9/6 From the 1970’s Forward: #8 Retired; Virdon, Lloyd Axed; 21-of-23; HBD Derrek, Frank & Mike; Game Stories

• 1973 - The Pirates fired manager Bill Virdon after a 67-69 start and brought back Danny Murtaugh for his fourth (and last) stint at the helm. The Irishman went 13-13, but won the division twice and was runner-up in the next three years, winning 272 games. 
• 1974 - Dock Ellis allowed one run on three hits while tossing a complete game in a 2-1 win against the Expos at TRS. Each team scored a run in the first inning before the Bucs scored the game-winner in the second when Ed Kirkpatrick led off the inning with a home run. 

Dock Ellis 1974 Topps

• 1975 - In a game that went back-and-forth between the Pirates and the Expos at Parc Jarry, the Bucs poured it on at the end by scoring seven times in the 11th inning to seal a 12-5 win. The big blow in the opening nine was Willie Stargell’s three-run blast off Steve Rogers. In the 11th, the Pirates strung together three doubles, three singles, two walks and two Expo errors to plate seven times with Al Oliver and Bill Robinson banging out two-run hits. Manny Sanguillen had three hits and Richie Zisk chipped in two knocks and two walks. Pops had two hits and four RBI; Robinson also had a pair of raps and chased home three runners. Ken Brett got the win.
• 1975 - 1B Derrek Lee was born in Sacramento, California. Lee was at the end of a 15-year career when the Bucs pried him from Baltimore for Aaron Baker in 2011 for the stretch run; the Pirates were just 4-½ games out of first and alive for the wild card at the deadline, then promptly did a face plant. Derrek started on fire by hitting two homers in his first game, then broke his wrist. He did come back for 28 games in all, hitting .337. He didn’t actually retire at the end of the season, but said he was looking for the “perfect situation.” It never came: Lee spurned both Pittsburgh and the Yankees, then retired. 
• 1977 - Dale Berra stepped to the plate with two on and nobody out in the 11th and was supposed to bunt. But the Phils had the wheel play on and rather than play into it, the Bucs had young Dale swing away. It paid off as his single to left was the walkoff bingo, scoring Al Oliver for a 5-4 Bucco win at TRS. Oliver had two hits, including a homer, with a walk. Goose Gossage tossed two innings for the win, set up by Kent Tekulve and Grant Jackson who put up zeroes in relief of Jerry Reuss. 

Dale Berra 1977 Topps

• 1978 - The Pirates concluded a remarkable streak by winning their 21st game in 23 outings by a 4-1 score over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. It was their 11th straight victory, primed by Don Robinson’s five-hit, nine-K effort. The red hot finish wasn’t enough, though, as the club finished the season in second, 1-1/2 games behind the Phillies. 
• 1978 - LHP Frank Brooks was born in Brooklyn. The Pirates picked him up from the Phils in 2003 as part of the Mike Williams deal. He worked through AA and AAA and got the call in 2004, going 0-1, 4.76. His line was blown up by two bad outings of the 11 he made; in the other nine appearances he gave up just two runs. But he was waived, got in one more game the following year with Atlanta and finished out his pro career in the indie leagues. 
• 1982 - Willie Stargell had his number 8 retired in front of 38‚052 fans at Three Rivers Stadium. He had earlier announced that this campaign was his last go-around, and this was “Willie Stargell Day.” The traffic jam for people trying to get to the event delayed both Cap’n Willie’s pre-game ceremony and the game, as did a congratulatory call from President Ronald Reagan. The 41-year-old slugger delivered a pinch single in the Pirates' 6-1 win over the Mets. Over his 21-year career with the Pirates, he hit .282 with 2,232 hits, 475 home runs and 1,540 RBI while his clubs won six NL East titles, two NL pennants and two World Series crowns. Pops was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988.

Pops Retirement (photo Marlene Karas/Post Gazette)

• 1990 - RHP Mike York was born in Oak Park, Illinois. He started out as a rookie in 1990 for the Pirates, getting into four games with a 1-1/2.84 slash. York got a little more work with the Indians the following season after being traded for Mitch Webster and that was his MLB career. He did have a long shelf life in the minors, working on the farm from 1983-1998. But his Pirates stint was life changing. York was an alcoholic, and he got sober in Pittsburgh when the Bucs made his signing dependent on rehab with Sudden Sam McDowell, who after a lot screaming and yelling (Sam began with a confrontational technique on York) finally got through to him, and the pair remain close to this day. 
• 1997 - Tony Womack went 4-for-4, scored three runs, drove in another and tied the club record with four stolen bases in Pittsburgh’s 13-4 win at Cincinnati’s Cinergy Field. Womack went on to lead the NL with 60 stolen bases that season. Shawon Dunston and Freddy Garcia added homers for the Bucs. The club scored three runs in the eighth and added four in the ninth to turn a squeaker into a laugher for Francisco Cordova. The Freak Show Pirates moved to within 2-½ games of the division leading Astros with the win.
• 2005 - Lloyd McClendon was let go as manager after posting a 336-446 (.430) record over five seasons. He was replaced by bench coach Pete Mackanin on an interim basis for the rest of the season, with Jim Tracy taking the reins in 2006.

Lloyd McClendon 2002 Topps Chrome

• 2014 - The Pirates got 14 shutout innings from seven different pitchers to take a 5-3 victory in 11 innings in the continuation of a suspended game and then a 5-0 win in the scheduled game against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Tony Watson and Mark Melancon each worked a pair of innings in the suspended game, with Mark the Shark getting the win and rookie John Holdzkom picking up the save. The Bucs iced the game, suspended from the previous night at 3-3, on a Josh Harrison single and Tony Sanchez sac fly. The nightcap was largely the work of Francisco Liriano, who worked six shutout frames with nine K, allowing only one runner to reach second. Andrew McCutchen led a balanced attack with three hits and Jordy Mercer had a pair of knocks, including a homer and two RBI. 
• 2016 - The Pirates losing streak reached eight games with a brutal 9-7 loss to the Cardinals at PNC Park. St. Louis jumped ahead 5-0, but the Bucs rallied to take a 6-5 lead after a four-run fourth inning. Both bullpens had some shaky moments, but the score carried over into the ninth, when with two outs and facing an 0-2 count, Matt Carpenter hit a game-tying homer off Tony Watson, who then imploded, giving up a double followed by back-to-back homers. The Pittsburgh bright spot was Jung Ho Kang, who homered twice. The Bucs dropped 5-½ games behind the Redbirds in the race for the final wildcard with 26 games remaining.