1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

RIP Phil Niekro

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Michael_ Gee, Dec 27, 2020.

Page 2 of 3
  1. goalmouth

    goalmouth Well-Known Member

    Led the majors in losses.
     
    goalmouth, Dec 27, 2020
    #13
  2. Elliotte Friedman

    Elliotte Friedman Moderator Staff Member

    I was at his 300th....Jays had won the AL East for the first time ever the day before. The only regular was Tony Fernandez, and Niekro beat them 8-0.

    He didn't throw a knuckleball until the final hitter (Jeff Burroughs) to prove he could do it. Niekro later said he'd told Billy Martin earlier in the year he wanted to try, and Martin told him, "Wait until a game that doesn't matter."

    That weekend, I had tickets to two of the three games in the series. They lost both, and won the division in the game I didn't go to. Total loserville.
     
    Elliotte Friedman, Dec 27, 2020
    #14
    BitterYoungMatador2, matt_garth, TigerVols and 6 others like this.
  3. Matt1735

    Matt1735 Well-Known Member

    Uplate umpire for a game in which he and Joe were coaching the Silver Bullets in their inaugural season. 5000 plus in the stands in Jacksonville. One of my top umpiring memories
     
    Matt1735, Dec 27, 2020
    #15
    Liut, Captain_Kirk and Jake from State Farm like this.
  4. Huggy

    Huggy Well-Known Member

    I was watching the Friday night game in the local pub, everyone was pumped to see them clinch until Butch Wynegar went deep off Tom Henke with two outs in the ninth. The Ex was packed that night as I recall and probably really cold by the time the game ended.
     
    Huggy, Dec 27, 2020
    #16
  5. Songbird

    Songbird Well-Known Member

     
    Songbird, Dec 27, 2020
    #17
    Slacker and cyclingwriter2 like this.
  6. Elliotte Friedman

    Elliotte Friedman Moderator Staff Member

    Lloyd Moseby dropped a fly ball -- that allowed the Yankees to score the winning. I was in the left-centre bleachers. Happened right in front of me
     
    Elliotte Friedman, Dec 27, 2020
    #18
  7. Della9250

    Della9250 Well-Known Member

    7 Hall of Famers total is the most to die in a year
     
    Della9250, Dec 27, 2020
    #19
  8. ChrisLong

    ChrisLong Well-Known Member

    His wife went to my high school, so he must have spent time in Santa Monica at some point.
     
    ChrisLong, Dec 27, 2020
    #20
  9. Huggy

    Huggy Well-Known Member

    Rickey stole his 80th base in that game, nobody has stolen that many in a season since Rickey had 93 in 1988. His 80 steals in 1985 were second behind Vince Coleman who had 110.
     
    Huggy, Dec 27, 2020
    #21
  10. Michael_ Gee

    Michael_ Gee Well-Known Member

    Bob Ryan reminds us on Twitter that Niekro and John Havlicek were teammates and best friends on their high school basketball team.
     
    Michael_ Gee, Dec 27, 2020
    #22
  11. Sam Mills 51

    Sam Mills 51 Well-Known Member

    I was always amused when Phil Niekro, especially after turning 40 with a head of white hair, fanned batters half his age who could launch the typical 95 mph fastball where it could be detected by airport radar.
     
    Sam Mills 51, Dec 27, 2020
    #23
  12. 3_Octave_Fart

    3_Octave_Fart Well-Known Member

    A true legend

     
    3_Octave_Fart, Dec 27, 2020
    #24
Page 2 of 3
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page