6/13 Through the 1980’s: Pops Day; NJ Rumors; Game Stories; HBD John & Darrell

• 1885 - Pop Smith, slick fielding but weak hitting Allegheny 2B, hit into a 4-3-2 triple play against Baltimore in the 11th at Oriole Park. It marked the beginning of an accursed stretch of baseball: Pittsburgh would go on to lose the game 11-10, beginning a tumble that saw them drop from second to finishing 17-½ games back after an 8-23 stretch. 

Pop Smith - 1887-90 Goodwin/Old Judge

• 1904 - C John O’Connell was born in Verona. The Duquesne Duke’s MLB career lasted three games played in 1928-29; he doubled once in nine PAs with a walk. O’Connell was the first Red & Blue ballplayer to reach the big leagues since Johnny Miljus in 1915; the next Bluff product in the show was P Dick Ricketts in 1959 who also played pro hoops until he retired after the 1958 season. 
• 1954 - It was a quite forgettable outing for the Bucs, dropping a twin bill to the Cards at Busch Stadium by 5-0 and 5-3 scores. But it was a rags-to-riches day for 1B Preston Ward. He wore the golden sombrero in the opener, K’ing four times while facing Harvey Haddix. He understandably sat in the nightcap, but was called on to pinch hit in the eighth, and hit a solo homer off Stu Miller. It would take 61 years for another Pirate to whiff in all four at-bats in the first game of a double header and then smack a homer in the second before Starling Marte turned the trick in 2014. 
• 1968 - Pittsburgh won a wild one, 8-7, over the Giants at Candlestick Park. San Francisco scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth and loaded the bases with two down, but had used up their bench and had to send P Ray Sadecki, a good hitting hurler, to the dish to bat for reliever Bill Henry. Roy Face took over and whiffed Sadecki to close out the victory. The play of the game was made in the sixth when Roberto Clemente took a home run away from Willie Mays, making a grab over the RF railing as he was crashing into the fence with two on and two out. 
• 1972 - LHP Darrell May was born in San Bernardino, California. He spent seven seasons, getting a brief look in Pittsburgh in 1996, getting five outings (two starts) and going 0-1/9.35 as a 24-year-old. The Pirates had acquired him off waivers from the Braves; Pittsburgh released him in September and California claimed him. He pitched in the show and in Japan through 2005. He did some high school and college coaching and now runs DMay Baseball School and is in charge of player development for TWC Sports Management. 
• 1980 - It was Willie Stargell Day as Pops went 4-for-4 with two homers, both off Joe Niekro, a double and all five RBI (he drove in Tim Foli three times) in a 5-3 Bucco victory against the Astros at TRS. Eddie Solomon got the win with Kent Tekulve coming on to get the final two outs. 

Willie Stargell - 1980 Topps Superstar

• 1985 - The New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority announced that it had a pair of groups ask about the availability of the Meadowlands should the Pirates relocate there, per the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. The Bucco FO denied the rumors, saying that they hadn’t talked to any potential Jersey buyers and had made remaining in Pittsburgh, at least during the TRS lease that ran through 2011, one of their conditions for a sale. But the storm clouds over the franchise were gathering… 
• 1988 - The Pirates shut out the Cubs, 8-0, at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Bobby Bonilla homered and went 3-for-5 with three RBI while Barry Bonds went 2-for-4 with a dinger and scored three times. Bob Walk pitched a complete game for the win although he had to dodge some bullets - he threw 121 pitches and gave up eight hits with four walks but stranded 12 Cubbies.