to college in Atlanta in the late 70s, and loved Niekro. My wife and I even watched the Braves on our honeymoon (and she never stops reminding me!). He lived fully! RIP, Phil.

Buster Cherry · 01-08-2021, 12:27 PM

My dad sat next to Niekro's sister at a baseball game in Cincinnati once. She was there to see brother Joe pitch for the Astros against the Reds. She was cheering like hell for Joe Niekro and my dad (who didn't know her identity) asked her why. "He's my brother," she answered. "I have to cheer for him."

12-27-2020, 01:34 PM	#1
MrHaroldG Major Leagues Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 381	RIP Phil Niekro https://sports.yahoo.com/mlb-braves-...174218268.html __________________ I take the expression "If you're scoring at home" literally. I do score at home.

12-27-2020, 02:13 PM	#2
swoboda All Star Starter Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Guarding The Line Posts: 1,205	Just saw this another HoFer has passed on. I liked him as a player for the obvious reason, watching that knuckler float around and cause batters to flail away and miss, or more often make poor contact. He has the big career totals, but I did not view him as a HoFer during his career. Rest in peace. __________________ "...If you want to look ahead to the bottom of the ninth, the Mets will be sending up Buddy Harrelson, Jerry Buchek , and Don Bosch, we'll be right back after this word from Rheingold Beer" The late great Lindsey Nelson

12-27-2020, 03:04 PM	#3
BMW Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2003 Location: New Jersey Posts: 2,030	Rest in peace, Phil. I was just reading about his 300th win, and how he pitched the game without his knuckleball (he estimates the threw it 3 times, the rest were screwballs and fastballs). Here's an article from that win, which also surpassed Satchel Paige's record for the oldest pitcher to throw a shutout. Attached Images __________________

12-27-2020, 04:51 PM	#4
Amazin69 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 2,396 Infractions: 0/1 (1)	Of course. I was watching MLB Network's excellent "Lost Icons" documentary last night (which covered the deaths of Seaver, Brock, Kaline, Gibson, Ford and Morgan), and I was thinking they were tempting fate, because 2020 wasn't over yet. I mean, 2016 was awful for the entertainment industry, and it didn't let up at the end, with George Michael (not the Sports Machine guy) checking out on December 25 and then the double-dose of Carrie Fisher on the 26th and her mom, Debbie Reynolds (likely out of grief), two days later. MLB isn't out of the woods yet. (Remember, this year got off to a "perfect" start with Don Larsen checking out on New Year's Day.) Au revoir, Knucksie. It should be remembered that in the 1960s, knuckleballers were thought of as relief pitchers (as with Hoyt Wilhelm and Eddie Fisher [not Carrie's dad] among others), and Niekro had to battle to get a chance to start. (Late-in-career knuckleballer Jim Bouton references his own struggles on this issue in Ball Four.) A great career considering the late start he got, and how rancid the Braves were for most of the 1970s. A class act from start to finish. (In April of 1987, I was at a double-header in Baltimore in which the Indians started Steve Carlton and Niekro in the two halves. Didn't do so well [Cleveland was an utter flop that season], but it was fun to see.)

01-06-2021, 06:43 PM	#7
ProStrategyFootball Bat Boy Join Date: Sep 2018 Location: Texas Posts: 3	I grew up in Columbus and went to college in Atlanta in the late 70s, and loved Niekro. My wife and I even watched the Braves on our honeymoon (and she never stops reminding me!). He lived fully! RIP, Phil.

01-08-2021, 12:27 PM	#8
Buster Cherry Minors (Triple A) Join Date: May 2019 Location: Southwest Virginia Posts: 297	My dad sat next to Niekro's sister at a baseball game in Cincinnati once. She was there to see brother Joe pitch for the Astros against the Reds. She was cheering like hell for Joe Niekro and my dad (who didn't know her identity) asked her why. "He's my brother," she answered. "I have to cheer for him."