9/13 Through 1974: Can Of Corn, Boss Roberto, Pops Flex, 4 For Ralph, Sweep, Nick Debut, Game Days, HBD Armando, Denny, Tom & Dan

1907 - Nick Maddox made his MLB debut, and according to the Pittsburgh Press headline, the “Pirates New Twirler Was An Enigma To The Cardinals” as he tossed a five-hit 4-0 shutout at Exposition Park. Maddox struck out 11 and walked a pair. He was backed by another rookie making his big league launch, 1B Harry “Swasy” Swacina, who drove in a pair of runs. Maddux had a pair of strong seasons with the Bucs, but his arm died and after four years, he was in the minors, then managed some before playing sandlot/semi-pro ball. 

1913 - OF Dan Wilson was born in St. Louis. Per BR Bullpen, Wilson debuted in 1937 with the Pittsburgh Crawfords as a right fielder and second baseman and hit .259. He was a bench player for Pittsburgh in 1938 and moved on to St. Louis where he earned the first of three Negro League All-Star berths. The 11-year vet played locally for one more year, suiting up for the Homestead Grays in 1946. After baseball, Wilson's life went downhill and he died homeless at the age of 73.

1922 - The Pirates swept a twinbill from the Braves, winning 8-1 and 6-1 behind Wilbur Cooper and Johnny Morrison. The wins got them within five games of the first place NY Giants and they cut the lead to 3-1/2 games a week later. Though the Bucs ended up a respectable 85-69, they finished third after fading badly by losing seven of their final eight contests.

1939 - RHP Tom Parsons was born in Lakeville, Connecticut. The 6’ 7” Parsons was signed by the Pirates in 1957 as a 17-year-old. He made his major league debut in 1963 as a September call-up after toiling on the farm for seven years. Parsons made one start, giving up four runs on seven hits in 4-1/3 IP, and began the next campaign back in the minors. That September he was sold to the Mets, where he played in '64-65 and earned his only save, as karma would have it against his old Buc mateys. Tom spent his last four pro seasons in the minors.  

1949 - For the third time in his career, Ralph Kiner hit four consecutive homers. His first pair came in a 7-3 win against the Cubs on Sunday, then after an off day, he added two more against the Phils in an 11-6 victory. Both games were played at Forbes Field. Ralph collected 10 RBI in the two games to lead the attack for Murry Dickson and Cliff Chambers victories.

Ralph Kiner - 1949 Play Ball

1950 - Giants' RHP Sal Maglie's consecutive scoreless inning streak ended at 45 frames after Gus Bell popped a 257’ fly that barely cleared the RF wall at the shoe-box shaped Polo Grounds for a cheap homer. All it hurt, though, was The Barber’s pride as the G-Men beat the Bucs 3-1.

1956 - ElRoy Face set a MLB record (later tied) when he appeared in his ninth consecutive game, giving up a run in a 5-4 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Forbes Field. He had gone 3-0-1 in the prior eight matches covering 15-1/3 innings. Danny Murtaugh finally relented and gave him the next game off, sending Dick Hall and Howie Pollet out to cover the last two frames.

1963 - Willie Stargell provided the muscle as the Pirates knocked off the SF Giants at Forbes Field 5-4 in 13 innings. The sparse crowd of 6,100 saw Pops bang a three-run blast in the third inning, only to have the G-Men rally to tie it with two outs and the bases empty in the ninth thanks to two walks and a Jesus Alou single against Joe Gibbon and Harvey Haddix. Captain Willie put the game in the win column with a walkoff triple (Surprisingly, he hit 55 three-baggers during his career and six in ‘63) in the 13th to score Ducky Schofield, who had walked. Bob Friend was the Pirates sixth pitcher and got the win with an inning’s work, his 17th victory of the campaign and his only outing that season from the bullpen (indeed, he wouldn’t appear in a relief role again until 1966).

1967 - Roberto Clemente told the media that the players were to blame for the Pirates dismal showing (they were 72-74 at the time), reiterating statements he had made in a June players-only meeting and recently to Puerto Rican radio/newspaper media. Then he put his money where his mouth was, banging out five hits, with a homer, double, four RBI and two runs scored, to lead his mates to an 11-3 victory over the Reds at Crosley Field. Matty Alou and Manny Sanguillen added three knocks each while Maury Wills tallied three times. Tommy Sisk got the win; even though he was tapped for 11 hits, the attack allowed him to go wire-to-wire.

Denny Neagle - 1996 Fleer Ultra

1968 - Denny Neagle was born in Gambrills, Maryland. The lefty spent four plus seasons (1992-96) with Pittsburgh, going 43-35 with a 4.02 ERA. An All-Star in 1995 with a 13-8 record, he was traded to Atlanta the following season as a cost-cutting measure and won 60 games between 1997-2000, mostly with the Braves. Neagle finished 124-92/4.24 during his 13-year career.

1970 - The infamous “can of corn” call was made by The Gunner, Bob Prince, after Willie Smith hit a routine fly to Matty Alou with the Bucs up 2-1, two outs and the bases empty in the ninth. He dropped it as the Wrigley wind was blowing in, and the Cubs went on to rally for the win. Despite cutting the Buc lead in the NL East to 1/2 game, the Pirates suffered no hangover effect from the tough loss. They finished out the rest of the month at 12-5 and took the title running away, finishing with a five game cushion over the Cubbies in the NL East.

1971 - OF Armando Rios was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico. A member of LSU’s College World Series winners, he played four seasons for the Giants before coming to Pittsburgh at the 2001 deadline along with Ryan Vogelsong in exchange for Jason Schmidt and John Vander Wal. Rios was hurt at the time of the deal and played two games for Pittsburgh; in 2002 he hit .264 in 76 games with no pop and was released at the end of the year. He played one more season in the show and then went to the Latin leagues. He was one of the witnesses in the 2003 BALCO case and was associated with PED use, perhaps understandably after undergoing surgeries on his knee, elbow, and shoulder.

1972 - Roberto Clemente hit his last homer, a two-run, two-out blast off Fergie Jenkins at Wrigley Field in the seventh inning to lead the Bucs to a 6-4 win at Wrigley Field. It was his 10th long ball of the season and 240th career homer, fourth-most in Pittsburgh franchise history. Clemente also tripled and scored three times to support winner Nellie Briles.

9/13 From 1975: S-Rod Rocket, J-Hay Walkoff, Cutch #200, B-2-B-2-B, Walk v Doc, Rollin' 7, Game Days, CEO Frank, HBD Alfonso & Andy

1978 - The Pirates only got three hits against the Cards at TRS, but two of them were three-run homers by Willie Stargell & Bill Robinson and were more than enough to carry Bert Blyleven to a complete-game win at TRS by a 7-1 tally. The Pirates didn’t get very many good pitches to swing at; the Redbird hurlers walked 11 batters and tossed three wild pitches.

1983 - 3B Andy LaRoche was born in Fort Scott, Kansas. Part of the Jason Bay deal, the much ballyhooed prospect LaRoche came to Pittsburgh from LA at the 2008 trade deadline, joining brother Adam. He was a Pirate until 2010, but hit only .226 during that time. He played briefly for Oakland and Toronto after his Buc tour of duty and last played in the indie leagues in 2015-16.

1987 - The Pirates won their seventh in a row and 15-of-18 as they dropped the Philadelphia Phillies 6-1 at Veterans Stadium. Bobby Bonilla and Sid Bream had three knocks each to lead a 15-hit attack that eventually wore the Phils down. Brian Fisher tossed a complete game five-hitter with 10 K for the win. Despite catching fire late, Pittsburgh ended the year with just 80 wins.

1988 - Bob Walk hooked up with Doc Gooden in a dandy duel, with Walkie’s eight-inning five-hitter taking the marbles in a 1-0 win at Shea Stadium. The game’s only run came in the fourth when Andy Van Slyke singled, stole second and came home on Bobby Bonilla’s double. Jim Gott earned the save with some drama by loading the bases (single, hit batter, walk) with two out against Howard Johnson. Johnson had bested Gott earlier in the year with a two-out, ninth-inning homer off a fastball. This time, Gott made sure Johnson saw three sliders. As Bob Hertzel of the Pittsburgh Press wrote “Strike one, strike two, take a seat.”

Bob Walk - 1988 Score

1991 - It was a tough day for the Pirates; they left their hotel at 6AM to fly home from Philadelphia to attend equipment manager John “Hooly” Hallahan’s funeral, said their goodbyes, then turned around and flew back to the Vet. Not surprisingly, they quickly found themselves in a 5-1 hole after the game started and then lost skipper Jim Leyland early when he was given the thumb in the fourth inning arguing an iffy Philly catch. But they kept grinding, and thanks to a five-run sixth, the Pirates found themselves in a 6-6 tie in the ninth. Mitch Williams took the ball for the Phils and got two fast outs, then walked a pair to set up Steve Buechele, who knocked a 2-2 pitch into the corner for a two-bagger to make it 8-6. It was Buechele’s third hit of the day and gave him three RBI. Rosario Rodriguez set Philadelphia down in their half to save Stan Belinda’s win, Pittsburgh’s 32nd come-from-behind victory of the year.

1996 - 1B/OF Alfonso Rivas was born in Chula Vista, California. Rivas was part of the 2023 Rich Hill/Ji Man Choi trade with San Diego. He was a fourth-round pick of Oakland in 2016 out of Arizona before being traded to the Cubs and then signing with the Padres in 2023. Rivas is a good-glove guy with not much power who the Cubs released in the off season. He batted .245 in 310 ABs w/Chicago and the Friars with a .313 career BA in AAA ball. In 40 games with the Bucs, Alfonso hit .234 and he's now playing in Mexico.

2007 - The Pirates officially announced that Frank Coonelly was the team’s new CEO (a post usually held by the owner), replacing Kevin McClatchy, who had announced in July that he was stepping down. Coonelly, an attorney, previously served as a Senior Vice President in the Commissioner's Office, where he was in charge of various matters including arb hearings and draft bonuses. He ended the Pirates decades-long losing streak and made the playoffs three times before being replaced in 2019 by Travis Williams.

2010 - The Pirates lost a 1-0 heartbreaker to the Mets at Citi Field in 10 innings, wasting three leadoff doubles and stranding 10 runners. James McDonald went eight frames of five-hit ball, but the Mets finally plated off reliever Chan Ho Park to earn the walkoff win.

Petey - 2013 Panini America's Pastime

2013 - Pedro Alvarez, Russ Martin and Garrett Jones hit back-to-back-to-back homers in the fourth inning off the Cubs’ Jake Arrieta, but a pair of two-run Chicago blasts carried the day as the Pirates fell 5-4. It was the first time that the Bucs had hit three consecutive homers at PNC Park and had an improbable degree of difficulty as Pedro’s was a stand-up inside-the-park shot. (He later told Root Sports that it was the first he could remember since “...little league.”)

2015 - Josh Harrison drove in Pedro Florimon with one out in the bottom of the 11th inning for a walkoff win over the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park in front of 34,170 fans. Pittsburgh trailed 6-1 entering the bottom half of the fourth inning before producing their deepest-in-the-hole comeback win of the season. The key early blow was Travis Snider’s two-run double in the fourth and back-to-back RBI knocks by Andrew McCutchen and Jung Ho Kang in the seventh to tie the match. The victory went to the Pirates eighth pitcher of the game, Jared Hughes, and put the club 30 games above .500 with a record of 86-56.

2016 - Sean Rodriguez hit a pinch-hit, opposite-field three-run homer in the ninth inning to rally the Pirates to a 5-3 win over the Phillies in Citizens Bank Park. Ivan Nova started and struck out 11 batters over six innings but left with the score knotted and ended up with a no-decision. Felipe Vazquez gave up a solo shot in the eighth to put the Bucs down, but S-Rod’s blast turned his looming loss into a dub, with Tony Watson working a 1-2-3 final frame for the save.

2017 - Andrew McCutchen joined Willie Stargell (475), Ralph Kiner (301) and Roberto Clemente (240) as a member of the Pirates 200 home run club (Cutch has 248 long balls as a Bucco). The first-inning blast to center, Andrew’s 25th long ball, was the Bucco highlight at Miller Park as the Brewers romped 8-2.

2022 - Rookie RHP Luis Ortiz, 23, was called up from Indy to make his MLB debut as the 29th player in a twin bill against the Reds at Great American Ball Park. He showed pretty well, too, going 5-2/3 innings of one-hit, shutout ball, striking out five and walking three. The bullpen didn’t allow any knocks afterwards, and it was the Bucs first one-hitter at Cincy since Randy Kramer’s gem in 1989. Ortiz tossed six heaters that were clocked at 100 MPH+ to become the first Buc hurler to fire that many in a game since Gerritt Cole threw seven in 2013; he and Cole are the only Pirate hurlers of the Statcast era (2015 onward) to hit triple figures. The Pirates only managed three hits themselves, but Kevin Newman’s seventh-inning, two-out flare into left scored Rodolfo Castro, who had doubled, and it was just enough for the 1-0 sweep. Chase DeJong earned the win and Duane Underwood Jr. spun his first MLB save. The Bucs took the opener 6-1 behind the arm of Johan Oviedo, 24, and homers from Bryan Reynolds, Ke’Bryan Hayes and Cal Mitchell.

9/12: Robby Slam, Ralph 8-In-4, Duelin', Fido Woofs, Game Days, UA Forms, New Hats, Crowd Crush, Smoky Goes, Drug Trial, HBD Franquelis, Mike, Trench, Jon & George

1883 - The Union Association, a short lived baseball league, was formed in Pittsburgh. It had a bit of local flavor, as one of the original clubs was the Altoona Mountain City, which folded after 25 games, and later the Pittsburgh Stogies, a club that formed after the Chicago Browns franchise relocated to the Steel City and lasted for about three weeks before folding again.

1891 - The Pirates and hometown pitcher Mark “Fido” Baldwin had a contentious relationship during his three year (1890-92) Buc career. At one point, the team fined him $50, leading him to request his release. Instead, manager Ned Hanlon decided to work Fido like a dog; he started and won a pair of complete game victories on this date against the Brooklyn Bridegrooms at Eastern Park (Per the Pittsburgh Press: “The Pittsburg club covered itself in glory and bathed the Bridegrooms in humiliation and gloom…”) while earning 26 victories during the campaign. The Penn State grad retired the following season, came back for a game, and the Bucs released him. He finished the season with the NY Giants and then retired from MLB for good. Baldwin became a doctor working out of Passavant Hospital (then a North Side institution), and lived out his days in Homestead, where he was raised. He’s buried at Allegheny Cemetery.

1926 - 3B George Freese was born in Wheeling and attended both WVU and Pitt where he was a football & baseball star. George spent parts of three seasons in the show, with his most active campaign being in 1951 with the Bucs when he hit .257 and started 49 games at the hot corner. George played 17 years in the minors for six different organizations with a .301 lifetime BA.  After his playing days ended, Freese coached for the Cubs and managed for a dozen years in the minor leagues. The older brother of 3B Gene Freese (who actually started ahead of him for the ‘55 Pirates), George made his home in Portland after playing four years of minor league baseball for the Portland Beavers. In 2008 he was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame.

1933 - Pitching is the name of the game, and the Bucs had plenty against the Brooklyn Dodgers, sweeping a twin bill by 1-0 and 2-0 tallies at Forbes Field. Heinie Meine’s five-hitter topped Sloppy Thurston in the opener, with Meine scoring the game’s only run in the ninth, driven in by Pie Traynor. Lloyd Waner went 4-for-5 at the top of the order. Waite Hoyt tossed a four-hitter in the nitecap to best Dutch Leonard as Traynor and Tommy Thevenow drove in seventh and eighth inning scores to complete the sweep of the Brooklynites.

Waite Hoyt - 1933 Big League

1947 - Ralph Kiner hit two homers against Boston Braves’ pitcher Red Barrett in a 4-3 win at Forbes Field to set a record of eight home runs in four games. (Tony Lazzeri had hit seven round-trippers in four games in 1936.) Kiner had three of the four Bucco RBI while Rip Sewell went the distance for the win. The day before, Kiner had tied the MLB record for homers in a doubleheader with four, a record that’s since been eclipsed. Big Ralph had three long balls the day before, the second time in the campaign that he had five homers in back-to-back games.

1948 - The Pirates whipped the Cubs 7-3 at Wrigley Field as Rip Sewell won his 11th game and the Chicago staff generously donated 14 walks to the Bucco cause. Pittsburgh was within sniffing distance of first, sitting just 2-1/2 games behind league leading Boston. But that was as close as they were to get, fading badly down the stretch to lose out to the “Spahn, Sain, and pray for rain” Braves. They finished fourth with 83 wins, 8-1/2 games behind Boston.

1951 - Scout Jon Niederer was born in Hanover, Pennsylvania. He went to Duquesne University and began his baseball career as a ticket seller for the Pirates in 1973. Four years later, he became a scout, signing Stan Belinda while operating a series of “Little Pirates” camps. After leaving the Bucs in 1986, he bird-dogged for the Angels and Mariners before passing away in 2009.

1952 - The Pirates split a twilight doubleheader against the Boston Braves, winning the opener 8-1 behind a pair of Ralph Kiner home runs and Bob Friend’s seven-hitter to break an eight-game losing streak, then returning to form to absorb a 16-0 plastering in the late game. The Bucs set a new team low by suffering its 104th defeat (the old mark for damage done was 103, set in 1917) on their way to a 42-112 finish, and the match at Forbes Field drew just 2,608 fans. They also used Branch-Rickey inspired batting helmets for the first time during the regular season, plastic caps with a foam layer around the head band, both at-bat and in the field. All the Buccos but Joe Garagiola wore one; his helmet size was too big. The Post-Gazette noted the headgear with a terse “New Helmets But Same Bucs” headline. The Buc FO introduced the helmets during spring training and finally Branch Rickey ordered their use on this date. Coincidently, we’re sure, Rickey owned stock in the company that made the helmets, American Baseball Cap, that were designed by Ed Crick and Ralph Davis of Cleveland. The Pirates mellowed some after a couple of seasons, requiring them only for batting when the players bellyached about the weight in the field. It took awhile, but the headgear caught on and was mandated by the MLB in 1970.

Helmets Debut: 9-13-1952 Post-Gazette/AP

1960 - A crowd of 21,261 cheered the first-place Pirates 6-1 victory over the Giants and set a new Pittsburgh home attendance record of 1‚521‚251, edging the old mark set in 1948. The final attendance for 1960 was 1,705,828, which would be the high water mark until the 1988 Pirates drew 1,866,713 at TRS. The victory put the Bucs 7-1/2 games up on the NL field and cut their magic number to 11; they clinched the National League pennant two weeks later.

1960 - OF Trench Davis was born in Baltimore. He was signed in 1980 out of Southern HS by the Pirates as a 19-year old. He got on the radar as a stolen base machine with a .275 BA on the farm and had a cup of coffee with Pittsburgh in June. He played in 15 games for the Pirates in May 1986, batting just .130 (he hit 4-for-30 in his Pirates stint with one stolen base), and became a Bucco footnote when he was optioned back to the minors to make room for Barry Bonds. He signed with the Braves in 1987, spent most of the season in AAA with six MLB outings and played out his career in the Mexican League.

1963 - RHP Mike Roesler was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He had a couple of brief MLB stops, tossing five games for the Pirates in 1990 with a line of 1-0/3.00 to close out his MLB work. Roesler bounced around the Pirates and Kansas City Royals’ farm systems afterward before pitching in Taiwan before retiring in 1992. He was inducted into the Northeast Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006 for his sporting exploits at Fort Wayne’s Bishop Luer HS and later at Ball State. 

1964 - The Pirates waived and then sold C Smoky Burgess to the pennant-chasing Chicago White Sox for $50,000. He went 1-for-5 off the bench for the Sox that finished one game behind the Yankees in the 1964 AL race. Smoky found his final home in the Windy City; he played there until 1967, ending his career at the age of 40 with 18 MLB seasons to his credit.

Smoky Burgess - 1964 Topps

1969 - Doing it with their arms and sticks, pitchers Jerry Koosman and Don Cardwell not only pitched 1-0 wins but drove in the winning scores to lead the Mets to a DH sweep of the Bucs. Bob Moose and Dock Ellis took the hard luck losses at Forbes Field, with Moose throwing a five-hitter with 10K and Ellis a six-hitter with 11 whiffs. Though defeats, the games were the second and third in a row that Buc starters had fanned 10+ hitters; Bob Veale started the string the day before with 12 K in a 3-2 win over the Cardinals.

1979 - The Pirates whitewashed the St. Louis Cardinals 2-0 at TRS behind John Candelaria’s six-hit, 8-1/3 innings of shutout ball and Ed Ott’s bat. Bill Madlock singled, stole second and scored on Ott’s single in the second inning before Otter tripled in the fifth and touched home on Phil Garner’s knock to give the Pirates their two runs. Kent Tekulve nailed down his 27th save of the season by retiring the last two Cards and stranding Redbirds at second and third.

1981 - RHP Franquelis Osoria was born in Santiago, Dominican Republic. Osoria was waived by the Dodgers after the 2006 campaign and claimed by the Bucs. He worked his first year mainly in Indianapolis, but saw considerable time with the Bucs, going 0-2/4.76 ERA in 25 outings. He was with the big club for most of the 2008 season with a slash of 4-3/6.08 in 43 games. Frankie finished his career in the Dominican Winter League, pitching in his native land through the 2015  year. Like fellow Dominican Antonio Alfonseca, Osoria had an extra digit on his throwing hand, though it didn’t seem to give him much of an edge. 

1985 - The Bucs banged out three homers to rout the Cubs 10-2 at TRS. RJ Reynolds and Mike Brown connected off Dennis Eckersley, but the big blow was a two-out grand slam by Don Robinson off of Warren Brusstar in the eighth frame. Robinson became one of just five Pirates pitchers to clean the bases, and another MLB reliever wouldn’t hit a grand slam until 2021, when Daniel Camarena of San Diego did the deed. Robby picked up the save for Rick Rhoden, tossing two innings of one-hit ball with three whiffs. Though The Caveman hit well for a hurler (.238 in ‘85), that swing produced his only homer and RBIs of the year.

Don Robinson - 1985 Fleer

1985 - it was a bad day for the Buccos during the MLB drug trials. Dave Parker testified that he was given amphetamines by Willie Stargell and Bill Madlock, a charge first brought up by Dale Berra a couple of days prior, plus purchasing cocaine from Pittsburgher Shelby Greer. John Milner, later in the day, told the court that he bought coke off chef Curtis Strong in the Pirates locker room between 1980-84. For his part, manager Chuck Tanner said he “never suspected” the Pirates drug market. Peter Ueberroth later gave 21 players ID’ed during the trial wrist-slaps for their parts in the MLB dope dance.

1992 - It was a wild and wooly finish at Veterans Stadium, but the Bucs came out on top of the late-inning shootout by a 9-7 tally. Ahead 1-0 in the bottom of the sixth, the Phils used four singles, a walk, error and passed ball to push the lead to 4-0. The Bucs took notes and in the seventh, they cobbled together three singles, a three-base error and a sac fly to tie the game. There was more weirdness in the eighth. The Pirates had runners on first and second with two away when Orlando Merced struck out swinging. But the ball got away from the catcher (wild pitch ruled), Orlando beat the throw to first, and Spanky LaValliere’s rap chased a pair home for Pittsburgh’s first lead. It didn’t last long; with two on via walks and two outs, Dave Hollins went deep off Stan Belinda and Philly was back up, 7-6. Mitch Williams came in to close it out for Philly, but Jay Bell’s triple, between three more singles, a balk and a walk, put the Buccaneers back on top, and Belinda returned the game to normalcy with a 1-2-3 ninth for the blown save/win exacta. 

2023 - The Pirates held a boatload of events to celebrate Roberto Clemente weekend, jumping the gun by starting on Tuesday with a six-day outdoor exhibit of Clemente images around PNC Park. Two days later, the annual gala was held at the Heinz History Center, Friday was the Pirates Roberto Clemente Day of Service, Saturday featured a discussion of the Great One’s life & impact with Roberto Jr. & Luis Clemente and it closed out Sunday (the Hispanic Heritage Day game) with a family walk starting at the Clemente Statue and winding along the Riverwalk, with proceeds benefiting the Roberto Clemente Foundation. The Pirates also gave out #21 caps and jerseys during the weekend games so the fans could celebrate Arriba’s legacy year-round.

9/11 Through the 1940s: Mr. Swat Stuff, Howie's 20th, 15 Scoreless, Game Days, Pie A Pirate, HBD Dave, Jackie, Glenn, Cool, Frank & Steve

1868 - OF Steve Brodie was born in Warrenton, Virginia. He had speed, a great glove and good bat, playing 13 years in the show. He was traded to Pittsburgh against his wishes (he enjoyed playing in Baltimore) and stayed from 1897-98, hitting .283 before being dealt back to the Orioles in mid-season. When he retired, he went on to a career as a college coach, served during WW1, and then returned to run Baltimore’s brand new Memorial Stadium.

1876 - RHP Frank Moore was born in Dover, Ohio. Frank got three scoreless innings to his credit in the show for the Pirates in 1905, and he earned the outing, beginning in the minors in 1902 and hangin’ in there through the 1912 campaign. In fact, his last two seasons at ages 33 & 34 were his best as he won 23 and 21 games for Portsmouth in the Ohio State League. He managed in the lower minors for a couple of seasons afterward before hangin’ up his mitt.

1901 - IF Elbert “Cool” Turner was born in New York. He was a multi-sport star at what is now West Virginia State University and played Negro League ball from 1921-32, with a stop in Homestead in 1929 where he was the Grays’ third baseman. He only hit .159 and moved on, playing for four more teams before he retired. Turner coached high school football in the off-season, and after his retirement became head baseball coach of the North Carolina Central University Eagles. He also umpired for seven years in the second Negro National League. By that time, his nickname had evolved from “Cool” into "Pops."  

1905 - RHP Glenn Spencer was born in Corning, NY. He was a Bucco in 1928, spent 1929 in the minors, then returned from 1930-32, going 23-29-8/4.48, mostly from the pen. Control was his Achilles Heel; he walked more batters than he K’ed in his five-year pro career which ended with the Giants during the 1933 campaign. He retired to become a salesman and served during WW2. 

Deacon Phillippe - 1906 Fan Craze

1906 - The Pirates and Reds played a 15-inning scoreless draw at Expo Park, the longest game to date at the venue. Deacon Phillippe started the game and Vic Willis finished, giving up 10 hits together while Bob Ewing of the Reds scattered eight knocks. The Reds golden opportunity was in the 13th inning when they loaded the bases with nobody out, but a pair of forces at home and a fly squelched that rally. The Bucs' big chance was foiled earlier when Tommy Sheehan bunted through an attempted squeeze play, leaving Dutch Meier hung out to dry. Meier was the only Pirate with more than a hit, collecting three knocks before ump Bill Klem called the game due to darkness.

1912 - Howie Camnitz tossed six scoreless innings in relief of Jack Ferry to earn his 20th win over Philadelphia at the Baker Bowl 10-3. Rosebud (he was a ginger) went 22-12-2/2.83 in 41 games (32 starts) to claim 20 wins for the third time in four seasons. Max Carey and Mike Simon led the attack with a combined seven hits and four RBI while “Turkey” Mike Donlin homered.

1920 - The Pirates bought Pie Traynor from Portsmouth for $10,000, then the highest price paid for the contract of a Virginia League player. The Boston Braves had stashed the infielder there on the handshake assumption that they would have first dibs on him, but even an appeal to AL President Ban Johnson didn’t help in lieu of a written agreement, and the Portsmouth owner was more than willing to let him go to the highest bidder. So instead of playing for his hometown Boston club - he was a native of Framingham, Massachusetts - Traynor spent his 17-year MLB career in Pittsburgh, eventually earning a spot in the Hall of Fame.

1940 - Jacinto “Jackie” Hernández was born in Central Tinguaro, Cuba. He had to slip into the USA; Cuba had cut its robust baseball program to the bone when Fidel Castro took over and Jackie made it stateside via Mexico to keep playing. He was ready to come home again, but his mom told him to stay right where he was at and chase his dream. The good glove, bad bat (.205 as a Pirate) SS played three seasons (1971-73) for Pittsburgh, and when the Bucs traded for him in 1970, manager Earl Weaver of the Baltimore Orioles said that “The Pirates will never win a pennant with Jackie Hernandez at shortstop.” Not only did they win the flag, but Jackie was the regular shortstop from late August forward in 1971 as Gene Alley, the starter, had a bad shoulder. As fate would decree, he put the final nail in the Oriole coffin during the Series; the last out of the Bucs seventh game victory was recorded 6-3, Hernandez to Bob Robertson. Jackie’s nine-year MLB run ended with Pittsburgh after the 1973 season, and he coached and played at different levels/leagues afterward. He was still helping the Bucs as an instructor at Pirate City until he passed away in 2019.  

Jackie Hernandez - 1971 NLCS Topps 1972

1944 - LHP Dave Roberts was born in Gallipolis, Ohio. In June, 1979 he was part of a big deal with the Giants, traded with Len Randle and Bill Madlock to the Pirates for Al Holland, Fred Breining, and Ed Whitson. He went 5-2-1/3.26 out of the pen for that club and after a cup of coffee with the team in 1980 was traded to Seattle. The vet was near the end; he worked briefly in 1981 before retiring after 13 years. He passed away in 2009 at age 64 from lung cancer. It’s thought that he suffered asbestos exposure during his younger years when he had to work in a boiler room to earn his daily bread while developing as a pro player.

1947 - Ralph Kiner blasted three successive homers and knocked home six runs in a 10-8 win over the Braves at Forbes Field in the nitecap of a DH. He also homered in game one, a 4-3 win that was decided in the 13th when pitcher Kirby Higbe took Johnny Sain deep to complete the first step of a Pittsburgh sweep of Boston. Kiner’s four homers in one day established a team record that wouldn’t be matched until 1984 by Jason Thompson. It also set a NL record of 10 multi-homer games in a season which stood until Sammy Sosa had 11 in 1998.

1948 - Out of the lineup because of a virus, Ralph Kiner came off the pine to whack an eighth-inning, pinch-hit grand slam to give the Pirates a 13-12 win over Chicago at Wrigley Field. Max West also homered and had three RBI as Mel Queen won with a save by Elmer Riddle.

9/11 From 1950: Toppin' It Off, 12 For Frankie, Hot In '90, Sweep, Gott Save Streak, Mad Dog Barks, Face Falters, Game Days, HBD Nik & Sluggo

1956 - The Pirates were four outs from defeat, losing to the Chicago Cubs 3-1 in the bottom of the eighth at Forbes Field before the muscle boys took over. Dale Long went opposite field for his 27th homer to cut the lead to one and Frank Thomas then swatted his 21st long ball to tie the game. Two Hall of Famers put the contest in the win column when Bill Mazeroski opened the final frame with a single, was bunted to second and walked it off on Roberto Clemente’s knock. Roy Face tossed scoreless ball in the eighth and ninth for the dub, his 12th.

1958 - C Don “Sluggo” Slaught was born in Long Beach. He came to the Bucs in 1990 and platooned during the pennant years with Mike “Spanky” LaValliere. Slaught was the primary catcher in 1993-94, then injuries in 1995 led to his release. Sluggo hit .305 as a Pirate. He was a hitting coach for Detroit in 2005-06, and then began his own private school for hitting instruction.

1959 - The LA Dodgers beat Pittsburgh 5-4; Elroy Face lost the save and the game in relief of Bob Friend in the ninth at Memorial Coliseum by giving up a pair of runs. It was Face's first loss after a record-setting 22 straight wins. The defeat was Face's first to the Dodgers since September‚ 1956, with his last loss to any team going back to May 30th, 1958, at the hands of the Milwaukee Braves, a run of 99 straight outings w/o a defeat. He finished the campaign 18-1, the best winning percentage ever posted by anyone with a minimum of 15 decisions. In an understatement, the Baron of the Bullpen told AP’s Alan Robinson "It was one of those years when nothing went wrong.” Junior Gilliam’s ninth-inning triple was the key blow against the Baron of the Bullpen in the defeat after Roman Mejias and Dick Stuart homers off Sandy Koufax built the slim edge. Chuck Churn beat the Baron; he had been a Pirate in 1957 and the victory was his second MLB triumph (he’d win one more in what was his final big league year). It was a bad day all around; the Bucs were shutout 4-0 in the second game of the twin bill.

1974 - The Pirates lost to Philadelphia 8-5 at TRS as the Phils Bill Robinson’s three-run shot off Ramon Hernandez in the eighth won the contest and cut the Pirates lead to 2-1/2 games with 20 remaining. Worse for the Pirates, Dock Ellis’ hand was broken after he was drilled by Willie Montanez’s liner. The righty had won eight consecutive games and nine out of 10, tossing seven complete games in that 10-game span. He missed the remainder of the season and the NLCS against the Dodgers, who took the set three games to one. Dave Giusti’s bad back continued to hinder him in the postseason, too (he was bombed in the playoffs) and his iffy status made manager Danny Murtaugh’s job tougher in trying to juggle holes in both the rotation and bullpen; Bruce Kison was the preferred fill-in for both Ellis and Giusti. But despite the leaking ship, the Bucs held on to top the St. Louis Cardinals and claim the NL East crown by 1-1/2 games.

Dock Ellis - 1974 Topps

1982 - Bill Madlock opened the ninth inning with a first pitch, walkoff home run, his third hit of the game, to give the Pirates a see-saw 10-9 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at TRS. The Bucs had jumped out to an early 6-0 edge, but they had frittered away the lead by the sixth. The Pirates went back on top in the eighth on a two-run, two-out double by Willie Stargell, but the Phils tied it with a two-out RBI single off Dale Berra’s glove, setting the stage for Mad Dog. Omar Moreno added a pair of triples. Kent Tekulve got the blown save/win combo.

1983 - It wasn’t bad enough that the Bucs lost to the Phils 5-3 at TRS to fall two games behind the Expos, but a fan in the cheap seats tossed a transistor battery at Dave Parker in right field, bouncing off the turf and past his head in the eighth inning, a frame after he made an error that allowed a run to score. Chuck Tanner said “It punctured our balloon. It’s a shame that an individual has to do that to get his kicks when everyone else is enjoying a great ballgame.” Parker, who had two hits, stayed in the game, saying “They’re not going to chase me out of there.” They may not have chased him from the game, but he did jump to his hometown of Cincinnati in the off season.

1987 - Jim Gott set a club record with a save in seven consecutive outings as the Pirates beat the Phillies 4-2 at Veterans Stadium. Gott entered the game with runners on first and third and one out in the ninth inning and retired the final two batters of the game on grounders for his 10th save. Doug Drabek got the win behind homers by RJ Reynolds and Bobby Bonilla.

1989 - LHP Nik Turley was born in La Canada, California. Turley had a cup of coffee with the Twins, but most of his experience was in the minors with stops in the indie league and DWL. The Pirates claimed him off waivers in the 2017 offseason, and a few weeks later he was suspended for PED usage. The Bucs kept him mostly in extended spring training in 2019 and he broke camp with the big league team in 2020, used mainly as a seventh-eighth inning bridge (0-3-1/4.98). Nik went to the White Sox in ‘21 and last pitched in Japan in 2025.

1990 - Randy Tomlin, Neal Heaton and Ted Power combined on a seven-hit 5-1 victory over the Phillies at Veterans Stadium. Lloyd McClendon broke the game open with a two-run, two-out pinch homer in the seventh. For the Bucs, it was their ninth win in 11 games and upped the division lead to 3-1/2 games. They went into a six-game tailspin after the victory and saw their lead dwindle to 1/2 game, but then won 10-of-11 to take the title comfortably.

Lloyd McClendon - 1991 Fleer Update

2013 - The Pirates completed a three-game sweep of the Rangers with a 7-5 win in Arlington’s Globe Life Park. AJ Burnett won while Kyle Farnsworth, the Bucs fifth pitcher, rang up his first save in almost two years with Pittsburgh’s back-end relievers Jason Grilli (because of performance) and Mark Melancon (because of workload) both on ice. Justin Morneau led the attack with four hits, Marlon Byrd chased home a pair of runs and Clint Barmes went deep while each starting position player reached base safely. For the local nine, it was their ninth consecutive interleague road victory as they finished 15-5 against AL teams. The win kept Pittsburgh one game behind the NL Central-leading St Louis Cardinals and two ahead of the Cincinnati Reds for the wildcard.

2014 - Francisco Liriano punched out a season-high 12 batters as the Bucs beat the Phils at Citizens Bank Park 4-1. Frankie went eight shutout innings giving up three hits - two were infield singles - and two walks while never allowing a runner past second. Pittsburgh iced the game in the fifth against old teammate AJ Burnett when Travis Snider, Andrew McCutchen and Neil Walker had consecutive hits. Walker's double scored Snider, Cutch scored on a Russ Martin sac fly and Walker scored on Gregory Polanco’s knock to give Frankie some padding.

2017 - Steven Brault, making just his second start of the year, earned his first MLB win as the Pirates snapped a five-game losing streak by a 7-0 tally over the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. In his six innings, Brault personally outhit the Brew Crew two-to-one with a run scored and a pair of RBI, backed by homers from Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte and Jordy Mercer. Steven, backed by relievers AJ Schugel, Daniel Hudson, Dan Runzler (in his first MLB appearance since 2012 with the SF Giants) and Felipe Rivero, matched a mound feat that was last performed by a Bucco (Randy Tomlin) in 1991 of not allowing an opposing runner past first base during the contest.

2021 - After a 9/11 memorial ceremony, the top four in the Bucco order (Ke’Bryan Hayes, Yoshi Tsutsugo, Bryan Reynolds and Colin Moran) combined to score five times and drive in six runs to lead the Pirates to a 10-7 slugfest victory over the Nats at PNC Park. Hoy Park also scored three times on one hit with three walks (Washington issued 10 free passes). Kyle Keller got the win and Chris Stratton the save as it took six Pittsburgh hurlers to finally put away Washington.

9/10 Through 1974: Willie+Richie, Dirtball, Burleigh's 1st & Last, Vic's 20th, 9/10 Through 1974: Game Days, HBD Bob, Brandy, Klu, Highpockets & Kid

1886 - P/OF Blaine “Kid” Durbin was born in Lamar, Missouri. He got 51 career at bats in parts of three seasons, and although he finished out his MLB days as a Pirate, he didn’t get any swings in with Pittsburgh after being acquired via a trade with the Reds for Ward Miller, entering just one game as a pinch runner. After a few years of farm league ball, he retired, got married and became a baker. His nickname was due both to his size (he was just 5’8” and weighed 155 pounds) and that he started his pro baseball career as a 17-year-old minor league pitcher.

1895 - 1B George “Highpockets” Kelly was born in San Francisco. He started as everyone’s replacement guy: the Giants wanted him to take over for Fred Merkle, the Bucs then snagged him for a brief period to be Hans Wagner’s caddy, getting in eight games and going 2-for-23 in 1917. He went into the service in 1918 and when he came out finally won a spot with the Giants when 1B Hal Chase was suspended. He proved to be a golden glove guy with some power and a reputation as a clutch hitter during his 16-year MLB career. Kelly was selected to join the Hall of Fame in 1973 by the Veterans Committee. His monikers of Highpockets and Long George were due to his 6’ 4” stature.  

1909 - RHP Vic Willis won his 20th game of the season when the Pirates beat the Reds 4-3 at Forbes Field. Hans Wagner banged two doubles & a triple, scoring twice, and Dots Miller chased home a pair of runs to lead the attack. It marked the fourth straight year that Willis won 20+ games for the Bucs, slashing 89-46-3/2.08 in his four years on the hill with Pittsburgh. The Hall-of-Famer (class of 1995) started his career in 1898, tossing for eight years for Boston, and finished it in 1910 with St. Louis, winning 249 games with a 2.63 ERA in his 13 MLB years.

1913 - Before the Bucs lost at Forbes Field to the NY Giants 5-2, Hans Wagner was gifted with a new piece of lumber. MA Seidel, a boyhood bud of the Dutchman who moved to Erie, presented the shortstop with a bat made from a timber of Commodore Perry’s flagship The Niagara, sunk in 1813, that was engraved with “We have met the enemy and he is ours.”

Al Mamaux - 1916 Sporting News

1916 - Both the Cubs and Bucs were in the second division and didn’t have much to play for, but the game at Weeghman Park proved to be worth the money. Rookie Frank Miller was yanked after five frames, down 5-0. Another rookie, Burleigh Grimes, came in and traded runs with the Cubbies, going into the ninth trailing 7-2. Pittsburgh conjured up a mixture of singles (six of seven hits were one-basers), a walk, an error and wild pitch to take an 8-7 lead. Grimes walked the first Chicago hitter and manager Nixey Callahan had run out of patience with his rookies. He called on veteran 21-game winner Al Mamaux, and he put it to bed. For the 22-year-old Grimes, it was his first MLB victory; over his 19-year career, he would post 270 wins, with 20 or more in five seasons.

1924 - 1B Ted Kluszewski was born in Argo, Illinois. After 11 years with the Reds, winning an MVP and four All-Star berths, Big Klu (6’-2”, 225 lbs.) came to Pittsburgh in 1958 for Dee Fondy in a swap of 1B. He hit .292 in 100 games that year and was sent to the White Sox at the 1959 deadline for Harry Simpson and a minor league player as Chicago was looking for some stretch run help. Both teams got him at the downside of his career. A back injury suffered in 1956 left him worse for wear, sapping his power, and he never hit double-digit homers in a season again after having launched 171 bombs from 1953-56.

1927 - OF Robert “Brandy” (his middle name was Brandon) Davis was born in Newark, Delaware. He signed with the Pirates in 1952 after playing at Duke. Davis was a burner (in 1951, he stole 82 bases in 85 tries in the minors) but in his 1952-53 tour of duty with the Pirates, he hit just .187. His 2005 obituary in the Wilmington News-Journal noted that “He was forced from the league after it was discovered that he could not successfully steal first base.” Brandy went on to coach, manage and scout for 10 major league teams over the course of his 52-year career. He was a 1989 inductee in the Delaware Sports Museum/Hall of Fame and a 1999 inductee of the Delaware Baseball Hall of Fame. 

1928 - RHP Bob Garber was born in Hunker, near New Stanton, in Westmoreland County. Garber only got two games with the 1956 Pirates for his career resume, doing pretty well - he gave up a run in two outings on three hits in four innings with three strikeouts and three walks while working mostly out of Hollywood of the PCL. He was a hit on the farm - in a nine-year career, he twice won 20 games before retiring in 1958, missing a couple of years thanks to the Korean conflict. After baseball Bob was a salesman before retiring in 1991. He and his wife then jumped into the RV and traveled the country in their golden years, visiting some 30 states and 40 national parks before he passed away.

Burleigh Grimes - Helmar Oasis

1934 - Hall of Famer Burleigh Grimes, closing out his career, got his last MLB win in relief as the Pirates beat the NY Giants 9-7 at the Polo Grounds. Grimes went two innings to claim his 270th victory. It was the Pirates seventh straight victory, and they overcame an early 5-0 deficit by scoring five times in the ninth to get Burleigh his win, with Ralph Birkofer closing it out. Grimes made three stops, including his rookie and final campaigns, and spent five years with the Corsairs, posting a line of 48-42-5/3.26. His last victory featured a stellar cast. As noted by John Dreker of Pittsburgh Baseball History, Grimes was one of seven Hall of Famers the Pirates trotted out for the game: Schoolboy Waite Hoyt started on the hill, and the lineup sported the Waner Brothers - Big (Paul) and Little (Lloyd) Poison - Arky Vaughan, Pie Traynor and Freddie Lindstrom. With his dub, Burleigh was the last legal spitballer to win a game (it was outlawed in 1920, but 17 guys were grandfathered in and permitted to toss a wet one, although it did remain legal in the Negro leagues throughout their duration.)

1938 - It was a rough start at Sportsman Park in St. Louis as Russ Bauers started and didn’t retire a single Redbird before being sent to the showers, while his replacement, Bill Swift, was only marginally better as the Cards took a quick 6-0 lead after three innings and were up, 7-3, going into the sixth before Lloyd Waner’s bases loaded triple pulled the Pirates within a run. Then the Buc bats exploded in the eighth for eight runs, keyed by Al Todd’s bases-loaded three-bagger (only the second time that the Pirates had hit two bases-jammed triples in a game; the first was in 1898) and Pittsburgh coasted to a 14-7 win. Todd also homered and had five RBI’s on the day while Lee Handley (who scored four times) and Johnny Rizzo each had three hits. The Pirates third hurler, Mace Brown, got the win, his 15th of the campaign, by tossing four innings of no-hit, one-walk ball.

1940 - The Bucs rolled 11 in consecutive games, sweeping a twin bill from the Phillies by 11-3 and 11-1 scores at Shibe Park. In the opener, Maurice Van Robays homered with four RBI while Arky Vaughan smacked two triples and drove in three runs to allow Joe Bowman to cruise to victory. Rip Sewell tossed a six-hitter in the closer. Van Robays had a double and three RBI, Al Lopez went 2-for-2 with three runs driven in, Vaughan added four more hits and Bob Elliott homered.

1958 - Dick Stuart banged a two-run, two-out 10th-inning homer, atoning for an earlier error that allowed a run to score, to give Bob Friend his 20th win of the year as the Pirates beat the Giants 6-4 at Forbes Field. Roberto Clemente added three hits, a run, RBI, stolen base and threw out a runner at third. Friend finished the year at 22–14 to lead MLB in wins, and became the first Buc pitcher to claim twenty conquests since Murry Dickson (20-16) in 1951. The victory guaranteed the ‘58 Pirates a winning record, snapping a nine-season drought suffered under Branch Rickey’s rebuild during the fifties “Rickey-Dinks” era.

Bob Friend - 1959 Topps

1960 - Bob Friend wasn’t at his sharpest, but he sure had his sinker working. He scattered nine hits to the Cubs but got the Chicago nine to bounce into five DPs (Bill Mazeroski participated in every one of them) to claim a 4-1 victory at Forbes Field. The Pirates scored three times in the fourth off Bob Anderson thanks to a pair of Cubbie errors and added another run on Dick Stuart’s solo homer, one of three hits he had during the game.

1970 - The Pirates were on a three-game losing streak that had dropped them into a tie for first place and were in need of a stopper; the unlikely hero was lefty Luke Walker, who spun a two-hit, nine-strikeout complete game gem against the Cards at TRS. Willie Stargell’s second-inning solo homer and Bob Robertson’s sac fly in the fourth weren’t much, but Walker made the two runs hold up. The Bucs righted the ship after that; they moved back into first place a game later and won the East Division pennant by five games over the Cubs and six over the Mets.

1973 - Willie Stargell and Richie Zisk combined for nine hits while Jim Rooker cruised on the bump as the Pirates blasted the Cubs 11-3 at Wrigley Field. Pops (4-for-4 w/two walks) was on a tear and was on a 14-of-17 roll at the plate; Zisk (5-for-6) was in a zone, too, with his first career five-hit day. Bob Robertson added three knocks while Rennie Stennett, Richie Hebner, Scoops Oliver and Manny Sanguillen each had a pair of raps. The Pirates collected 21 hits off five Chicago pitchers as they moved 1/2 game behind the Cards. 

1974 - The Pirates went on a rampage in Chicago, scoring all their runs in the first five innings on the way to a 12-4 win at Wrigley Field. Richie Hebner led the way with four hits, including a homer, three RBI and two runs scored while Rennie Stennett and Manny Sanguillen each had three knocks and scored five times between them. Ken Brett got the win with some late help.