5/2: Alleghenys Firsts, Taft Visits Forbes Field, Triple-Triple & Highlight Games

• 1877 - The Alleghenys beat the Boston Red Caps, the eventual International Association champs, 1-0 behind do-it-all Pud Galvin. He tossed a one-hitter and bombed a homer thought to be the first ball to clear the fence at Union Park.
• 1882 - The Pittsburgh Alleghenys of the American Association played their first MLB game (The AA was an alternative major league in the early days; the club would join the NL five years later.) against Cincinnati at the Bank Street Grounds. The Alleghenys whipped the Red Stockings by a 10-9 tally. Charlie Morton and Jim Keenan combined for seven hits. The Alleghenys’ Jack Leary and Reds’ Will White both went the distance. For Leary, who was a jack-of-all-trades (he only pitched three times in his 60 games with the Alleghenys, batting .286), it was his sole Pittsburgh win (1-0, 6.75) before he moved on to Baltimore later in the season. White would end the campaign 40-12 with a 1.86 ERA and Cincinnati ran away with the AA crown.
• 1887 - Fred Carroll of the Alleghenys hit the franchise’s first NL homer off Detroit Wolverine pitcher Lady Baldwin as part of his cycle at Recreation Park in an 8-3 win. Motown had won 31 straight exhibition games and three regular season games‚ but met their match in Pud Galvin.

Fred Carroll 1887 Gold Coin (via Library of Congress)

• 1909 - Talk about small ball! Honus Wagner stole second, third and home while his teammates turned three additional stolen bases, two walks, a plunked batter, two errors, and two hits into a five-run first frame in the Bucs' 6-0 victory in the opener of a twin bill. They also won the second game 5-2 against the Cubs at the West Side Grounds.
• 1910 - President William Taft attended the Pirates 5-2 win over the Cubs. The team set a then-attendance record of 20,265 at Forbes Field due to President’s appearance, but the Pittsburg Press headline was “Taft Was Cheered, But Thunderous Applause Met Honus Wagner.” Hans had just one hit though he did score twice. The win went to Babe Adams, who was relieved by Lefty Leifield in the seventh.
• 1925 - The Pirates scored seven times in the first frame and plated 14 runs by the third to romp over the Cincinnati Reds 18-3 at Forbes Field. Clyde Barnhart, Pie Traynor and Earl Smith combined to drive in 10 runs while the top of the order, Max Carey, Kiki Cuyler and Eddie Moore, scored nine times. Lee Meadows tossed a five hitter for the victory.
• 1943 - Behind hurlers Wally Hebert and Bob Klinger‚ the Pirates claimed a twinbill from the Cubs‚ 3-0 and 1-0 at Forbes Field. In the second game‚ Cubs hurlers Dick Barrett and Lon Warneke combined on a one-hit loss. Vince DiMaggio's hit in the fourth was the only Bucco knock; the Pirate run was unearned. Klinger answered the bell with a four-hit gem of his own.

Bob Klinger 1938 (Conlon Collection/The Sporting News)

• 1953 - OF Carlos Bernier hit 3 consecutive triples in a 12-4 win over the Redlegs at Forbes Field‚ the Bucs fourth straight victory. Bernier added a single and a stolen base. In a stretch of 11 at bats‚ Carlos banged four triples‚ two doubles‚ and two singles. It was a good start to his only MLB season; he finished the year hitting .213.
• 1954 - The Bucs and Cubs split a DH at Wrigley as Pittsburgh lost the opener 5-3 and won the nitecap 18-10. Frank Thomas had seven straight hits on the afternoon. Bob Friend, winner of the second game, drove in three runs to win his first of the year and set a backhand standard: Not until Vida Blue in 1979 had anyone else allowed 10 runs and still won.
• 1956 - Lee Walls went 5-for-5 in a losing effort against St. Louis at Busch Stadium. The Bucs fell 10-9 in 10 innings despite Wall’s three doubles, three RBI and three runs.
• 2006 - Zach Duke tossed a five-hitter for his first MLB complete game and shutout in the Pirates' 8-0 win victory over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Freddy Sanchez had three hits with three RBI and two runs scored to lead the attack supporting the Zackster. 

Zach Duke 2006 Upper Deck

• 2012 - AJ Burnett gave up 12 runs in 2-2/3 innings as the Cardinals clocked the Pirates 12-3 at Busch Stadium. AJ had shut them out two weeks earlier, 2-0, at PNC Park. He allowed the most runs by a Pirate hurler in 80 years and surrendered more earned runs in under three innings than anyone else since earned runs were first an official stat in 1913. "I stunk," Burnett told the AP. "There is nothing more I can say.” AJ got over it, going 16-10 with a 3.51 ERA during the season.
• 2014 - The Bucs rallied from a 5-3 deficit to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-5 at PNC Park on the strength of a pair of ninth inning homers. Pedro Alvarez slammed a two run shot to tie the game and Starling Marte walked it off with a two-out, two-strike solo bomb into left center off Sergio Santos to give Mark Melancon the win.