Hall of Fame
Joe Niekro helped pitch the Hilltoppers to the 1964 NAIA World Series championship and also excelled on the basketball court before embarking on a 22-year professional baseball career with seven different teams. He posted a 221-204 record with a 3.59 ERA and 1,747 career strikeouts.
The Lansing, Ohio native spent half of his big-league career with the Houston Astros and was one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball for much of that time. Over a seven-year stretch from 1977-83, Niekro was one of the game's elite pitchers, leading the National League in innings pitched (1,857) while ranking second in strikeouts (1,228) over that span.
Niekro and his older brother, Phil, combined to set a major league record for pitching wins by brothers with 539 career victories. The first Astros pitcher to post consecutive 20-win seasons, Joe was named National League Pitcher of the Year in 1979 with a franchise-record 21 wins and 5 shutouts. Joe also holds the major league record for the longest interval between his major league debut (April 16, 1967) and first World Series appearance (Oct. 21, 1987). Niekro never allowed a run in post-season play, hurling 20 consecutive scoreless innings.
A member of the NAIA and Houston Astros’ Halls of Fame, Niekro was the Upper Ohio Valley Dapper Dan Man of the Year in 1978 and 1980.
