May 18, 1964 - Jim Bunning pitched a one-hitter tonight as the Philadelphia Phillies blanked the Colts in Houston, 4-0.
Bunning pitched like a man in a hurry to arrive in San Francisco, which is what the Phillies will do tomorrow morning as a first-place team, percentage points ahead of the Giants.
Bunning is new in the National League, but he had three nights to study the Grand Canyon dimensions of Houston’s temporary stadium, the prevailing winds that howl from right to left, and the dim lights.
“I went out there with the idea of ‘here, hit it,’” Bunning confessed after tonight’s game. “I threw more high fastballs than I’ve thrown all year.”
Bunning, who is now 5-1, and owns a no-hitter against Boston on July 20, 1958. “Tonight can’t even compare with the no-hitter,” he said. “I didn’t have near the stuff that I had that day. What I had was good control.”
He struck out five, and he didn’t walk a man, although he hit Nellie Fox on the forearm in the first. Fox was the only other baserunner besides Jim Wynn, who hit a hard ground ball between Richie Allen and the third base bag to lead off the fifth. Bunning got the next three hitters on fly balls to right field.
If Bunning didn’t have overpowering stuff going for him, he did have a jinx on his side. Ken Johnson, who recently lost a nine-inning no-hitter, was the losing pitcher. This makes the 13th time the Colts have been shut out while Johnson was toiling.
The Colts asked women to bring stockings with runs in them to inspire Johnson. Only 186 ladies showed up, so maybe they’re too proud to bring damaged hosiery or they don’t believe in jinxes.
Johnson doesn’t believe in them either. “They’re trying to make me out as unlucky,” he said before the game. “Heck, my family is well, we’ve got food on the table.”
Bunning wasn’t bothered by the stocking gimmick. “He’s 3-3, isn’t he?” Bunning asked. “That’s not so bad. I don’t know why clubs don’t score runs for certain pitchers. I thought about it a lot in 1960, when I didn’t get many. But the next two years, they got me plenty. They’re out trying, I know that.”
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