28 Facts About Phil Niekro

Phil Niekro won the National League Gold Glove Award five times, was selected to five All-Star teams, and led the league in victories twice and earned run average once.

Phil Niekro was a key contributor to the Braves winning their only two division titles before 1991.

Phil Niekro was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997.

Phil Niekro's 121 career victories after the age of 40 is a major league record.

Phil Niekro's longevity is attributed to his knuckleball, which is a difficult pitch to master but is easy on the arm and often baffles hitters due to its unpredictable trajectory.

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Phil Niekro attended Bridgeport High School in Bridgeport, Ohio, and was a boyhood friend of Basketball Hall-of-Famer John Havlicek.

Phil Niekro pitched for several minor league teams at several levels for the next few years, appearing mostly as a relief pitcher.

Phil Niekro spent the next season with the Class AA Austin Senators.

Phil Niekro stayed with the major league team all year in 1965, pitching.

Phil Niekro began the year as a relief pitcher but had earned a job in the starting rotation during the season.

Phil Niekro surrendered a league-leading 40 home runs that year, a feat he would not repeat until 1979.

Phil Niekro finished third in the voting for the Cy Young Award that year.

Between 1977 and 1979, Phil Niekro was the league leader in complete games, innings pitched and batters faced.

Phil Niekro finished sixth in Cy Young Award voting in both 1978 and 1979, and made his third All-Star appearance in 1978, as well as winning three consecutive Gold Glove Awards from 1978 to 1980.

Phil Niekro started Game One of the subsequent 1982 National League Championship Series against the St Louis Cardinals and pitched well, but the game was called on account of rain just before it became official.

However, the Cardinals scored two late runs after Phil Niekro left the game and would eventually sweep the series.

In 1984, Phil Niekro signed a two-year contract with the New York Yankees.

Phil Niekro won 16 games in 1984 and made his fifth and final All-Star appearance.

On October 6,1985, Phil Niekro gained entry into the 300 win club with a shutout win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

At 46 years, 188 days, Phil Niekro became the oldest pitcher to pitch a shutout in the major leagues.

Phil Niekro did not throw his trademark knuckleball throughout the game until the final hitter; to former AL MVP Jeff Burroughs.

Phil Niekro was released by the Yankees before the 1986 season started.

At the age of 48, Phil Niekro was the oldest player in major league history to play regularly until Julio Franco played at age 49 in 2007.

Phil Niekro set a major league record by playing 24 seasons in the major leagues without a World Series appearance.

Phil Niekro taught his nephew Lance Phil Niekro to throw a knuckleball after Lance's unsuccessful stints as a power-hitting first base prospect with the San Francisco Giants.

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Phil Niekro was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1997, his fifth year of eligibility.

Phil Niekro was the only player elected that year; Tony Perez and Don Sutton were among the notable eligible players who were not elected that year.

Phil Niekro was a member of the board of directors for Kiz Toys, a toy company based out of Cumming, Georgia, and Phil Niekro advised the company on the KizSport baseball line, reviewing product designs and development.