10/11: Bucs Split WS & Playoff Games; Tracy Hired; Burleigh Released; Rube K Day

• 1900 - Rube Waddell punched out a NL season-high 12 in a 2-1 win over the Chicago Orphans at Exposition Park. He finished second in the senior circuit with 130 strikeouts and a 2.37 ERA in 208-⅓ IP, even though his record was just 8-13. Rube only pitched twice for Pittsburgh in 1901 before embarking on a Hall-of-Fame career, mostly with Philadelphia Athletics and St. Louis Browns.

Rube Waddell 2011 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions series

• 1909 - Honus Wagner became the first player to steal three bases in a World Series contest as Pittsburgh beat Detroit at Bennett Park, 8-6, in Game 3 of the Fall Classic to go up two games to one. The second player to swipe three sacks was LA’s Willie Davis, who matched the feat in 1965. Nick Maddox struggled, but went the distance for the win, buttressed by a five-run first inning outburst by the Bucs against Ed Summers; all the opening runs were unearned as Motown made three errors in the inning. Honus Wagner had three hits with three RBI, and Bobby Byrne, Tommy Leach and Bill Abstein each added two more knocks.
• 1925 - The Big Train shut out the Pirates 4-0 on six hits at Griffith Stadium to give the Senators a 3-1 lead in World Series wins. Washington scored all four runs in the second inning off Emil Yde, the big blow a three run homer by Goose Goslin, with Joe Harris adding another. Walter Johnson was in complete control; only one Pirate runner reached second all day.
• 1934 - It was the end of an era as the Pirates released RHP Burleigh Grimes. The Hall of Famer was the last player to legally toss a spitter, one of 17 hurlers exempted when the pitch was outlawed in 1921. He finished the year as a Yankee, then went on to a long career as a coach, manager and scout.

Burleigh Grimes via Centerfield Gate

• 1971 - In a game delayed a day by rain, Brooks Robinson set a World Series record by reaching base five consecutive times (three hits, two walks) against the Pirates as Baltimore won 11-3 in Game Two. Bob Johnson and Bob Moose were hit hard at Memorial Stadium. The O’s scored nine times in the fourth and fifth frames and belted three homers in the laugher. The Bucco runs came in the eighth on a Richie Hebner three-run shot.
• 1972 - Bob Moose's wild pitch in the ninth inning allowed George Foster to score the winning run with two outs as the Cincinnati Reds beat the Bucs 4-3 to capture the NLCS and a World Series berth at Riverfront Stadium. The Pirates had entered the ninth inning with a 3-2 lead before Johnny Bench's solo homer against Dave Giusti tied the game. The Reds lost the World Series to the Oakland A’s in seven games.
• 1979 - Pittsburgh pushed a run across in the ninth to knot the World Series with Baltimore at a game apiece, taking a 3-2 win at Memorial Stadium. Bill Madlock and Ed Ott drove in second inning runs while Eddie Murray homered and doubled to plate a pair. Jim Palmer and Bert Blyleven left the 2-2 game to the bullpens to decide. Both teams left the bases loaded in the seventh. Bill Robinson singled to start the ninth against Tippy Martinez, and Matt Alexander came in to run, only to be caught stealing. With Don Stanhouse on the mound, Bill Madlock drove one deep to center, but it was a loud out. The Bucs kept chuggin’. Ed Ott singled, Phil Garner drew a four pitch walk, and pinch hitter Manny Sanguillen's knock to right was good for the lead. Don Robinson got the win and Kent Tekulve the save, striking out a pair of Orioles in the ninth.

Ed Ott 1979 Hostess series

• 1992 - Pittsburgh stayed alive against the Atlanta Braves at TRS, as they scored four times in the first inning to chase Steve Avery and rode a three hitter by Bob Walk to a 7-1 win. Lloyd McClendon and Jeff King each had three knocks, and the Bucs drilled five doubles among their 13 hits. The Bucs returned to Atlanta down three games to two in the NLCS. Deion Sanders flew to Pittsburgh for the game after playing for the Miami Dolphins that afternoon, looking to become the first player to take part in two pro games in different sports on the same day, but didn’t get into the lineup.
• 2005 - The Pirates hired Jim Tracy as manager, signing him to a three year deal. It was the first time in two decades, since the hiring of Jim Leyland from the White Sox, that Pittsburgh went outside the organization to select its field boss. He lasted two years, then signed on as a bench coach at Colorado, ironically replaced Clint Hurdle as skipper of the Rox in 2009.