Major League Baseball Player. For twenty-two seasons (1967 to 1988), he was a pitcher with the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Detroit Tigers, Atlanta Braves, Houston Astros, New York Yankees and Minnesota Twins. The younger brother of Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro, he attended Bridgeport High School and West Liberty State College before being selected by the Cubs during the 3rd round of the 1966 Amateur Draft. He marked his Major League debut with the Cubs on April 16th, 1967 and pitched in 36 games while recording 10 wins that year. Niekro's best body of work was while with Houston, as he produced two consecutive 20-win seasons (tie with his brother for victories in 1979 with 21 and 20 in 1980). He was tied for league leader with Steve Rogers (Montreal) and Tom Seaver (Cincinnati) with 5 shutouts in 1979. Niekro saw postseason action during the 1980 NLCS, 1981 NLDS and experienced a world championship with Minnesota in 1987, as he pitched in one game during the 1987 World Series. In 702 career regular season games, he amassed a 221 win, 204 loss record with a 3.59 lifetime ERA in 3,584 innings pitched. He was the father of Major League player Lance Niekro. He died from a brain aneurysm.
Major League Baseball Player. For twenty-two seasons (1967 to 1988), he was a pitcher with the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Detroit Tigers, Atlanta Braves, Houston Astros, New York Yankees and Minnesota Twins. The younger brother of Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro, he attended Bridgeport High School and West Liberty State College before being selected by the Cubs during the 3rd round of the 1966 Amateur Draft. He marked his Major League debut with the Cubs on April 16th, 1967 and pitched in 36 games while recording 10 wins that year. Niekro's best body of work was while with Houston, as he produced two consecutive 20-win seasons (tie with his brother for victories in 1979 with 21 and 20 in 1980). He was tied for league leader with Steve Rogers (Montreal) and Tom Seaver (Cincinnati) with 5 shutouts in 1979. Niekro saw postseason action during the 1980 NLCS, 1981 NLDS and experienced a world championship with Minnesota in 1987, as he pitched in one game during the 1987 World Series. In 702 career regular season games, he amassed a 221 win, 204 loss record with a 3.59 lifetime ERA in 3,584 innings pitched. He was the father of Major League player Lance Niekro. He died from a brain aneurysm.
Bio by: C.S.
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