June 10, 1944 – The youngest player in MLB history makes his debut. Relief pitcher Joe Nuxhall at 15 years, 316 days, took the mound for the Cincinnati Reds. The current rules for Major League Baseball require athletes to be at least 18 years of age, but back then there was no such rule.
Nuxhall stood 6 foot-2 inches tall when in the ninth grade in Hamilton, Ohio. On the hill, he was a left-hander with a hard fastball but didn’t have the best placement of pitches. His father Orville Nuxhall was playing minor league ball and in 1943, the father-son tandem was playing together.
The Reds organization was trying to sign Orville to a contract but he declined on the account of having five kids at home. The scouts then became interested in Joe, who was only 14 at the time. Joe Nuxall would become an All-Star and later a radio broadcaster of MLB games.
To find more great daily sports history make sure to check out the Sports Jersey Dispatch and Pigskin Dispatch.
More From Sports History Network
Boxing Titles: Close But No Cigar
In this episode, I am going to be focusing on several boxers who had
Super Bowl XXII (Broncos vs. Redskins): An Ultimate Recount of the Game
Today we have Super Bowl XXII, which was held on January 31, 1988, between
1971 Dallas Cowboys: Their First Lombardi Victory
Year after year my brother and I waited for our favorite team, the Dallas
Lenny Sachs: Basketball Hall of Famer’s Forgotten NFL Record
Back in the very early days of the National Football League, many of the
Blackjack Mulligan: The Meanest Outlaw In The Ring
I think I was eleven, lying on my stomach watching the TV. Black and
NFL Gratitude to Greats Project (with John Vairin)
John Vairin was diagnosed with a rare occurrence of oral squamous cell cancer. He
NFL Players Who Stepped Into the Boxing Ring
In this segment, I will be speaking of NFL Players who stepped into the
Super Bowl XXI (Broncos vs. Giants): An Ultimate Recount of the Game
Today we have Super Bowl XXI, which was held on January 25, 1987, between