Born in
Nitro, West Virginia, Burdette was signed by the
New York Yankees in
1947, and after making two relief appearances for the team in September
1950, he was traded to the Braves in August
1951 for four-time 20-game winner
Johnny Sain. Along with left-hander
Warren Spahn and right-hander
Bob Buhl, he gave the Braves one of the best starting rotations in the majors during the 1950s,
winning 15 or more games eight times between
1953 and
1961. Burdette led
National League pitchers in
earned run average in . When Milwaukee won the 1957 World Series against the
Yankees, Burdette became the first pitcher in 37 years to win three
complete games in a series, and the first since
Christy Mathewson in
1905 to pitch two
shutouts (Games 5 and 7), starting Game 7 after Games 1 and 4 starter Warren Spahn was stricken by the flu. In the
1958 Series, however, the
Yankees defeated Burdette twice in three starts. The final setback came in Game 7, which he again started on only two days' rest, a decision for which manager Fred Haney was widely criticized. In addition to winning 20 games in and tying Spahn for the National League lead with 21 victories in , Burdette won 19 in
1956 and
1960, 18 in 1961, and 17 in
1957. Burdette was the winning pitcher on May 26, when the
Pittsburgh Pirates'
Harvey Haddix pitched a
perfect game against the Braves for 12 innings, only to
lose in the 13th. Burdette threw a 1–0 shutout, scattering 12 hits. In the ensuing offseason, he joked, "I'm the greatest pitcher that ever lived. The greatest game that was ever pitched in baseball wasn't good enough to beat me, so I've got to be the greatest!" On August 18 of
the following year, facing the minimum 27 batters, Burdette
no-hit the
Philadelphia Phillies 1–0 at
Milwaukee County Stadium.
Tony González, the only opposing batter to reach base after being
hit by a pitch in the fifth inning, was retired on a
double play. Burdette helped himself by scoring the only run of the game; after doubling to lead off the eighth inning, he scored on
Bill Bruton's double one batter later. Following up his no-hitter, five days later he pitched his third shutout in a row. In
1963 Burdette was traded to the
St. Louis Cardinals (1963–
64), and was later sent to the
Chicago Cubs (
1964–
65) and Phillies (
1965). Signing with the
California Angels, he pitched exclusively in relief for the team in
1966 and
1967 before retiring. ==Career statistics==