Mickey Haefner

Milton Arnold Haefner

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 8", Weight 160 lb.

• Debut April 22, 1943
• Final Game September 28, 1950
• Born October 9, 1912 in Lenzburg, IL USA
• Died January 3, 1995 in New Athens, IL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Left-handed knuckleballer Mickey Haefner pitched eight seasons in the major leagues beginning at age 30 in 1943. As a rookie with the Washington Senators, his 2.29 ERA was third best in the American League that year. He went 16-14 in 1945, and when the pre-war stars returned, he went 14-11 in 1946.

On July 3, 1943, he took over in the 7th inning as the third pitcher of the day for the Senators against the St. Louis Browns. Ray Scarborough had started the game and given up 4 runs in 2 innings, but reliever Ewald Pyle had kept his team in the game with four hitless innings. Mickey did not allow any hits either over the last three frames and received credit for the 6-4 win when the Sens scored some late-inning runs. What made the game remarkable was that it was the first time in major league history that two relievers pitching for the same team had both thrown three or more hitless innings in a nine-inning game. This would not happen again until July 28, 2015, when Diego Moreno and Adam Warren did it for the New York Yankees in a 21-5 win over the Texas Rangers.

Haefner had pitched in 1941 and 1942 for the Minneapolis Millers in the American Association, going 12-16 and 18-17. He pitched a six-inning no-hitter for Minneapolis against the Milwaukee Brewers on May 26, 1940.

In 1944 and 1945, the Senators had four knuckleballers (including Haefner) on their staff. They finished second in the American League in 1945.

On September 24, 1946, Haefner hit Ted Williams with a pitch, a famous HBP because it is supposed to have affected Williams' hitting in the 1946 World Series, his only Series, when he hit .200.

Out of 179 games that Haefner started in the majors, 91 were complete games.

There have been two major leaguers named Hafner, but Mickey is the only Haefner.

Notable Achievements

• 15 Wins Seasons: 1 (1945)
• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 3 (1944-1946)

Related Sites

• Mickey Haefner at the SABR Bio Project