Aug 25, 2002 3 min read

SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) – Knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm, the first reliever elected to the Hall of Fame and the last pitcher to throw a no-hitter against the New York Yankees, has died. Wilhelm died Friday of heart failure, said his widow, Peggy. Baseball records listed him at 79 years old, though the funeral home handling the arrangements said he was 80.

Wilhelm played from 1952 and 1972 and when he retired, he held the major league record for games pitched at 1,070. Jesse Orosco and Dennis Eckersley have since passed that mark.

“My husband always thought it was the greatest thing in the world that he could make a living at doing what he loved best, playing baseball,” Peggy Wilhelm told the Sarasota Herald-Tribune on Saturday.

While known for his fluttering pitch – it was because of him that catchers began using an oversized mitt – Wilhelm had a smashing debut as a big leaguer.

On April 23, 1952, Wilhelm hit a home run in his first major league at-bat, connecting for the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds. That turned out to be Wilhelm’s only career homer.

Wilhelm was 143-122 with 227 saves and a 2.52 ERA for nine teams. A five-time All-Star, he played mostly for the Giants, Baltimore and the Chicago White Sox.

“He was a great teammate and obviously an outstanding pitcher. He had humor, work ethic, and camaraderie that I will always remember,” Mets manager Bobby Valentine said before New York played at Colorado. “He was good to the young guys. We really liked that.”

Wilhelm was elected to the Hall in 1985. Rollie Fingers is the only other reliever in the Hall.

Though he made his mark as a reliever, his best game came as a starter. On Sept. 20, 1958, while with the Baltimore Orioles, he pitched a no-hitter against the Yankees at old Memorial Stadium.

Born as James Hoyt Wilhelm, he is the third Hall of Famer to die in the last two months. Ted Williams and Enos Slaughter also died.

Wilhelm began experimenting with his unorthodox pitch after reading a story about knuckleballer Dutch Leonard while playing high school ball in his hometown of Huntersville, N.C.

Wilhelm, who won a Purple Heart at the Battle of the Bulge, got a late start to his major league career. He was in his late 20s when the Giants decided to give him a chance in their bullpen in 1952.

The Giants were glad they did, as the rookie went 15-3 with 11 saves and a league-leading 2.43 ERA in 71 relief appearances.

A year after his no-hitter, the Orioles kept Wilhelm in the starting rotation. He went 15-11 and led the AL with a 2.19 ERA – it was the last year in his career in which Wilhelm did not record a save.

Orioles catchers, however, had a tough time handling Wilhelm’s dancing knuckler that year. They set a modern record with 49 passed balls in 1959.

The next year, on May 27, 1960, Baltimore catcher Clint Courtney broke out an oversized mitt designed by Orioles manager Paul Richards.

Wilhelm also pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals, Cleveland, California, Atlanta, the Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles. He pitched for the final time on July 21, 1972, for the Dodgers.

Wilhelm is survived by a son, two daughters, two brothers and six sisters.