8/14 From the 50s Forward: HBD Tinker, Brother Act, RIP Fred, Game Stories

• 1952 - Ralph Kiner homered twice, the second being the game winner, and drove in four runs as the Bucs beat the St. Louis Cards 5-3 in 11 innings at Sportsman Park. Tony Bartirome collected three hits, Dick Groat scored twice and Murry Dickson went the distance for the win.

Ralph Kiner 1952 Topps

• 1960 - The second-place Cards entered the day four games behind the Bucs; they went to bed six back as the Pirates swept a twinbill 9-4 and 3-2 at Forbes Field. Pittsburgh banged out six doubles in the opener and Rocky Nelson’s three RBI backed Vern Law’s complete game victory. The nitecap went 11 frames; Don Hoak’s single off Lindy McDaniel brought in Bob Skinner with the game winner. Dick Stuart and Dick Groat drove in the other runs as the Buc bullpen pitched five scoreless frames, with Fred Green getting the win. 
• 1960 - Fred Clarke passed away at the age of 87 in Winfield, Kansas at his farm called the “Little Pirates Ranch.” Clarke was the player-manager for four Pittsburgh pennants and two World Series appearances (1903, 1909) with a record of 1,422-969 (.595) and batted .299 as an outfielder in his 15 Pirates years. He was selected to the Hall of Fame in 2004. 
• 1971 - The Card's Hall of Famer Bob Gibson no-hit the Pirates, 11-0, at TRS in front of 30,678 frustrated fans. Gibson walked three, struck out 10, and added three RBI. It was the last no hit game thrown against the Bucs until Homer Bailey no-no’ed them in 2012; they've been held hitless eight times. 

J-Bell (photo Pittsburgh Pirates)

• 1992 - 1B Josh “Tinker” Bell was born in Irving, Texas. A high school star who said he was committed to attending college, he was nevertheless taken in the second round of the 2011 draft out of Dallas Jesuit College Prep by the Bucs and received a record non-first-round bonus of $5M to change his mind. Many felt that offer was the straw that broke the back of unlimited draft spending and ushered in the era of pool money. Switched from the outfield to first base because of the Pirates young talent in the pasture, Josh played in two Futures games. He got his call up in July of 2016 and in his second big-league at-bat smacked a grand-slam and by 2017 the first base job was his to lose. The nickname isn’t a pixie knockoff (after all, Josh is 6’3” & 230 lbs) but pure hardball in origin. Bell tinkers with the mechanics of his swing so much that his minor-league teammates christened him "Tinker” Bell. 
• 2005 - Dave Williams threw 118 pitches on the way to his first career complete game and shutout as the Pirates beat the Astros 8-0 at Minute Maid Park. Jose Castillo, Jason Bay and Ryan Doumit each homered while Jack Wilson added a grand slam with two outs in the 8th inning, extending his hitting streak to 10 games. 
• 2006 - The Bucs finished a modest four game winning streak with a 4-2 victory over the Brewers at PNC Park. Jeremy Burnitz & Jose Castillo hit solo homers while Chris Duffy scored twice to help Victor Santos earn the W. 

Chris Duffy 2006 Topps Heritage

• 2008 - Andy and Adam LaRoche appeared together for the Pirates in a 3 - 1 loss to the Reds, going 1-for-6 with a walk between them. They become the eighth pair of brothers to play together in franchise history, but the first in 50 years since the O’Brien twins, Johnny and Eddie. 
• 2014 - RHP John Axford was claimed off waivers from the Cleveland Indians. The reliever was the only MLB deadline addition made to the team from outside the organization for the 2014 stretch run. 
• 2016 - One day after tying a team record by stranding 18 runners in an 8-4 loss, the Bucs cashed in at Dodger Stadium and punished LA’s Big Blue 11-3. They still had 10 runners LOB, but the 16 hits, five walks and HBP led to plenty of plating. Josh Harrison and rookie Adam Frazier each collected four hits while Jordy Mercer, Sean Rodriguez and Jung Ho Kang homered as Chad Kuhl with help from his friends in the pen cruised to victory. Kuhl, in his first MLB campaign, started his sixth straight game that ended in a Bucco win even though his personal slate was just 2-0.