Donald Eugene Cardwell (December 7, 1935 – January 14, 2008) was an American

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) right-handed

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

who played for five

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

(NL) teams from 1957 to 1970. He was the first pitcher in major league history to pitch a

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...

in his first game after being traded. He pitched a no-hit, 4–0 winning game for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

on May 15, 1960, just two days after being traded from the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

. After winning 15 games for the Cubs in 1961, he won 13 games twice for the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

before helping the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

win the 1969 World Series title. Born in

Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city in Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the List of municipalities in North Carolina, fifth-most populous ...

, Cardwell signed with the Philadelphia Phillies as an amateur free agent in 1954.

Major League career

Philadelphia Phillies

Cardwell began playing in the major leagues when he made his debut for the Phillies in 1957. He struggled during his three seasons with the team, winning 16 games while losing 24 as a spot starter.

Chicago Cubs (no-hitter)

Cardwell was traded to the Cubs on May 13, 1960, for Tony Taylor. Two days later, he no-hit the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

4–0 in the second game of a doubleheader at

Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a ballpark on the North Side, Chicago, North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charl ...

—the first no-hitter ever thrown by a pitcher in his first start with a new team. The lone baserunner for the Cardinals was by a

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an "inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults over ...

from Cardwell to Alex Grammas with one out in the first inning; Cardwell then retired the next 26 batters. Two ninth-inning catches enabled Cardwell to secure the no-hitter: the first catch by Cubs right fielder George Altman on a Carl Sawatski

line drive In the sports of baseball and softball, a batted ball is a pitch that has been contacted by the batter's bat. Batted balls are either fair or foul, and can be characterized as a fly ball, pop-up, line drive, or ground ball. In baseball, a fou ...

for the first out of the inning, and the second catch by Cubs left fielder Walt "Moose" Moryn on Joe Cunningham's sinking line drive to end the game, Moryn catching the ball just inches off the ground. Cardwell finished the season 9–16 and the Cubs 60–94 despite his no-hitter. Cardwell also showed his hitting ability in 1960, getting 16

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

including five

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s in 77

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...

s for a .208

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

. Cardwell's best major league season was for the Cubs in 1961, winning a career-high 15 games with a career-high 156

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

St. Louis Cardinals

Cardwell slumped to 7–16 in 1962. On October 12, he was traded with George Altman to the St. Louis Cardinals. However, his stay ended before he even pitched a game for the St. Louis team. A month later, the Cardinals traded him to the Pittsburgh Pirates in a deal that sent former National League

MVP MVP most commonly refers to: * Most valuable player, an award, typically for the best performing player in a sport or competition * Minimum viable product, a concept for feature estimating used in business and engineering MVP may also refer to: ...

Dick Groat to the Redbirds.

Pittsburgh Pirates

Cardwell won 13 games for the Pirates in 1963 while posting a career-best 3.07

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

. He was sidelined most of the 1964 season with shoulder trouble. In the 1965 season, he rebounded to win 13 more games. In December 1966, he was traded with Pirates outfielder Don Bosch to the New York Mets for pitcher Dennis Ribant and utilityman Gary Kolb.

New York Mets

Pitching mostly as a spot starter, Cardwell went 12–22 in his first two seasons with the Mets. In the 1969 season, he went 8–10 in a rotation with pitchers

Tom Seaver George Thomas Seaver (November 17, 1944 – August 31, 2020), nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "the Franchise", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Mets, Cin ...

, Jerry Koosman,

Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB), Ryan pitched for the New Yo ...

and Gary Gentry, helping them win the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

. In late July of that year, he had a 3–9 record, then won five straight, including a 1–0 shutout in the second game of a September 12 doubleheader against the Pirates (in the first game, Koosman had also blanked the Pirates 1–0; both pitchers drove in the only run in their respective games). This victory, the ninth of a ten-game winning streak for the Mets, came two days after the Mets had taken over first place for good in the

National League East The National League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. Along with the American League Central, it is one of two divisions to have every member win at least one World Series title. After having internal, informal divisions for ...

(in 1969 the two leagues had been split into two divisions) by leapfrogging past the Chicago Cubs, who had been in first place for much of the season before stumbling down the stretch.

Atlanta Braves

Cardwell was sold to the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...

in July 1970, where he ended his major league career. In his 14 major league seasons, he won 102 games while losing 138 games with 1,211 strikeouts in 2,122

innings pitched In baseball, the statistic innings pitched (IP) is the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of Batter (baseball), batters and baserunners that have been put out while the pitcher is on the Baseball field#Pitcher's mou ...

. Although only a career .135 hitter, Cardwell hit 15

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run ...

with 53 RBI.

Death

Cardwell died on January 14, 2008, of

Pick's disease Frontotemporal dementia (FTD), also called frontotemporal degeneration disease or frontotemporal neurocognitive disorder, encompasses several types of dementia involving the progressive degeneration of the brain's frontal and temporal lobes. Men ...

in Winston-Salem. He had lived in Clemmons at the time of the death. He was interred in God's Acre Cemetery in Old Salem, North Carolina.

References

External links

Don Cardwell
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Don Cardwell
at Baseball Almanac

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cardwell, Don 1935 births 2008 deaths Appalachian State Mountaineers baseball players Atlanta Braves players Baseball players from Winston-Salem, North Carolina Chicago Cubs players Deaths from Pick's disease Deaths from dementia in North Carolina Major League Baseball pitchers Miami Marlins (International League) players New York Mets players Philadelphia Phillies players Pittsburgh Pirates players Pulaski Phillies players Schenectady Blue Jays players Columbus Jets players 20th-century American sportsmen American people of the Moravian Church