Perry And Niekro Brother Tandems May Merit Cooperstown Berths

When Gaylord Perry was a rookie with the San Francisco Giants, manager Alvin Dark told him, “Gaylord, you’re such a bad hitter that the day you hit a home run will be the day man walks on the moon.”

Without divine intervention, how could Dark have known what would happen on July 20, 1969?

On that day, Apollo 11 touched down on the lunar surface, allowing Neil Armstrong to utter the famous words, “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

At the same time, Gaylord Perry hit the first of his eight career home runs!

To add another exclamation mark to the baseball event, Gaylord and his brother Jim, then a starter-reliever with the Minnesota Twins in the American League, combined to win three games.

Had Jim not spent so much time in the bullpen, the Perrys would now hold the record for victories by brothers. Witness Jim’s 1970 season, when he led the AL with 40 starts and 24 wins. Nobody reaches those levels anymore.

Gaylord finished with 314 victories and Jim with 215, for a total of 529.

But the Niekro brothers had 10 more, thanks to 318 for Phil and 221 for Joe.

Although the only brother tandem in the Hall of Fame are the Waners – Lloyd and Paul – they were outfielders.

Perhaps the Perrys and Niekros should join them, especially since the bar for wins by pitchers has been coming down in recent years.

None of the four pitchers being inducted July 21 came close to 300 wins, the informal “automatic” standard for admission, though both Mariano Rivera and Lee Smith earned their tickets to Cooperstown as closers.

But what about fellow inductees Mike Mussina, who finished at 270, and Roy Halladay, whose bright star burned out so quickly that he managed just 203 – the exact same total as 1957 World Series MVP Lew Burdette (not in Cooperstown but worth a second look)?

Some Hall of Fame pitchers don’t even reach the 200-win plateau, a total that is widely considered a standard of excellence in today’s game. Among them are Sandy Koufax and Dizzy Dean, whose careers were curtailed early by injury.

The only active pitchers at the 200-win level are CC Sabathia, who leads the pack at 251, and Justin Verlander, an eight-time All-Star who started this year’s game in Cleveland last week. The ace of the Houston Astros has 214 victories – still fewer than Jim Perry or Joe Niekro.

This year’s Hall of Fame inductions begin at 1:30 EDT in the field behind Clark Sports Center, a mile from the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

The ceremonies will be the first to feature two designated hitters (Edgar Martinez and Harold Baines), two closers (Rivera and Smith), and two Latinos (Rivera from Panama and Martinez from Puerto Rico).

Source: Forbes.com

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Rudy May • National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum • Gaylord Perry • Rookie • San Francisco Giants • Manager (baseball) • Alvin Dark • Batting average • Home run • Moon • Miracle • Dark matter • Apollo 11 • Apollo 11 • Geology of the Moon • Neil Armstrong • One Giant Leap • Gaylord Perry • Home run • Exclamation mark • Baseball at the 1912 Summer Olympics • Starting pitcher • Relief pitcher • Minnesota Twins • American League • Games played • Bullpen • The Perrys • Win–loss record (pitching) • Win–loss record (pitching) • 1970 in baseball • American League • Starting pitcher • Win–loss record (pitching) • Win–loss record (pitching) • Phil Niekro • National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum • Lloyd Waner • Outfielder • The Perrys • Pitcher • Win–loss record (pitching) • Mariano Rivera • Lee Smith (baseball) • National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum • Closer (baseball) • Mike Mussina • Roy Halladay • 1957 World Series • Lew Burdette • National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum • National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum • Pitcher • Win–loss record (pitching) • Sandy Koufax • Dizzy Dean • Pitcher • Win–loss record (pitching) • CC Sabathia • Justin Verlander • Major League Baseball All-Star Game • Ace (baseball) • Houston Astros • Win–loss record (pitching) • Jim Perry (baseball) • Joe Niekro • Eastern Time Zone • Baseball field • Clark (mascot) • National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum • National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum • First baseman • Designated for assignment • Batting (baseball) • Edgar Martínez • Harold Baines • Closer (baseball) • Mariano Rivera • Lee Smith (baseball) • Hispanic and Latino Americans • Mariano Rivera • Panama • Puerto Rico •