[PallMal]

RIP.

I remember his 300th win when he pitched for the Yankees.

[ScottinVA]

That knuckler of his confounded batters for a generation. RIP, Phil Niekro.

[Veggie Todd]

5. Charley Lau: "There are two theories on hitting the knuckleball. Unfortunately, neither of them works."

4. Jason Varitek: "You know, catching the knuckleball, it's like trying to catch a fly with a chopstick."

3. Bob Uecker: "The way to catch a knuckleball is to wait until it stops rolling and then pick it up."

2. Richie Hebner: "Hitting Niekro's knuckleball is like eating soup with a fork."

1. Willie Stargell: "Throwing a knuckleball for a strike is like throwing a butterfly with hiccups across the street into your neighbor's mailbox."

[pepsionice]

If Niekro had played for half-way decent teams in the 1960s/1970s....he would have ended his career with 400 wins easily.

[GeorgiaDawg32]

I tried and tried to learn to throw a knuckleball when I was younger. Everything I read said it had to be thrown approx. 66 mph and rotate one and a half times over 60 feet.

I finally figured out my hands simply weren’t big enough to grip the ball the way it needed to be gripped but I did learn to throw a mean screwball.

[Adder]

R I P

It was a joy to watch such a master....

[lee martell]

I recall that player.
I thought his name was pronounced Phil Nergo.
Back then, Black folks were often referred to as Negro.

[real saxophonist]

I have a family member who played for the Braves in the ‘70s, so I met Phil Niekro a couple of times. Nice guy. I’m pretty sure I also met his brother Joe somewhere along the way. I was just a kid then.

[KevinB]

I watched the video at the link. It was nice to be reminded that at one time there was goodness in this country.

[glennaro]

A fine 6-minute video at the link. Really worth a look. Many thanks for posting.

[Pilgrim's Progress]

Back when baseball was a sport and not a social experiment gone whacked.

[SamAdams76]

I'm not shocked that he died but I am shocked at how old he had gotten to be. I remember watching him play not only growing up but as an adult as well.

He was playing professional baseball through the 1987 season! And to me, that was not very long ago.

[Ransomed]

One of the greats, RIP. At 40 years of age in the 1979 season he won 21 games and lost 20 with an era of 3.39. He pitched 342 innings. It’s absolutely retarded MLB has turned its back on a pitch that allows someone to do stuff like that at 40 and beyond. He pitched until he was 48.

FReegards

[fieldmarshaldj]

RIP.

[Hyman Roth]

Knuksie would have won like 700 games if the Braves didn’t suck.