6/15 Games: Gene's Streak, Dino's Hot Start, Indoor Rain-Out, Lead Feet, Game Stories...

• 1897 - IF Gene DeMontreville had five hits, but it wasn’t enough as the Pirates went down to the Senators 10-8 at Washington’s Boundary Field. DeMontreville had a 36-game hitting streak from 1896 to 1897. The mark wasn’t discovered by baseball historians until 2007, and ranks as the tenth-longest hitting streak in MLB history.
• 1909 - The Pirates defeated the Brooklyn Superbas 8-2 at Washington Park for their 14th straight win. It was snapped the following day, but between May 24th - June 29th, Pittsburgh won 27-of-30 games on the way to the pennant and their first World Series title over Ty Cobb’s Detroit Tigers.

• 1944 - Max Butcher dodged the raindrops and went the distance as the Bucs edged the Red 1-0 at Crosley Field. The Pirates scored with two down in the ninth when Bob Elliott’s single to center sent Lee Handley home for the Pirates only tally against Cincinnati’s Tom de la Cruz. Butcher gave up eight hits over the course of the afternoon, but the Redlegs went 0-for-8 with RISP; Handley was only the second Bucco to get into scoring position against de la Cruz.
• 1949 - Rookie OF Dino Restelli homered twice and drove in five RBI against Boston’s Warren Spahn, leading the Pirates to an 8-7 come-from-behind victory at Forbes Field. After a blazing start, he was back in the minors the next season. Some people say his career was ruined when he took a Ewell Blackwell fastball in the neck; another theory was that he couldn’t see because of east coast humidity - his glasses kept fogging up!
• 1962 - Hank Aaron hit a grand slam in the seventh and Roberto Clemente answered an inning later as a furious Pirates rally was just enough to overcome the Milwaukee Braves 9-8 at Forbes Field. The Braves held an 8-2 lead going into the eighth. Arriba’s slam made a game of it, then with two outs five straight Bucco hitters reached with Bill Virdon’s single tying the game and Dick Groat’s knock chasing home the game winner. Seven Pirates starters had hits and scored/ drove in runs (or both). Jack Lamabe got the win for tossing a scoreless eighth and ElRoy Face earned the save.

Roberto Clemente 1968 Topps 3-D

• 1971 - The Bucs scored twice in the ninth to beat Houston 3-0 at the Astrodome behind Steve Blass’ six hitter. But Roberto Clemente’s catch was the highlight reel. Ahead 1-0 in the bottom of the eighth with one on and one out, Clemente first robbed Cesar Cedeno with a sliding shoestring catch. The next grab off Bob Watson was even better better, when he leaped and pulled in his liner from over the wall with his back to the plate, crashing into the fence at full throttle. He landed dazed; CF Al Oliver had to take the ball from him. Per BR Bullpen, UPI’s Darrell Mack caught Watson’s reaction: "I never saw one like that...he hit it (the wall) wide open. He never slowed up. I don’t see how he could keep the ball in his glove. The thing that makes him so great is that he does it all in a jam. He’s one of the best clutch players in the game.” The fans in Houston gave him two ovations; one after the catch and once again in the ninth when he batted.
• 1976 - The Bucs were in effect rained out of a game at the Houston Astrodome. Though the field was fine and the teams took their pre-game warmups, flooding prevented the umps from reaching the yard. The Pirates and Astros shared their clubhouse buffet on the field with the Houston staffers who made it in, with several in flip-flops. It was the only time in Houston and MLB history that a game under a dome was called off because of bad weather for a reason rather than a building malfunction.
• 1987 - In a 3-1 win over the Cardinals‚ Jim Morrison set a MLB record by getting caught stealing home twice in the same inning. He was first caught in a rundown and Terry Pendleton dropped the throw to third, with Morrison being charged with a CS and Pendleton an error. Morrison tried to steal again - some guys never learn - and was caught cleanly the second time. Mike Diaz went deep while Andy Van Slyke and Spanky LaValliere doubled home runs to back Mike Dunne’s complete game three-hitter.

Not a good day for happy feet - Jim Morrison 1987 Topps Mini

• 1992 - Jeff King was caught stealing twice in the same inning. The first time he was given 1B after being picked off when he collided with Phillies P Terry Mulholland during the rundown. Mulholland was called for interference‚ and King was charged with a caught stealing. He was nailed later in the frame trying to steal third. The Bucs lost 4-1.
• 2008 - The Bucs squandered a 4-2 lead in the ninth, allowing the Orioles to score twice, but came back in the tenth to claim a 5-4 win at Camden Yards. Jason Bay walked to start the extra frame and scored on Adam LaRoche’s single. Matt Capps, who had blown the save by giving up a two-run, two-out homer to Bip Roberts, struck out a pair in the tenth to claim the W.
• 2010 - The Pirates lost to the Chicago White Sox 6-4 at PNC Park, but don’t blame Andrew McCutchen. He had his seventh 3+ hit game, with a walk, run scored, RBI and stole three bases for the second time in his brief career. In one sequence, Chicago’s Matt Thornton threw to first 14 times to keep Cutch close - and he still stole second. Brad Lincoln lost his second straight start since being called up from the minors, and for the Bucs, it was their ninth consecutive loss.