5/25 - Busy Day In Pittsburgh Baseball

A little bit of everything today...

• 1906 - Martin Dihigo was born in Matanzas, Cuba. Best known for his play in the Mexican League, he also spent a couple of decades in the Negro Leagues and 1927-28 with the Homestead Grays. Dihigo was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1977. The multi-talented Dihigo played all nine positions as a pro, though he’s best known as a pitcher and second baseman. He’s the only player ever to be inducted to the American, Cuban, Dominican, Mexican and Venezuelan Halls of Fame. 
• 1919 - Casey Stengel had been traded to Pittsburgh by the Brooklyn Dodgers, and when he returned to Ebbet’s Field as a Bucco, his old fans gave him the razzberries. Bowing to the grandstand, he doffed his cap, and out flew a sparrow that he had somehow picked up in the outfield. That was the highlight of Stengel’s day. He went 0-for-4 in a 5-0 loss. 
• 1935 - Babe Ruth hit his 714th and final home run off Guy Bush at Forbes Field in an 11-7 Boston Braves loss to the Pirates, a career record that would stand for almost 40 years before Hammerin' Hank claimed the crown. The Bambino went 4-for-4, hitting three home runs and driving in six runs. The final drive, launched in the seventh inning, cleared the right field roof, the first time that feat was ever done. According to local lore, the ball didn't quit rolling until it stopped near Boundary Street in Junction Hollow. 
• 1953 - Ralph Kiner became the 12th MLB player to hit 300 HR with a blast off the NY Giants Al Corwin in a 6-3 loss at Forbes Field. 
• 1958 - One of the largest bench clearing brawls in Bucco history erupted when manager Danny Murtaugh charged the mound after Ruben Gomez began headhunting. Orlando Cepeda, the Baby Bull, joined the melee with a bat before he was tackled by teammate Willie Mays. The bad blood was carried over from some beanballing in the prior visit to Candlestick Park. It fired up the G-Men more than Pirates as they swept the doubleheader at Forbes Field 5-2 and 6-1. 
• 1969 - Jim Bunning won his 200th game, scattering five hits and striking out eight in a 2-1 victory over Gaylord Perry and the Giants at Candlestick Park. It was a good day for the Bucs as they also took the nightcap of the twinbill by a 6-2 score behind Bob Moose. 
• 1979 - Due to fog, the Buc-Met match ended in a 3-3 tie after 11 innings and a 73-minute delay. The umps finally gave in when Bill Robinson lost Joel Youngblood's ball in the Shea Stadium mist. 
• 1983 - In the third inning of an eventual 6-0 loss to the Braves at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, Pirates' starter Jim Bibby (4) and reliever Jim Winn (3) combined to walk seven consecutive batters to tie a major league mark set back in 1909. 
• 1985 - Rick Rhoden won his 100th game and SS Bill Almon hit his first grand slam while driving in five runs as the Pirates jumped on the Braves 8-2 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. 
• 2009 - The Pirates beat the Cubs 10-8 at Wrigley Field. Freddy Sanchez went 6-for-6 with four runs, three RBI, a double and a homer to become first Pirate in 19 years to have six hits in a game. The Bucs, which had just finished an interleague set against the White Sox, became the first team in major league history to play consecutive series against the Cubs and White Sox in Chicago.