Bob Veal, a towering left-handed pitcher for the Pittsburgh Steelers who terrorized Nationwide League hitters along with his fastball — and his wildness — within the Sixties and early Seventies, died Jan. 3 in Birmingham, Alabama. He was 89 years previous.
His loss of life at a long-term care facility was confirmed by his sister, Valencia Veale Johnson. She didn’t specify a trigger.
For a number of seasons, Veal was one of the dominant pitchers in baseball. He leads the league crossed out 250 in 1964, his first full season as a starter, after which hit 276 in 1965. (second general to Sandy Koufax’s 382) and 229 the next season. His earned run common in these seasons by no means exceeded 3.02.
Veale, who stood 6-foot-6 and wore glasses, performed on good Pirate groups; his teammates included the outfielders Willie Stargell and Roberto Clemente and the second baseman Bill Mazeroskiwho will all be inducted into the Baseball Corridor of Fame.
In June 1966, after Veal struck out 9 in opposition to the Atlanta Braves in an 11-inning complete-game victory, Stargell, who had hit the game-winning residence run, mentioned, “Anyone who might throw the way in which he might, so long as I did, I simply could not lose.’
He added, “Why, I might even see the blue flame rising from his fastball 360 ft into left subject.”
Pirates spokesman Bob Prince known as Veal’s heater a “radio ball” — one that may be heard however not seen.
Veale’s greatest flaw as a pitcher was his management; he led the NL in walks 4 occasions. This could additionally strike concern into batters.
“He did not have the most effective management, however he had nice stuff and would get himself out of hassle,” Art Shamsky, former Cincinnati Crimson and New York Met, mentioned in an interview. Veale, he added, was a part of an period by which the Nationwide League had an abundance of aces, together with Koufax and Don Drysdale of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Bob Gibson and Steve Carlton of the St. Louis Cardinals and Juan Marichal of the San Francisco Giants.
“They had been overwhelming and received stronger as the sport went on,” Shamski mentioned.
In 1968, the so-called 12 months of the Pitcher, Veal’s 13-14 file wasn’t stellar, however his 2.05 ERA ranked third within the NL, behind Gibson’s 1.12 and Large Bobby Bolin’s 1.99 .
Veal suffered again and elbow accidents in his later seasons and was moved to the Pirates’ bullpen in 1971 once they gained the World Sequence in opposition to the Baltimore Orioles in seven video games. He pitched in reduction as soon as within the sequence, giving up a run after two-thirds of an inning.
Robert Andrew Vail Jr. was born on October 28, 1935. in Birmingham, one in all 14 kids of Robert Weale Sr. and Ollie Bell (Ushri) Weale. His father performed briefly for the Homestead Grays, a Negro Nationwide League workforce in Pittsburgh, and labored as a drawer on the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Firm. His mom took care of the home.
Younger Bob performed on sand courts in Birmingham with white associates through the Jim Crow period.
“We did not know we had been breaking segregation legal guidelines,” Weale instructed Alan Barra, creator of Rickwood Area: A Century in America’s Oldest Stadium (2014), a historical past of Birmingham’s minor league ballpark. “We did not assume to combine something.”
As a teen, Veal coached batting for Rickwood’s charters, the minor league Barons and the black league Black Barons; labored the stadium concession stand; and ran numbers into the inning slots on the scoreboard.
He additionally performed for native industrial groups and attended the School of St. Benedict (now Benedictine School) in Atchison, Kan., the place he performed basketball and baseball. Earlier than he might end as deliberate in 1958, the Pirates signed him.
Veale largely excelled in Pittsburgh’s Minor League system. In 1959 he threw a no-hitter for Carolina minor leaguer Wilson Tobbs. Three years later, he had 22 strikeouts in a sport for the Triple A Columbus Jets.
He appeared in 11 video games for the Pirates in 1962, then sat out the whole 1963 season. within the majors as a starter and reliever. He completed with a 5-2 file and a 1.04 ERA
In 11 years with Pittsburgh, Veal compiled a 116-91 file and three.06 ERA and was named to 2 All-Star video games. Pittsburgh traded Veal’s contract to the Boston Crimson Sox on the finish of the 1972 season, and the Crimson Sox launched him in 1974 after utilizing him sparingly.
After retiring, Vail was a minor league pitching teacher for the Atlanta Braves and Yankees. He additionally maintained his ties to Rickwood Area, the place for a time he labored as a safety guard twice every week and helped the Pals of Rickwood, the non-profit group that runs the sector, by “chatting” about its historical past to anybody who would hear. mentioned Gerald Watkins, the group’s government director.
Veale was inducted into the Alabama Sports activities Corridor of Fame in 2006.
Along with Mrs. Veale Johnson, he’s survived by his spouse, Eredean (Sanders) Veale; his stepdaughter, Felicia Sanders; 4 different sisters, Lily Veil Wilson, Emily Veil Ford, Vida Veil Belcher and Angela Veil Joubert; and two brothers, Russell W. Veal II and Jerry B. Vail.
If hitters feared Veale’s management, or lack thereof, they could have been comforted by the truth that he wore glasses. However one evening in Might 1967, when the Pirates had been enjoying the Cardinals at Forbes Area in Pittsburgh, a brand new pair was giving him hassle — the fitting lens saved coming out.
Within the third inning, he took off his glasses and was making ready to go on with out them. However Lou BrockCardinals left fielder refused to step into the batter’s field even after being ordered to by the umpire Doug Harvey. Brock stepped down after the Pirates’ pitching coach, Clyde Kingtook out a pair of Veale’s previous glasses.
“I can not blame him,” Veal mentioned of Brock afterward. “I normally see six folks after I’m not carrying them.”
