Wilhelm dead

VNV Nation · 08-24-2002, 06:28 PM

Is it just me or is the Reaper having a career year with baseball figures?

http://msn.espn.go.com/classic/obit/...4/1422325.html

Wilhelm first reliever elected to Hall of Fame
Associated Press

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm, the first reliever elected to the Hall of Fame and the last pitcher to throw a no-hitter against the New York Yankees, has died.

Hoyt Wilhelm was the last pitcher to no-hit the Yankees.
Wilhelm died Friday, but the cause of death was not released. Baseball records listed him at 79 years of age, though the funeral home handling the arrangements said he was 80.

Wilhelm played from 1952 and 1972 and when he retired, he held the major league record for games pitched at 1,070. Jesse Orosco and Dennis Eckersley have since passed that mark.

While known for his fluttering pitch -- it was because of him that catchers began using an oversized mitt -- Wilhelm had a smashing debut as a big leaguer.

On April 23, 1952, Wilhelm hit a home run in his first major league at-bat, connecting for the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds. That turned out to be Wilhelm's only career homer.

VNV Nation · 08-24-2002, 07:06 PM

In addition to the first deaths an active players in many years (Kile and Darr), the following people associated with baseball have died this year:
Ted Williams, Hoyt Wilhelm, Enos Slaughter, Jack Buck, Frankie Crosetti, Johnny Roseboro, Darrell Porter, plus a slew of lesser-known players, like Jimmy Bloodworth.

Max Power · 08-24-2002, 07:32 PM

And, there's still 4 months to go..................

SmedIndy · 08-24-2002, 08:00 PM

Could the baseball Gods be saying something about the labor situation???

soxfan121 · 08-24-2002, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by SmedIndy
Could the baseball Gods be saying something about the labor situation???

What, like "Solve the labor crisis or all your heroes die?"

If so, Bucky Dent is long overdue for some cosmic retribution...

JamesI · 08-24-2002, 10:47 PM

At least he got to live to a good age. Poor Hoyt.

pwdennis · 08-25-2002, 12:02 AM

I may be one of the few people in this forum who got to see Wilhelm pitch live and in person. His knuckler looked like any little leaguer could have hit it, but no major league seemed to be able to connect with it. I always felt sorry for any hitter who had to face the Wilhelm knuckler and I had a great deal of sympathy, too, for Gus Triandos and Charlie Lau who tried to catch him

There is a great scene in the movie 61* where in his last at bat in the 154th game for Roger Maris, Wilhelm is brought in to pitch to Roger Maris, sitting on 59 homeruns, even though the Yankees have a large lead in the game. Every one I've spoken to who has seen the film always has the reaction that this was a dirty trick on the part of the Orioles. It was a dirty trick, but then again, every hitter who ever faced Wilhelm felt the same way about facing him

The greatest knuckleballer who ever lived, and arguably the greatest reliever of all time

RIP

VNV Nation · 08-25-2002, 12:58 AM

Wilhelm was played by Tom Candiotti with his cap on crooked.

pwdennis · 08-25-2002, 01:48 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by VNV Nation
Wilhelm was played by Tom Candiotti with his cap on crooked.

Quite true and an apt choice, although Candiotti's flutter pitch was thrown harder than Hoyt's

poorme · 08-25-2002, 05:51 PM

A war hero too. I was listening to one of his teammates on the Os broadcast. He said no one ever even knew he was in the war.

KCBOOMER · 08-26-2002, 11:25 AM

Fuzzy Bear · 08-26-2002, 05:53 PM

The greatest reliever of all time, and one of the few that really belongs in the HOF!

Can you imagine what his career would have been like if WWII didn't come along? Hoyt was an old rookie in 1952 (age 29). I wonder what he would have been like if the war hadn't come, and he had developed normally. No matter; he was great enough as he was.

spitball · 08-27-2002, 05:58 PM

Purple Heart at the Battle of The Bulge.
That's a hero.

08-24-2002, 06:28 PM	#1
VNV Nation Membership Suspended 11/19/02 Join Date: May 2002 Location: VNV Nation Posts: 2,952	Wilhelm dead Is it just me or is the Reaper having a career year with baseball figures? http://msn.espn.go.com/classic/obit/...4/1422325.html Wilhelm first reliever elected to Hall of Fame Associated Press SARASOTA, Fla. -- Knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm, the first reliever elected to the Hall of Fame and the last pitcher to throw a no-hitter against the New York Yankees, has died. Hoyt Wilhelm was the last pitcher to no-hit the Yankees. Wilhelm died Friday, but the cause of death was not released. Baseball records listed him at 79 years of age, though the funeral home handling the arrangements said he was 80. Wilhelm played from 1952 and 1972 and when he retired, he held the major league record for games pitched at 1,070. Jesse Orosco and Dennis Eckersley have since passed that mark. While known for his fluttering pitch -- it was because of him that catchers began using an oversized mitt -- Wilhelm had a smashing debut as a big leaguer. On April 23, 1952, Wilhelm hit a home run in his first major league at-bat, connecting for the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds. That turned out to be Wilhelm's only career homer.

08-24-2002, 07:06 PM	#2
VNV Nation Membership Suspended 11/19/02 Join Date: May 2002 Location: VNV Nation Posts: 2,952	sad year for baseball In addition to the first deaths an active players in many years (Kile and Darr), the following people associated with baseball have died this year: Ted Williams, Hoyt Wilhelm, Enos Slaughter, Jack Buck, Frankie Crosetti, Johnny Roseboro, Darrell Porter, plus a slew of lesser-known players, like Jimmy Bloodworth.

08-24-2002, 07:32 PM	#3
Max Power NetShrine Creator & Curator Join Date: May 2002 Location: NetShrine WHQ Posts: 5,548	And, there's still 4 months to go.................. __________________ Steve, Forum Administrator "They come and they go, Hobbs. They come and they go." That's why there's NetShrine.com

08-25-2002, 12:02 AM	#7
pwdennis NetShrine All-Century Team Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Winter Springs, FL Posts: 2,503	I may be one of the few people in this forum who got to see Wilhelm pitch live and in person. His knuckler looked like any little leaguer could have hit it, but no major league seemed to be able to connect with it. I always felt sorry for any hitter who had to face the Wilhelm knuckler and I had a great deal of sympathy, too, for Gus Triandos and Charlie Lau who tried to catch him There is a great scene in the movie 61* where in his last at bat in the 154th game for Roger Maris, Wilhelm is brought in to pitch to Roger Maris, sitting on 59 homeruns, even though the Yankees have a large lead in the game. Every one I've spoken to who has seen the film always has the reaction that this was a dirty trick on the part of the Orioles. It was a dirty trick, but then again, every hitter who ever faced Wilhelm felt the same way about facing him The greatest knuckleballer who ever lived, and arguably the greatest reliever of all time RIP __________________ "I would submit that if the world survives for a million years, perhaps its finest hour may be that in the last half of the 20th century, when the power to blow up the world rested in the hands of a few men in two very unsophisticated and suspicious countries, we didn't do it, and one American, Richard Nixon, moved the cold war away from permanent confrontation toward victory. How could any wrong that he did compare with that?" - John Sears

08-26-2002, 11:25 AM	#11
KCBOOMER NetShrine All-Century Team Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Home of the T-Bones Posts: 11,116	__________________ KCBOOMER *Buck O'Neil: The Monarch of Baseball*

08-24-2002, 08:00 PM	#4
SmedIndy NetShrine's Historian Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Zionsville, IN Posts: 10,569	Could the baseball Gods be saying something about the labor situation???

08-24-2002, 10:47 PM	#6
JamesI Netshrine Vacuum Cleaner Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Potsdam, N.Y. Posts: 3,723	At least he got to live to a good age. Poor Hoyt.

08-25-2002, 12:58 AM	#8
VNV Nation Membership Suspended 11/19/02 Join Date: May 2002 Location: VNV Nation Posts: 2,952	Wilhelm was played by Tom Candiotti with his cap on crooked.

08-25-2002, 05:51 PM	#10
poorme Guest Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: washington dc Posts: 2,625	A war hero too. I was listening to one of his teammates on the Os broadcast. He said no one ever even knew he was in the war.

08-26-2002, 05:53 PM	#12
Fuzzy Bear NetShrine's Evangelist Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Living by faith, and not by sight! Posts: 2,194	The greatest reliever of all time, and one of the few that really belongs in the HOF! Can you imagine what his career would have been like if WWII didn't come along? Hoyt was an old rookie in 1952 (age 29). I wonder what he would have been like if the war hadn't come, and he had developed normally. No matter; he was great enough as he was.

08-27-2002, 05:58 PM	#13
spitball Guest Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Studio City, Ca. Posts: 1,751	Purple Heart at the Battle of The Bulge. That's a hero.

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