Harvey Haddix and His Perfect Scoop
Just reading the back will make you tired!
1961 Nu-Card Scoops Harvey Haddix (#478) - Card of the Day
Collectors who spent the 1980s loading up on rookie cards that were going to pay off down the line in the form of college funds and retirement bounties get a pang of empathy whenever Harvey Haddix comes up in baseball conversation.
Haddix, you might remember, pitched a 12-inning perfect game for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Milwaukee Braves on May 26, 1959.
But he got the first slap of paradise loss in the very next frame when leadoff man Felix Mantilla reached first on an error. And then, well…here let’s hear it from the back of Haddix’s 1961 Nu-Card Scoops card:
So not only was the perfect game gone, but so was the plain old no-hitter and even the victory.
But at least Haddix still showed up in the record books and everywhere else perfectos were tracked. Until 1991, that is, when MLB changed their official rules for what counts as a no-no.
And Haddix’s masterpiece landed on the outside looking in.
That was especially stinky timing considering that Haddix passed away less than three years later at the age of just 58. Too bad he had to live his last years knowing what had been taken from him.
So, yeah, that stack of 1985 Topps Mark McGwires on your bedroom hutch or the clutch of 1986 Donruss Jose Canseco Rated Rookies sort of feel the same way when we’re being shallow and selfish about the thing.
Those Bash Brothers were supposed to walk hand-in-hand into the Hall of Fame, after all, and we were supposed to walk into the sunset with fists full of cash shortly thereafter.
But, of course, lost cardboard riches are nowhere near as personal as lost personal accomplishments. The bright side for Haddix and his gem is that it’s still that — an absolute gem, no matter what current rules say.
And, who knows?
Maybe those rules will change again someday and make Haddix a no-hitter-pitcher once again. For the record.
For the record today, though, you should know that Harvey Haddix was born 99 years ago. More than reason enough to dust off a few memories and cards (if you have them).
Setting the Table…with Cookies
After Mantilla spoiled Haddix’s perfection, Eddie Mathews laid down a sacrifice bunt to put Mantilla in scoring position. That paved the way for an intentional walk to Hank Aaron and then Joe Adcock’s game-ending blast.
Five years earlier, Mathews was setting the table — with sweets! — for collectors from the confines of his 1954 Johnston Cookies card. Read all about that one right here.
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What a wild finish that game 65 years ago must have been! Not sure I’ve witnessed anything quite like that one, but I can recall some heartstopping finishes in the postseason — Bill Buckner (sorry) in 1986, Sid Bream in 1992, Joe Carter in 1993.
What are some of the greatest finishes you’ve seen in your fandom, postseason or not?
Thanks for reading.
—Adam
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