6/21: Matt Muscles Up, Workin' For A Win, Duel, Hangin' On, Rick Rolls, Robby Slick, Bigbe Big, Big 9th, Game Days, Roberto All-Glove, HBD Brandan, GI & Spencer

1888 - Chicago’s George “Rip” Van Haltren no-hit the Alleghenys in a rain-shortened, seven inning outing at West Side Park with the White Stockings winning 1-0. Van Haltren would convert to the outfield in 1891 (his .316 career BA made that a no-brainer move though he was OK on the hill with a line of 40-31-4/4.05), and spent a pair of seasons in Pittsburgh (1892-93/.325 BA) roaming the pasture, with a dozen games at SS and a couple more at second.

1893 - Pittsburgh rallied past Cleveland 6-5 by scoring five times in the bottom of the ninth at Exposition Park before 1,100 fans after the Ohio nine had taken the lead by posting three tallies in the top of the frame. The Spiders committed a pair of errors in that final inning, and Jake Beckley blasted a three-run triple for the walk-off win. The Pittsburgh Press set up Beckley’s big blow: “The bases were full, and so were the Cleveland’s - full of alarm and bad humor. The crowd was full of excitement and began to yell and scream. But finally Beckley settled the controversies of the day by swinging the ball into right field good and true...”

1898 - IF Spencer Adams was born in Layton, Utah. He spent four seasons in the majors on four teams, starting as a 25-year-old in 1923 with the Pirates and hitting .250 in 25 games. The Bucs had sent two players and $5,000 to the Pacific Coast League’s Seattle to get Adams; at the end of the year, they flipped him to Oakland, another PCL club, as part of the Ray Kremer deal.

1922 - Carson Bigbe banged out five hits, including two doubles and a triple good for three RBI while Clyde Barnhart added four hits and chased home four Buccos, but it was for naught as Brooklyn won in 10 innings, 15-14. Bigbe and Barnhart each booted a ball, along with Pie Traynor, in the extra frame to hand the win to the Robins at Ebbets Field. It was a wild day from start to finish - the two clubs combined for 34 hits (11 for extra bases), 10 walks, eight errors and scored runs in nine-of-10 innings as Babe Adams lost to off-and-on Bucco Burleigh Grimes.

Carson Bigbe - Helmar Oasis

1935 - The Pirates sold OF Babe Herman to the Cincinnati Reds after picking him up as a part of a five-man deal with the Chicago Cubs in the offseason. The 32-year-old vet carried a big stick (.329 BA, 143 OPS+ over nine years), but batted just .235 in 26 games as a Pirate, dropping from left field starter to bench bat. The Bucs, however, gave up too soon on Babe - he hit .335 for the Reds during the remaining 92 games of the year and .280 from 1936-37 for them and the Detroit Tigers. He spent most of his remaining pro years in Hollywood of the Pacific Coast League, returning for a last hurrah with Brooklyn in 1945.

1971 - Bob Robertson set a MLB record for most assists in a nine inning game by a first baseman with eight handoffs in a 6-0 win over the Mets at TRS, helping Dock Ellis to an eight-hit shutout victory. Ellis was busy, too, setting the NL record for putouts by a pitcher with five. The extra-inning mark for assists was also eight, set by the Buc’s Bob Skinner in 1954.

1978 - Bucco shortstop Frank Taveras delivered a two-out single in the bottom of the ninth inning, bringing home Phil Garner with the walkoff run in a 2-1 victory over the Cubs at TRS. John Candelaria pitched a complete game for the Pirates, as did Chicago’s Ray Burris. “Scrap Iron” had three hits and set the Bucco table, scoring both of the Pittsburgh runs. 

1981 - 1B/OF Garrett Jones was born in Harvey, Illinois. He was a Bucco platoon power presence against RHP from 2009-13 after being signed as a 28-year-old minor league FA from the Minnesota Twins organization. He hit 100 HR with a .256 BA and 113 OPS+ in Pittsburgh before moving on in 2014. Garrett was known as "GI Jones," lifted from GI Joe.

1986 - Rick Rhoden showed them how to do it at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium. He went the distance against the Expos, defeating them 14-1, and the three hits he collected (among them the game-winner in the third frame) equaled the number he gave up, to go along with spinning 10 strikeouts without issuing a walk. Sid Bream also had three hits, including a homer, and four other Bucs had two hits. Every Pirates starter had at least one knock, nine different players scored and Johnny Ray & Bill Almon each chased three men home.

Rick Rhoden - 1986 Topps Leaders

1989 - Doug Drabek and Greg Maddux hooked up in a classic pitching duel, though neither was around at the finish as the Cubs beat the Bucs 1-0 at TRS. Maddux went 10 frames of six-hit ball while Drabek went nine, giving up five knocks. Lloyd McClendon’s sac fly off Doug Bair brought home future Bucco coach & scout Gary Varsho in the 11th to decide it.

1992 - The Bucs bolted out of the gate and were up 5-0 over the Montreal Expos going into the seventh inning at Three Rivers Stadium, a lead built largely on Orlando Merced’s three-run long fly. But Pirates relievers Denny Neagle and Roger Mason were banged around enough to make it a 5-4 nailbiter by the ninth. Marquis Grissom started the final frame off with a rap, and an out later was standing on third after swiping a pair of bases. Stan Belinda took the hill and coaxed a short pop fly up the right field line and Marquis faked a tag home. The feint worked, too - RF Gary Varsho airmailed the ball over Spanky LaValliere, and Belinda, backing up, had to give chase. But the baseball gods were in one of their moods, as Grissom lost sight of the ball and retreated back to third after Varsho uncorked the wayward throw. Belinda wiped his brow and whiffed Rick Cercone on three pitches to earn a second chance save.

1998 - Three Pirate relievers surrendered five runs to the Brew Crew in the final two frames, but the Bucs hung on to take an 8-7 win at County Stadium. The Pirates big man was Jose Guillen, who smacked a grand slam in the third inning. Esteban Loaiza won his fifth game of the year in spite of the bullpen meltdown.

2001 - RHP Brandan Bidois was born in Brisbane, Australia. The Pirates signed him in 2019 and in 2025, he broke out by pitching in all four minor league levels, posting an 8-0/0.74 line in 40 outings while putting together an 18-inning no-hit streak and being named the Pirates Minor League Reliever of the Year. He was put on the 40-man and started 2026 at Indy, where he was wild and hit hard in a small sample size (3-2/7.20/15 IP) but still got the call up to Pittsburgh in May as a middle man out of the pen. BB got into five games/4.05 ERA before being optioned back to Indy. He was quickly recalled when Wilber Dotel went on the IL.

Brian Giles - 2003 Bowman Chrome

2003 - The Pirates edged the Indians 7-6 for their second straight 15-inning victory over the Tribe after claiming a 5-4 win the day before. It was the first time since 1996 that two teams had played consecutive 15-inning contests. The win featured a web gem grab by Brian Giles, stealing a two-run homer from Brandon Phillips in the eighth inning and as described by ESPN: “Giles pushed off the fence with his foot to elevate himself, stretched his glove over the 6-foot fence and pulled the ball back from the second row of the stands.” It was the Pirates' first sellout of the year with a raucous crowd of 36,856, padded by Cleveland fans. 

2005 - Matt Lawton drove in five runs and scored twice, banging a homer and double, to lead the Pirates to an 11-4 win over the Washington Nationals at PNC Park. Lawton went 3-for-5, Daryle Ward drove home three runs, and Ollie Perez pitched six frames for the win. The Pirates banged out 14 hits, seven for extra bases (one dinger & six doubles).

2008 - In a pre-game ceremony at PNC Park, the Pirates officially presented the family of Roberto Clemente with his trophy after Arriba was named to Rawlings’ All-Time Gold Glove Team (Roberto won a dozen GG’s). The Bucs went on to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-3 behind two-run homers by Jay Bay, Raul Chavez and Jose Bautista in front of 27,014 fans.

2016 - Look Ma, I’m In the Record Book As A One-Man Battery: Erik Kratz, who tossed an inning while an arm-saving Anaheim Angel in April, became the first player in the modern era to catch and pitch for two teams in the same season when he flipped a scoreless ninth inning while mopping up during the Pirates' 15-4 loss to the San Francisco Giants at PNC Park.

6/20 Through the 1960s: Elmer-Erskine, Sunday Swats, Waner Run, Max Cycle, Chief X 3, Hans Home, Short Cut, Game Days, Boss Baker, HBD Gary, Scooter, Bill, John, Cum & Ed

1889 - LHP Ed Warner was born in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. His major league career consisted of 11 games (three starts) in 1912 for the Pirates as a 23-year-old, going 1-1/3.60. After the season, he was sent to the Columbus Solons of the American Association. Warner, who was a Brown graduate and went straight from college to the big leagues, then decided to bypass the baseball circuit as a life path and began his business career. 

1890 - Cumberland Willis “Cum” Posey was born in Homestead. He was an outfielder, manager and eventual owner of the Negro League powerhouse Homestead Grays from 1911-1946. At one time or another he had 11 of the 18 current Negro leagues Hall of Famers on the Gray’s payroll. He also wrote a regular sports column for the Pittsburgh Courier.

1894 - Per Baseball Chronology: “Denny Lyons scores the winning run in the ninth inning to lead Pittsburgh to 7-6 win over Washington (actually, it was Louisville). Lyons gets into scoring position by running from 1B to 3B - across the pitcher’s mound – on a fielder’s choice. The umpire did not see Lyon’s transgression, a common one in the 1890s.” The Pittsburgh Press in its game story didn’t include Lyons shortcut but did castigate the ump for missing a call at third. In a separate notes column, the paper mentioned that “Dennis Lyons was accused of cutting second base in running to third on (Jack) Glassock’s sacrifice but he could have scored from second, however, on (Lou) Bierbauer’s hit.” Despite the skulduggery, it was a nice win for Pittsburgh, which blew a 6-1 lead only to rally for the decision at Exposition Park in front of 1,000 fans. It took a few more sleight-of-hand tricks by the players for it to come about, but in 1898 the league went to a two umpire system partly because of “transgressions” like these.

1901 - In a 7-0 win against the Giants at the Polo Grounds, Honus Wagner became the first player in the 20th century to steal home twice in one game (and he’s still one of only six to pull off the feat) while Jack Chesbro tossed a three-hit shutout. The Pittsburgh Press credited the win “...almost entirely to the sensational pitching of Chesbro, who allowed New York only three hits, and baserunning of Hans Wagner, who last year was champion batsman of the league. In five times at bat yesterday Honus made four hits, two of which were doubles.” They could have added that the Big Apple boys committed eight errors; only one Buccaneer run was earned off loser Ed Doheny, who Pittsburgh would pick up a month later. Wagner wasn’t shy about pulling off a little run-scoring larceny; he stole home 27 times in his career. This was one of six shutouts Happy Jack tossed during the year; he would author 17 whitewashes in 107 Pirates outings over four years.

Hans - photo via MLB.com

1902 - IF John Beckwith was born in Louisville. Considered one of the great sluggers of black baseball (his nickname was “The Black Bomber”), John played with the Homestead Grays in 1924, again from 1928-29 and for a last time in 1935, toward the end of his 23-year career. He rarely stuck around for long periods with one club; he was a jack of all trades but master of none as an infielder and had a sometimes disruptive clubhouse attitude.

1907 - The Pirates salvaged the finale of a four-game set against the Phils by a 4-2 count at Exposition Park. Deacon Phillippe tossed a seven-hitter (one whiff, one walk) for the win. Honus Wagner had two hits, scored twice and per the Pittsburgh Press “In the third inning Wagner made the longest hit on this grounds...” when he tripled, settling for three bases when he pulled up lame while running the bases. They never gave an estimate of the distance, but Expo, like many early ballparks, was a huge yard, 400’ down the lines and 450’ in dead center.

1912 - In a doubleheader at Cincinnati’s Redland Field, Owen “Chief” Wilson hit two triples in the opener, including a big blow in the 10th inning that keyed a 6-4 win, then bopped another in the nitecap, a 5-3 loss. It was his fifth straight game with a three-bagger. Wilson swatted 36 triples, a major league record, although he never hit more than 14 in any other year of his career. Chief was a pretty big guy for the era and not much of a speedster, but he was a slugger; many of his triples were balls drilled over the outfielder’s heads in an age of deep pastures. Forbes Field was chief among the spacious yards and the Pirates joined Chief to set the MLB team triples record with 129 three-baggers that year.

1918 - The Pirates traded 25-year-old RHP Elmer Jacobs to the Philadelphia Phillies for 28-year-old RHP Erskine Mayer. Mayer went 9-3/2.26 as a Buc starter during the second half of the season, but the wheels came loose in 1919, which was his last MLB campaign. Jacobs ended up remaining solid through 1919, then mostly worked out of the Pacific Coast League (he did get three years in Chicago w/the White Sox), tossing until 1932.

Bill Clemensen - March 1939 Pgh Press photo

1919 - RHP Bill Clemensen was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey. He pitched for the Pirates in 1939, 1941 and 1946, going 1-1/5.57 in 15 appearances. He was a guy whose potential career was cut short by WW2. Bill’s primo season was 1941 (1-1/2.77 in 13 IP) and he looked like he would break camp with the Pirates for the ‘42 campaign, but Uncle Sam had different plans and he ended up spending four years in the Army Air Corps.  Even though he played Army ball, he couldn’t overcome the layoff after his military stint. Clemensen made one more MLB outing and spent the rest of 1946-47 in the minors before leaving the game.

1925 - Max Carey became the first switch hitter to hit for the cycle during the Pirates 21-5 victory over the Brooklyn Robins at Forbes Field. Carey went 4-for-6 with four RBI and two runs, and shared the spotlight with a pair of teammates. Glenn Wright, who was a single shy of the cycle, drove in five runs and scored three times. Kiki Cuyler carried the biggest stick of the day, hitting two homers, one a grand slam, plus a triple with six RBI and five runs scored. As Lew Wollen of the Pittsburgh Press noted, the Pirates "...were doing such splendid work with the willow." Babe Adams went the distance for the win. The Buc bats stayed hot - they lit up the scoreboard for 24 more runs in the next game against St Louis.

1925 - IF Clement “Scooter” Koshorek was born in Royal Oak, Michigan. Scooter played pretty regularly in 1952 for the Bucs, batting .261, but in 1953 got into Opening Day as a pinch hitter and fanned; it was the final at bat of his MLB career after losing a competition for the SS spot to bonus baby and future MVP Dick Groat. Clem was 5’4”; inspiring his nickname.

1927 - Paul Waner kept his 23-game hitting streak alive, but his string of 14 contests with an extra-base rap came to an end as the Bucs dropped the Cubs 4-0 at Forbes Field. A scoreless duel between Lee Meadows and Chicago’s Hal Carlson ended in the sixth when Johnny Gooch banged a three-run homer; Meadows went the distance, tossing a four-hitter. Big Poison’s 23-gamer ended the next day against Dolph Luque of the Reds in a 10-inning loss.

Pie Traynor - Heroes Deck

1934 - Newly named player/manager Pie Traynor, replacing George Gibson, gave his charges a short pep talk (“Hustle” was the gist of the message) and then let his stick provide the leadership. Pie banged out three doubles & a single, then scored the winning run in the ninth inning of a 6-5 win over the Boston Braves at Forbes Field, ending a five-game Bucco skid. Arky Vaughan went 4-for-4 while Leon Chagnon, in relief of Red Lucas, was the winner.

1948 - Ralph Kiner homered twice in a 7-5 win over the Phillies at Shibe Park. It capped a remarkable streak of Sunday homers; he went eight straight Sundays with long balls during May and June, finishing the year with 17 round trippers in 38 Sunday games. Winner Hal Gregg almost blew a 6-0 lead, but Kirby Higbe, Elmer Singleton and Mel Queen closed the book. The Phils helped the Pirates attack as much as Kiner by committing five errors. It was game two of a twinbill; the Pirates were spanked 9-0 in the opener to break a six-game winning streak.

1961 - OF Gary Varsho was born in Marshfield, Wisconsin. He played three years for the Bucs, in 1991-92 and 1994 with a .251 BA as a pinch-hitter/spare outfielder, appearing in the 1991 and 1992 NLCS. He was the Pirates bench coach during manager John Russell’s regime, serving from 2007 - 2010, then returned to the club in 2016 as a scout.

1961 - Gene Baker was released from the active roster and became the first African-American manager of an MLB-affiliated team when the Pirates named him skipper of their Batavia Pirates farm club in the Class D New York-Penn League. A couple of seasons later, he moved up as a Bucco coach and was credited with being the first black manager in MLB when he took over for ejected skipper Danny Murtaugh on September 21st, 1963 against LA. (Frank Robinson became the first full season Black manager in 1975). Gene finished his off-field career as a midwest Pirates scout. Baker was an eight-year MLB vet as an infielder after starting out with the KC Monarchs, and he spent 1957-58 & 1960-61 with Pittsburgh.

1968 - The Pirates extended their winning streak to nine games with a 7-3 win over the Dodgers at Forbes Field in the opener of a twin bill. Steve Blass went the distance, carried by Donn Clendenon, who scored three times, and Billy Mazeroski, who chased home three runs. But the magic disappeared in the nightcap, with LA taking a 10-inning decision, 3-2. Rookie Ron Fairey hit his first MLB homer off ElRoy Face with two outs for the game winner. Maury Wills and Gene Alley set the table with five hits in the 1-2 spot, but the rest of the Bucs could only come up with three more raps.

6/20 From 1970: Petey 5-Spot, Duels, Chico Cha-Cha, Sweep, Hot Hebner, Game Days, Haak Signs, No Games Nowhere, HBD Mack

1971 - Richie Hebner homered, doubled and had four RBI while Pops Stargell added a homer in a 7-1 win over Montreal at TRS in the opener of a twin bill. Steve Blass went the distance for the victory. Stargell hit a grand slam (one of four in the majors on this day) and Al Oliver went 4-for-4 to lead the Pirates to a 7-3 sweep over the Expos in the second game behind Nellie Briles.

1975 - John Candelaria was making his third MLB start and still looking for his first win; it wouldn’t be easy, matched against Tom Seaver and the Mets with 47,867 fans at Shea Stadium. He claimed though it wasn’t as easy as the 5-1 final would suggest. It was 1-1 going into the ninth, with the Bucs only tally on a Willie Stargell bomb. Richie Zisk singled in the go-ahead run, and with two away, Rennie Stennet lined a bases-loaded triple to give Candy Man some working room. He went the distance, giving up four hits, a walk and fanning six. He never saw the minors again; Candelaria remained a Pittsburgh rotation mainstay for a decade and won 124 games in his twelve-year Pirates career.

1976 - Rob Mackowiak was born in Oak Lawn, Illinois. A 53rd round draft pick in 1996, he played five years (2001-05) for the Pirates, hitting .259. 2004 was his highlight season, when he had a career high of 17 home runs/75 RBI. He had a career day on May 28th during a DH against the Cubs at PNC Park, hitting a walk-off grand slam in the first game and a game-tying ninth inning home run in the second, on the same day that his son was born. Rob later played for the White Sox, Padres and several AAA clubs, ending his career in 2010 playing indie ball.

1983 - The Bucs swept the Cubs at TRS, taking a 10-inning 5-4 triumph in the opener and a 6-5 13-inning win in the nightcap, drawing just 5,839 fans to the twilighter. Richie Hebner’s pinch hit homer against Bill Campbell to lead off the 10th gave Kent Tekulve the win in the first game; Jason Thompson also homered. The Cubbies made the second game exciting by scoring twice in the ninth on a two-out single by Ron Cey off Don Robinson. The potential lead run was cut down at the plate when Robby retrieved an errant throw home and got the ball to Steve Nicosia in time to nail Bill Buckner. Robinson later settled in and tossed shutout ball the rest of the way, getting the win when Marvell Wynne singled home Dale Berra to broom Chicago. Berra, Lee Lacy and Jim Morrison went long during the contest, with Berra collecting four hits. The Bucs were floundering at this point (even with the sweep, they were 11 games under .500), but got their act together to hold a share of first in mid-September. Then Philly caught fire and the Bucs went 6-8 down the stretch to finish second, six games off the pace.

Dale Berra - 1983 Donruss

1983 - The 71-year-old “King of the Caribbean Scouts,” Howie Haak, signed a three-year contract with the Bucs as their scouting supervisor. He lasted in that position until 1988, when he left for Houston after a disagreement with GM Syd Thrift, severing a Steel City relationship that began in back 1950. Howie retired in 1993 and passed on in 1999.

1985 - The game at Olympic Stadium featured Rick Rhoden and stolen bases. The Pirates won 2-1 as Rhoden fired a three-hitter over seven frames and drove in the go-ahead run with a fifth inning double before Al Holland closed out the eighth and ninth. The stolen bases impacts: with one out in the eighth, Tony Pena tossed out Tim Raines, who represented the tying run; it was the first time a catcher had caught Raines stealing during the season (he swiped 70 sacks in ‘85). The Pirates opened the scoring when Marvel Wynne stole second, went to third after a bad throw and scored on a sac fly.

1988 - The Mets were up 3-2 at Shea Stadium after six innings and the Bucs were lucky to be that close, scoring their runs thanks to a New York error and two-out wild pitch. But in the seventh, it seemed like every Buccaneer bunt, bloop and bouncer found grass. Pittsburgh put together a string of eight straight singles, two by pinch-hitters, that resulted in a six-spot, and that was plenty to carry them and John Smiley, who went six innings, to an 8-5 victory. The top of the order - Barry Bonds, Chico Lind, Andy Van Slyke and Bobby Bonilla - banged out seven hits, scored five times and chased home a pair to propel John Smiley’s victory. Lind also padded his resume with one of his top career plays, catching up to a grounder on the SS side of second, leaping and twisting to get aligned but still managing to put enough mustard on his toss to throw out Tim Teufel.

1993 - The Pirates scored twice in the ninth to edge the Mets 3-2 at TRS. After an intentional walk to Jeff King loaded the bases, John Franco walked in the tying run, losing Kevin Young on a 3-2 pitch. It took some soul searching by Jim Leyland to allow the rookie left-handed hitter to face southpaw Franco with RH Lloyd McClendon available to hit, but he said “You’re trying to groom Kevin Young for the future” and let him bat. The next man up, Don Slaught, singled home the winner. Stan Belinda won in relief of Steve Cooke. With the victory, the Bucs swept the four-game set against the Mets.

Stan Belinda - 1993 Leaf (reverse)

2003 - The Cleveland Indians raced ahead of Josh Fogg and the Pirates 3-0 but a two-out error in the third by Tribe starter Brian Tallet opened the gates; Jason Kendall banged an RBI double following the boot and Aramis Ramirez slammed a three-run shot to give the Bucs the lead. Scott Sauerbeck allowed the Indians to tie it in the eighth, and the game was on. It took 15 innings, but behind four scoreless frames by Salomon Torres (although six hits in that span kept the drama bubbling) and Randall Simon’s homer in the 15th, the Pirates sent the the remnants of a crowd of 26,305 at PNC Park home happy after 4-1/2 hours of baseball after a 5-4 win.

2008 - The Buccos outlasted Toronto 1-0 in 12 innings at PNC Park. Tyler Yates, the last of four Buc pitchers, tossed two innings for the win. Pittsburgh claimed the game when SS John McDonald couldn't come up cleanly with Jason Michaels' weak bases-loaded grounder, scoring Doug Mientkiewicz. The two teams combined to strand 21 runners during the game that was started by Zach Duke and Roy “Doc” Halladay; both spun seven scoreless frames.

2010 - The Pirates won their second in a row from the Indians 5-3 at PNC Park when they scored twice in the eighth on a Pedro Alvarez sac fly and Bobby Crosby knock. Pittsburgh had lost 12 consecutive games before the modest streak, and began a six-game losing streak after the contest. Brad Lincoln started the game, Brendan Donnelly got the win and Octavio Dotel picked up the save.

2013 - Pedro Alvarez smacked a single, double and homer to chase home all five runs in the Bucs 5-3 win over the Reds in front of nearly 41,000 fans at GABP. Brandon Cumpton started, reliever Bryan Morris booked the win and Tony Watson claimed the save as St. Louis, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh continued their battle in the NL Central. The division rivals had the three best records in the major leagues on this day and were separated by four games. 

2015 - Max Scherzer no-hit the Bucs at Nationals Park and came within a strike of tossing a perfect game. With two outs in the ninth and an 0-2 count on Jose Tabata, a mini-battle began with JT fouling off several pitches. With the count 2-2, Scherzer tried to sneak a slider past Tabata; it backed up a bit and clipped JT on the elbow pad (Tabata didn’t make much effort to get out of harm’s way, actually leaning into the pitch) to spoil the perfecto. Josh Harrison flew out to the track in left to end it, with Washington claiming a 6-0 win.

Pedro Alvarez - 2013 Panini America's Pastime

2016 - The Pirates took an unlikely 1-0 victory from the SF Giants at PNC Park. Jeff Locke, who had given up 18 runs in his previous two starts, pulled a U-turn and tossed 6-2/3 IP of five-hit ball against Giant ace Madison Bumgarner, who was on a seven-game winning streak and entered the game with a 1.91 ERA. To boot, the Bucs were on a five-game losing streak while the G-Men had claimed eight straight wins. The winning blow was a homer by Erik Kratz, who was hitting .045, a drive to left field that Angel Pagan’s leap almost pulled back, only to have the ball fall out of his mitt and back over the fence as he crashed into the wall.

2017 - The Pirates used a six-run first inning to power their way to a 7-3 win over the Brewers at Miller Park. Andrew McCutchen went 3-for-3 with a solo homer, three RBI, a walk and two runs scored. José Osuna helped start the party when went deep with a three-run shot in the first frame. Chad Kuhl went five innings for the win but it took six Bucco hurlers to put it away.

2020 - This date marked the 101st straight day without MLB/NHL/NFL/NBA games due to Covid cancellations, the longest stretch of inactivity since the four major pro sports coexisted. The previous record was a 100-day stretch from September through December, 1918, from the end of MLB season to start of NHL season due to World War I and the flu pandemic. (S/O Elias Stats) 

2022 - There was some excitement at PNC Park as SS Oneil Cruz and OF/1B Bligh Madris were called up from Indy as part of a month-long youth movement. And they both came through in spades during the Pirates 12-1 drubbing of the Cubs. In his 2022 debut, Cruz claimed the hardest throw by an MLB infielder this year (96.7 MPH), the hardest hit ball of the year by a Pirate (112.9 MPH) and the fastest sprint speed of the year by a Pirate (31.5 feet per second; 30’ is considered elite) to go along with two hits, four RBI and three runs scored. Madris went 3-for-4 in his MLB debut, first Pirate since Jason Kendall (4/1/1996 v. Florida) to have three hits in his opening outing. He also scored and singled home two runs in his first big league at bat. (Bligh’s now in the Tigers organization.) Daniel Vogelbach chipped in two more hits, and the big guy scored three times while plating a pair of teammates. JT Brubaker went six shutout frames for his first win of the season.

6/19 Through 1974: Sweep, Groat Debut, Poison Streak & 3000, Game Days, HBD Doug, Butch, Johnnie, Fernando, Jerry, Don, Bill, Jake & Frank

1856 - Utilityman Frank McLaughlin was born in Lowell, Massachusetts by some sources; others say he was born in Ireland. Either way, Frank stopped in Pittsburgh between 1883-84, seeing not a lot of action as an Allegheny and then played with the Stogies next season. He hit .219 with the Alleghenys in ‘83 as a shortstop and went 0-0/13.00 in nine innings of mound work. Frank then went the Union League route, batting .239 as a second baseman before joining the Kansas City Unions, the club that he finished out his career with in 1884.

1892 - SS Harry “Jake” Daubert was born in Columbus, Ohio. His major league career consisted of one at bat for the 1915 Pirates, and he fanned. Jake played pro ball from 1912-19, mostly in the Ohio State League, suiting up for 11 teams in his eight bush league campaigns.

1908 - RHP Bill Swift was born in Elmira, New York. He tossed eight seasons (1932-39) for the Bucs, with a 91-79/3.57 record. Swift was a staff workhorse, going 200+ innings and picking up double-digit wins in his first five seasons, topping out with 16 wins in 1936. He wasn’t a power pitcher, with just 3.4 K/nine during his Pittsburgh career, but Bill gave up fewer than two walks per game and a homer just once every 18 frames.

1912 - IF Don Gutteridge was born in Pittsburg, Kansas. The 12-year MLB vet closed out his big league days in Pittsburgh, retiring after getting into four games and going 0-for-2 in 1948. Afterward, he was a coach and briefly manager for the Chicago White Sox, later scouting for the Kansas City Royals, New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers before retiring to Pittsburg.

Paul Waner - Helmar Hey Batter

1927 - Paul Waner doubled twice in a 14-7 loss to the Cubs to extend his National League record extra base hit streak (12 doubles, 4 triples, 4 homers) to 14 straight games. The string ended the next day but has held up well so far, being matched only by Chipper Jones in 2006.

1942 - Paul “Big Poison'' Waner, now 39 and a Boston Brave, joined Cap Anson and Honus Wagner as the only NL players with 3‚000 hits with a single to center off Rip Sewell, fittingly at Forbes Field. The game was stopped as the ball was presented to him, and both teams gathered round to offer their congratulations. Pittsburgh won the game in 11 innings, 7-6. Waner’s hit should have been 3,001. Two days earlier, he was given a hit on a ball that glanced off a glove; Waner had the scorer change it to an error so his 3,000th would be a clean knock.

1949 - Jerry Reuss was born in St. Louis. The lefty spent six seasons with the Pirates (1974-78, 1990) posting a 61-46/3.52 line as a rotation mainstay. He won 220 games in a 22-year big league career. Jerry spent time as a coach and major/minor league announcer after his playing days, also writing a 2014 autobiography “Bring In the Right Hander!”

1950 - IF Fernando Gonzalez was born in Arecibo, Puerto Rico. Fernando had a couple of stints with the Bucs, beginning his career with cups of coffee in 1972-73 and contributing as a role player in 1977-78 before being waived to the Padres. He hit .257 as a Pirate, played all the infield spots except first base and manned the corner outfield spots. He finished his career in 2004 playing in the Mexican League. After his playing days were over, Gonzalez coached in the New York Yankees system, was the field general for a team in Italy and at last look managed a traveling Puerto Rican youth squad.

Fernando Gonzalez - 1972 Topps

1952 - Bonus baby Dick Groat made his first big league start in an 8-1 Pirates victory over the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds. Groat went 2-for-4 with two RBI and handled six chances flawlessly in his debut, just three days after signing his first contract out of Duke. Veteran hurler Murry Dickson had a little bit to do with the win, too, as he tossed a complete game five-hitter and added three knocks, scoring three times, to help himself on both sides of the dish.

1954 - IF Johnnie LeMaster was born in Portsmouth, Ohio. He played 12 years of MLB ball, and the Pirates were one of three teams he was on in 1985 (oddly, all three - the Pirates, Giants and Indians - finished last in their division). The good-glove utility guy hit .155, and made it back to the show briefly in 1987 with Oakland before his career closed. He retired to Painesville, Kentucky, where he was raised, and worked for Ashland Oil while coaching youth at various levels and serving as an elder/bible study leader for his church.

1958 - OF Wallace “Butch” Davis was born in Williamston, North Carolina. He got eight years/166 games in the big leagues with five clubs, sipping some coffee with the Pirates in 1987; in seven games he went 1-for-7 with three whiffs while spending most of his time at AAA Vancouver. He played 13 years in the minors with a couple of campaigns in Venezuela. After he hung up the spikes, he was a long-time Baltimore Orioles minor league hitting coach and manager before spending three years as a Minnesota Twins 1B coach. He also lives on in baseball’s cinematic history: he had a cameo in the movie Bull Durham. 

1966 - It took the Pirates awhile, but they swept the Braves at Atlanta Stadium on Fathers Day by a 2-1 tally in 11 innings behind southpaw Bob Veale, who tossed a five-hitter while fanning nine for the complete game win, and Willie Stargell, who blasted a 400’ plus solo blast off Ted Abernathy, who was in his fourth frame of relief for starter Ken Johnson, for the game-winner and the Buccos fourth straight dub.

Bob Veale - 1967 Topps

1968 - The Pirates ran their winning streak to eight games with a 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Forbes Field. Bob Veale gave up a first-inning run, then settled in to toss a complete game six-hitter with eight strikeouts, dodging raindrops by coaxing three DPs. The Trolley Dodgers helped the Bucs to the win with a couple of miscues. A passed ball with Maury Wills at second set up the first run on a Willie Stargell sac fly and the game-winner came when Gene Alley walked in the seventh, stole second, went to third when Bill Singer misfired on an attempted pickoff, then scoring on Jerry May's two-out single. Singer was a tough nut to crack for the Pirates; he fanned 10 in seven frames despite the loss. The Pirates split a twin bill with LA the next day, taking the opener and dropping the nightcap to end their joy ride at nine games.

1972 - Roberto Clemente’s two-run homer off Mike Strahler in the eighth inning of a 13-3 romp over the Dodgers at TRS moved him into second on the Pirates franchise list for RBI with 1,274, just past Pie Traynor. He would finish his career with 1,305 runs batted in, now third on the all-time Pirate roster behind Honus Wagner and Willie Stargell. The Great One finished with three hits as did Al Oliver w/a homer; Vic Davalillo led with four raps. Dock Ellis was rattled for 11 hits, but lasted until the eighth when Bob Miller came in to mop up.

1974 - IF Doug Mientkiewicz was born in Toledo, Ohio. Doug had a 12-year MLB career and spent 2008 in Pittsburgh playing 1B, 3B and RF while batting .277 in 125 games. “Eyechart” retired the following campaign after playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers and coached briefly for them in the minors. He also worked for the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers until 2019. At last look, he’s now a MLB/USA Baseball Prospect Development Pipeline manager.

6/19 From 1975: Jack Trio, Keepin' On, Steve Swats, Game Days, Ted Goes, Todd POTW, '60 Juju, HBD Cody, Austin, Tyler, Dusty & Willis

1975 - RHP Willis Roberts was born in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic. The reliever put in five MLB seasons, mainly as an Oriole, and his last year of 2004 was spent as a Pirate. In nine games, he put up a 5.25 ERA after signing on as a free agent; he mostly worked out of AAA Nashville. Willis retired in August and spent three more years tossing in Mexico, Venezuela and Italy before heading into the sunset after the 2007 campaign.   

1975 - Jerry Reuss gave himself a birthday present by shutting out the St. Louis Cardinals 5-0 at Three Rivers Stadium, tossing a complete game six-hitter with seven whiffs. Homers by Willie Stargell, Dave Parker and Bill Robinson gave the southpaw all the b-day gifts he needed.

1982 - C Dustin “Dusty” Brown was born in Orange, California. Dusty’s career in the show consisted of 24 games for three teams from 2009-11, with his last stop at Pittsburgh, where he collected three hits in 28 at bats before being DFA’ed in June. Fun fact: His first big league hit was a home run over the Green Monster of Fenway Park; it was his only MLB homer.

1991 - C Tyler Heineman was born in Pacific Palisades, California. Heineman was a journeyman catcher who had gotten into 31 games (22 starts) with Miami, San Francisco and Toronto, compiling a .221 lifetime BA. The Pirates claimed the 30-year-old off waivers in May of 2022 after starter Roberto Perez, who had hammy surgery, was lost for the year. He and Jason Delay became the backstop tandem, with Tyler catching 40 games while hitting .211. He was traded to Toronto in 2023, went to Boston, then returned to the Jays; he’s now with the Angels.

1992 - RHP Austin Brice was born in Hong Kong (and yes, he’s the first MLB player born in Hong Kong). The reliever put in six seasons with Miami, Cincy and Boston (4-4/5.17 in 140 outings) before the Pirates signed him as a free agent in 2021. Brice started the 2022 season at Indy and was called up in late June. He got into four games and became a FA after the year. He was in the minors for three different organizations afterward and retired from pro ball in 2024.

Ted Simmons - 1992 photo Gene Puskar/AP

1993 - GM Ted Simmons resigned after suffering a heart attack on June 8th and was succeeded by Cam Bonifay. Ted got back in the saddle after his recovery, working as an executive and scout for the Cardinals, Indians, Padres, Mariners and Braves. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2020 for his 21-year career as a catcher for the Cards, Brewers and Braves.

1995 - Steve Pegues bopped his first pair of MLB homers to lead the Bucs to an 8-2 win over the San Francisco Giants at TRS. Carlos Garcia and Don Slaught each added a pair of hits while Denny Neagle ran his record to 7-3 with eight strong innings. Pegues finished the year with six long balls during his last season of MLB ball followed by three more minor-league campaigns for four teams.

1998 - RHP Carl “Cody” Bolton was born in Richmond, Virginia. The Bucs drafted him out of California’s Tracy HS in the sixth round of the 2017 draft. He missed 2020 due to the Covid minor league shutdown and then all of 2021 following knee surgery. Cody came back strong in ‘22 at Indy (4-2/3.09 w/10 K per nine innings), his workload split between starting and the pen. Bolton was converted to full-time relieving in ‘23, where he got off to a strong start for the Tribe and was called up to Pittsburgh in April, sent back down, recalled and returned again. He was sold to Seattle in the off season and moved on to Cleveland in ‘25. He was released in June and is now in the Astros system.

2001 - RHP Todd Ritchie won the NL Pitcher of the Week award. He beat Detroit and the White Sox in that span, giving up a run on nine hits with 11 K and four walks over 17 IP. It was quite a turnaround - he was the first player in franchise history to start the year 0-8, finally snapping his losing streak by stopping the Tigers to begin a five game winning streak. Todd straightened up and finished the year with an 11-15 slate.

2010 - 38,008 fans showed up at PNC Park to take part in the 1960 World Series team reunion. The old champs apparently inspired the current crew, who broke a 12-game losing streak by beating the Cleveland Indians 6-4. Lastings Milledge was a homer short of the cycle and had four RBI while Andrew McCutchen had a pair of hits, drew three walks and scored four runs. The Pirates went through six hurlers, with Jeff Karstens the winner and Octavio Dotel earning the save.

Lastings Milledge - 2010 Pirates Photocard

2010 - The Pirates fired racing pierogi Andrew Kurtz after he criticized John Russell and Neal Huntington’s secret contract extensions on his Facebook page. The 24-year-old was offered a position by the Washington Wild Things of the Frontier League to become one of its racing hot dogs before being rehired by the Bucs after they received a media bashing. 

2014 - The Bucs scored three times in the fifth frame on a balk and two-out singles by Starling Marte and Andrew McCutchen, but it still took them 12 innings to subdue the Reds, 4-3, at PNC Park. A single, balk, intentional walk and hit batter loaded the bases for Russ Martin with two outs, and he drew a walk for the gift win, the first walkoff free pass ever issued at PNC Park. Light hitting Clint Barmes went 4-for-5 with a double and HBP. Justin Wilson, the sixth Pirate pitcher of the day, got the win against Cincy.

2019 - The Pirates fell behind the Detroit Tigers by a 7-1 count in the top of the third inning, but they kept on keeping on at PNC Park. Trevor Williams tightened up to work five frames before Richard Rodriguez, the eventual winner, Frankie Liriano and Felipe Vazquez, who got the save, followed with zeros, allowing the Buc bats time to battle back. Corey Dickerson hit a two-out, two-run double to ignite the comeback, Starling Marte banged a two-run homer to make it close and Bryan Reynolds, who had three hits, three RBI’s and three runs scored, launched a three-run bomb in the sixth that proved the game-winner in an 8-7 Pirates victory. It was the first time since 2008 the had overcome a six-run deficit.

2021 - The Bucs won their second in a row over the Cleveland Indians 6-3 at PNC Park in a day that highlighted offensive true outcomes. Pittsburgh was down 2-0 in the seventh when two walks set up a three-run dinger by Michael Perez; two more walks later, Bryan Reynolds put a ball in the Allegheny to provide the Pirates offense. The Tribes’ attack consisted of three solo homers, two by ex-Bucco farmhand Harold Ramirez. Chris Stratton picked up the win after two innings of scoreless, one-hit relief and Richard Rodriguez earned the save.

Jack Suwinski - 6/19/2021 Topps Now

2022 - The Pirates used four homers, three by Jack Suwinski, who joined Andrew McCutchen (8/1/2009 v Washington) as the only Buc rookie to go deep three times in one contest (and the first rookie in MLB history to hit three homers in a game that included a walkoff dinger), with the other big fly swatted by Hoy Park, to walk off a 4-3 victory against the Giants at PNC Park. Pittsburgh had battled back from a first-inning 2-0 deficit to claim a 3-2 edge after six frames. It stayed that way until the ninth when Dave Bednar, looking to finish the six-out save, was tagged for a game-tying homer. Suwinski picked him up by leading off the Buccaneer half with a shot into the Clemente stands, his 11th of the year, tops to date among rookies. Bednar, who struck out four in his two frames, ended up with the blown save/win combo, with Cam Vieaux working as the bridge between him and starter Mitch Keller to hold San Francisco to four hits. To provide the cherry on top, it was Fathers Day, with Jack’s proud dad Tim in the stands. He got to not only watch the long fly triplet but to witness the fans stealing a page from the Pens and tossing caps on the field after the third homer in recognition of Suwinski’s “hat trick.”

2024 - Bryan Reynolds eighth-inning solo shot against the Reds at PNC Park extended his hitting streak to 17 games (it went for 25 straight before he was cooled off) and carried the Bucs to a 1-0 victory. Mitch Keller started and went seven innings, giving up two hits and two walks to go with seven strikeouts; winning pitcher Colin Holderman and David Bednar with the save took over from there.

6/18 Through 1964: Romps & Rallies, Don Debut, The Law Won, Riddle-Robin, Sluggin' Smith, Youngs Swapped, Game Days, HBD Ron, Newt, Chipper, Ben & Pepper

1888 - SS Marty “Pepper” Berghammer was born in Elliot (now a Pittsburgh West End neighborhood). Marty had a couple of years with the Reds before joining the Pittsburgh Rebels in 1915 and batting .243 (although 83 walks and 12 plunks brought his OBP up to .371). He went to St. Paul later in the season and played a decade for them, finishing out his career in 1929 after a run as a minor league manager. He stayed local and was buried in Elliot’s St. Martin’s Cemetery.

1893 - 1B/C Ben Shaw was born in La Center, Kentucky. Ben’s MLB career was a short sip of water, lasting for four months and 23 games with the Pirates from 1917-18 while batting .184. He managed some in the late 20s-early 30s in the low levels of the farm and also played a year for the NFL champs, the Canton Bulldogs, in 1923, so Ben was more than a one-sport pony.

1890 - RHP George “Chippy” Britt (aka Brittain & Britton) was born in Macon, Georgia. He pitched for the Homestead Grays from 1926-33 and again in 1940, earning one all-star appearance; the stats on his career are wildly incomplete. He played with 16 teams from 1917 to 1945 and manned every position on days that he wasn’t on the hill. His nickname was well-deserved. Per Baseball Reference “He was known as one of black baseball's ‘four big bad men’ along with Jud Wilson, Oscar Charleston and Vic Harris, and someone once said ‘he could whip the whole ballclub.’ In Mexico City, he once was declared ‘Public Enemy Number One’ when he challenged some armed revolutionaries in the crowd.” (A gentler alternate version claims he got his nickname because he called everyone Chippy). When Britt retired, he took a job as a nightclub doorman, a point for the original attitude basis of his nickname...

1896 - 1B Newt Halliday was born in Chicago. Newt’s major league days consisted of one Bucco outing in 1916 as a 20-year-old when he got a couple of innings in at first after Honus Wagner tweaked his leg mid-game, handling four chances flawlessly, and batting once (he K’ed). It would be Newt’s sole big league moment. He joined the Navy in 1917 during the WW1 fight, and contracted tuberculosis while in training camp. He died from the disease at the age of 21, becoming one of eight big leaguers to perish while in the military during the war.

Irv Young - 1908 Conlan Collection/Detroit Public Library

1908 - The Buccos sent young righties Tom McCarthy and Harley Young to the Boston Doves for vet LHP Irv “Young Cy” Young (Harley was also a “Cy.”) Irv was supposed to bolster an already formidable pitching staff (Vic Willis, Nick Maddox, Lefty Leifield, Howie Camnitz and Sam Leever) and though he tossed well (4-3-1/2.01), he ended up a swingman and was sold to the minor league Minneapolis Millers after the season. He finished his career tossing for the White Sox in 1910-11 and toiled on the farm through 1916. The Pirate pups had a short MLB shelf life - McCarthy lasted two more seasons, and Harley Young’s final year was 1909. 

1927 - Continuing a feud that dated back to Pirate C Earl Smith's days with the Braves, Smith dropped Boston manager Dave Bancroft with a right to the kisser after they jawed in the seventh inning. Bancroft was carried off the field, and Smith drew a $500 fine and a 30-day suspension. The Pirates won 7-4 at Forbes Field. Smith went 1-for-2 before being ejected (Johnny Gooch was his replacement), with Ray Kremer earning the victory.

1932 - Minor league legend RHP Ron Necciai was born in Gallatin, Fayette County. In 1952, Necciai struck out 27 batters while throwing a 7-0 no-hitter for the Bristol Twins, followed in his next outing by a two-hit, 24 K performance. The Bucs called him up later from Class A, but the 20-year-old Necciai posted at 1-6/7.08 with 31 strikeouts in 54-2/3 IP from August 10th to September 28th, 1952, the span of his entire big league career. He went into the service in 1953, and never played again in MLB as chronic ulcers and a torn rotator cuff ended his run.

1941 - Local boxer Billy Conn fought Joe Louis at New York City's Polo Grounds in a legendary slugfest for the heavyweight championship. The Pirates and the New York Giants, playing at Forbes Field, were called into their dugouts while the 24,738 fans in attendance listened to the radio broadcast of the 56-minute bout. The game resumed after the bout, went 11 innings and was called with the score tied 2-2 at 1:10 AM. It was decided on August 3rd as part of a twin bill that NY swept, so it didn’t end up a very good night for Pittsburgh fans.

Wally Westlake - 1949 Pirates Postcard

1948 - The Pirates spoiled Robin Roberts' five-hit debut, beating the Phils' rookie 2-0 at Shibe Park behind Elmer Riddle’s five-hitter. Wally Westlake homered and Frankie Gustine singled home Ed Fitz Gerald for the Bucco runs. But Roberts was in the show to stay. He lasted 19 years, won 286 games (40 against the Pirates) and entered the Hall of Fame.

1954 - Lefty Warren Spahn, who would win 21 games during the year, took on Vern Law at Forbes Field, and the Deacon did the heavy lifting (with help from CF Dick Hall) during the Buccos 2-1 walkoff win. He tossed a three-hitter against the Braves (Spahn gave up just five raps) and drove in the game-winner with a two-out, bases-loaded blooper up the right field line after the eighth hole hitter, Hall, had been intentionally walked to get to Law. Gail Allie had driven in the duel’s first run in the eighth inning when Hall scored from second with a slide that knocked the ball from C Del Crandall’s mitt. Milwaukee came right back to knot it when Billy Bruton, on second after a walk and bunt, came all the way around on a Hank Aaron fly to the 436’ mark in right center that the busy Hall pulled in with his back to the infield, allowing the speedster Bruton to beat relay home.

1960 - The Bucs were down 3-0 in the ninth inning at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum with two outs and Gino Cimoli down to his last swing, behind in the count 1-2. Cimoli kept the Bucs alive when he eked out an infield hit to ignite a fast to ignite a furious comeback against the Dodgers. Hal Smith homered to cut the lead to one. Then Don Hoak singled, Maz walked and Smoky Burgess tied the game with another knock. Smith was the hero again in the 10th frame, banging a ground ball single to left off Larry Sherry that brought home Roberto Clemente to give the Bucs an in-and-out of the jaws of death 4-3 win. ElRoy Face got the win.

1961 - C Don Leppert made his MLB debut a memorable one with a homer off the first pitch he faced as a big league ballplayer against Curt Simmons in a 5-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals at Forbes Field in the opener of a twin bill. The feat wouldn’t be duplicated by another Bucco until 2012 when Starling Marte lifted one over the wall off Houston’s Dallas Keuchel at Minute Maid Park. The Bucs dropped the nightcap of the bargain bill by a 7-3 count.

1964 - The Pirates took no prisoners against the New York Mets, winning 10-0 at Forbes Field. Willie Stargell banged two hits, including a four-bagger, and had four RBI while Donn Clendenon went 3-for-4 with an inside-the-park homer and a double to back Vern Law. The Deacon tossed a three-hit shutout with five whiffs and no walks to even his record at 5-5.