September pickups

[Scott Garner]

Originally Posted by mr2686

Great pickup Scott. Well?...are you gonna leave us hanging? What's the amazing pickup from the National? C'mon, you can tell us!

Well Mike, since you asked...

At the National I picked up a true Holy Grail item for my collection.
The only known example of no-hit pitcher George W. Bradley's signature.

"Grin" Bradley is credited with throwing the first ever National League (and ML) no-hitter in 1867. It's important to note that Bradley threw the no-hitter from the initial mound distance of 50', not the current standard of 60' 6" that was adopted in 1893.

Bradley also is credited with being the 1st pitcher in either the NL or AL (established in 1901) to throw a shutout. Bradley's 1876 season was also special for the fact that he actually threw 16 shutouts, which is a ML record that he still shares with HOF'er Grover Cleveland Alexander. Bradley pitched approximately 65 times in 1876 and actually won 45 of those games, leading the NL with an ERA of about 1.23.