8/21: Lynch Sets Record, Stennett Breaks Leg, Bautista Trade, Tabata Signs Long-Term

Chief Wilson, Sam Leever, Nick Maddox, Murry Dickson, Jerry Lynch, Rennie Stennett, Jose Bautista, JT...

• 1883 - John Owen “Chief” Wilson was born at his family's ranch in Bertram, Texas. Chief, by the way, wasn’t a native American; his moniker was given by manager Fred Clarke, who thought the clean cut Wilson looked like a "Chief of the Texas Rangers." He set the organized baseball record of 36 triples in 1912. Chief was a Pirate for six years (1908-13), driving in a league-leading 107 runs in 1911 and hitting .274 as a Bucco. He was the starting RF for the 1909 World Championship club. 
• 1902 - Sam Leever outdueled Christy Mathewson 2-0 in the opener of a doubleheader at Exposition Park; Leever surrendered three hits and Matty six. The NY Giant bats woke up in the second game as NY earned a split with an 8-1 victory. 
• 1908 - The Pittsburg Press wrote that “Nick Maddox was pretty nearly the whole show at Exposition Park...” and it was right. Maddox tossed a seven hit complete game, had three hits and drove in both Bucco runs in a 2-1 win over the Brooklyn Superbas. 
• 1916 - RHP Murry Dickson was born in Tracy, Missouri. He tossed five years (1949-53) for some sad Pirate teams, leading the league in losses in 1952-53. But he also won 34 games in 1951-52 for Buc squads that won just 106 times, so he was responsible for nearly ⅓ of the Pirate wins. He was an All Star in 1953, with a Pittsburgh final line of 66-85/3.83. 
• 1953 - After 13 straight wins‚ the first place Dodgers finally lost‚ going down to Murry Dickson and the last-place Pirates 7-1 at Forbes Field. Frank Thomas had a homer and four RBI in the victory. 
• 1963 - Jerry Lynch set a MLB record for pinch-hit home runs when he hit his 15th, a ninth-inning blast off Lindy McDaniel, that gave the Pirates a 7-6 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. 
• 1977 - Rennie Stennett broke his right leg sliding into second against the Giants at TRS. Stennett never recovered fully, and his best BA after the accident was just .244. To rub some salt into the wound, the Bucs lost the game 5-4. And Stennett, who was leading the league in batting, fell 12 at-bats short of qualifying for the title, though his .336 BA would have been nosed out by the eventual winner, teammate Dave Parker, who hit .338. 
• 2008 - Jose Bautista was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for a PTBNL, who ended up being C Robinzon Diaz. Bautista bloomed as a slugger in Toronto and while no one saw it coming at the time, it ended up among the worst deals in Bucco history. 
• 2011 - The Pirates announced a six year extension of Jose Tabata’s contract. It guaranteed him $15M and included three club option years. JT’s advisers quit, believing the terms were too team friendly; that has yet to be seen.