10/22 - Expo Exhibition, Jughandle Johnny, The Possum, The Hat, Keith Osik...

Expo Exhibition, Jughandle Johnny, The Possum, The Hat, Keith Osik...

• October 22, 1885 - Pittsburgh hosted a world series that it wasn’t even part of. The 1885 World Series was an ad hoc post-season playoff road show between the NL champion Chicago White Stockings and American Association champion St. Louis Browns, played in four different cities. The fifth game was played at Recreation Park in Pittsburgh. The weather was cold and fewer than 500 people were present. Chicago won 9-2 in a shortened game that was called after seven innings because of darkness.
• October 22, 1895 - RHP “Jughandle Johnny” Morrison was born in Pellville, Kentucky. He worked eight seasons (1920-27) for the Pirates with an 89-71 record and 3.52 ERA. Johnny made three appearances in the 1925 World Series against Washington, striking out seven in 9-⅓ frames.
• October 22, 1916 - Announcer Jim Woods was born in Kansas City. He was a sidekick of Bob Prince at KDKA from 1958-69, where he was known as The Possum. He also worked for the Yankees, Cardinals, Athletics and Red Sox, finishing as a national announcer for the USA Network.
• October 22, 1916 - Harry “The Hat” Walker was born in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Walker was hired in 1965 to replace Danny Murtaugh, who stepped down for health reasons. The Pirates contended for the pennant during the 1965 and 1966 seasons, finishing third behind the champion Los Angeles Dodgers and the runner-up San Francisco Giants both years. But when the 1967 Pirates stumbled to a .500 mark in mid-season, Walker was let go in favor of his predecessor, Murtaugh. He did leave his mark, though, as an offensive mind on the organization. Walker, btw, got his nickname from his habit of continually tugging at his cap between pitches during his playing days.
• October 22, 1968 - C Keith Osik was born in Port Jefferson, NY. He was a catcher and all around utility guy. Osik played for the Bucs from1996-2002, hit .231, and even pitched twice to save the bullpen arms in blowout games.