 Former teammate Moose <unk> commented on Wilhelm 's key pitch , saying , " Hoyt was a good guy , and he threw the best knuckleball I ever saw . You never knew what Hoyt 's pitch would do . I don 't think he did either . " Baseball executive Roland <unk> agreed , saying , " Wilhelm 's knuckleball did more than anyone else 's ... There was so much action on it . " Before Wilhelm , the knuckleball was primarily mixed in to older pitchers ' <unk> at the end of their careers to offset their slowing <unk> and reduce stress on their arms , thereby extending their careers . Wilhelm broke with tradition when he began throwing the pitch as a teenager and on nearly every pitch . The New York Times linked his knuckleball with that of modern pitcher <unk> Dickey , as Wilhelm taught pitcher Charlie Hough the knuckleball in 1971 and Hough taught it to Dickey while coaching with the Texas Rangers . 
