Wilson of Astros Replies to Reds No-Hitter (5/1/1969)

By Patrick Mondout

Last week we featured a no-hitter by an Astros knuckleballer who still managed to lose the game to the Reds. This week we feature a later Astros team that had just been no-hit—again by the Reds—and had lost 15 of its last 16 games and had a starting pitcher who would soon tragically meet his end.

The young Astros came into their 8th season (in 1969) with hopes of finally producing a winning record. They team had traded Mike Cuellar and Rusty Staub —the face of the franchise—for Curt Blefary, Jesus Alou, and Jack Billingham and still had Joe Morgan, Doug Rader, Larry Dierker and Jim Wynn to go along with promising youngsters such as Don Wilson, Bob Watson, Tom Griffin and John Mayberry.

But the Astros struggled out of the gate, losing their first five games of the season to division rivals (^{game log}). Twenty-four year old righthander Don Wilson got them back on track with a 5-2 decision over Don Drysdale and the Dodgers and they took the next two to stand at 3-5 on April 17.

The club then went into a tailspin, losing 14 of their next 15 games, including a pair of blowouts in the Astrodome to the Reds by a combined 25-5. This left the unhappy Astros 4-20 with easily the worst record in baseball at the end of April.

The Reds entered the game of April 30 at old Crosley Field on a five game skid of their own, but felt confident against the hapless Astros. Reds righthander Jim Maloney gave up only five walks and had struck out eight through just five innings. The only ball to leave the infield through the first six innings was a looping fly that shortstop Darrel Chaney corralled to save the no hitter. A seven-run fourth inning gave the Reds fireballer all the support he needed as he stuck out Doug Rader on a two-two pitch to end another laugher over the Astros, who lost 10-0. (^boxscore)

It was Maloney's third career no hitter—though not for long (see below). At the time only Sandy Koufax had more with four while Bob Feller and Larry Corcoran also had three. Both of Maloney's 1965 no-no's were extra inning affairs and he lost one of them on a homer by Johnny Lewis of the Mets in the 11th inning on June 14, 1965. "I was not nervous-I've been there before," said Maloney, who struck out 13, "You just walk out there and if you got a no-hitter you've got one."

Were the 'Stros impressed by Maloney's performance? Apparently not. Manager accused Maloney of throwing a greaseball and suggested that as long as baseball officials refused to do anything about it, he'd start having his players use them: "It's ridiculous how many pitchers are using it. I'd guess about a third of the pitchers in our league use it with varying degrees of frequency... Maloney used it and it worked pretty well for him. I plan to find out which of my pitchers can throw it and I'm going to tell them to use it."

This was the 15th loss in 16 games for the Astros and setup a daytime matchup featuring Astros righthander Don Wilson against Reds lefty Jim Merritt in front of a sparse crowd of 4042—a slight improvement on the 3898 who had seen Maloney make history the day before.

Wilson was a fireballer and a strikeout artist like Maloney and was no stranger to the Reds. He had struck out 18 of them on July 14, 1968 (^boxscore) tying the then major league record for a nine inning game and also tying the record with eight straight K's. Nor was he done tormenting the team from the Queen City. He struck out 16 Reds in a game later in '68. (^boxscore)

Wilson later admitted he was still fuming over the way the Reds treated both him and his teammates during a 14-0 drubbing nine days earlier. (^boxscore)

In the second inning, Reds catcher Johnny Bench walked and stole second to get in scoring position, but Wilson struck out both Fred Whitfield and Tommy Helms—giving him 4 K's in two innings—to end the threat.

After three innings, it appeared that the Reds might tag the 'Stros for another no-hitter, but they too were hitless. The Astros hadn't had a hit off of Cincy pitching since Jesus Alou singled in the eighth on April 22nd.

Doug Rader

Astros third baseman Doug Rader ended the 13 inning drought to Reds pitchers when he led off the fourth with a solo shot to give the Astros the 1-0 lead.

Houston added a pair of runs in the fifth after Joe Morgan walked, was moved to third on a single by Jimmy Wynn, and then joined Wynn at home on a double by Dennis Menke.

A tiring Wilson walked pinch hitter Jim Stewart to start off the eighth. After throwing two more balls to pinch hitter Jim Beauchamp, his manager Harry Walker visited the mound. "I've never seen a guy more psyched up or madder than Wilson," Walker later said.

Wilson worked the count full before striking Beauchamp out.

That brought up Pete Rose, who worked the count to 3-2 before popping a foul behind the plate. Astros catcher Don Bryant moved under it, but then dropped it giving Rose a reprieve. Rose then fouled off the next two pitches before finally taking a pitch for ball four.

With only one down and Rose on first, the meat of the Reds order was due. Wilson settled down and induced both the talented and enigmatic Bobby Tolan and the even more talented and enigmatic Alex Johnson to hit easily caught fly balls to end the threat.

Houston added its final run in the eighth when Curt Blefary tripled and scored on Wilson's sacrifice fly.

In the top of the ninth, Wilson struck out Tony Perez on a 3-2 pitch—his 13th K of the night—and induced Bench to fly out to Jimmy Wynn on a full count pitch. That brought on Tommy Helms with two outs.

Helms swung at the first pitch he saw and lifted a pop foul towards third. Sure-handed Astros third bagger Doug Rader snagged the popup for the final out securing the no hitter. (^boxscore)

The remaining Cincinnati fans gave Wilson a standing ovation and the Astros all began celebrating. All but Don Wilson, that is. Wilson—still angry at being disrespected a week earlier by some of the Reds—had to be restrained by teammates as he attempted to charge the their clubhouse!

"I don't like them," Wilson said. "I was trying to prove something to them tonight, trying to pay them back for what they did to us when they beat me 14-0. They stuck out their tongues at us and laughed at us. I just wanted to prove to them we are professionals too."

It was Wilson's second no hitter and he was only 24 years old (Nolan Ryan, who pitched a record seven no-no's didn't get his second until he was 26). His first came as a rookie against the Braves in 1967 while this second one was only his 26th major league victory. The club gave both Wilson and his catcher $1000 raises for the feat and also gave the former a $250 watch.

The night nearly became historic for having two no hitters in one day and three in two days! With one down in the eighth, Jim Davenport of the Giants lined a double off the left field wall for the only hit Don Sutton of the Dodgers allowed in a 5-0 victory. (^boxscore) It was Sutton's second straight shutout.

This was not the first time no hitters involving the same teams happened on consecutive days. In fact, it happened the previous season at Candlestick Park: Gaylord Perry no-hit the Cards in a 1-0 victory on the night of September 17, 1968 and then Ray Washburn of the Cardinals turned the table on the Giants the very next afternoon with a 2-0 no-hit victory.

Aftermath

The Astros won 19 of their next 24 games and found themselves only a game under .500 and seven games back of the NL West-leading Braves by May 30th. Not bad for a club that was 4-20 a month earlier.

Ultimately they finished 81-81 in what was to that point the best record in franchise history. They chose well in the June '69 Amateur Free Agent draft selecting future superstar J.R. Richard. Their February draft choice was Derrel Thomas, a disappointment since he was selected first overall.

Reds pitcher Jim Maloney's arm troubles, which were already present at the time of the April 30 game against the Astros, eventually ended what was a very promising career in 1971.

Twenty years later on September 4, 1991, baseball's "Committee for Statistical Accuracy" ruled that nine-inning no hitters that are later lost in extra innings are not officially no hitters, so Maloney dropped down to officially two no-no's for his career. The ruling affected Harvey Haddix, who not only famously lost a perfect game (let alone a no-hitter) in the 13th inning, but who ironically was Maloney's pitching coach that day in 1969.

It was the last no-hitter pitched a Crosley Field, which was torn down after the Reds moved into Riverfront the following season.

Astros Pitcher Don Wilson was happily pitching his third no hitter against the Reds on September 4, 1974 (^boxscore) when his manager, the by the book Preston Gomez, inexcusably took him out for a pinch hitter with the Astros down 2-1 (the two Reds runs coming unearned on an error in the fifth). It was a move Gomez invariably did late in close games, but the listless Astros were 16 games behind the NL West leading Dodgers with less than a month to play. The Astros lost both the no-hitter and the game.

Wilson, for his part handled the loss with dignity and class. "I respect him more than ever tonight. He wants to win and I want to win as much as he does," said Wilson. "When people start putting personal goals ahead of the team, you'll never have a winner."

Something far, far more tragic happened a few months later. The Astros' pitcher was found dead, slumped over in his car in the garage of his suburban home in southwest Houston on January 5th.

The ignition to the car was turned on and the gas tank was empty as a result of the car having been run for untold hours overnight. If you think the story cannot get any more tragic, prepare yourself: The fumes from the car's exhaust made their way into the house above the garage and claimed the life of Alexander Wilson, his five year old son.

His 27-year- old wife was hospitalized, but later recovered.

The Astros introduced their colorful new "rainbow" uniforms for the 1975 season and you can still find Mitchell & Ness replicas of these on eBay. They all sport a #40 black patch on the sleeve in honor of Wilson, just as all 1975 Houston Astros jerseys did.