Joseph Henry Nuxhall (/ˈnʌkshɔːl/; July 30, 1928 – November 15, 2007) was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball, primarily for the Cincinnati Reds.

Called upon for that single game due to player shortages during World War II, Nuxhall eventually found his way back to the Reds in 1952, and the National League All-Star team in 1955 and 1956.

Meanwhile, Nuxhall was the biggest member of the ninth grade class in Hamilton at 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) and 190 pounds (86 kg)—a left-hander with a hard fastball, but not much control.

Scouts looking to fill out the Reds' depleted roster were following Orville Nuxhall, Joe's father, in 1943.

After waiting until the following year's basketball season was over, Nuxhall signed a major league contract with the Reds on February 18, 1944.

General manager Warren Giles intended to wait until school was over in June to add him to the team, but more of his players were inducted into the service in the spring.

I was pitching against seventh-, eighth- and ninth-graders, kids 13 and 14 years old... All of a sudden, I look up and there's Stan Musial and the likes.

[1]On June 10, 1944, the Reds were playing the first place (and eventual World Series champions) St. Louis Cardinals at Crosley Field and were trailing 13–0 in the ninth inning when Manager Bill McKechnie called on Nuxhall for mop-up relief.

Joe Reliford, a 12-year-old batboy for the Class D Fitzgerald Pioneers, became the youngest person ever to play in a professional baseball game in 1952, when he was called on to pinch-hit.

In nine innings of work, he allowed four runs on nine hits, striking out two and walking three, but the Reds lost 4–2.

[8] Ultimately, Nuxhall played in 37 games, going 1–4 with a 3.22 ERA in 921⁄3 innings, having one save while striking out 52 with 42 walks.

He had 11 putouts, 20 assists, four errors (a league high), and one double play turned for a .886 fielding percentage.

In his one season with Kansas City, he went 5–8 with a 5.34 ERA in 37 games and 128 innings with one save, striking out 81 while walking 65.

In five games with the team, he had a 10.13 ERA while having no wins or losses, pitching 51⁄3 innings while allowing seven hits, six runs, five walks, and two strikeouts.

He won his 100th career game on June 29, beating the San Francisco Giants 7–3, pitching nine innings while allowing seven hits, two walks and 11 strikeouts.

[11] Nuxhall regressed slightly the following year, going 9–8 with a 4.07 ERA in 32 games and 1542⁄3 innings, striking out 111 while walking 51.

He pitched in relief of Sammy Ellis in the top of the eighth inning with two outs and the Braves having taken the lead one batter earlier.

Facing George Kopacz, Nuxhall got the batter to hit a flyball for an out to end the inning.

Part of his trademark radio sign-off phrase—"This is the old left-hander, rounding third and heading for home"—is displayed on the outside of the Reds' stadium, Great American Ball Park, which opened in 2003.

A likeness of Nuxhall is one of eight statues that decorate the main entrance of the stadium (The others are Ernie Lombardi, Ted Kluszewski, Frank Robinson, Johnny Bench, Joe Morgan, Tony Perez, and Pete Rose).

For many years after retiring as a player and during his broadcasting career, Nuxhall pitched batting practice for the Reds.

He spent nearly 62 of his 64 baseball seasons in the Reds organization as a minor-league player, major-league player or an announcer from 1944 to 2007; the only exceptions being 1946 (when he was on the "voluntarily retired" list—in reality, he went back to high school), 1961 (when he was dealt to the Kansas City A's) and 1962 (pitching for a few weeks with the Los Angeles Angels, then half a season with the Reds' PCL farm club in San Diego before heading back to Cincinnati).

On June 6, 2007, the Reds honored Nuxhall, Marty Brennaman, and Waite Hoyt with replica microphones that hang on the wall near the radio booth.

At Redsfest in December, 2007 the Reds announced Nuxhall would be honored throughout the 2008 baseball season—their uniforms would display a dark patch with the word "NUXY" printed in white.

On March 31, 2008, the Cincinnati Reds paid tribute to Nuxhall by wearing his #41 jersey for opening day.

A public visitation ceremony was attended by thousands of fans and several local and national sports and broadcasting personalities.

Players wore an alternate jersey during their introductions, which bore the number 41 and Nuxhall's name on the back.