Baseball career

McDaniel was named to the National League All-Star team in 1960. He led the league in saves in 1959 (15), 1960 (26), and 1963 (22). He was named as the The Sporting News Reliever of the Year for the National League in 1960 (the award's inaugural year) as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals, and in 1963 as a member of the Chicago Cubs.

With the New York Yankees in 1970, McDaniel amassed a career high 29 saves, tying the franchise record set by Luis Arroyo in 1961.

"A number of factors have contributed to my longevity", McDaniel reports. "Freedom from serious injury, an easy pitching delivery, clean living and good conditioning, a high motivation level, a strong belief in God—especially during times of adversity—the opportunity to pitch and self-discipline."

His brother Von was also a major league pitcher. His other brother, Kerry, played in the minor leagues.

A member of the Church of Christ, McDaniel also wrote a monthly newsletter entitled Pitching for the Master, published from his church in Baytown, Texas. It was distributed to his fellow church members as well as all the other Major League Baseball players and their families during his playing career.

Career highlights

Over a four-game span, McDaniel retired 32 straight hitters in August 1968. In one of those games, he pitched 7 perfect innings against the Detroit Tigers. In 1973, he entered the game in the 1st inning against the Tigers in Detroit, and pitched 13 innings giving up one run and winning game 2 to 1. McDaniel played in 225 consecutive games in National League without committing an error—a record.

He considers his top overall year as 1960 with the St. Louis Cardinals when he logged a 12-2 mark in relief with 22 saves and an E.R.A. of 1.29 while being named (for the only time is his career) to the National League All-Star team. He earned Fireman-of-the Year honors, while finishing third for the Cy Young Award and fifth in MVP voting, both his highest placings. He ranks his next best year as 1970 with the Yankees when he was 9-5 with a career high 29 saves and 2.01 ERA followed by the 1963 season when he was 13-7 with 21 saves and a 2.88 ERA.

McDaniel won Fireman-of-the Year honors in 1960 and 1963. He also led the National League in relief pitching in 1959, but that was the year before the first Fireman-of-the-year award was presented. With nine saves and a 0.74 ERA, McDaniel was named the Player of the Month for June 1960.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]