 joseph franklin "joe" niekro (november 7, 1944 â october 27, 2006) was an american major league baseball right-handed pitcher. he was the younger brother of pitcher phil niekro, and the father of minor league baseball pitcher and major league baseball first baseman lance niekro. a native of blaine, ohio, niekro attended bridgeport high school in bridgeport, ohio and attended west liberty university in west liberty, west virginia. during a 22-year baseball career, he pitched from 1967â1988 for seven different teams, primarily for the houston astros. ==career== niekro pitched for the chicago cubs, san diego padres and detroit tigers with occasional success before joining phil with the atlanta braves in 1973. joe used a fastball and a slider early in his career, with mixed results. he spent two seasons in atlanta with phil and got re-acquainted with the knuckleball that their father taught them. the knuckleball became an essential part of his arsenal though never his sole pitch. joe threw harder than phil and could set up batters nearly as effectively with his fastball in combination with his excellent changeup. the houston astros purchased niekro's contract from the braves for $35,000 in 1975. he blossomed into a dominant pitcher as he perfected his knuckleball in houston, going 21â11 in 1979 and 20â12 in 1980, to became the first astros pitcher to win 20 games in consecutive seasons. he also made the national league all-star team in 1979, a season in which he led the league with his 21 [[win (baseball)|wins
1944_births 2006_deaths American_people_of_Polish_descent Atlanta_Braves_players Baseball_players_from_Ohio Chicago_Cubs_players Dallas-Fort_Worth_Spurs_players Detroit_Tigers_players Houston_Astros_players Iowa_Oaks_players Knuckleball_pitchers Major_League_Baseball_pitchers Minnesota_Twins_players National_League_All-Stars National_League_wins_champions New_York_Yankees_players People_from_Martins_Ferry,_Ohio Quincy_Cubs_players Richmond_Braves_players San_Diego_Padres_players Toledo_Mud_Hens_players Treasure_Valley_Cubs_players West_Liberty_Hilltoppers_baseball_players