Harvey Haddix

Harvey Haddix Jr.
(The Kitten)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 9½", Weight 170 lb.
• High School Catawba High School
• Debut August 20, 1952
• Final Game August 28, 1965
• Born September 18, 1925 in Medway, OH USA
• Died January 8, 1994 in Springfield, OH USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Harvey Haddix, famous for pitching 12 perfect innings in a game, had a 14-year major league career, winning in double figures for three different National League teams. He went 20-9 for the St. Louis Cardinals as a rookie in 1953 and was second in the 1953 National League Rookie of the Year voting, and later was a hero in the 1960 World Series, winning Game 5 and Game 7.

Playing for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Harvey pitched what The Pitcher calls the "greatest game ever pitched", on May 26, 1959 when he threw 12 perfect innings against the Milwaukee Braves before losing the game in the 13th inning. He gave up a three-run homer in the 13th inning, but the jubilant Braves messed up running the bases and the score was changed from 3 to 0 to 2 to 0. Next day, the score was changed again, to 1 to 0, the home run being changed to a double, due to the errant baserunning of the Braves. The Milwaukee Braves were one of the better hitting teams of the era, with Hank Aaron, Eddie Mathews, Del Crandall, Frank Torre (Joe's brother), and Red Schoendienst, to name a few.

Harvey had an impressive minor league career, going 61-33.

Haddix's major league career was delayed when he missed the 1951 season due to military service. After his playing career ended, Haddix was a New York Mets coach in 1966 and 1967. He coached the Columbus Jets at the beginning of 1968, then moved to the GCL Pirates as coach when the Gulf Coast League season started. Haddix was a member of the Cincinnati Reds staff in 1969 and a Boston Red Sox coach in 1971. From 1975 to 1978, he was a member of the Cleveland Indians staff, and the next six seasons, 1979 to 1984, Haddix was a Pittsburgh Pirates coach.

Haddix had two brothers who played in the minors: Ben Haddix, a catcher in the New York Giants chain, and Fred Haddix, a pitcher in the Boston Red Sox organization.

Notable Achievements

• 3-time NL All-Star (1953-1955)
• 3-time NL Gold Glove Winner (1958-1960)
• NL Shutouts Leader (1953)
• 15 Win Seasons: 2 (1953 & 1954)
• 20 Win Seasons: 1 (1953)
• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 5 (1953-1956 & 1959)
• Won a World Series with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1960

Further Reading

• Lew Freedman: Hard-Luck Harvey Haddix and the Greatest Game Ever Lost, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 2009. ISBN 978-0-7864-4124-2
• Mark Miller: "Harvey Haddix", in Clifton Blue Parker and Bill Nowlin, ed.: Sweet '60: The 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates, SABR, Phoenix, AZ, 2013, pp. 104-110. ISBN 978-1-93359-948-9

Related Sites

• Harvey Haddix at the SABR Bio Project
• Summary of Haddix's near-perfect game