9/4 Expo Park-Forbes Field Era: Bad News Bucs, If At First..., Double-0, Off To the Fair & The Deacon Is Honored

• 1890 - The Pittsburgh Alleghenys snapped a 23 game losing streak and a stretch where the club lost 33-of-34 games with a 6-2 win over the Cleveland Spiders at RecreatIon Park. 2B Sam LaRoque had a pair of knocks and Dave Anderson notched the win. It didn’t do much to turn the season around; they dropped 20 of the last 23 games to finish 23-113. From July 3rd (when they had their final winning streak of the year of three in a row), they were 6-66. Local hurler Billy Gumbert (his brother Ad also pitched later for Pittsburgh) led the staff with four wins.

Billy Gumbert led the Alleghenys with four wins in 1890 (photo via Out of the Park Development)

• 1908 - With two outs and the Pirates-Cubs in a scoreless 10th inning tie at Exposition Park, Chief Wilson singled to center with the bases juiced, scoring Fred Clarke with the winning run. Warren Gill, on first base, saw Clarke score, and jogged to the dugout before touching second. The Cubs' Johnny Evers tagged second base, and claimed a run preventing force out on Gill. The lone umpire, Hank O'Day, had already left the field and the Cubs protested the game to no avail. Three weeks later on September 23rd, Evers did get a force call in roughly the same situation against the NY Giants’ Fred Merkle, and that play became forever known as “Merkle’s Boner.” Ironically, O’Day was the ump for that game, too.
• 1916 - The Pirates swept the Cards at Forbes Field behind some stellar pitching. Frank Miller threw a four hit whitewash in the opener, winning 7-0 as the Redbirds shot themselves in the foot, with four errors leading to three unearned runs. Wilbur Cooper followed with his own four hit shutout, taking a 2-0 decision. Carson Bigbee went 3-for-4 day with an RBI, double and stolen base while Cooper drove in the other run.

Carson Bigbee (photo via the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame)

• 1948 - With an off date during a Labor Day week home stand, the Pirates added to the Allegheny County Fair festivities by playing an exhibition against the Second Army club at the South Park Fairgrounds. Both papers reported a Bucco victory, but neither gave a score.
• 1965 - Vernon Law was featured on the cover of The Sporting News. He won the NL Comeback Player of the Year award that season with a 17-9/2.15 slash in 29 games.