The outlook isn’t brilliant for baseball fans today,
As owner and players squabble, we can only look on in dismay.
It seems they are willing to take our game away.
And keep us in suspense about “When is Opening Day?”
When can we have a hot dog and a vendor-delivered beer?
When can we salute our favorites with a loud and lengthy cheer?
When will there be double plays, stolen bases and home runs?
When will the players and owners see it’s a game and should be fun?
We don’t know when will there be scorecards, so carefully filled in.
Or when we can gasp at a fastball near a batter’s chin.
Or when can we view that most welcome sight of all;
An umpire pointing at the mound and shouting the words “Play Ball.”
So, as the financial squabbling seem to drag on and on,
We can only think fondly of baseball days bygone.
So, here in Baseball Roundtable, as the baseball lockout lasts,
We’ll entertain ourselves with memories of baseball from the past.
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Spoiler Alert – A Tale of Two Bills and a Duke
Duke Snider faced hard-throwing Bill Pierro just five times in his career and never made an out. In fact, he hit for the cycle against Pierro (plus a walk). On the other side of the coin, Snider faced Bill Henry five times in his career and all Snider had to show for it were four strikeouts and a groundout.
That Bill Pierro and Bill Henry made their way onto this page is another example of “how one thing always seems to lead to another” when researching for Baseball Roundtable topic. Normally, at this time of year, I would be busy putting together predictions for the upcoming season. However, with so many free agents still out there and the start date for the 2022 season delayed and “up in the air,” that seems a bit premature. So, I find myself searching for topics that might provide some fan entertainment during the owners/players squabble. In my search, I came across an old Baseball Digest article in which Mickey Mantle name Dick Radatz as the toughest pitcher he ever faced. (Notably, I also came across instances were Mantle put Sandy Koufax and Herb Score on that list.) The lyrics to “Talkin’ Baseball” also came up as I searched for Mantle quotes – and that led me to consider a post on which pitchers were toughest on “Willie, Mickey and the Duke.” In the Duke Snider portion of that research, I was distracted by the tales of Bill Pierro and Bill Henry (versus Duke Snider) – which I would like to share before I get to the Willie, Mickey and the Dule portion of this post.
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A Baseball Double Bill
Bill Pierro, was a hard throwing 6’1”, 155-pound right-hander signed by the Pirates in 1947. He quickly became one of the Pirates’ top pitching prospects. Pierro went 8-9. 4.30 with the Class-D Bartlesville Oilers of the Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League in his first pro-season (1947). The 21-year-old then went 17-8, 2.15, reportedly fanning 300 in 230 innings, for Bartlesville in 1948. The following year, he was promoted to the Class-B (Big State League) Waco Pirates, where he went 18-11, 2.96 and fanned 275 hitters in 255 innings. (There were some cautionary signs. In addition to the 275 whiffs, he walked 126 batters and hit 16.) Pierro started 1950 with the Double-A Indianapolis Indians and was 8-3, 2.60 when the Pirates called him up. With Pittsburgh, Pierro went 0-2, 10.55 in 12 appearances (three starts) – walking 28 batters in 29 innings. MLB never got to see if Pierro could harness his command and deliver on his early promise, In 1951, he contracted encephalitis, which nearly ended his life and did end his pitching career.
Cycling the Pierro/Snider story. Duke Snider faced Bill Pierro just five times in his career – all between July 22 and September 19, 1950. In a span of three games and 13 pitches, Snider hit for the cycle against Pierro – collecting a single, double, triple, home run and walk. On July 22, with Pierro starting against the Dodgers in Pittsburgh, Snider walked on a 3-1 pitch in the first and singled (on a 1-0 pitch) in the third inning. Exactly one month later, on August 22, Pierro came on in relief (third inning) against the Dodgers (again in Pittsburgh). In the fourth, Snider hit Pierro’s first pitch to him for an RBI triple. Then, on September 9, Pierro again came on in relief against the Dodgers, this time in Brooklyn. Pierro relieved Vern Law in the top of the second, with the Dodgers up 6-1, no outs and runners on first and third. The first batter he faced? You guessed it. Duke Snider. Snider hit his first offering for a two-run double. With Dodgers up 10-2, Pierro was still around when Snider led off the bottom of the fourth – with a solo home run on a 2-1 pitch – and the cycle against Pierro was complete. (Snider never faced Pierro again.) Side note: If you eliminate that first at-bat walk, Snider actually completed the cycle against Pierro in eight pitches.
Putting a Good Swing on the Bill Henry Story. The other Bill provides The Roundtable with a totally different (and much longer) story. Bill Henry did not show the early potential of Bill Pierro. Toiling in the minors he went 44-52 over his first four seasons (1948-52). Still, he made his MLB debut on April 17, 1952. From 1952 through 1956, he bounced between the major and minors (Red Sox), appearing in 75 MLB games and 68 minor-league contests. Then, in January 1957, the 30-year-old was traded from the Red Sox to the Cubs and his perseverance began to pay off. In 1957, he went 14-6 as a starter for the Double-A Memphis Chicksaws. In 1958, the Cubs converted him to a reliever – and opportunity came knocking in a big way. That season, Henry went 5-3, 3.60 for the Triple-A Portland Beavers (17 games/two starts) and 5-4, 2.88, with six saves for the Cubs. In 1959, at age 31, Henry played his first full season in the majors (Cubs), going 9-8, 2.68, with 12 saves, while appearing in a league-leading 65 games. (I warned you this was a long story.) The conversion to reliever worked well. From his age-30 season forward, Henry made 452 MLB mound appearances (just two starts). Ultimately, Henry enjoyed a 16-season MLB career (1953-55, 1958-69 … Red Sox, Cubs, Reds, Giants, Pirates Astros), pitching in the majors until he was 41-years-old. He went 46-50, 3.26, with 90 saves in 527 appearances. He made one All Star Team (1960).
Now, we FINALLY get to why Henry is in this post. Duke Snider’s record against Bill Henry was kind of the opposite of how he fared against Bill Pierro. Snider faced Henry five times in his career (five games over three seasons … 1959, 1961, 1963). Those five at bats resulted in one infield groundout and four strikeouts. Henry, by the way, put up some solid numbers against an impressive lineup of future Hall of Famers. Just a few examples; Frank Robinson (a .059 average in 17 at bats); Stan Musial (.167 in 18 at bats); Roberto Clemente (.154 in 13 at bats); Yogi Berri (.091 in 11 at bats); Eddie Mathews (.188 om 32 at bats).
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Now, on to Willie Mickey and the Duke … and the Pitcher Who Were Tough on Them
Willie Mays
When looking pitchers Willie Mays found particularly tough, I came across a YouTube video (posted by Joe McNamara) in which Mays lists some of the usual suspects 0 Don Drysdale, Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson – but also drop in a surprise in the form of Bob Rush.
Looking at the numbers, Mays did well against Don Drysdale – .330-13-30 in 60 games. Sandy Koufax was a bit tougher on Mays – .278-5-14 in 43 games. Bob Gibson, however, truly earned his spot at the top of Mays’ list, holding him to a .196 average and fanning in him in 30 of 108 plate appearances (27.8 percent). Mays bit over .250 against Gibson in just three of the 143 seasons he faced him,
As for the surprise from Mays’ interview, Bob Rush. Rush faced Mays between 1951 and 1960, some of Mays’ most productive seasons. In those nine seasons (1953 lost to military service), Mays hit .317-279-812, was the Rookie of the Year (1951), the NL MVP (1954) and an All Star seven times. Rush held him to a .244 average and struck him out 18 times (to nine walks) in 36 games.
Bob Rush pitched 13 MLB seasons (1948-60, primarily with the Cubs). He went 127-152, 3.65. The two-time All Star won 13 or more games in five season.
Tom Sturdivant faced Mays between 1961 And 1964 – again, some of Mays’ prime years (he was an All Star all four seasons and hit .307-174, 478 over that span. Sturdivant held Mays to a .105 average and did not give up an extra-base hit to Mays, fanning him five times and walking him just once.
Sturdivant pitched in 10 MLB seasons (1955-64 … Yankees, Athletics, Red Sox, Senators, Pirates, Tigers, Mets). He went 59-51, 3.74, with 17 saves in 335 appearances (101 starts). His best season were as a Yankee. In 1956, he went 16-8, 3.30 for New York and in 1957, he went 16-6, 2.54 for the Bombers.
Steve Arlin and Bill Singer also did well against Mays, but their appearances against him came later in Mays’ career.
Arlin faced Mays 28 times between 1971 and 1973 (the final three years of Mays career), holding him to a .125 average and fanning him ten times in 28 plate appearances. Singer faced Mays in 17 games between 1966-71, holding him to a .171 average and notching 14 whiffs versus Mays (with just four walks).
Arlin had a six season MLB career (1969-74), during which he went 34-67, 4.33. Bill Singer pitched in 14 MLB seasons (1964-77… Dodgers, Angels, Rangers, Twins, Blue Jays.) The two-time All Star went 188-127, 3.39 and was twice a 20-game winner.
In two of the seasons Steve Arlin faced Willie Mays, Arlin led the NL in losses (9-19, 3.48 for the 1981 Padres and 10-21, 3.60 for the 1972 Padres). In those two seasons, he held Mays to two hits in 20 at bats.
Of course, it wouldn’t be fair to not at least mention a few pitchers that Mays raked. For example, he hit .632-2-7 against Danny McDevitt in 19 games (Mays’ highest average against any pitcher he faced at least 25 times) and .500-6-18 against Jay Hook in 17 contests. And, as the chart below shows, He also handled Warren Spahn pretty well. His 18 home runs and 40 RBI against Spahn are Mays most against any pitcher and his 68 hits are second only to his 75 safeties verse Don Drysdale.
Willie Mays first-ever major league hit was a home run off Warren Spahn.
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Mickey Mantle
Looking Mickey Mantle, I came across an old Baseball Digest article in which he noted just how tough Dick Radatz was on him – and the numbers back up that assessment. Radatz faced Mantle 19 times between 1962 and 1966 and fanned him in twelve (63.2 percent) of the plate appearances.
In 1962, when MIckey Mantle went .321-30-89 and was the AL MVP, rookie righty Dick Radatz face him six times. The result? Five strikeouts and a walk.
Radatz, at 6.6’, 230-pounds, was an imposing presence on the mound (and could bring the high heat). In a seven-season MLB career (1962-67, 1969 … Red Sox, Indians, Cubs, Tigers, Expos), Radatz made 381 appearances (all in relief) and went 52-43, 3.13 with 120 saves. The two-time All Star led the AL in saves as a rookie in 1962 and again in 1964.
There are few other pitchers who could make Mantle’s toughest list (at least the stats would seem to indicate that.)
Luis Tiant held Mantle to a .111 average (the lowest for Mantle against any pitcher he faced at least 25 times) and struck Mantle out in ten of thirty plate appearances.
Then, there’s: Saul Rogovin, who faced Mantle early in his career (1951-55) and held him to a .150 average and no extra base hits in 15 games; Jack Urban, who faced Mantle in 1957-58 and held him to a . 143 average with no extra-base hits in ten games; and finally, Joe Sparma who face Mantle from 1964 to 1968 and held him to a .162 average in 14 games (and struck Mantle out in 30 percent to his plate appearances).
Rogovin went 48-48 in eight MLB seasons (1949-53, 1955-57 … Tigers, White Sox, Orioles, Phillies). He won ten or more games in three seasons (a career-best 14-9 for the 1952 White Sox) and led the AL in ERA in 1951 at 2.78. Urban pitched in just three MLB seasons (1957-59 … Athletics, Cardinals), going 15-15, 4.83. Sparma pitched in seven MLB seasons (1964-70 … Tigers, Expos). Primarily a starter, he went 52-52, 3.94. In 1967, he was 16-9, 3.76 for the Tigers.
It wouldn’t be fair to not take a look at a couple of pitcher Mantle did well against. Conder longtime White Sox ace Billy Pierce. Mangle got more career hits, doubles, triples and RBI versus Pierce than against any other pitcher.
Pierce pitched 18 MLB seasons (1945, 1948-64 … Tigers, White Sox, Giants). He was a seven-time All Star and a two-time 20-game winner. He final stat line was 211-169, 3.27 and he led the AL in wins once, ERA once, strikeouts once and complete games three times.
Mantle also hit .500 (25-for-50), with five homers and 21 RBI in 32 games against Hank Aguirre. Aguirre had a 16-season MLB career (1955-70 … Indians, Tigers, Dodgers, Cubs). He went 75-72, 3.25, with 33 saves. In 1965, he made his only All Star team, while going 16-8 and leading the AL with a 2.21 ERA. That season, he started 22 games (completing 11) and relieved in 20 contests. For his career he had 149 starts in 447 appearances.
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Duke Snider
Looking into Duke Snider, the name Juan Marichal kept emerging when he was asked about the toughest pitchers he ever faced, along with Bob Gibson. Not a bad pair to start with. Gibson did hold Snider to a .212-3-5 line in 12 games, but Marichal was even tougher on the Duke.
Baseball Roundtable would add a couple of other pitchers to the “tough on the Duke” list, starting with Harvey Haddix, who held Snider to a .158 average over 15 games and fanned him in 34.1 percent of his plate appearances. In 1954, when Snider hit .341-40-130, Haddix faced him 12 times in three starts – and fanned him six times (giving up a lone single and two walks in 12 plate appearances).
Harvey Haddix pitched in 14 MLB seasons (1952-65 … Cardinals, Phillies, Reds, Pirates, Orioles), going 136-113, 3.63. He was a three-time All Star and won ten or more games in nine seasons (a high of 20 in 1953, when he went 20-9, 3.06 and led the NL with six shutouts among his 19 complete games_.
Luis Arroyo also handled Snider pretty well, holding him to a .125 average in 10 games and fanning him in nine of 16 plate appearances between 1955 and 1957.
It wouldn’t be fair not to list at least a couple of hurlers that Snider took the measure of, like Warren Hacker, whom Snider hit for a .363 average, with ten home runs and 15 RBI in 40 games. Hacker had a 12-season MLB career (1948-58, 1961 … Cubs, Reds, Phillies), going 62-89, 4.21, with 17 saves (306 appearances/157 starts). Then, there’s Hall of Famer Robin Roberts, whom Snider touched for a .295 average, with 19 home runs and 50 RBI in 73 games (the most RBI and home runs he had against any pitcher. (Also, the most home runs and RBI Roberts gave up to any hitter.)
Duke Snider Face Robin Roberts in 14 MLB seasons. Over the first three, he hit .178, with three home runs and three RBI in 14 games. Over the next 11, he hit .321-16-47 in 59 games.
Primary Resource: Baseball-Reference.com
Coming Soon: More Lockout Reading – How Andy Hawkins Lost the Same No Hitter … Twice – and other wild no-hitter stories.
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