Niekro Dies at 61
ESPN is reporting (via 6-4-2) that former big-league pitcher Joe Niekro is dead at age 61 due to a brain aneurysm. Niekro was a third round pick of the Chicago Cubs in 1966 and made his debut with them the following season, finishing 10-7 with a 3.34 ERA in his rookie campaign.
Niekro won 221 games over a 22-year career. He won 20 or more games in a season twice, in 1979 and 1980, while with the Houston Astros. Niekro also spent time with the San Diego Padres, Detroit Tigers, Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, and Minnesota Twins. It was with the Twins that he finished his career in 1988 at age 43.
During the previous season, Niekro had been suspended 10 games for scuffing baseballs. The image of sandpaper flying out of his back pocket while the umpires came out to investigate during a 1987 contest against the California Angels is one that many baseball fans, myself included, will not soon forget.
Niekro, along with his older brother Phil and Charlie Hough, was one of the great knuckle ball pitchers of his era, paving the way for the likes of Tim Wakefield. His son, Lance, is a reserve first baseman for the San Francisco Giants.
My condolences go out to the Niekro family.
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