About Al Downing
Alphonso Erwin Downing is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Milwaukee Brewers, and Los Angeles Dodgers from 1961 through 1977. Downing was an All Star in 1967 and the National League's Comeback Player of the Year in 1971. Downing allowed Hank Aaron's record breaking 715th home run on April 8, 1974. In 1963, his first full major league season, Downing had a 13–5 win–loss record with a 2.56 earned run average (ERA) for a Yankee team that went 104–57, but were swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1963 World Series. On August 11, 1967, Downing struck out all three batters on nine total pitches in the second inning of a game against the Cleveland Indians; it was the first immaculate inning in the major leagues since 1964. Despite a respectable 3.34 ERA, Downing's record was 2–10 for a Brewers team that narrowly escaped losing 100 games (97).
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.