The Phillies gave up on Curt Simmons and the Cardinals benefited.
On May 19, 1960, the Cardinals signed Simmons on his 31st birthday. A left-handed pitcher, Simmons was released a week earlier by the Phillies after he played in 13 seasons for them and won 115 games.
Determined to show the Phillies he wasn’t done, Simmons became a dependable Cardinals starter and did some of his best work against his former team.
Simmons was 4-0 against the Phillies in 1960 and 4-0 versus them again in 1964 when they finished a game behind the National League champion Cardinals.
Prized pitcher
Simmons was a standout pitcher for high school and American Legion teams in his hometown of Egypt, Pa., near Allentown. The Phillies signed him for $65,000 in 1947 when he was 18 and sent him to their farm team in Wilmington, Del.
Simmons had “a face like a B-picture villain,” the Sporting News noted, and threw with a herky-jerky motion. He was 13-5 for Wilmington and got called up to the Phillies near the end of the season. He made his major-league debut in a start against the Giants on Sept. 28, 1947, at Philadelphia and pitched a five-hitter in a 3-1 win. Boxscore
“I wouldn’t trade Curt Simmons for an entire ball club,” Phillies manager Ben Chapman told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “I mean every word of it.”
In 1950, the Phillies, managed by Eddie Sawyer, won the National League pennant behind the pitching of Robin Roberts (20-11), Simmons (17-8) and Jim Konstanty (16-7, 22 saves), but Simmons was called into the Army before the World Series against the Yankees.
Simmons “was a better pitcher than Roberts in 1950 and it looked as if he’d stay that way,” Sawyer told The Sporting News. “He had more natural stuff than Robbie. He was a bonus kid trying to grow into a major leaguer and in 1950 he suddenly arrived. For the first time, he had control. He could throw a strike whenever he wanted.”
After serving in the Army through 1951, Simmons returned to the Phillies in 1952 and picked up where he left off, posting a 14-8 record with six shutouts.
In June 1953, Simmons was mowing his lawn when he accidently sliced off part of the big toe on his left foot. He pitched again a month later and remained a mainstay in the starting rotation, finishing 16-13, but Phillies owner Bob Carpenter said, “To me, his fastball lost that strikeout zip after the accident.”
Under repair
In April 1959, Simmons underwent surgery to remove bone chips in the left elbow. He returned to the Phillies in late May and made seven relief appearances, but Simmons wanted to test his elbow in a series of starts. He agreed to go to the Phillies’ farm team at Williamsport, Pa., “to find out for myself if I could still pitch, if my arm could take the strain,” he told the Inquirer.
Simmons was 4-1 in six starts at Williamsport and declared himself ready to return to the Phillies in 1960. At spring training, Simmons had a 1.97 ERA in 32 innings and Sawyer picked him to start the Phillies’ second game of the season, their home opener against the Braves.
The good vibes of spring training disappeared as soon as the season began. The Phillies lost the season opener to the Reds at Cincinnati on April 12 and Sawyer resigned the morning of the home opener on April 14, saying he no longer wanted to manage.
Gene Mauch, named to replace Sawyer, couldn’t arrive in Philadelphia in time for the home opener, so coach Andy Cohen filled in. Simmons started, gave up home runs to Hank Aaron and Joe Adcock in the first inning and was lifted after the first two batters reached base in the second.
In his next start, his first for Mauch, Simmons faced five Pirates batters, retired none and was taken out.
Simmons made two relief appearances and was released on May 11. His totals for the 1960 Phillies: four innings, eight runs, 13 hits, six walks.
“I don’t think I would have been released if Sawyer had been there,” Simmons told the Philadelphia Daily News. “When he quit, my stock went down to zero.”
Good move
The Cubs, Pirates and Orioles showed interest in Simmons, but the Cardinals were the first to make a firm offer with no conditions.
Solly Hemus, who played for the Phillies before becoming Cardinals manager, called his ex-teammate and asked simply, “Arm OK?”
“Yeah,” said Simmons.
“Then I want you,” Hemus replied.
After four relief appearances for the Cardinals, Simmons went into the starting rotation. In his first start, June 19 versus the Braves at Milwaukee, Simmons pitched six innings, allowed two runs and impressed, though he didn’t factor in the decision, a 4-3 Cardinals win. Boxscore
“I liked Curt’s fastball,” Cardinals pitching coach Howie Pollet told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “He proved his arm was sound again.”
Take that!
Simmons’ first win for the Cardinals was extra satisfying because it came in his next start, June 25, versus the Phillies at Philadelphia. Simmons pitched 8.2 innings in the 1-0 triumph. It was his first win in the majors since Sept. 1, 1958.
“I knew I could pitch somewhere this year,” Simmons told the Inquirer.
Simmons and Phillies starter Jim Owens were locked in a scoreless duel until Ken Boyer led off the top of the ninth with a home run.
In the bottom half of the ninth, Lee Walls, batting with one out and none on, hit a drive deep to left. “I was afraid Walls’ ball might go for a home run,” Simmons told the Post-Dispatch.
Rookie John Glenn, who entered the inning as a defensive replacement for Stan Musial, leaped and got the web of his glove on the ball, but it fell out as he came down against the wall. Walls stopped at second with a double.
The next batter, rookie Ken Walters, hit a liner to right-center. Right fielder Joe Cunningham rumbled over, dived, slid on his belly and caught the ball inches from the grass for the second out.
Up next was Pancho Herrera, who had three singles in three at-bats against Simmons in the game. Hemus lifted Simmons for Lindy McDaniel, who got the save when center fielder Curt Flood made a running catch of Herrera’s shot to right-center. Boxscore
What a gift
The Cardinals won each of Simmons’ first six starts for them, though he was 2-0 with four no-decisions.
On July 31, 1960, he faced the Phillies for the second time, gave up 13 hits, all singles, but no walks and got the win as the Cardinals prevailed, 9-2, at St. Louis. Boxscore
A week later, on Aug. 9, 1960, Simmons pitched a five-hit shutout against the Phillies at Philadelphia. Afterward, Cardinals outfielder Walt Moryn asked Philadelphia reporters, “You guys got any more players you want to give away over there?”
Simmons told the Philadelphia Daily News, “I think I’m throwing at times as hard as I’ve thrown in the last five years, but the big thing is I’m keeping the ball down and I’ve been working on a half-baked screwball I use as a changeup. The fastball is the bread and butter though. If my fastball is no good, I can throw all the junk I want to and it won’t help.” Boxscore
On Sept, 11, 1960, Simmons got his seventh win of the season, and his fourth versus the Phillies, in a 7-3 Cardinals triumph at Philadelphia. “I wish we had him pitching for us the way he’s been pitching,” said Mauch. Boxscore
Simmons finished 7-4 with a 2.66 ERA for the 1960 Cardinals. Against the Phillies, he was 4-0 with a 1.02 ERA.
Simmons pitched for the Cardinals from 1960-66 and was 69-58 with 16 shutouts. In 1964, when the Cardinals were World Series champions, Simmons was 18-9.
In June 1966, the Cardinals sold Simmons’ contract to the Cubs. His 20th and final season in the majors was 1967 with the Angels. Simmons posted a career mark of 193-183 with 36 shutouts. His career record versus the Phillies was 19-6.
What I remember was that Curt drove Henry Aaron crazy by throwing nothing but junk when he faced him. Aaron couldn’t stay back and once he famously stepped across the plate while hitting a homerun onto the roof in right field. I saw Simmons pitch numerous times and he was a true pitcher in every since of the word.
Thanks. Here is the story on the Hank Aaron home run off Curt Simmons that didn’t count: https://retrosimba.com/2012/02/17/hank-aaron-and-the-home-run-that-wasnt-vs-cardinals/
First game I ever attended: June 5, 1965. Ancient Curt Simmons vs. Infant Larry Dierker.
Wow! That is some pairing of talented pitchers. The two combined to pitch in the majors in 4 different decades. Here is the boxscore on that game: https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1965/B06050SLN1965.htm
How many times during the stretch of 1964, did Gene Mauch regret releasing Curt Simmons?
The last of Curt Simmons’ 4 wins vs. the 1964 Phillies occurred on Sept. 30 when he outpitched Jim Bunning in an 8-5 Cardinals victory at St. Louis. The win completed the Cardinals’ three-game sweep of the Phillies, who lost their 10th in a row, and put the Cardinals a game ahead of the Reds with 3 to play: https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1964/B09300SLN1964.htm
Mark, another fascinating article. Thanks so much!
Much appreciated, Jay.
Hi, Andy B from AndyBsports.com here. Thank you for a very nice post about Curt Simmons. Curt could hear the roar as he walked in the Yankee Stadium tunnel when Mickey Mantle homered to win the Simmons started game 3 of the ’64 World Series. However, the Cards came back to win the title in 7 games.
Thanks, Andy. I bookmarked your site. It is a good one. I enjoyed the piece on Felix Mantilla. Also great to see Kirk Douglas on What’s My Line.
Thank you so much. This coming from you and your excellent site, means a great deal to me. Let’s keep going!
Great article!! In those relief appearances before starting for the Birds, there was one game that Simmons was allowed to take one for the team with multiple mop-up innings. But he got his feet wet and onto the ground (ok, mixed metaphors, so sue me), and then came the good stuff!
Thanks for the insights, Les.
so the phillies release him, and if they simply would have kept him they would have waltzed home to the 64 pennant as curt went 18-9 for the cardinals while the phillies were des
perate for starting pitching
Yes, good point. No doubt, Curt Simmons would have been the difference-maker for the Phillies in that 1964 classic pennant chase.
Great read. What a pitcher.
Thanks for reading and for commenting, Keith. Curt Simmons was a real pro.