7/18 From 1940 Through the 1960’s: Ralph's Big Date; Hat Canned; Game Stories; HBD Jeff

• 1948 - It was a lousy day for the Pirates as they dropped a twinbill to the Boston Braves by 10-2 and 3-1 scores at Forbes Field. But it was a record setting afternoon for Ralph Kiner, who hit a solo shot in the ninth off Vern Bickford in the nitecap for his 100th career homer in 385 games, a pace that wasn’t surpassed until Ryan Howard did it in 325 games in 2007. 

Ralph Kiner - 1952 Wheaties

• 1951 - Ralph Kiner drove in seven runs and hit three HRs‚ including his 10th grand slam‚ in a 13-12 slugfest win over the Dodgers at Ebbets Field. His final bomb‚ a solo shot off Erv Palica in the eighth‚ broke a 12-12 tie. In Kiner's final at bat in the ninth‚ Carl Furillo hauled in his long drive near the CF gate. Ralph set the franchise record by notching his fourth game with three homers, later to be tied by Willie Stargell. Joe Garagiola and Gus Bell also went long for the Bucs. 
• 1953 - Scout Jeff McKay was born in Oregon. A minor league pitcher in the Giants system, he coached at Oregon for a couple of seasons before becoming a bird dog. He scouted for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1982-89), Kansas City Royals (1990-2006) and Chicago White Sox (2007-08). Jeff coached at Corban University in Salem, Oregon, in 2007-2008 and became the Warriors head coach in 2011. McKay also founded Baseball Northwest, a showcase for high school ballplayers. 
• 1956 - Dick Groat’s two-run double in the 10th snapped a six-game losing streak for the Bucs, leading the club to a 4-2 win at Busch Stadium. The Pirates ran themselves out of chances to win in regulation by losing happy-feet runners at second, third and home. It ended a streak for Bob Friend, too - the two runs for the Redbirds ended his scoreless skein against them at 32 innings. On the bright side, the complete game four-hitter was his 12th victory of the year, one that took him a while to earn - his 11th win was on June 16th. 
• 1957 - Ernie Banks and future Bucco skipper Chuck Tanner of the Cubs hit inside-the-park homers at Forbes Field, but Chicago still lost 6-5 when the Pirates scored four runs off three Chicago pitchers in the ninth. Dick Groat’s two-run triple tied the game and he crossed the plate with the game winner following Bill Mazeroski’s single, giving Luis Arroyo the victory. 

Dick Groat - 1957 Topps

• 1964 - The Milwaukee Braves got blown out at County Stadium, losing 8-2 to the Pirates, paced by Bob Bailey and Roberto Clemente’s three hits to back Bob Veale’s seven hitter. The Bucs also helped Brave legend Warren Spahn reach a milestone. Seven of Pittsburgh's 15 hits came against the southpaw, who lasted just 3-2/3 frames, but he managed to complete his 5,000th MLB inning, putting him in an elite group; he still ranks eighth all-time in IP (sixth since post-1900) and joined a club with just a dozen other 5K workhorse members. The Hall-of-Famer usually fared better against the Buccos; he beat them 49 times over his two-decade career. 
• 1967 - Harry “The Hat” Walker was fired as manager when the Bucs started out 42-42, despite winning 182 games and finishing third in back-to-back seasons. Old standby Danny Murtaugh returned to the bench in his stead.