6/25 From 1940 Through the 1970’s: Kiner Muscles Up; Pops Bomb; Game Stories; HBD A-Ram, John & Alejandro

• 1943 - RHP John Gelnar was born in Granite, Oklahoma. The Bucs signed Gelnar out of Oklahoma in 1963; a year later he got a cup of coffee with the Pirates, working nine innings and giving up five runs. He got into 10 games in 1967, going 0-1, 8.05, with most of his time spent with AAA Columbus. In 1969-70, after a couple of trades, John pitched fairly well for the Seattle Pilots and then the Milwaukee Brewers. He got off to a rough start with the Brew Crew in ‘71, was sent down to AAA and then retired at the end of the 1972 campaign. He did get some recognition from Jim Bouton in “Ball Four” when Bouton wrote Gelnar used to bring binoculars to the bullpen when the pair were with Seattle so they could watch girls. 

Spud's cheapo tied the game - 1940 Play Ball

• 1944 - The Cards edged the Bucs 2-1 in the opener of a twinbill as Red Munger outpitched Rip Sewell. The second ended in a controversial 5-5 tie, called after nine innings because of the Pennsylvania Blue Law. Pittsburgh tied the game in the ninth on a pinch hit long ball by Virgil “Spud” Davis that went through the screen in front of the RF stands. Cards manager Billy Southworth protested, claiming that the ground rules were that a fair ball stuck in the screen was a double and the same reasoning should apply. Ump Beans Reardon didn’t buy the argument and ruled that since it didn’t hang up but went through the fence, it was a homer. 
• 1949 - The Bucs hit five home runs (Ralph Kiner twice, Wally Westlake, Ed Stevens & Dino Restelli) but the Dodgers banged out four of their own to leave Pittsburgh eating their dust at Forbes Field, winning a 17-10 slugfest. Rookie Restelli set a record as his four-bagger was the seventh in his first ten MLB games; he would only hit six more in his abbreviated big league career. 
• 1950 - Ralph Kiner had a massive day as he led the Pirates to a 16-11 win at Brooklyn by hitting for the cycle, the only one of his legendary career. He went 5-for-6 with two homers, scored four times and drove in eight runs at Ebbets Field. Stan Rojek added four hits against the Dodgers, Gus Bell had three and Ted Beard homered. Cliff Chambers got the win in relief of Vern Law though both were tagged for five runs in four innings. 
• 1959 - RHP Alejandro Pena was born in Cambiaso, Dominican Republic. After helping whip the Pirates in the playoffs as a Brave in 1991, the Pirates signed him as a free agent after the 1992 season for $1.35M. He promptly sat out the year with elbow surgery and came back in 1994, going 3-2-7/5.02 and was released in June. The 15-year vet had a twisty road to join the Pirates - he was mentioned, along with Kevin Mitchell and a PTBNL, to be part of a 1992 preseason deal for Barry Bonds with Atlanta. The swap was agreed to in principle by GM Ted Simmons but nixed by Jimmy Leyland, who went over Simmons’ head to plead his case with team President Carl Barger. So the club, which apparently thought highly of Pena, later signed him as a free agent even after he sat out the 1992 postseason with tendonitis. 
• 1971 - Willie Stargell hit the longest home run in Veterans Stadium history against Jim Bunning during a 14-4 win over the Phils. The spot where the ball landed in section 601 was highlighted with a yellow star with a black "S" inside a white circle until Stargell's 2001 death, when the white circle was painted black. The star remained in place until the stadium's 2004 razing. Teammate Richie Hebner quipped "I went up there after he hit that home run and I looked down. It looked like a $20 cab ride from there to home plate." 

Stargell star at the Vet (above upper right gateway) 
photo 15Nomad Philly Sports

• 1978 - 3B Aramis Ramirez was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The Pirates signed him in 1994 as a 16-year old, he debuted in 1998, and was traded to the Chicago Cubs in 2003 in one of Pittsburgh’s more brutal contract dumps of the Dave Littlefield era. On July 23rd, 2015, he was traded back to Pittsburgh exactly 12 years after they first traded him away, and helped the Pirates in their wildcard run by hitting six homers and playing first base as needed for the first time in his 18-year career. He retired in November as a member of the team that first signed him two decades earlier. A-Ram spent a dozen years with the Cubs and Brewers in between and was a three-time All-Star who hit .286 and swatted 386 HR.