Thursday, December 27, 2007

Eddie Feigner's greatest feat

Unbelievable, but I saw it.

I saw it live on TV when he struck out all the major leaguers. It was a Hollywood vs. Major Leagues charity event. They brought him on as a relief pitcher They introduced Eddie as a star of a new show, and he warmed up very mildly. Willie Mays was the first batter he faced. Eddie came around behind his back with a curve ball that broke about five feet. Willie's mouth flew open and he stepped back in unbelief. None of those Hall of Famers so much as touched the ball while he was pitching.

"Feigner not only pitched from the standard mound, 46 feet from home plate, but also from second base, behind his back, on his knees, between his legs, from center field and blindfolded. In a nationally televised exhibition against major leaguers at Dodger Stadium in 1964, he struck out Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Maury Wills, Harmon Killebrew, Roberto Clemente and Brooks Robinson in order.
Feigner began "The King and His Court" in 1946 on a dare in his hometown of Walla Walla, Wash. He had just thrown a shutout in his nine-man team's rout of a team from Pendleton, Ore., and the Oregon team challenged him to another game. Backed by just a catcher, first baseman and shortstop, Feigner pitched a perfect game, winning 7-0.
At the height of Feigner's popularity, the team played at major league ballparks, including Yankee Stadium, and Feigner appeared on numerous national television shows, including "The Today Show," "I've Got a Secret," "What's My Line?" and the "CBS Sports Spectacular." On the "Tonight Show," he pitched blindfolded to Johnny Carson, who loosely held a bat over a home plate. Feigner hit Carson's bat on his first pitch. "

1 comment:

Nardo said...

amazing! i wonder if I can find it on youtube.