Phil Niekro
Phil Niekro | |
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![]() Phil Niekro (2013)
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- No. 35 | |
Pitcher | |
Born: April 1st, 1939 Blaine , United States ![]() |
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Died on: December 26, 2020 Flowery Branch , United States ![]() |
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Suggested: Right | Threw: Right |
Debut in Major League Baseball | |
April 15, 1964 with the Milwaukee Braves | |
Last MLB assignment | |
September 27, 1987 with the Atlanta Braves | |
MLB statistics (until end of career) |
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Win - Loss | 318-274 |
Earned Run Average | 3.35 |
Strikeouts | 3342 |
Teams | |
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Awards | |
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member of | |
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Recorded | 1997 |
Quota | 80.34% |
Philip Henry "Phil" Niekro , nickname Knucksie , (born April 1, 1939 in Blaine , Ohio , † December 26, 2020 in Flowery Branch , Georgia ) was an American baseball player in Major League Baseball (MLB) on the position of Pitchers .
biography
With 318 wins, Phil Niekro is one of the most successful pitchers in the history of MLB, mainly working with knuckleball . He began his career in 1964 with the Milwaukee Braves , which he stayed with until 1994 after moving to Atlanta . His field game was also considered excellent, as evidenced by his five Gold Glove Awards. Together with his brother, Joe Niekro , he forms the pair of brothers with the most wins in major league history. The Niekro brothers have won 539.
Niekro was very popular in Atlanta because he didn't leave the team that had a lot of bad seasons and was also very active in the social field. On August 5, 1973, Niekro threw a no-hitter in the 9-0 win against the San Diego Padres .
When the Braves fired him in 1984, he signed a contract with the New York Yankees at the age of 45 . There he was able to celebrate his 300th victory as a pitcher in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays on October 6, 1985 . In 1986 and 1987 he cast for the Cleveland Indians and the Blue Jays. After he was fired in Toronto, the Atlanta Braves signed him for one final game so he could end his career with the team where he started it.
The fact that Niekro was able to throw at the level of the major league until he was 48 was mainly due to the knuckleball. This special throw is gentle on the limb and is difficult to read for opposing batsmen.
After his career, Niekro managed the women's baseball team for the Colorado Silver Bullets . In 1997 he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame .
Phil Niekro died of longstanding cancer at the age of 81 .
Web links
- Player information and statistics from MLB or Baseball Reference or Fangraphs or Baseball Reference (Minor League) (English)
- Biography on the website of the Society for American Baseball Research (English)
- Phil Niekro in the Baseball Hall of Fame (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Mark Bowman: Hall of Fame knuckleballer Niekro dead at 81. In: mlb.com. Major League Baseball , December 27, 2020, accessed December 28, 2020 .
personal data | |
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SURNAME | Niekro, Phil |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Niekro, Philip Henry (full name); Knucksie (nickname) |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American baseball player |
DATE OF BIRTH | April 1, 1939 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Blaine , Ohio |
DATE OF DEATH | December 26, 2020 |
Place of death | Flowery Branch , Georgia |