Boozer lost two MiL no-nos to same hitter

Uncommon commons. Contemporary accounts of tidbits that as a collector of baseball and football cards I found interesting because they helped bring to life the faces on the cards I collected. I figure that if I found these items of interest, so would other vintage card collectors.

Even at the minor league level, no-hitters are an uncommon day at the park for a pitcher.

In 1960, Philadelphia Phillies prospect John Boozer had two no-hitters broken up by the same batter.

That season Boozer was pitching for the Des Moines Demons of the Class B Three-I League.

On July 11, he had a no-hitter going when outfielder Charles Smith of the Cedar Rapids Braves singled in the fourth inning. It was the only hit Boozer gave up in an 12-0 win.

Facing the Braves again on Aug. 8, Boozer had his no-hitter working into the seventh inning, when Smith's single again broke it up. Boozer won the one-hitter 8-0 for his 15th victory of the season.

Boozer went on to pitch seven seasons for the Phillies in the 1960s, retiring with a 14-16 lifetime record and a 4.09 ERA. He died of Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1986 at the age of 47.

Smith never made it to the major leagues, batting .277 in a five-year career in the minors.