Former major leaguer Tom Walker, father of longtime Pirate Neil Walker, dies at age 74

Jerry Dipaola | Monday, October 23, 2023 3:33 p.m.

Pittsburgh Pirates

Tom Walker signed with the Pirates as a free agent in 1978 and attended spring training with the team that year.

Tom Walker, who once threw a 15-inning no-hitter in the minor leagues and was one of the last people to see Roberto Clemente alive, died Monday, according to the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was 74.

Over the past several seasons, Walker was a fixture around PNC Park where he watched as his son, Neil, helped bring postseason baseball back to Pittsburgh. Neil Walker played for the Pirates from 2009-15 during his 12-year big-league career.

We are deeply saddened by the passing of Tom Walker today.

A long-time resident of Pittsburgh, Tom was a part of our local alumni group and was always looking to make an impact on others in the Pittsburgh community.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Walker family,… pic.twitter.com/cU6nF4TsQX

— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) October 23, 2023

Tom Walker and his son shared the distinction of being first-round draft choices — Tom by the Baltimore Orioles in 1968 and Neil by the Pirates in 2004.

It was with the Orioles’ organization that Tom Walker made his biggest impact as a player, leading the Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs of the Double-A Dixie Association to a 1-0 victory against the Albuquerque Dukes on Aug. 4, 1971. He threw 176 pitches, allowing no hits and only four base runners while striking out 11 batters. He retired the first 18 and last 22.

And he almost was late for his first pitch. The start of the game was delayed by a rain shower in Albuquerque, and he took a nap to pass the time.

“The next thing I know, my teammate, Wayne Garland, came in and said, ‘Walker, aren’t you gonna pitch?’ ” Walker said in a story published in 2021 by the Dallas Morning News.

“There were like two outs in the top of the first inning. So, I threw my pants on, buttoned my shirt and went out to the bullpen. Honest to God, I only threw about five or six pitches before I took the hill.”

In front of a crowd of 1,017, he dominated an Albuqsuerque lineup that included future World Series MVP Steve Yeager and future Pirates outfielder Lee Lacy, who made the final out on an infield groundball. The Morning News reported it was the second-longest no-hitter in the history of professional baseball.

“That may be the greatest game I ever played in,” said Enos Cabell, a veteran of 15 MLB seasons whose double drove in the game’s only run. “I played with Nolan Ryan and J.R. Richard, so, hey, I played with some pretty good pitchers. I played in no-hitters in the major leagues. But I’ve never seen a game pitched that well.

“He had a really great breaking ball, and they couldn’t touch it. They had no chance. They only hit probably one ball hard all night. He was just amazing.”

A year later, Walker was playing winter ball in Puerto Rico where he befriended Clemente. On Dec. 31, 1972, Walker helped Clemente load relief supplies onto a Douglas DC-7 in San Juan. The supplies were bound for Nicaragua, where days earlier an earthquake rocked the capital city of Managua, killing 10,000 people, injuring 20,000 and leaving 300,000 homeless.

Walker, then 24, asked Clemente if he could join him on the relief flight. Clemente said no.

“Tomás, it’s New Year’s Eve. Go party, gringo,” Walker told the Tribune-Review last year. He recalled Clemente saying “trulla,” a Spanish term for going out and singing Christmas songs around the holiday.

Tragically, the overloaded plane on which Clemente and four other men were riding crashed into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after takeoff. His body was never found.

“None of this, none of the blessings I’ve had in life, would exist if it weren’t for that one incredible man,” Walker told the Trib.

Walker went on to play in the major leagues from 1972-77 with the Montreal Expos, Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals and California Angels. He compiled a record of 18-23, with an ERA of 3.87.

He signed with the Pirates as a free agent Jan. 6, 1978, and attended spring training before retiring. He was a member of the Pirates’ local alumni group.

“He was always looking to make an impact on others in the Pittsburgh community,” the Pirates said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Walker family, including his wife Carolyn, daughter Carrie, and sons Matt, Sean and Neil, in addition to his son-in-law Don Kelly (the Pirates’ bench coach) and the Kelly family.”