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Forty-Year-Old Warren Spahn Throws a No-Hitter!

“What is life, after all, but a challenge? And what better challenge can there be than the one between the pitcher and the hitter. After all, hitting is timing, and pitching is upsetting timing.” –Warren Spahn

It happened exactly 59 years ago yesterday, April 28, 1961. Warren Spahn, just five days past his 40^th birthday, becomes the second-oldest pitcher in major league history to throw a no-hitter. In the game, Hank Aaron hit a home run as the Braves beat the Giants 1-0 at Milwaukee’s County Stadium. Only Cy Young, aged 41 when he threw one, tossed a “no-no” at an older age.

The Buffalo, New York native played 21 seasons in the major leagues (1942-1965), with three years (1943-’45), lost to military service. “Spahnie” played his entire career with the Boston/Milwaukee Braves (1942, 1946-’64), except for his last season (1965) which was split between the Mets and Giants.

Over his career, the great lefty posted a 363-245 (.597) record over 750 games, with a 3.09 ERA, 2583 strikeouts, 382 complete games, and 63 shutouts. In eight World Series appearances, he went 4-3, with a 3.05 ERA. A 17-time All-Star, Spahn is the winningest left-hander in baseball history, and is the sixth winningest pitcher overall. Had he not lost three seasons to military service, it’s conceivable he may have won over 400 games.

First signed by the Boston Braves before the 1940 season, the 20-year-old Spahn reached the major leagues in 1942, making his major league debut on April 19, 1942. He soon clashed with manager Casey Stengel who accused him of having “no guts” because he refused to throw at Brooklyn Dodger Pee Wee Reese in an exhibition game. The rookie soon found himself back in the minors. Stengel later recalled the incident, saying, as only Casey can, that it was the worst managing mistake he had ever made in his long career: 

“I said ‘no guts’ to a kid who went on to become a war hero and one of the greatest left-handed pitchers you ever saw. You can’t say I don’t miss ’em when I miss ’em!

Twenty-three years later, long after all had been forgiven on both sides, Spahn, pitching briefly for the Mets, was united with Stengel. He got off a memorable quip:

“I’m probably the only guy who worked for Casey Stengel before and after he was a genius!”

Spahnie was the starting pitcher for the Braves in one of the most memorable games in baseball history, played on July 2, 1963. Here’s a description of that game, which tells you all you need to know about the “guts” of Warren Spahn:

Facing the San Francisco Giants, the 42-year-old Spahn became locked into a storied pitchers’ duel with 25-year-old Juan Marichal. The score was still 0–0 after more than four hours when Willie Mays hit a game-winning solo home run off Spahn with one out in the bottom of the 16th inning. Marichal’s manager, Alvin Dark, visited the mound in the 9th, 10th, 11th, 13th, and 14th innings, and was talked out of removing Marichal each time. During the 14th-inning visit, Marichal told Dark, “Do you see that man pitching for the other side? Do you know that man is 42 years old? I’m only 25. If that man is on the mound, nobody is going to take me out of here.” Marichal ended up throwing 227 pitches in the complete game 1–0 win, while Spahn threw 201 in the loss, allowing nine hits and one walk. Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell, who was in attendance that night, said of Spahn, “He ought to will his body to medical science.”(quote from Warren Spahn Wikipedia page).

Other career highlights include;

• A member of three Braves’ pennant winners (1948, ’57, ’58), and the 1957 World Series Champion Milwaukee Braves
• The 1957 Cy Young Award winner.
• Led the National League in wins eight-times, ERA three-times, complete games nine-times, and strikeouts four-times. At the time of his retirement, held the strikeout record for left-handed pitchers.
• Tossed two no-hitters, the first coming at the age of 39, the second (mentioned above), at age 40.
• Won 20 or more games in 13 seasons, including a 23-7 record when he was 42 years old.

Spahn gave up the first career hit to Willie Mays in 1951. Mays had started the season 0-12 and there was serious talk of sending him back to the minors. Fortunately, in his next at-bat, coming against Warren Spahn, Willie hit a home run. Years later, Spahn humorously recalled the historic at-bat:

“His first major league hit was a home run off me and I’ll never forgive myself. For the first 60 feet, that was a hell of a pitch. We might have gotten rid of Willie Mays forever if I’d only struck him out!”

Spahn was also a good hitter, with at least one home run in 17 straight seasons. He holds the National League career record for pitchers with 35 round-trippers, two short of the major league record held by Wes Ferrell. HIs best season at the plate was 1958 when he hit .333 (36-for-108).

The great lefty was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on his first year of eligibility in 1973. The Warren Spahn Award, given annually to the major leagues’ best left-handed pitcher, is named in his honor. His Braves #21 has been retired. He is a member of the Braves Hall of Fame and the Miller Park Walk of Fame, and the Major League Baseball All-Century team.

Spahn’s contributions to the 1948 Boston Braves pennant-winning season, along with teammate Johnny Sain, led to one of the most enduring catch-phrases in all of baseball lore. It was part of a poem written by Boston Post sports editor Gerald V. Hern, which was eventually condensed to simply: “Spahn and Sain and Pray for Rain.”

Here’s the entire poem:

First we’ll use Spahn
then we’ll use Sain
Then an off day
followed by rain
Back will come Spahn
followed by Sain
And followed
we hope
by two days of rain.

Warren Spahn served with distinction and courage during WWII and was awarded a Purple Heart seeing combat action in the Battle of the Bulge and at the Ludendorff Bridge. For his valor under fire, he was awarded a battlefield commission.

Following his playing day, Spahn stayed in the game in numerous managing and coaching positions. He managed the Tulsa Oilers from 1967 to 1971, winning the 1968 Pacific Coast League championship. He also coached for the Mexico City Tigers, and was a pitching coach with the Cleveland Indians, and in the minor leagues for the California Angels. He also coached for six years with Japan’s Hiroshima Toyo Carp.

Spahnie passed away on November 24, 2003 at age 82. On the occasion of his no-hitter thrown at age 40, let’s take a moment to salute a genuine war hero, a great pitcher – one of the greatest ever – who was an even greater man: Hall-of-Famer Warren Spahn.

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Gary Livacari 

Photo Credits: All from Google search

Information: Excerpts edited from Warren Spahn Wikipedia page; stats from Baseball Reference

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