STEVE DALKOWSKI PROFILE

He was born in 1938, at New Britain General Hospital in Connecticut, with the arm of a god. He stood 5'11", weighed 170 pounds, and wore thick glasses...

Steve Dalkowski became a minor league legend in the 1960's because of his blazing fastball. Some say that his pitch reached 110 mph. His only problem was his lack of control. In 1960, while pitching in the California League, Steve struck out 262 batter in 172 innings. The problem was that he also walked 262 batters. In 995 career minor league innings he had 1,396 strikeouts and 1,354 walks. His lifetime minor league record was 46-80 with a 5.59 ERA.

Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver said the Steve Dalkowski threw faster than anyone he ever saw, even faster than Nolan Ryan. Paul Blair said after a spring training game "He threw the hardest I ever saw. He was also the wildest I ever saw." Dalkowski's wildness frightened even the bravest of hitters. Ted Williams faced Dalkowski once in a spring training game and that was enough. "Fastest ever, said Williams. "I never want to face him again."

Here a just a few examples of how Dalkowski gained legendary status:

•One night at Kingsport, Dalkowski threw a pitch that tore off part of a batter's ear. "It made me so scared, I didn't even want to look at it," said Dalkowski. Many people believe after this incident Dalkowski feared one of errant pitches would kill someone and that only contributed more to his wildness.

•Dalkowski won a $5 bet with teammate Herman Starrette, who said Dalkowski couldn't throw a baseball through a wall. Dalkowski warmed up and then moved 15 feet away from the wooden outfield fence. His first pitch went right through the boards.

•In one minor league game, Dalkowski threw three pitches that penetrated the backstop and sent fans scattering.

•In a high school game, Dalkowski threw a no-hit, no-run game with 18 strikeouts and 18 walks.

•In an Eastern League game, Dalkowski struck out 27 and walked 16 while throwing 283 pitches. In another game, he was pulled in the second inning after throwing 120 pitches.

•At Aberdeen in the Northern League, Dalkowski threw a one-hitter and lost 9-8.

•In 1960 at Class A Stockton, Dalkowski threw a pitch that broke an umpire's mask in three places, knocking him 18 feet back and sending him to a hospital for three days with a concussion.

•In 1959, Dalkowski set a Northern League record with 21 strikeouts in a game.

•In 1960 at Stockton on the California League, Dalkowski struck out 19 and limited Reno to four hits
but walked nine and lost 8-3.

The Orioles tried many things to help Dalkowski throw strike but most failed. Earl Weaver, then an Orioles minor league manager, felt that Dalkowski was being told too much and have too much to remember. The fact that Dalkowski was born with an IQ of 60, Weaver may have been correct. Weaver just told the kid "just throw strikes". And in a 52 inning stretch in 1962, Dalkowski struck out 110, walked 11 and gave up only one earned run.

The following spring it looked like Dalkowski was ready to make the major leagues. However, his career ended in an exhibition game. While fielding a bunt from Joe Pepitone, Dalkowski felt a pop in his arm as he threw to first base. He missed the rest of the season and when he returned in 1964 his fastball only topped out at 90 mph. He was released from baseball in 1966.

After baseball Dalkowski became a migrant farmworker. A heavy drinker during his playing days, he was even worse after he finished playing. Cal Ripken Sr. said, "Dalkowski could do some drinking. He just couldn't stop."

The Association of Professional Ballplayers in America, an organization formed in the early 1920s to take care of former baseball people who became ill or indigent, tired to help Dalkowski. They put him in an alcoholic rehabilitation center and found him a job. For three months, Steve Dalkowski was a productive citizen. A few months later, Dalkowski was drinking again and the APBA stopped its assistance because the money they gave Dalkowski was being used to buy liquor. Dalkowski's failing health prevented him from working. In the late-1980s, Dalkowski was living in a small apartment in southern California and almost broke. His whereabouts today are unknown.

Dalkowski was the model for the film Bull Durham's character of Nuke LaLoosh (played by Tim Robbins).

Update (6/10/03) -> From Ken Lipshez - Beat writer from the New Britain Herald who covers the New Britain Rock Cats of the Eastern League: "...he lives in a nursing home in New Britain, CT, his hometown. He is scheduled to throw out the first ball at a minor league game in town on Weds., June 11"