Skip to main content

Sunday School: Phillies History Lesson 86

Art Mahaffey was a pitcher with the Philadelphia Phillies from 1960-1965. Signed by the Phils as an amateur free agent in 1956, he made his Major League debut at the age of 22, after four seasons in the minors.

Upon his arrival in the Majors, midway through the 1960 season, Mahaffey, a 6-feet-1-inch right-hander, swiftly made quite an impact with the Phillies. In his first MLB game, on July 30th, 1960, Mahaffey was used in relief against the Cardinals. He pitched a 1-2-3 8th inning and then allowed two runners (Bill White and Curt Flood, who each reached on singles) in the final frame, both of which he picked off. Mahaffey pitched again the next day and picked off Jim Marshall of the Giants, successfully erasing the first three men that scored base hits against him in the Majors.

In 14 games (12 starts) that season, Mahaffey posted a 7-3 record, including 5 complete games and a shutout, with a 2.31 ERA. Mahaffey finished third in National League Rookie of the Year voting, behind the Dodgers' Frank Howard and Phils teammate Pancho Herrera.

In 1961, after losing his first start 2-0, despite allowing just three hits, Mahaffey bounced back in overpowering fashion. On April 23rd, in a home game against the Cubs, Mahaffey set the Phillies record by striking out 17 batters en route to a 6-0 victory over Chicago. Unfortunately for the Phillies, it was one of very few highlights that year, as the disappointing franchise lost 107 games.

Born and raised in Cincinnati, Mahaffey pitched better than his 11-19 record would indicate, that season. He made the NL All-star team, even though he led the league in losses. Mahaffey stayed hot late into that season, tossing a one-hitter against the Cubs in August. Mahaffey followed that up with a 3-0 shutout of the Braves in his very next outing.

The 1962 season would bring another All-star nod for Mahaffey. In 41 appearances that year, 39 of which were starts, Mahaffey posted a 19-14 record with a 3.94 ERA and threw a career high 274 innings. His 20 complete games were second most in the Majors, behind Warren Spahn's 22. On August 2nd that year, in a game against the Mets at the Polo Grounds, Mahaffey accomplished a rare feat. En route to a 9-4 complete game victory, Mahaffey struck out 12 batters and laced a grand slam in the third inning. No Major League pitcher since has struck out that many in the same game he notched a homer with the bases loaded.

Mahaffey had a rough season in 1963, as the high work load seemed to take its toll on the righty hurler. Mahaffey only won 7 of his 26 games, while earning a solid 3.99 ERA. Mahaffey would have a winning record once again in 1964, when he went 12-9 with an ERA of 4.52.

Mahaffey was with the club during the famed 1964 Phillies collapse, in which they had a 6 1/2 game lead in the pennant race with 12 games left and lost 10 straight match ups to finish in second place. Mahaffey started two games during the losing streak.

By the following season, Mahaffey's ERA became bloated (6.21) and his win total was emaciated (2), as he pitched mostly in relief.

Following the 1965 season, Mahaffey was traded to the Cardinals along with Pat Corrales and Alex Johnson for shortstop Dick Groat, catcher Bob Uecker and first baseman Bill White, who was, of course, the same Bill White that Mahaffey picked off in his Major League debut.

Mahaffey would throw 35 innings for the Cards, before being traded to the Mets, but he never played for New York.

Today, Mahaffey resides in Allentown, PA.
____________________________________________________________


You can follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter by clicking HERE.

Connect with PhoulBallz.com on Facebook by clicking HERE.

Comments

Jay Floyd said…
Mahaffey was definitely one of the more interesting guys I've done a History Lesson on in a while.

Popular posts from this blog

Diekman a Late Addition to Mesa AFL Roster

On Wednesday, Phillies lefty pitching prospect Jacob Diekman made his Arizona Fall League debut. Diekman, who was drafted in the 30th round of the 2007 amateur draft, was assigned to Mesa late, in order to increase his 2010 innings total, according to Mesa hitting coach Mark Parent, who managed Diekman in Lakewood this past season. Diekman, 23, posted a 2-0 record with 1.90 ERA in 21 games with Class A Lakewood before being promoted to High-A Clearwater on June 24th. In 24 games with the Threshers, Diekman went 0-2 with a 3.66 ERA. Combined, Diekman tossed 55 2/3 innings and held opponents to a .187 batting average against at two levels in 2010. However, after not pitching in an official game since he threw a shutout inning to wrap up the Clearwater season on September 5th, Diekman was unable to record an out as all seven batters he faced reached base, six with hits, one on an error. Diekman was charged with 5 earned runs in the outing. Diekman had spent time at instructional ball from

McGwire Stays Phony, Despite Admitting Drug Use

Mark McGwire made an effort to publicly come clean today, admitting to the world that he took performance enhancing drugs during his playing career. Steroids and human growth hormones were among the drugs that McGwire admitted to using. MLB Network featured a one on one interview with Bob Costas and McGwire on Monday evening. The broadcast was virtually garbage, thanks to McGwire. Ahead is a list of quotes from McGwire's interview. McGwire repeatedly stated his point of view that there were no dishonorable intentions involved when taking steroids, and that he was merely using them as a means to recover from varying ailments. When asked if he felt like he cheated... "As I look back now...I can see how people would say that. As far as the talent goes and the hand-eye coordination, the ability, the genetics I was given...I don't see it." "I did not take this for any strength purposes." Denial. Read on for similar B.S. He whined about the abuse he's taken at

Bubby Rossman's long awaited MLB debut

Eight years after he initially signed a professional contract with the Dodgers and a five-year stretch playing away from affiliated ball, Bubby Rossman became a major leaguer on Wednesday. Added as a substitute for pitcher Kyle Gibson, who is restricted from travel to Canada for the Phillies' series in Toronto, due to his medical inability to be vaccinated from COVID-19, Rossman took the mound for the first time in the majors. Rossman, who was a 22nd round draft selection in 2014 had pitched in 200 professional games before his one-inning outing in the Phillies' 8-2 loss to the Blue Jays. In 27 appearances with Double-A Reading this year, the 30-year-old right-hander has performed well, tallying a 2-2 record with a save, a 3.32 ERA and a .200 batting average against.   The embedded video below features a media session with Rossman from prior to opening day this year, in which the California native discusses his journey through independent baseball and back to affiliated ball wi