As he strode to the pitcher's mound in the last half of the 13th inning at Milwaukee's County Stadium one muggy night last week, the Pittsburgh Pirates' Harvey Haddix got a thunderous ovation. His place in the record books was already secure, win or lose. For stylish, hardworking Pitcher Haddix, 33 years old and with his best years behind him, had pitched twelve perfect innings of baseball—more than any other man in the game's history.
Not a single Milwaukee batter had reached first base, and the little (5 ft. 9 in., 160 lbs.) lefthander had been behind on only two batters all night long. While Haddix held the league's heaviest-hitting team helpless, his teammates hacked away at Lew Burdette for twelve hits, but could not get the single run needed to win. In the last of the 13th, Haddix was undone by a teammate. Third Baseman Don Hoak fielded an easy grounder but threw low to first. A topflight first baseman could have scooped up the ball for the putout, but the Pirates' Rocky Nelson could not make the play. The perfect string ended, Haddix purposely walked Hank Aaron, the league's leading hitter, prepared to pitch to First Baseman Joe Adcock. Slugger Adcock had struck out twice previously on sliders. Now he got another one. But Haddix was exhausted, and the pitch came in fat as a melon. Adcock swung, hit the ball over the fence.* Adcock's smash was the only hit all night off Haddix, but it sent him to the most heartbreaking defeat on record.
* In the confusion, Aaron stopped running at second base, started to leave the field. Adcock passed him en route home, was called out and credited with a double instead of a homer.
League President Warren Giles declared the score 1-0.