Dirk Lammers's Blog, page 38

Mathewson, Johnson, 3 others voted into Hall, 83 years ago today

Two pitchers who threw no-hitters – Christy Mathewson, and Walter Johnson – were voted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame 83 years ago today.

Mathewson and Johnson joined Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth and Honus Wagner as the Hall’s inaugural Class of 1936. The results were announced to the press four days after the vote.

The five ballplayers would have to wait until 1939 for official induction, as the facility in Cooperstown, New York had yet to be built.

Mathewson, who posted a career record of 373-188 over 17 seasons, threw two no-hitters for the New York Giants:

Monday, July 15, 1901

New York Giants 5, St. Louis Cardinals 0

Robison Field (St. Louis)



Tuesday, June 13, 1905

New York Giants 1, Chicago Cubs 0

West Side Park (Chicago)

Johnson, with a record of 417-279 over his 21-year career, threw one no-no for the Washington Senators:

Thursday, July 1, 1920
Washington Senators 1, Boston Red Sox 0F
enway Park (Boston)

Hughes, threw one no-no and lost another in 10th, born 135 years ago today

“Salida Tom” Hughes, who threw a 1916 no-hitter for the Boston Braves and lost another one in extras for the 1910 New York Highlanders, was born 135 years ago today.

The right-hander from Coal Creek, Colorado, threw nine innings of no-hit ball for the Highlanders (later renamed the Yankees) on August 30, 1910, but entered the 10th at Hilltop Park tied 0-0 with the Cleveland Naps (later renamed the Indians). He gave up single with one out in 10th to lose the no-hitter, and then the wheels came off in the 11th. Hughes allowed six more hits and five 11th-inning runs to take the 5-0 loss.

Hughes fared better on Friday, June 16, 1916, when he no-hit the Pittsburgh Pirates at Braves Field to secure a 2-0 victory for his Boston team.

Baseball’s No-Hit Wonders

Baseball’s No-Hit Wonders

My book, Baseball’s No-Hit Wonders: More Than a Century of Pitching’s Greatest Feats, is available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Indiebound and other fine book stores. It features a foreword by former MLB Commissioner Fay Vincent and honors such legendary pitchers as Cy Young, Bob Feller, Nolan Ryan and Sandy Koufax, while introducing readers to other eccentrics and one-shot wonders who have thrown no-hitters.

Here’s a sampling of what some others have said about the book:

 

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[image error]Ross Atkins
Christian Science Monitor

“In “Baseball’s No-Hit Wonders,” Lammers takes a topic that might seem narrowly focused and opens it up with all sorts of interesting angles.”

[image error]Jeff Ayers
The Associated Press

“… a fascinating book that will appeal to both the historian and the die-hard fan.”

[image error]Matt Sutherland
Foreword Reviews ★★★★★

“… delightfully written … story after fascinating story about the most compelling characters and unlikely events.”

[image error]Paul Hagen
MLB.com

“… an exuberant romp through the history of one of baseball’s most impressive achievements.”

[image error]Jon Springer
Author of Mets by the Numbers

“Like the book’s subject, Baseball’s No-Hit Wonders is full of intrigue, suspense and just enough random good fortune to go down in history. In revisiting the unforgettable and revealing the forgotten, Dirk Lammers deals a quirky treasure for baseball lovers.”

[image error]Stew Thornley
MLB Official Scorer for Minnesota Twins games

“As an official scorer, I’m aware of the tension and drama when a pitcher takes a no-hitter into the later innings. In Baseball’s No-Hit Wonders, Dirk Lammers has captured this drama and added to it with insights and analysis for those who achieved this honor. Mixed in with fun facts about more than 100 years of no-hitters, Baseball’s No-Hit Wonders is entertaining and enlightening.”

[image error]Milt Pappas
MLB pitcher 1957-1973 ('72 no-no)

“I loved reading about all of the no-hitters. There are a lot of things that I had no idea about, like “Hooks” Wiltse also losing his perfect game in the ninth inning but saving his no-hitter. Even if you do not know anything about baseball, this is a great book about the great history of the game.”

[image error]Fay Vincent
Former MLB commissioner, foreword writer

“This volume is the complete – and I mean fully complete – story of the no-hit games in the long history of Major league Baseball, and it will serve as the place to look if one wonders why baseball makes such a big deal of no-hit games. With prodigious research, Lammers has produced not just the bare bones of each no-hit game but adds to each game story the little and telling details that are so alluring.”

[image error]W.P. Kinsella
Author of Shoeless Joe, adapted into "Field of Dreams"

“I do think you have a winning idea. This is a book that should sell. Bo Belinsky was my favorite, followed by Don Larsen, and the only one I saw in person, Bob Forsch.”

[image error]Steve Wynn
Musician, The Baseball Project, The Dream Syndicate

“It’s fantastic. My kinda baseball book. Just the right combo of pure stats, information, obscure history and incisive commentary. I know I’ll be going back to it often for reference (and, hey, maybe a song or 2!).”

[image error]Mike Veeck
Minor-league baseball owner, promoter behind the Chicago White Sox’s Disco Demolition Night

“Never have so many no-nos inspired such resounding yes-yeses! A baseball research book with a sense of humor—novel concept.”

2-time no-no thrower Spahn elected to Hall, 46 years ago today

Two-time no-no thrower Warren Spahn was elected to the Hall of Fame, 46 years ago today.

The southpaw from Buffalo, N.Y., spent the majority of his 21-year career with the Boston and Milwaukee Braves, compiling a 363-245 record with a 3.09 ERA. He was a 14-time All Star and won the Cy Young Award in 1957. He led the American League in complete games for nine seasons, and captured the AL strikeout crown for four straight seasons from 1949-1952.

Spahn threw his two no-hitters within a 13-month stretch in 1960-’61 at Milwaukee County Stadium:

1
Warren Spahn


 
Milwaukee Braves (NL)


 
Friday, September 16, 1960
Milwaukee Braves 4, Philadelphia Phillies 0
Milwaukee County Stadium (Milwaukee)
(His first of two no-hitters)


2
Warren Spahn


 
Milwaukee Braves (NL)


 
Friday, April 28, 1961
Milwaukee Braves 1, San Francisco Giants 0
Milwaukee County Stadium (Milwaukee)
(His second of two no-hitters)

Happy birthday, ‘Bumpus’ Jones

Today would be the 149th birthday of Charles “Bumpus” Jones, who threw a no-hitter in his major-league debut for the Cincinnati Reds.

Reds player-manager Charles Comiskey, who had watched Jones pitch well in an 1892 exhibition, gave Jones the opportunity to pitch Cincinnati’s final game of the ’92 season on Saturday, October 15, 1892. Jones no-hit the Pittsburgh Pirates at League Park for a 7-1 win.

Two pitchers have thrown no-hitters in the first major league starts, but no one else has done it in their first major league appearance.

Happy birthday, Carl Erskine!

Happy 92nd birthday to Carl Erskine, who threw two no-hitters for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Erskine threw his first against the Chicago Cubs at Ebbets Field on Thursday, June 19, 1952, for a 5-0 win. He followed it up four years later with a Saturday, May 12, 1956, no-no against the New York Giants for a 3-0 win at Ebbets Field.

Bo Belinsky, who threw ’62 no-no for Angels, born 82 years ago today

Bo Belinsky, the Los Angeles Angels rookie whose 1962 no-hitter thrust him into the Hollywood spotlight, was born 82 years ago today.

On Saturday, May 5, 1962, the former Trenton pool shark no-hit the Baltimore Orioles at Dodger Stadium for a 2-0 win. Belinsky quickly became a darling of the tabloids, spending his nights drinking on the town and getting photographed with numerous female stars.

After retiring in 1970 and hitting rock bottom in 1976, Belinsky got clean and built a second career working in customer relations for a car-dealership chain in Las Vegas.

Five months after the AAA Las Vegas 51s honored the former major leaguer with a “Bo Belinsky Night,” Belinsky succumbed to a heart attack on Nov. 23, 2001.

Trucks traded after throwing 2 no-nos in season, 66 years ago today

The Detroit Tigers traded right-hander Virgil Trucks after he threw no-hitters in a season, 66 years ago today.

On December 4, 1952, Detroit dealt Trucks, Johnny Groth and Hal White to the St. Louis Browns for Owen Friend, Bob Nieman and Jay Porter. During his 11th season with the Tigers, Trucks threw two no-hitters despite posting just a 5-19 record on the year.

The no-hitters were:

1
Virgil Trucks


 
Detroit Tigers (AL)


 
Thursday, May 15, 1952

Detroit Tigers 1, Washington Senators 0

Briggs Stadium (Detroit)


2
Virgil Trucks


 
Detroit Tigers (AL)


 
Monday, August 25, 1952

Detroit Tigers 1, New York Yankees 0

Yankee Stadium (New York)

The only other major league pitchers to toss two no-hitters in a season are Johnny Vander Meer (who tossed back-to-back no-nos), Allie Reynolds, Nolan Ryan and Max Scherzer. And none of them were sent packing after their accomplishments.

Trucks, who was dealt in the middle of the 1953 season to the White Sox, spent 2 1/2 seasons in Chicago before he was traded back to the Tigers for the 1956 season. It was short lived, as Trucks was sent with Wayne Belardi, Ned Garver, Gene Host and cash to the Kansas City Athletics for Jack Crimian, Jim Finigan, Bill Harrington and Eddie Robinson. after the season’s end.

The Birmingham, Alabama native retired in 1958 after 17 seasons, posting a 177-135 record with a 3.39 ERA.

Braves no-no thrower Lew Burdette born 92 years ago today

Lew Burdette, who threw a no-hitter for the Milwaukee Braves in 1960, was born 92 years ago today.

On Thursday, August 18, 1960, Burdette no-hit the Philadelphia Phillies for a 1-0 win at Milwaukee County Stadium. Tony Gonzalez became the lone Philadelphia base runner after Burdette hit him with a pitch in the fifth inning. Gonzalez was quickly sent back to the dugout when Lee Walls lined into a 5-3 double-play.

Burdette, who spent five years in the New York Yankees’ minor league system, is best known for his performance in the 1957 World Series. He beat the Yankees in Game 2, Game 5 and Game 7 to lead the Braves to a title and win the MVP.

Burdette was also the winning pitcher in the 1959 regular season game in which the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Harvey Haddix threw 12 perfect innings, only to lose the game (and the no-hitter) in the 13th. Burdette’s line that day was 13 IP, 0 R, 12 H, 2 SO, 0 BB.

Happy 74th birthday, Tom Seaver

Happy 74th birthday to Tom Seaver, who threw a no-hitter for the Cincinnati Reds after thrice losing no-nos in the ninth for the New York Mets.

Tom Terrific finally got his no-no on Friday, June 16, 1978, just a day shy of the one-year anniversary of the trade that broke Mets’ fans spirit. Seaver struck out three St. Louis Cardinals and walked three for a 4-0 win at Riverfront Stadium.

The June 15, 1977, trade sent Seaver to the Reds in exchange for Pat Zachry, Doug Flynn, Steve Henderson and Dan Norman. That same day, New York dealt fan favorite Dave Kingman to the San Diego Padres for Bobby Valentine and Paul Siebert.