Joseph Alan Cowley (born August 15, 1958) is an American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

, who played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for 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 (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

(1982),

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

(1984–1985),

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) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

(1986), and

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

(1987). On September 19, 1986, Cowley threw a

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...

for the White Sox against the

California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

Early career

Cowley was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Lafayette High School by the

in 1976.

1986: Strikeout record and no-hitter

On May 28, 1986, Cowley set the then-major league record for striking out the most consecutive batters to start a game when he struck out the first seven Texas Rangers that he faced. Despite the feat, Cowley lost the game, surrendering five earned runs in less than five innings before being removed. On September 19 of that same year, Cowley pitched a 7-1

against the California Angels at

Anaheim Stadium Angel Stadium of Anaheim is a baseball stadium located in Anaheim, California. Since its opening in 1966, it has served as the home ballpark of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB), and was also the home stadium to the Los Angel ...

. After the eighth inning, with Cowley just three outs away, approximately one-third of the 28,647 fans in attendance left the stadium, in keeping with the perception that sports fans in Southern California are more concerned with avoiding traffic than watching games. The no-hitter was also memorable because Cowley threw as many balls as he did strikes (69), walking seven men and surrendering one earned run. After the game, Angels first baseman

Wally Joyner Wallace Keith Joyner (born June 16, 1962) is an American former professional baseball player. He played for four major league teams during a 16-year career, most notably for the California Angels, for whom he was an All-Star. He was a member of ...

said: "Not to put Joe Cowley down, but it wasn't impressive." Cowley did not win again in 1986, and after four winless starts in 1987, was released by the

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

. Cowley thus became the only pitcher in MLB history never to win another game after pitching a no-hitter.

References

External links

Joe Cowley
at SABR (Baseball BioProject)
Joe Cowley
at Baseball Almanac
Joe Cowley
at Baseballbiography.com
Joe Cowley
at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League) :
1958 births Atlanta Braves players Baseball players from Kentucky Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Chicago White Sox players Columbus Clippers players Durham Bulls players Greenwood Braves players Gulf Coast Braves players Kingsport Braves players Leones del Caracas players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Living people Maine Guides players Major League Baseball pitchers New York Yankees players Philadelphia Phillies players Richmond Braves players Savannah Braves players {{US-baseball-pitcher-1950s-stub

Early career

1986: Strikeout record and no-hitter

See also

References

External links