Phil Niekro
Phil Niekro
Philip Henry "Phil" Niekro, nicknamed "Knucksie", is a former Major League Baseballpitcher. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997. Niekro's 318 career victories are the most by a knuckleball pitcher and he ranks 16th on the overall all-time wins list. He also won the National LeagueGold Glove Award five times. Niekro pitched for 20 seasons for the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves. During his tenure in Atlanta, Niekro was selected for five All-Star teams, led the league...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionBaseball Player
Date of Birth1 April 1939
CityBlaine, OH
CountryUnited States of America
There's very few pitching coaches that I worked with that actually came out on the mound and told me what I was doing wrong with the knuckleball. Because they just didn't know. So I had to figure it out. I was on my own.
I remember going to see my dad pitch against other coal-mining teams, and he was successful with the knuckleball. I saw how bad guys would look like swinging, and how guys talked about how he could throw every day and didn't hurt his arm. That's how I grew up learning.
I would think every organization has pitchers who have good talent but just don't have what it takes to make it with what they've got.
We're all very proud of that boy, not just because he's a good hitter, but because he's a real good kid.
No doubt about it (before) 500 home runs, 3,000 hits one out of two is good enough. But right now? The jury is still out for me until I evaluate everything.
Fifty games - sometimes I don't think that's enough.
It will be interesting to see if the guys who are caught walk up to a Henry Aaron, Willie Mays, Frank Robinson and say to them,
I think it just shows you how many great athletes and their great achievements we have here in Northeast Georgia.
If the writers want to put cheaters in the Hall of Fame, that's their prerogative,
There aren't many hitters who like facing knuckleball pitchers. They may not be intimidated by them, but they sure are thinking about them before they go into the box.
My dad played for a coal-mining team in eastern Ohio; he was a very good pitcher. If he hadn't hurt his arm, he probably would have got a shot somewhere. He hurt his arm one spring, didn't warm up good enough, couldn't throw a fastball anymore. Another coal miner taught him how to throw the knuckleball.
I never knew how to throw a fastball, never learned how to throw a curveball, a slider, split-finger, whatever they're throwing nowadays. I was a one-pitch pitcher.
I don't want anybody to panic. I'm not pitching. I'm just throwing out the first ball.
I'm learning as the years go by how many great athletes and coaches there are up here. I've been living on the lake here since 1987, and I keep asking myself why I didn't move here sooner.