On May 16th, 1953, Phillies pitcher Curt Simmons took the hill to face the Milwaukee Braves in front of 23,000 plus at Milwaukee County Stadium. The Braves had a strong squad that was destined to win 92 games and finish 2nd in the NL that year. The Phils, 3 years removed from their 1950 World Series, would go on to win 83. But at the time of this meeting the season was still young, the Phillies were a game ahead of the Braves in the standings, and both teams still had high hopes of a pennant run.
The Phils went down in order in the top of the first, and the Braves came to bat. Leadoff hitter Bill Bruton stepped into the batter’s box and knocked a single. He’d make it to 2nd on a passed ball, then to third on a fly out. But he was left stranded on third, as Sid Gordon popped out to first to end the rally. Bruton would walk off the field, frustrated by the blown chance, and certainly not knowing that he would be party to a strange piece of history. As it turned out, he would be the last Brave to touch base all afternoon. Incredibly, after giving up that leadoff single, Simmons was perfect. 27 up, 27 down. The Phillies would win the game 3-0. A leadoff single was all that the Braves could muster on that Saturday afternoon, the day Curt Simmons was nearly perfect.
RELATED: Box score of that game.
