Niekro brings knuckleball to Cleveland
With 300 wins on his resume and a driver’s license indicating he was 47 years old, Phil Niekro didn’t need to keep pitching.
But the ageless knuckleballer wasn’t ready for retirement.
On April 3, 1986, Niekro joined the Cleveland Indians after being claimed on waivers. He had signed a one-year deal worth $250,000 with the Yankees – with whom he had pitched in 1984 and 1985 – in January, but New York made him available after a minor contract dispute.
The addition of Niekro was welcome in Cleveland, where the Indians lost 102 games in 1985 and posted a team earned-run average of 4.92, last in the American League.
“It’s a total improvement – a whole, total improvement,” Cleveland manager Pat Corrales told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. “The guy won 16 games last year.”
Niekro won 16 games for New York in both the 1984 and ’85 seasons. His last win of 1985 came on the final day of the season when he shut out the Blue Jays to record his 300th career victory.
But as he prepared for his 23rd big league season, Niekro was tiring of hearing about his remarkable longevity.
“I’m sick of hearing I’m 47 years old,” Niekro told the Plain Dealer. “Everybody has to have a birthday. Somebody has to be the oldest player in baseball and somebody has to be the youngest. I just happen to be the oldest.”
Niekro also happened to be most effective. Using his floating knuckleball, Niekro went 11-11 over 210.1 innings for Cleveland in 1986, helping the Indians win 84 games and draw more than 800,000 more fans than in 1985.
Cleveland center fielder Brett Butler, who helped convince his former Braves teammate to come to Cleveland, had no doubt that Niekro would be a difference-maker.
“I mean, Phil Niekro’s name alone is worth 10 wins,” Butler told the Plain Dealer.
Niekro also helped mentor Tom Candiotti, another knuckleballer who would go 16-12 for Cleveland in 1986.
“It’s going to be like having my own guru,” Candiotti said when Niekro joined the team.
Niekro would return to Cleveland in 1987 but was less effective. After being traded to the Blue Jays on Aug. 9, he was released by Toronto three weeks later. He rejoined the Braves – with whom he spent his first 20 seasons – for one last start for his career before retiring and waiting for his Hall of Fame call, which came in 1997.
But as the 1986 season dawned, it seemed as though Niekro would pitch forever.
“I still want to pitch,” Niekro told the Plain Dealer when he joined the Indians. “A lot of people said after I won my 300th game, my bubble had burst, that I didn’t want to pitch again.
“I don’t want to come in as a 47-year-old pitcher. I want to come in as a starting pitcher. I feel when my day comes up in the rotation, I’m the best pitcher the club has to offer.”
Craig Muder is the director of communications for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
