MLB power rankings: Top 30 nicknames of all-time
By John Buhler
19. Phil Niekro: Knucksie
A few pitchers over the years have fully embraced the fickleness of the knuckleball. To this day, nobody has mastered the quirky pitch quite like Baseball Hall of Famer Phil Niekro. Niekro pitched in the 1960s through the 1980s mostly with the terrible Atlanta Braves.
Longevity and the ability to strike out the opposition consistently helped Niekro become one of the greatest Braves of all time. Though others have tossed knucklers before and after him, the nickname of Knucksie is synonymous with Niekro.
His father taught he and his late brother Joe Niekro how to throw the knuckleball as kids to hopefully avoid having to work in a coal mine for a living. The Niekro Brothers would have overwhelming success in the big leagues with 539 major league wins between the pair.
Niekro would pitch into his late 40s because of the knuckleball not being so taxing on his right arm. He continues to be an ambassador for the one-of-a-kind pitch to any struggling pitcher wanting to give the knuckleball a serious shot.