On
the blog this fine day, we have a "missing" 1971 "Baseball's Greatest
Moments" card for Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro, celebrating his
league-leading 1.87 earned run average of 1967:
It
was his first full season in the Major Leagues after parts of three
years between 1964 and 1966, but don't forget he was already 28 years of
age when he finally got his shot.
And
with that shot he did not disappoint, going 11-9 over 46 games, 20 of
those starts, tossing a shutout while collecting nine saves with 10
complete games, throwing 207 innings for the Atlanta Braves.
Incredibly,
though getting a bit of a "late-start" in his career, the man would end
up putting in 24 years in the Majors, pitching his knuckler until the
age of 48 in 1987.
It really is astonishing to think Niekro didn’t have a full season on Big League
duty until 1967, yet still went on to pitch those 24
seasons, winning 318 games with a very nice 3.35 ERA along with 45
shutouts and 3342 strikeouts before he was done at the age of 48!
I always thought it amazing that at the age of 44 in 1983, he took home the last of his five Gold Gloves, ALL of which were garnered beginning his age 39 season in 1978.
I always thought it amazing that at the age of 44 in 1983, he took home the last of his five Gold Gloves, ALL of which were garnered beginning his age 39 season in 1978.
Just an amazing talent!
