Jerry Allen Walker (February 12, 1939 – July 14, 2024) was an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

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, ...

. He played in

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) for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

Kansas City Athletics The Kansas City Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Kansas City, Missouri, from 1955 to 1967, having previously played in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as the Philadelphia Athletics. After moving in 1967, the team became the ...

, and

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

between 1957 and 1964.

Early life

Walker was born on February 12, 1939, just south of

Ada, Oklahoma Ada is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,481 at the 2020 United States census. The city was named for Ada Reed, the daughter of an early settler, and was in ...

, at Pecan Grove. He was raised with two brothers and a sister by his parents Annie Elizabeth (Rhodes) and Oliver Ansel Walker on a farm at

Byng, Oklahoma Byng is a town in Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,175 at the United States Census, 2010, 2010 census. History The beginnings of the town of Byng were established in 1917 with the building ...

, where he attended Byng High School, graduating in 1957. He had a 52–1 record pitching at Byng. Baltimore Orioles

pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decision ...

Harry Brecheen Harry David Brecheen (, , October 14, 1914 – January 17, 2004), nicknamed "the Cat", was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played most of his career for the St. Louis Cardinals. In the late 1940s, he was among the tea ...

was a native Oklahoman who grew up and lived in Ada, had scouted Walker and was impressed by his pitching control. Walker signed with the Orioles as a "

bonus baby The bonus rule was a contractual rule affecting major league baseball intermittently between 1947 and 1964, meant to prevent teams from assigning certain players to farm teams. The rule stipulated that when a major-league team signed a player to ...

" out of Ada's Byng High School on June 28, 1957, for a reported

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

of $60,000. He continued his education at

East Central University East Central University (ECU or East Central) is a public university in Ada, Oklahoma. It is part of Oklahoma's Regional University System. Beyond its flagship campus in Ada, the university has courses available in McAlester, Shawnee, and Duran ...

Pitching career

A member of the Orioles' and general manager/manager Paul Richards fabled "Kiddie Corps" of young pitchers signed in the late 1950s or 1960 (others included

Milt Pappas Milton Steven Pappas (May 11, 1939 – April 19, 2016) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through . Nicknamed "Gimpy", the 17-year veteran pitched for the Baltimore Ori ...

Steve Barber Stephen David Barber (February 22, 1938 – February 4, 2007) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) left-handed pitcher. He pitched for the Baltimore Orioles and six other teams from 1960 to 1974. Barber spent his first eight years with th ...

Jack Fisher John Howard "Fat Jack" Fisher (born March 4, 1939) is an American retired professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through for the Baltimore Orioles, San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, ...

, and Chuck Estrada), Walker is one of a very few players to have gone straight to the Major Leagues without ever playing a game in the minor leagues. He pitched for the Orioles eight days (or alternatively reported, six weeks) after graduating high school and/or signing with the Orioles. In his debut, on July 6, 1957, against the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

, he failed to retire a batter, issuing

bases on balls A base on balls (BB), better known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches during a plate appearance that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The bas ...

Mickey Vernon James Barton "Mickey" Vernon (April 22, 1918 – September 24, 2008) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) first baseman who played for the Washington Senators (1939–1948, 1950–1955), Cleveland Indians (1949–1950, 1958), Boston Red ...

and

Jackie Jensen Jack Eugene Jensen (March 9, 1927 – July 14, 1982) was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball who played for three American League (AL) teams from 1950 to 1961, most notably the Boston Red Sox. He was named the AL's Most Valuable P ...

, then uncorking a

wild pitch In baseball, a wild pitch (WP) is charged against a pitcher when his pitch is too high, too short, or too wide of home plate for the catcher to control with ordinary effort, thereby allowing a baserunner, or the batter (on an uncaught third st ...

. Walker then was lifted from the game, but both runners scored, giving Walker an

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 ...

infinity Infinity is something which is boundless, endless, or larger than any natural number. It is denoted by \infty, called the infinity symbol. From the time of the Ancient Greek mathematics, ancient Greeks, the Infinity (philosophy), philosophic ...

coming out of his first MLB game. When Brecheen came out to the mound to ask the 18-year old what was wrong that day, Walker responded that he had never seen that many people in his life. However, he was consistently more effective as the season progressed, and threw a four-hit,

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

shutout In team sports, a shutout (North American English, US) or clean sheet (Commonwealth English, UK) is a game in which the losing team fails to score. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketba ...

against the Washington Senators on September 4, beating

Camilo Pascual Camilo Alberto Pascual Lus (born January 20, 1934) is a Cuban former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. During an 18-year baseball career (1954–71), he played for the original modern Washington Senators franchise (which became the Mi ...

1–0 for his first big-league

victory The term victory (from ) originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal duel, combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes a strategic vi ...

. This was the first win by one of Paul Richards bonus babies. He played the bulk of the 1958 season with the

Knoxville Smokies The Knoxville Smokies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Knoxville, Tennessee. The team, which plays in the Southern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The team was based in Kodak, Tennessee, a Knoxville suburb, fr ...

of the

Single-A Single-A, formerly known as Class A and sometimes as Low-A, is the fourth-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States, below Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A, Double-A (baseball), Double-A, and High-A. There are 30 teams cl ...

Southern Atlantic League, with an 18–4 win-loss record and 2.61

(ERA). Back with the Orioles in 1959, Walker became the youngest pitcher ever to

start Start can refer to multiple topics: * Takeoff, the phase of flight where an aircraft transitions from moving along the ground to flying through the air * Starting lineup in sports * Track and field#Starts use in race, Starts use in sport race * S ...

Major League Baseball All-Star Game The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual professional baseball game sanctioned by Major League Baseball (MLB) and contested between the all-stars from the American League (AL) and National ...

when, at age 20, he went to mound for the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

in the second All-Star contest of 1959. He went three

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). In cricket and rounders, "innings" is ...

and allowed one

run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...

on two hits and one base on balls, and was credited with the win in a 5–3 AL victory at

Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the Los Angeles Coliseum or L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park, Los Angeles, Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. Conceived as a hal ...

. Later that season, on September 11, 1959, he hurled a 16-inning, 178 pitch (or more), complete game shutout against the eventual league champion

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

, winning 1–0. It was his 11th and final win of the 1959 season, his most successful campaign in the big leagues. His 2.92 earned run average (ERA) was among the top five that year. Before the 1960 season, he was described as a thinking pitcher, "with good control and plenty of breaking stuff". Teammate Jackie Brandt described him as tricking hitters. Walker was traded along with outfielder

Chuck Essegian Charles Abraham Essegian (born August 9, 1931) is an American former professional baseball left fielder. He appeared in 404 games played, games in Major League Baseball (MLB) over six seasons (1958–1963) for the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Lou ...

from the

Orioles Oriole or Orioles may refer to: Animals * Old World oriole, colorful passerine birds in the family Oriolidae * New World oriole, a group of birds in the family Icteridae Music * The Orioles, an R&B and doo-wop group of the late 1940s and early ...

to the

Athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competitio ...

for pitcher Dick Hall and outfielder

Dick Williams Richard Hirschfeld Williams (May 7, 1929 – July 7, 2011) was an American left fielder, third baseman, manager (baseball), manager, coach (baseball), coach and front-office consultant in Major League Baseball (MLB). Known especially as a hard-d ...

on April 12, 1961. Coincidentally, only 22 months later, on February 27, 1963, Kansas City dealt Walker to Cleveland to reacquire outfielder Essegian. In 1963, Walker became a part of baseball history when he saved

Early Wynn Early Wynn Jr. (January 6, 1920 – April 4, 1999), nicknamed "Gus", was an American professional baseball right-handed pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Senators, Cleveland Indians, and Chicago White Sox, dur ...

's 300th win on July 13, 1963. Wynn and the Indians were leading 5–1 heading to the bottom of the fifth, but when Wynn let up three runs in the bottom of the inning, he was pinch-hit for in the top of the sixth. Walker was tasked with preserving the one-run lead to keep Wynn eligible for the victory, and he threw four scoreless innings to secure the 7–4 victory. By age 26, however, Walker was out of the Majors, his career cut short by a sore arm. As a minor league manager, Walker theorized that sore arm problems in successful young pitchers were related to the change from pitching minor league baseball to major league baseball. A minor league team may only have one or two truly capable hitters, but major league teams are filled with capable hitters and pitchers have to bear down more. He recommended bringing young major league pitchers along more slowly. There is some belief that Richards allowing Walker to pitch the 16-inning shutout began Walker's arm troubles, but Walker himself is not certain this was the case. Over his major league career, in 190

games pitched In baseball statistics, games pitched (denoted by Games G in tables of only pitching statistics) is the number of games in which a player appears as a pitcher. The statistic is also referred to as appearances, especially to refer to the number of ...

, 90 as a starter, he allowed 734 hits and 341 bases on balls over 747 innings. He had 326

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 ...

s, 16 complete games, four shutouts and 13 saves.Walker was an adept hitter, posting a .230

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 ...

(58-for-252) with 24 runs, 4

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 ...

and 21 RBI. He fielded his position well, recording a .989

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a baseball positions, defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putout ...

with only two errors in 178

total chances In baseball statistics, total chances (TC), also called ''chances offered'', represents the number of plays in which a defensive player has participated. It is the sum of putouts plus assists plus errors. ''Chances accepted'' refers to the total ...

. After his major league career ended, Walker pitched the next three years in the minor leagues, 1965–67, the last two for the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A baseball team nicknamed the ...

and then

Binghamton Triplets The Binghamton Triplets were a minor league baseball team based in Binghamton, New York between 1923 and 1963. The franchise played as members of the New York–Penn League (1923–1937), Eastern League (1938–1963), New York–Penn League ( ...

in the New York Yankees farm system.

Coach and front-office executive

Walker's active career ended in 1967 in the Double-A Eastern League, but he maintained his involvement in

organized baseball Organized baseball is an outdated term that collectively describes what is now known as Major League Baseball (MLB) and its various affiliated minor leagues, under the authority of the commissioner of baseball. Historically, these leagues were bo ...

as a

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

, big-league

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

and front-office executive. Walker managed in the Yankees minor league system from 1968–73. In 1978, he scouted future Yankee star pitcher

Dave Righetti David Allan Righetti (born November 28, 1958), nicknamed "Rags", is an American professional baseball coach and former player. A left-handed pitcher, Righetti played in Major League Baseball from 1979 through 1995 for the New York Yankees, San F ...

. He was a pitching coach with the Yankees (1981–82) and Houston Astros (1983–85). He served as a special assignment scout for the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

starting in 1985, and served one season (1993) as their

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

, before being fired; the Tigers posted an 85–77 record and finished tied for third in the

American League East Division The American League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. MLB consists of an East, Central, and West division for each of its two 15-team leagues, the American League (AL) and National League (NL). This division was created bef ...

that season. From 1995 through 2007, Walker was the vice president and director of player personnel in the front office of 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 ...

, working as a key assistant to then-GM Walt Jocketty. He then became a vice president and special assistant to Jocketty with the

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

, 2009–14. He retired from the Reds in 2016 or 2019. In 2020, he received the Legends in Scouting Award from the Professional Baseball Scouts Foundation.

Personal life and death

Walker made Ada his home for his entire life. He was particularly known in Ada for the family home's annual Christmas display, and dressing as Santa Claus on Christmas Eve (giving out candy to children), that delighted decades of Ada's children. Walker died after a heart attack at his home in Ada, on July 14, 2024, at the age of 85. At the time of his death, he had been married to Janis (Violet) Walker for 64 years, and was survived by two daughters, six grandchildren and six great grandchildren.

References

External links

Coach's page

Retrosheet Retrosheet is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose website features box scores of Major League Baseball (MLB) games from 1906 to the present, and play-by-play narratives for almost every contest since the 1930s. It also includes scores fr ...