8/30 From 1950’s Through the 1970’s: 17 For Face; Arlin Returns; Game Stories; RIP Arky; HBD Marlon & Luis

• 1951 - The Pirates rallied from an 8-1 deficit to take a 10-9 victory from the Giants at the Polo Grounds. Frank Thomas hit his first MLB homer and Ralph Kiner won it with a long ball in the ninth while Gus Bell and Pete Castiglione also went deep for the Bucs. Pittsburgh climbed back to take the lead in the eighth, only to have the Giants tie it, but the G-Men were trumped by Kiner in the end. Murry Dickson blew the save but ultimately got the win, one of 20 he earned during the campaign. 

Arky Vaughan - 1934 Play Ball

• 1952 - Arky Vaughan, 40, and his friend Bill Wimer drowned in California’s Lost Lake. While the two were fishing, their rowboat overturned. Wimer couldn’t swim, and both men went under when Vaughan tried to save his bud. Vaughan retired with 1,173 runs scored, 926 RBI, 118 steals, a .318 BA and .406 OBP. His .385 batting average, .491 OBP, and 1.098 OPS in 1935 are Pirate team records, and the batting average is a 20th century record for NL shortstops. Arky was a Hall-of-Famer, included in the Ritter/Honig book “The 100 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time” and cited by Bill James as the second greatest SS in history, behind only Honus Wagner. 
• 1959 - ElRoy Face notched his 17th straight victory of the year, earning a 10-inning win against Philadelphia, 7-6, at Forbes Field after Dick Stuart’s two-run double in overtime. The Bucs rallied from a five-run deficit on the strength of Danny Kravitz and Stuart homers to sweep the doubleheader. They took the opener 2-1 behind Harvey Haddix’s arm and Bob Skinner’s two-out, ninth-inning knock that scored Dick Hoak to climb to four games from the top. Maybe they listened to NBC broadcaster Leo Durocher, who regaled some of the Buccos before the game with tales of his ‘51 Giants winning the pennant although 12-1/2 games back at one point. Face had also won the last five decisions of 1958, giving him a 22 game winning streak. He finished the year 18-1, and his 18 relief wins remains the major league record. The Baron went a month (6/11-7/12) without giving up a run, and his 22 straight wins is second only to Carl Hubbell’s 24-gamer. 
• 1960 - The Pirates defeated Sandy Koufax and the Dodgers, 5-2, at the LA Memorial Coliseum. Bob Friend, with late help from ElRoy Face, picked up the win supported by long balls from Dick Groat and Roberto Clemente, who became the only right-handed hitter beside Frank Howard to homer the opposite way in the Coliseum during the season after swatting an outside-half heater 400’. 
• 1972 - Bob Prince turned the mic over to ex-KDKA announcer Harold Arlin, the first man to ever broadcast a live baseball game. The Gunner graced him to call a few innings in Pittsburgh while Harold’s grandson‚ Steve Arlin‚ was on the mound for San Diego. Pap-pap didn’t have much to brag about as the Bucs won 11-0, with Manny Sanguillen and Dave Cash combining to drive in seven runs on five hits. There was a highlight moment, though - Roberto Clemente tied the club record for hits with a pair of knocks, equaling Honus Wagner's franchise mark of 2,970 career hits. 

The Gunner and Harold Arlin - photo via Baseball Hall of Fame

• 1977 - OF Marlon Byrd was born in Boynton Beach, Florida. The Pirates acquired the vet, along with John Buck, from the Mets for the 2013 stretch run in exchange for Dilson Herrera and Vic Black. He came through, hitting .318 with three homers during the regular season and .364 in the postseason with a big three-run homer in the Wild Card win against the Reds. He then signed with the Phils during the off season. Byrd also had two PED suspensions, in 2012 and 2016, with the second one ending his 15-year career. 
• 1979 - IF Luis Rivas was born in La Guaira, Venezuela. Luis played for eight years, primarily for the Twins, and finished his career in Pittsburgh in 2008, batting .218 (he had never hit under .256 in his prior stops) after signing a minor league FA deal for $525K. He did have one big week for the Bucs, though - he had his first two-homer game on May 25th and banged his first grand slam on the 31st.