5/3 In Bucco History

Slamming doors, the Gunner's return, a skunk, rallies, whiffs, lightning-fast games and other good stuff...

• 1899 - OF Jack McCarthy hit a ball that went through an open gate in the Exposition Park outfield wall, and a helpful fan shut it to give him an uncontested three run, walk-off homer in Pittsburgh’s 7-6 win against the Louisville Colonels. The league frowned on the play and ordered a replay of the game.
• 1909 - The Bucs whipped Chicago‚ 9-2 at the West Side Grounds. Honus Wagner went 5-for-6 during the game. He was repeating what he did the day before, also going 5-for-6 in a 6-0 victory over the Cubs. Chicago was Pittsburgh’s hottest competitor and finished second to them in the NL, 6-1/2 games off the Pirate pace.
• 1928 - Ray Kremer lost his first home start of the season to the Boston Braves at Forbes Field 5-4 in eleven innings, ending a MLB record streak of 22 straight home victories begun in 1926.
• 1947 - The Pirates traded OF Al Gionfriddo and $100,000 to Dodgers for P Kirby Higbe, P Cal McLish, IF Gene Mauch, P Hank Behrman, and P Dixie Howell. Gionfriddo was remembered for his 1947 World Series grab of a Joe DiMaggio blast for Brooklyn and Red Barber’s call that he was going “back back back back back” for the catch, which Chris Berman of ESPN later adopted as his home run tag line. Some analysts believe the Mahatma made the deal to send a message to the Dodgers about his support of Jackie Robinson.
• 1953 - Johnny Lindell, a converted outfielder‚ pitched the Pirates to their fifth straight win‚ beating the Cards‚ 6-2. Lindell earned his first win since 1942 when he was a Yankee reliever, his last season on the mound before this year.
• 1985 - The Gunner, Bob Prince, returned to the booth after a 10 year absence (he had been fired by KDKA). Prince got a standing ovation from the crowd, and when he took over the mic in the fourth frame, the Pirates erupted for nine runs, earning him another O after the inning. It was a short comeback as The Gunner died of cancer on June 10th.
• 1986 - A skunk wandered onto the field at San Diego in the 7th inning at Jack Murphy Stadium and held up the Padres-Pirates game for several minutes. It was rumored that a group of skunks lived under the stadium‚ feeding on peanuts and other fan debris; guess that’s one rumor that proved true. The Bucs scored three times in the 8th and added another in the 9th to beat the Padres‚ 7-6.
• 1991 - The Pirates defeated the Astros 1-0 in a one hour‚ 45 minute contest at TRS‚ the NL's shortest nine inning game since 1981. Zane Smith threw a complete game four hitter while Pete Harnisch went the distance and gave up only two knocks, one being Orlando Merced’s first homer of the year in the third inning. Harnisch threw 89 pitches and Smith 92 during the contest.
• 1998 - Turner Ward literally crashed through the right field wall at Three Rivers Stadium while running down Mike Piazza’s long fly in a 10-5 loss to the Dodgers. And yes, he hung onto the ball in a play that is still considered one of the great all-time MLB catches and an ESPN go-to clip.
• 1999 - The Bucs score four times in the ninth on homers by Warren Morris and Brian Giles and a two-out walk off single by Brant Brown to surge past the Giants 9-8 at TRS. Giles had three hits and five RBI while Jason Kendall went 5-for-5 with a pair of doubles.
• 2012 - The Pirates set a club mark by striking out 17 in nine innings during their 6-3 win over the Cards at Busch Stadium. Erik Bedard did the heavy lifting, whiffing 11 in five frames. Four Pirate relievers added six more K in the final four innings, with Jason Grilli and Joel Hanrahan picking up a pair of punchouts apiece in the eighth and ninth.