RetroSimba

They came from places one might find in a John Grisham novel, but Wilmer Mizell of Vinegar Bend, Ala., and Ed Bailey of Strawberry Plains, Tenn., were real and they were central characters in an unusual game between the Cardinals and Reds.

On Sept. 1, 1958, in the opening game of a doubleheader at St. Louis, Mizell established a National League record for most walks in a shutout, issuing nine in a 1-0 Cardinals victory.

One reason Mizell was able to thrive despite a lack of command was his ability to retire Bailey in key situations. Three times, Bailey batted with two on and two outs and Mizell got him out each time.

Path to success

Mizell was born and raised in Leakesville, Miss., located along the Chickasawhay River in the southeast part of the state near the Alabama border. The nearby town of Vinegar Bend, Ala., became Mizell’s adopted home because Leakesville was on the Vinegar Bend mail route.

At 16, Mizell began playing baseball in Sunday leagues in Vinegar Bend and from then on he became known as Vinegar Bend Mizell.

A left-handed pitcher, Mizell signed with the Cardinals in 1949 when he was 18 and established himself as a top prospect. He was 12-3 with a 1.98 ERA for Albany (Ga.) in 1949 and also had strong seasons for Winston-Salem (17-7, 2.48) in 1950 and Houston (16-14, 1.97) in 1951.

Mizell got to the major leagues with the Cardinals in 1952, posted a 10-8 record and issued the most walks (103) of any National League pitcher. After composing a 13-11 record for the Cardinals in 1953, Mizell spent two years in military service and rejoined the Cardinals in 1956.

Windmill windup

Mizell brought an 8-11 record into his Labor Day start against the Reds in 1958. He faced his first challenge in the first inning when Bailey batted with two outs and runners on first and second.

Bailey, a left-handed batter, was born and raised in Strawberry Plains, about 20 miles from Knoxville, and made his major-league debut with the Reds in 1953. He became their starting catcher in 1956 when he hit 28 home runs.

Mizell got Bailey to fly out to right and escaped the first inning unscathed.

The Cardinals scored the lone run in the second against hard-luck Reds left-hander Joe Nuxhall, whose defense let him down. Ken Boyer led off, grounded to third baseman Alex Grammas and reached safely when Grammas booted the ball. After Joe Cunningham flied out, Gene Green hit a roller to second baseman Johnny Temple, who was thinking he could turn a double play, but when he went to scoop the ball it got past him for an error. Boyer advanced to third and Green was safe at first.

Wally Moon followed with a high chopper to the right of the mound. As Nuxhall reached for the ball, Boyer streaked to the plate and Nuxhall’s only play was to throw to first to retire Moon.

In the third, Bailey came up with two outs and runners on first and third, and again he flied out to right.

Mizell, described by the Cincinnati Enquirer as a “big left-hander with the windmill windup,” walked six in the first four innings, but had a no-hitter entering the fifth.

Escaping trouble

In the fifth, Temple singled for the Reds’ first hit, but was erased on Jerry Lynch’s double-play grounder. Pete Whisenant followed with a single, stole second and also stole third. Frank Robinson walked and stole second, giving the Reds runners on second and third with two outs and Bailey at the plate.

Bailey grounded out to second, ending the Reds’ best threat. He would hit .140 (7-for-50) against Mizell in his big-league career.

The Reds put a runner on base in every inning except the ninth and stranded 11. They had nine walks, five stolen bases and four singles but no runs, snapping a six-game winning streak.

The Post-Dispatch described the game as “an unusual thriller” and The Sporting News reported it as “a weird duel.” Boxscore

Mizell threw 150 pitches.

The major-league record for most walks issued in a shutout is 11 by Lefty Gomez of the American League Yankees on Aug. 1, 1941, in a 9-0 victory over the Browns at New York. Boxscore