Carpenter's Homer, Bucco Bumbles Hand Redbirds 7-3 Win In Opener

Today's Game: JT Brubaker was touched for a wind-carried double and a two-out blooper that Ka'ai Tom couldn't quite corral to allow the Cards to draw first blood. John Gant was on, getting three straight grounders, his bread-and-butter. St. Louis added another single in the second, but Bru ran his K count to four to make for a quiet frame. A walk to Jake Stallings was followed by a force-out by Gregory Polanco. He stole second and went to third on a bad toss with two down before another grounder turned the page. A leadoff knock paid off for the Cardinals when another two-out bloop fell between Ka'ai Tom and Kevin Newman (Ka'ai's ball, but Newman was there with hands waving, so it was likely bad communication between the pair) to make it 2-0 in the third. Tom opened with a walk; Bru bunted into a DP when Ka'ai overran second and was picked off by the first baseman after the play on JT. It may have cost a run when Adam Frazier singled. Tom is not having a dazzling debut so far.

Fraze reached twice today; he's been strong at leadoff - 2019 Pirates image

Tyler O'Neill went deep to begin the fourth. The Bucs worked a pair of walks to open and Jake Stallings was up 3-0 before ump James Hoye widened the corners enough to ring him up. Gregory Polanco smoked an at 'em ball out to left before K-Man came through with a run-scoring rap to make the count 3-1. Brubaker tossed his first clean frame in the fifth. A knock and a walk got it started for Pittsburgh for a heartbeat before Erik Gonzalez dribbled into a 2-5 DP (two tags) followed by a short fly to center. Duane Underwood worked the sixth and gave up a three-run dinger to Matt Carpenter on an 0-2 center-cut fastball to put the Pirates in the rear view mirror at 6-1. Tyler Webb, who the Pirates took as a Rule 5 guy from the Yankees and returned, took the ball. He left the bases loaded with two outs for Kodi Whitley, who wild-pitched one run in and balked another home to make the tally 6-3.

David Bednar was waved on in the seventh and tossed a 1-2-3 frame. Genesis Cabrera did the same for St. Louis. Bednar put up a second zero on a hit in the eighth and Cabrera tossed another three-up, three-down inning. Clay Holmes was beckoned for the ninth and bopped the first two batters. Fraze started a nice DP to ease the pressure, then booted the next ball to allow a two-out run to scoot home. Ryan Helsey toed the slab and walked Tom. Phil Evans; he was rung up and ejected beefing over Hoye's called third strike. Two bouncers shut the door.

Dave Bednar posted two more goose eggs - 2021 photo/Pittsburgh Pirates

The patient, get 'em on approach didn't work so well tonight - the Bucs drew nine walks, but just four singles and a couple of timely DP's made it a chore to move them along. The solid fielding was AWOL tonight, too, even with a couple of nifty plays by Reynolds and Fraze. Not sure why, but it seems to work out that way when the Pirates play the Cards...

Notes:

• Kevin Newman had two hits while Fraze posted a knock and a walk. In four plate appearances, Ka'ai Tom never put a ball in play, drawing three free passes and fanning once.
• Wilmer Difo's fifth-inning single made him 5-for-13 (.385) as a pinch-hitter this year. The Pirates lead MLB with 12 pinch-hits this season.
• 5,953 fans made it to tonight's contest.

Tomorrow's Game: The game is at 6:35 and will be carried in AT&T SportsNet PITT2 and 93.7 The Fan. Trevor Cahill is slated to take on Jack Flaherty. 

Friday Night: Cards Come A'Calling - JT Brubaker v John Gant; Altoona, Bradenton Rosters Set

Today's Game: First pitch is at 6:35 and the game will be on AT&T SportsNet & 93.7 The Fan. The two teams are nose-to-nose in the Central standings - the Pirates are 12-12, the Cards 13-12. And for as bad as the Bucs were in 2020, they finished 4-6 against the Redbirds.

Lineup:

Pitchers: RHP JT Brubaker (2-1/2.01) opens against RHP John Gant (1-2.2.25). Bru is having whatever the opposite of a sophomore jinx is,. He hasn't given up more than two runs in an outing, averages a K per frame, and has gotten into the sixth or beyond in his last three starts...pretty good stuff so far. JT has only worked two innings against St. Louis, giving up no runs on three hits and four K last year. Gant lobbied to escape the Redbird bullpen and got his shot this year when Miles Mikolas went down. Gant has been a five inning guy so far this year and walks on the wild side with 13 free passes in 20 IP, but he's only given up one long ball and that goes a long way in this era. He's 3-2-1/4.30 against the Bucs in 16 career appearances (four starts).

Notes:

• Short games: the Bucs are 10-0 when leading after the sixth inning and 0-11 when losing after six.
• The Pirates have played 14 games without making an error and played 14 games when they've banged a home run. So far, the leather is mightier than the ash - the Bucs have a 9-5 record when they're flawless in the field and 8-6 in games when they go deep.
• The Pirates are finalizing their minor league rosters: here is Class AA Altoona's Opening Day roster and the Low A Bradenton Marauder's lineup.

Tomorrow's Game: The game is at 6:35 and will be carried in AT&T SportsNet PITT2 and 93.7 The Fan.  Trevor Cahill is slated to take on Jack Flaherty.

4/30 Through the 1950s: First NL Game; Hans Statue; Pud Zippo; Bunny Hop; Bootin' Bill; HBD Scrap Iron, Ray & Tony

• 1877 - Jim “Pud” Galvin of the Pittsburgh Alleghenys tossed the International Association’s first shutout‚ defeating Columbus 2-0 at Union (Recreation) Park. The IA disbanded after the season. He tossed for 15 years, was MLB's first 300-game winner (he won 365 games) and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1965. 
• 1887 - The Pittsburgh Alleghenys played their first NL game, defeating the defending champion Chicago White Stockings 6-2 behind Pud Galvin in front of nearly 10,000 fans at Recreation Park. In pre-game ceremonies, Fred Carroll’s beloved pet monkey (the chimp was also the team mascot), which had passed on to simian heaven, was buried beneath home plate. The team wouldn't become the Pirates until 1891, after they "pirated" the services of second baseman Lou Bierbauer from the Philadelphia Athletics. 

Couple of firsts for Pud - 2012 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions

• 1891 - C Tony Brottem was born in Halstad, Minnesota. He made a couple of short visits to MLB baseball, getting into 62 games in three seasons, mostly as a Bucco in 1921, hitting .242 in 30 games. He had a long minor league career covering a dozen campaigns. His career had a sad ending; he tried a comeback in 1929 and was cut after 60 Class B games. Depressed, the 37-year-old committed suicide. 
• 1924 - At Cubs Park, Rabbit Maranville lined a triple in the 14th inning and then stole home to beat Chicago‚ 2-1. Johnny Morrison was the winner over Elmer Jacobs as both pitchers went the distance. The Pirates had 12 hits, led by Max Carey’s three, but shot themselves in the foot by banging into four DPs during the day. 
• 1938 - 3B Bill Brubaker set a modern MLB record by committing four errors (he also was picked off second) in a 2-0 loss to Ray “Peaches” Davis and the Cincinnati Reds at Crosley Field. Bill’s boots didn’t contribute to the loss; both Red runs (one off Russ Bauer and the other off Mace Brown) were earned. The outing was played in front of 10,000 fans, of which 6,300 were knotholers who got into the yard gratis. It was an overdue victory for the Redlegs; it snapped a 20-game win streak against them by the Buccos. 
• 1945 - Ray Miller was born in Takoma Park, Maryland. He spent ten years as the Pirates pitching coach (1987–96) under Jim Leyland, replacing Ron Schueler, and worked with Cy Young winner Doug Drabek. Miller also managed for Minnesota & Baltimore and tutored Mike Flanagan & Steve Stone while with the O's. 

Ray Miller - 1991 Upper Deck

• 1949 - Phil “Scrap Iron” Garner was born in Jefferson City, Tennessee. He spent five years (1977-81) with the Pirates, playing second base for the 1979 World Series club. Scrap Iron hit .267 and stole 112 bases while a Bucco. After his playing career, Garner managed the Milwaukee Brewers, Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros. 
• 1955 - A statue of Honus Wagner, created by Frank Vittor and paid for from donations, was unveiled outside the left field gates at Forbes Field. Among the crowd of 1,000 were Ford Frick, Warren Giles and John Galbreath. Hans was present but weak; he would pass away in December. It’s been moved twice since: first to TRS, then to PNC Park where his likeness greets fans at the main gate.

4/30 From 1960: Meares Signed; Two-4-Scrap Iron & Jeff; 8-In-A-Row; Pizarro Conquers; Bye-Bye Bly; Mad Dog Cover; HBD Jeff

• 1960 - Pittsburgh scored 10 times in the second inning against the Reds at Crosley Field on the way to a 12-7 win, their eighth victory in a row. Roberto Clemente, Billy Maz (who was 4-for-5) and Dick Stuart each drove home three RBI. They knocked off Cincy one more time 13-2 the following day (Clemente & Maz stayed hot; each homered and drove in four runs) before the good times ended with a 4-3, ninth-inning loss to the Cards at Busch Stadium. 
• 1964 - Utility man Jeff Reboulet was born in Dayton, Ohio. Jeff had a 12-year MLB career as a jack-of-all-trades, playing every position on the diamond except pitcher. He closed out his big league run with Pittsburgh in 2003 as a backup infielder, batting .241, just about his lifetime average (.240). After living on a bench-warmers pay during his baseball days, Jeff turned that experience into his second career - when he retired, Reboulet co-founded Horizon Wealth Management and became a financial advisor. 
• 1967 - Juan Pizarro struck out eight batters and tossed a four-hit shutout in Pittsburgh’s 2-0 win over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. It would be his only shutout and complete game as a Bucco; the Pirates used him primarily from the pen and he only made nine starts while in Pittsburgh. Jerry May knocked in both of the tallies with a run-scoring single in the second inning and a solo shot in the fifth frame.

Juan Pizarro - 1967 Topps

• 1968 - The Bucs couldn’t solve the Cubs’ Bill Hands, who left the game in the eighth with a 1-0 lead, but some two-out magic eventually saved the day. Matty Alou’s double with two away off Phil Regan knotted the score heading into the last frame. Chicago came right back to score a pair in the ninth off Bob Mosse and Juan Pizarro, and Chuck Hartenstein, who would become a Bucco next season, climbed the hill. But he couldn’t put the Pirates away as a pair of walks and a pair of singles made it 3-2 with one gone. Bill Stoneman took over and got a big K, but Manny Mota walked it off with a soft liner to right center that a diving Adolfo Phillips couldn’t corral. The game was played in front of just 3,710 fans at Forbes Field; it drizzled through much of the evening and the temperature was just 44 degrees. 
• 1980 - Phil Garner had his first two-homer game, good for three RBI, and Bill Robinson added another tater as the division leading Pirates took a 5-0 victory over the Expos at TRS. Jim Bibby tossed a six-hitter for the win. The Garner long balls were a birthday gift to himself; Scrap Iron was celebrating his 31st year. 
• 1980 - Pitcher Bert Blyleven left the team and announced that he would retire if he wasn’t traded, citing “the non-support and lack of confidence from his manager,” unhappy that Chuck Tanner wouldn’t let him pitch deeper into games. He did finish out the year, going 8-13/3.88 with 216 IP and was granted his wish when he was sent to the Indians during the off season. 
• 1984 - Bill Madlock was featured on the cover of The Sporting News for the story “Have Bats - Will Hit.” Not quite...Mad Dog tried playing through a sore elbow and eventually had surgery in August to remove bones spurs. He batted just .253 for the campaign. 
• 1996 - For the second time in his career, Jeff King hit a pair of bombs in the same inning - one a grand slam - to lead the Bucs to a 10-7 win over the Reds. The first baseman joined Andre Dawson and Willie McCovey as the only MLB’ers to have accomplished the feat twice. The Bucs tallied nine times in the fourth frame to spark the victory at Cinergy Field, sending Cincinnati to its eighth straight loss. 

Jeff King - 1996 Leaf Studio

• 1999 - Pat Meares, 30, was signed to a one year, $1.5M contract by Cam Bonifay. He broke his wrist in spring training (the Pirates misdiagnosed it as a sprain), and a week after he came off the DL was given a four-year, $15M extension. He played 240 games for the Pirates and 2001 was his last season, reaching a settlement that paid him for 2002-03 without him playing. 
• 2008 - Pirate RF’er Xavier Nady went 3-for-3 with a pair of walks while driving in three runs during a 13-1 rout of the Mets in New York. Nady’s three RBI increased his total to 26 for the month of April. That was tops in the NL at the time, and the most for a Pirate in the season’s first month since Willie Stargell’s 27 in 1971. 
• 2019 - The Pirates carried an eight-game losing streak into Texas and were an out away from making it nine when Josh Bell’s ninth-inning two-bagger plated a pair to tie the game at 3-3. The 10th went quietly before the Buc bats erupted, with Bryan Reynolds hitting his first big league homer and Starling Marte adding a two-run shot in the 11th to snap the streak with a 6-4 victory against the Rangers at Globe Life Stadium. Kyle Crick claimed the win, with Felipe Vazquez picking up the save. Despite that icy stretch, the Pirates finished the month at 13-14 to stay at least within shouting distance in the division.

4/29 Through the 1970s: Greenlee Opens; First Sunday Game; Rallies; Terrific Trio; HBD Tony, JVW, Phil, Frank & Lefty

• 1860 - RHP Frank (Hengstebeck) Beck was born in Poughkeepsie, New York. Franks had five MLB outings in 1884, three with the Alleghenys. All three starts were complete-game losses as he put up a 6.12 ERA, although he did have better luck as a part-time outfielder, going 4-for-12. He finished up with two more losses with the Union Association’s Baltimore Monumentals to end his big league stay. He returned to baseball’s independent leagues, where he started from, and his trail died off after his 1887 campaign with Ionia of the Northern Michigan League. 

Lefty Mellix - National League Stars

• 1896 - LHP Ralph “Lefty” Mellix was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Mellix’s family moved to Pittsburgh when he was a child and the Peabody HS grad became a semi-pro legend (he kept a day job at Westinghouse and later with the City), tossing briefly for the Homestead Grays in 1935 and part of a Gus Greenlee touring team in the 40’s. Lefty played for local and regional clubs too numerous to mention, often as a rental headliner, but his regular home was in Pittsburgh’s Hilltop, as he pitched and managed for the Beltzhoover Black Sox (later the 18th Warders), based out of McKinley Park. His playing days covered 1917-57, earning him the title of “The Granddaddy of the Sandlots.” Though records are scarce, it’s said that he was on the bump for 1500+ games and claimed nine no-hitters. After Mellix retired, the Pirates recognized him by giving him a lifetime pass and he became a historian of sorts as a dispenser of local black baseball lore. 
• 1930 - Rollie Hemsley, George Grantham, and Charlie Engle combined for 11 hits and 12 RBI to lead the Pirates to a 13-9 win over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. The Bucs rallied from a 7-1 deficit with a seven run sixth inning and never looked back. Ralph Erickson got the win (his only MLB victory) in relief of Ray Kremer with a save going to Steve Swetonic. Pittsburgh and Chicago were just holding up their end in a day of MLB fireworks - in the seven games played on this date, an average of 17+ runs a game were scored. 
• 1932 - Greenlee Field in the Hill, home of the Pittsburgh Crawfords, opened in front of 4,000 fans. Hall of Famers Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson were the battery as the Pittsburgh Crawfords lost the opener to the New York Black Yankees 1-0 in a pitching duel with Jesse "Mountain" Hubbard. Paige struck out 10 and allowed six hits, but Hubbard was better, surrendering just three knocks. The Allegheny County commissioners, Pittsburgh's mayor, and the city councilmen caught the opener from the field boxes. It was the first ballfield built specifically for a black team, erected by team owner Gus Greenlee. When finished, the grounds would seat 7,500, with lights added in 1933. It was demolished in 1939 to create space for the Bedford Dwellings. 
• 1934 - Red Lucas won Pittsburgh’s first Sunday home game as the Pirates beat Cincinnati 9-5 at Forbes Field, backed by Gus Suhr’s three hits and four RBI. Both Suhr and Paul Waner, who also had three knocks, homered. 20,000 turned out for the game, including Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis and former NL President/PA Governor John Tener. Because of Pennsylvania’s Blue Laws, Pittsburgh was the last major league city to play a home game on a Sunday after local referendums in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia approved Sunday ballgames in the 1933 November elections. 

Red Lucas - 1934 Diamond Stars

• 1938 - Pittsburgh sports writer Phil Musick was born; he was raised in the Garfield section of Pittsburgh. He began locally at the Greensburg Tribune-Review as sports editor. He joined the Pittsburgh Press in 1969 and later moved across the street to the Post Gazette, covering the Pirates and Steelers in his columns (“Stop the Musick,” usually filled with musings under “Things I think I think...”). He later was the first sports columnist at USA Today before returning to the Press. He left the paper in 1987 and hosted a talk show on WTAE-Radio while teaching journalism at LaRoche College. He also had a handful of books and national freelance articles on his resume before passing away in 2010. 
• 1959 - The Giants jumped ahead of the Pirates and Ronnie Kline 2-0 at Forbes Field early on and the lead held up until the Bucs counter-punched in the seventh. Roberto Clemente opened with a triple, Smokey Burgess followed with a double, and Dick Stuart’s single tied the score. A double play dampened the festivities a bit, but Bill Mazeroski put the cherry on top by homering off Johnny Antonelli to give Pittsburgh the lead. Kline, who fanned nine Golden Gaters, cruised to the finish line, retiring the last eight G-Men as Pittsburgh went on to take a 3-2 win. 
• 1964 - Tony Cloninger of the Braves had the Pirates eating out of his hand, tossing a one-hitter to outduel Bob Veale at County Stadium by a 1-0 score. Veale gave up six hits and walked five, but wasn’t threatened much during the contest. He surrendered the only run after a leadoff third-inning double by Dennis Menke. He was sacrificed to third when Cloninger bunted the ball hard back to Veale, who slipped while fielding it and had to settle for the out at first. It cost him when Felipe Alou dropped a single into center to plate the game’s only run. The Bucs didn’t get a hit until two were away in the seventh, when Willie Stargell smoked a single to right; he had the only other well-stroked ball off Cloninger in the fourth when Hank Aaron made a running grab of his sinking liner. 
• 1966 - OF/1B John Vander Wal was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He played for the Bucs in 2000-01, and in 232 games hit .290 w/35 HR and 144 RBI. The Pirates traded him at the 2001 deadline with Jason Schmidt to the Giants for Ryan Vogelsong and Armando Rios in one of GM Dave Littlefield’s early deals after replacing Cam Bonifay in mid-July. In his career, Vander Wal banged 129 pinch hits and holds the single-season record for pinch hits with 28 with the Rox in 1995. 

Tony Armas Jr - 2007 Upper Deck

• 1978 - RHP Tony Armas Jr. was born in Puerto Piritu, Venezuela. Tony worked 10 big league campaigns as a journeyman starter and spent 2007 as a Pirate (4-5/6.03) after inking a $3.5M deal. It proved to be his final full MLB season as the Bucs didn't pick up his 2008 option and the Mets released him the following year after one outing. Junior was the son of All-Star OF Tony Armas who had been a hot Bucco prospect but was traded to the A’s after a cup of coffee in Pittsburgh as part of the Phil Garner deal.

4/29 From 1980: Cutch #1,000; Nova Maddux; The King Debuts; Bombs Away; Fly Day; Sidebars; Indy No-No; HBD Steven & Rookie

• 1987 - The Pirates were clocked by the Dodgers 10-2 at Three Rivers Stadium, but with a couple of interesting sidebars. Ump Fred Brocklander blew a pair of calls on the same play, and while sorting them out, the Pirate Parrot launched a feather-brained dance of indignation, ending with a nerf ball aimed at Fred. When the other umps came to Brocklander’s rescue, the Parrot jumped in his cart and exited stage right. He quickly learned that umpires are not part of the show, at least not for mascots, and was suspended for a day (he did apologize - he was a rookie Parrot and just learning the ropes the hard way). And later, coach Rick Donnelly got into a bullpen fight with a couple of fans who had sneaked into the area through an unwatched employee entrance. He tried to get them to leave peacefully, but to no avail, leading to a brief battle that ended poorly for the interlopers. They were taken away by police and charged with public intoxication. The Pirates didn’t file any additional charges, apparently feeling being thumped by Rick was punishment enough. 
• 1990 - The Bucs swept San Diego 10-1 behind a four homer barrage at Jack Murphy Stadium. Barry Bonds and Jay Bell hit three-run bombs, Bobby Bonilla banged a two-run blast, and Don Slaught added a solo shot to grease an easy outing for Doug Drabek. It was the Pirates sixth consecutive win. 
• 1992 - LHP Steven Brault was born in La Mesa, California. Drafted by the Orioles in 2013, he was sent to the Pirates as part of the Travis Snider deal. The lefty moved through the system quickly and in July of 2016 made his MLB debut. He slashed 0-3/4.86 but was in the running for a back-end rotation spot in 2017 camp, where he pitched well but lost out to Tyler Glasnow and was returned to Indy. He returned later in the year (1-0/4.67) and broke camp with the Bucs in 2018 as a long man and spot starter, becoming a regular back-end starter in 2019. Brault posted a 3.38 ERA in 10 starts in 2020, but began the 2021 campaign on ice with a lat strain. 

Rookie Davis - 2019 photo Dave Arrigo/Pirates

• 1993 - RHP William “Rookie” Davis was born in Sneads Ferry, North Carolina. Drafted by the Yankees and given a seven-game taste by the Reds in 2017 after being part of the Aroldis Chapman deal, Rookie was signed as a FA by the Bucs in 2019. He got the call from Indy on May 25th and made his first Bucco start on June 7th against the Brewers. His dad gave him his handle; his given name is William Theron Davis III and to differentiate, his pops said “Let’s just call him ‘Rookie’.” 
• 2000 - For the purists and the believers in productive outs, this was a game for you - the Pirates and Reds tied the MLB record in Cincinnati's 6-5 victory at TRS by hitting five sacrifice flies (the Redlegs also dropped a pair of successful bunts). Neither club was very clutch other than cranking out flies - the two teams combined to go 1-for-19 w/RISP during the game. Pat Meares and Warren Morris both homered in the losing effort, triggered when Cincy overcame an early Bucco lead by scoring five times in the seventh and eighth innings (with two of the runs plating on sac flies). 
• 2012 - Pitching for the AAA Indianapolis Indians against the Durham Bulls, Justin Wilson tossed the first 7-1/3 innings of a combined no-hitter (two walks, nine K, 107 pitches), completed by Jose “Jumbo” Diaz and Doug Slaten. He worked his first Bucco game on August 20th and also tossed for the Yankees, Tigers, Cubs, Mets and back to the Bronx Bombers after being converted to the pen. 
• 2015 - Andrew McCutchen entered the game against the Cubs at Wrigley Field in an early funk with an anemic .179 BA, but left it as the newest member of the 1,000 hit club. Cutch tripled and then legged out an eighth inning infield rap to reach 1,000 knocks in the Pirates 8-1 win over Chi-town. He became the 33rd Buccaneer to collect at least 1,000 hits and the first since Jack Wilson in 2007 to bang them all while with Pittsburgh. Gerrit Cole didn’t need much help for the victory; he tossed a three-hitter over six innings, and with three relievers fanned 14 Cubbies. 

Cutch - CBS graphic

• 2017 - Ivan Nova tossed a 95-pitch, complete-game shutout against Miami at Marlins Park, winning 4-0. His "Maddux" (a complete game shutout using fewer than 100 pitches) was the first for a Bucco since Jeff Karstens tossed one on July 15th, 2011 against the Astros. Other factoids on the strike-throwing righty: In his 16 starts to date with the Pirates, Nova had more complete games (five) than walks (four), and he had yet to hit the 100-pitch mark as a Pirate. John Jaso homered, but the big frame was the sixth when Fish hurlers walked four straight batters (two of them battling back from 0-2 counts) to force in a pair of runs. 
• 2018 - Nick Kingham had a debut to remember - he retired the first 20 batters he faced in a 5-0 win over the Cardinals at PNC Park. He gave up a two-out single to Paul DeJong in the seventh, finishing with a one-hit, nine-K outing in his first MLB game. The contest was a scoreless duel between Nick and Luke Weaver before the Bucs broke it open with four runs in the sixth, keyed by a two-run single by Elias Diaz, who had three hits on the day. It was the Pirates fifth straight victory and gave them their earliest 17th win in franchise history. Nick didn’t live up to his early promise; he was sold to Toronto in 2019 and now tosses in Korea. 
• 2020 - The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announced that it canceled the 2020 Hall of Fame Induction Weekend events due to health and safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic; the Museum itself had been closed since March. The ceremonies have been eliminated several times before for various reasons, but this was the first year without an induction ceremony since 1961, when there were no new members elected. The 2020 class will receive their proper dues in 2021 during a combined ceremony with the next group of HoF’ers in late July.

Bucs Run Out Of Rallies, Fall To KC 9-6

Today's Game: Mitch Keller almost put up a zero in the first; instead a walk scored with two down when Jorge Soler, hitting .186, fought an 11-pitch battle and then doubled for the early lead. That was followed by another free pass and a triple before Keller ended a 47-pitch opener, down 3-0. The Pirates didn't get a ball past the infield off Mike Minor. Kell returned to the hill in the second and after two outs, walked another guy. He escaped this time around. Todd Frazier worked an 11-pitch walk to start, but a force out and 4-6-3 DP squelched any further action. KC started off the third with a leadoff two-bagger and a pair of free passes with an out. Sean Poppen, who hasn't tossed since the 17th, took over. He, of course, walked the first Royal he saw to make it 4-0, but then served a 4-6-3 DP to stop the bleeding. Kevin Newman singled with one gone, and Adam Frazier singled him up 90' an out later. Phil Evans walked to juice the sacks, but Bryan Reynolds let the opportunity pass by when he looked at strike three.

Todd reached three times & Adam had two hits - photo 2021 Pirates

Four consecutive singles (one on a Wilmer Difo misread) and a walk in the fourth made the count 6-0 before a bases-loaded, around-the-horn DP stopped the music. The Toddfather walked and scored ahead of Erik Gonzalez's dinger off a 1-2 heater. Jake Stallings followed with another long tater (Michael Taylor almost pulled it in, but it ticked off his glove and over as he kissed the wall), and it was 6-3. Minor then bore down and fanned the bottom of the order. Chris Stratton worked a clean, nine-pitch fifth. With one out, an error and B-Rey rap came home on Todd Frazier's two-bagger. Kyle Zimmer was waved in, and two walks juiced the sacks but a fly put it to bed. A single and Fraze's misplay on a potential DP ball got KC back in business in the sixth. After an out, back-to-back doubles, the second almost robbed by Evans, pumped the lead to 9-5. Jake Brentz toed the slab and walked two of the first three Pirates. He K'ed B-Rey and was yanked; Tyler Zuber got Toddfather to pop up.

Clay Holmes worked the seventh and surrendered just an infield single while Pittsburgh went down 1-2-3. Clayton chilled a leadoff knock in the eighth by following with three punch outs. With two down, Fraze's double and Evan's rap brought home a run, bringing on Josh Staumont to end the action. Kyle Crick sat KC down in order in the ninth. Staumont closed the gate impressively, not allowing a ball past the catcher with two whiffs and a foul pop behind the dish.

The Keller roller coaster continues, and give the Bucs credit for making a game of it. Tomorrow will be a "lick the wounds" day with the Cards on the horizon.

Notes:

• Adam Frazier had two hits; Phil Evans & Todd Frazier had a knock and drew two walks. Frazier snapped an 0-for-14 start with his fifth-inning double while Ka'ai Tom walked in his first Pirates appearance.
• Mitch Keller threw 83 pitches in 2-1/3 IP, walked five and went to three balls on nine of 15 batters. 
• 4,226, fans sat through nearly four hours of baseball; that'll happen with both sides walk seven guys apiece and combine to fan 19 (Pirates - 10, Royals - 9).
• How good has the bridge/back end bullpen been? Ric Rod has gone 10 straight appearances w/o a run, Kyle Crick & Sam Howard nine and David Bednar seven.

Tomorrow's Game: The Pirates are off tomorrow. St. Louis comes to town Friday for a three-game weekend set to end the wham bam homestand.

Wednesday: Mitch Keller v Mike Minor In Getaway Game; Weekly IL Report, Minor News

Today's Game: The turnaround game will start at 6:35 and will be carried by AT&T SportsNet & 93.7 The Fan. It won't be quite as nice out; still summery warm but cloudy/rainy tonight.

Lineup: Adam Frazier 2B; Phil Evans LF; Bryan Reynolds 1B; Todd Frazier 1B; Erik Gonzalez 3B; Jake Stallings C; Wilmer Difo RF; Kevin Newman SS; Mitch Keller P. Shelty's lefty lineups are kinda limited...

Pitchers: RHP Mitch Keller (1-2/7.16) v LHP Mike Minor (2-1/4.64) close out the two-gamer. Kells got into the sixth inning in his last outing and K'ed nine while walking just two. It was a promising step in his development, and hopefully one that the up-and-down Keller can build on. This will be Mitch's first go-around with Kansas City. The 33-year-old Minor was an All-Star in 2019, but 2020 was unkind to him (1-6/5.56) while playing for two teams, and KC is his third club in two years. He's been hot and cold for the Royals, but has gone at least 5-2/3 IP in three of his four starts and at a strikeout per inning, he can still toss a baseball past ya. MM hasn't climbed the hill against Pittsburgh since 2013, back in his Bravo days.

Don't hold your breathe - 2021 Topps First Buzz

Notes:

• 3B Ke'Bryan Hayes (hand/wrist) news on the medical front is "encouraging" but he still hasn't taken part in any baseball activities lately, so... Neither has LHP Steven Brault (lat strain). RHP Michael Feliz (fingernail) is tossing live BP and RHP Chad Kuhl (R shoulder) is playing catch.
• OF Dustin Fowler, like Anthony Alford, has cleared waivers and was assigned to the Pirates alt camp.
• Cole Tucker is still in Florida as the Pirates continue to tinker with him.
• The Pirates are keeping ticket sales at the 25% level for May games, though state guidelines have been loosened to allow 50% seating for outdoor venues.
• LHP Ollie Perez, 39, was DFA'ed by Cleveland today.

Tomorrow's Game: Tomorrow is an off day. The Cards come to town for a three-game weekend set starting Friday night.

4/28: Bucs In First; Bonus Baseball; Streak Snapper; Rollin' 8's; Wright Stuff; HBD Danny, David, Romulo, Yoslan, Mark, Snake, Pedro, Red & Walt

• 1875 - RHP Walt Woods was born in Rye, New Hampshire. After playing for Chicago and Louisville (he tossed their final MLB game), he came to Pittsburgh in 1900, got into one game and was hammered. He was strictly pitch-to-contact (1.07/K per nine innings!), depending on guile, and was a back-end rotation guy who saw his MLB days end when the league contracted in 1901, putting a lot of hurlers out of work. While he was primarily a pitcher, he also appeared at second base, shortstop, third base and all three outfield positions, although with a lifetime .206 BA, he never threatened anyone’s job in the field. He did enjoy a long career in minor league baseball, playing from 1895-1914. He retired to become a grocer and later a mailman. 

Red Lucas - 1938 Conlon Collection/Getty

• 1902 - RHP Red Lucas, The Nashville Narcissus (his nickname was penned by Colonel Bob Newhall, a reporter for the old Cincinnati Tribune, when Red was a fast flowering player with the Redlegs, per SABR’s Allen Quimby) was born in Tennessee. The righty spent the last five years of his career (1934-38) with Pittsburgh after coming over in a deal with the Reds. He put up a 47-32/3.73 line for the Bucs. Lucas was also a good stickman; he pinch hit in more games as a Pirate than he pitched, though his .238 BA was well below the .300 average he carried with Cincy. Oh, and he remembered well the team that traded him - he was 14-0 against the Reds during his Pirate stint. 
• 1924 - Bucco rookie SS Glenn Wright hit his first homer off Vic Keen in a 7-4 victory over the Cubs. Wright was better known for his mitt than his thunder; he set a MLB record during the season with 601 assists, a mark that lasted until 1980, when Ozzie Smith had 621 Astroturf assists. “Buckshot” was the Pirate SS until 1928 when he was traded to Brooklyn Robins. He hit .298 during his Pirates tenure. 
• 1930 - RHP Tom Sturdivant was born in Gordon, Kansas. Nicknamed “Snake” because of his nasty curve, he was an outstanding pitcher for the Yankees until he suffered a rotator cuff injury in 1958 that threw up a speed bump on his promising career: after posting 16 wins in 1957, he never again reached double-figures in season victories. He persevered as a seven-team journeyman, not leaving baseball until after the 1964 season. Snake hurled for the Bucs from 1961-63 with a 14-7-3/3.49 slash. 
• 1935 - RHP Pedro Ramos was born in Pinar Del Rio, Cuba. A 15-year vet, the Pirates signed him at the tail end of his career in 1969 as a 34-year-old. He made five appearances, put up a 6.00 ERA and was let go. He finished the year with the Reds, then after a couple of 1970 outings with the Senators was released in late April, ending his MLB days. Pete was an All-Star once and had a great run as closer for the Yankees in 1964; he also led the AL in losses four times. 

Pedro Ramos - photo via Mainline Autographs

• 1960 - OF Mark Ryal was born in Henryetta, Oklahoma. He spent six years in the show with five clubs, getting 100 at bats just once, and closed out his career as a Pirate in 1990, going 1-for-12 in nine games as a late season call-up from AAA Buffalo. Ryal went on to spend two more seasons in Japan before hanging up the spikes. He’s spent the last 30 years coaching and managing softball at the college level. 
• 1966 - The Pirates scored one run in each of the final five innings of regulation and added four more in 10th to outlast the Cubs at Wrigley Field 9-6. The tying run scored with two out in the ninth. Roberto Clemente fell behind Ted Abernathy 0-2, worked the count full and drew a walk after fouling off eight straight pitches. He then came around on Willie Stargell’s double. The Bucco 10th was highlighted by a delayed double steal, with Clemente swiping second and Manny Mota home. 
• 1970 - The Bucs 6-1 victory at Forbes Field ended Chicago’s 11-game winning streak. Luke Walker, Bruce Dal Canton and Dave Giusti combined for a three-hitter while Manny Sanguillen hit a pair of homers and had three RBI. Gene Alley, known more for his leather than wood, went 3-for-4. 
• 1981 - RHP Yoslan Herrera was born in Pinar Del Rio, Cuba. Yoslan defected from Cuba in 2005 and the Bucs signed him in 2006. After a solid minor league resume, he was called up to Pittsburgh in 2008, where he went 1-1/5.81 in five starts as a 27-year-old. He had a good year in the minors in 2009, but was released and picked up by the Twins, who also cut him. He was out of pro ball for a couple of years, came back pitching for an indie team and had a last hurrah with the Angels, going 1-1/2.70 in 20 games. He asked for a release to pitch in Japan, tossed there for a year, and that marked the end of his pro career. 

David Freese - 2018 Topps Gold

• 1983 - 3B David Freese was born in Corpus Christi. He began his career in St Louis and had a dream postseason in 2011, winning the NLCS and World Series MVP honors along with the Babe Ruth Award. Freese was traded to the Angels in 2014 and signed a one-year FA contract with the Pirates worth $3M in March of 2016 to fill the dance card while Jung Ho Kang recuperated from leg injuries suffered the season before. Freeser held up his end, hitting .270 w/13 HR and the Pirates inked him to a two-year agreement during the season with a guaranteed $11M/team option year that put him under team control through 2019. That deal proved a godsend after Kang was picked up for DUI during the winter. He held a starter’s job in 2017 (.263/10 HR), was bumped to the bench in 2018 by Colin Moran, and went to the Dodgers. Freese retired after the 2019 campaign. 
• 1984 - RHP Romulo Sanchez was born in Carora, Venezuela. He spent two years with the Pirates in 2007-08, going 1-0-1/4.60 in 26 outings. He finished with the Yankees in 2010, then tossed in Japan and China. He worked a year in Mexico and has been pitching in the Venezuelan League since 2013. 
• 1986 - LHP Danny Moskos was born in Greenville, South Carolina. He was the fourth overall pick of the 2007 draft by the Pirates out of Clemson. GM Dave Littlefield announced that they projected Moskos as a closer, raising a storm of criticism from the fans and media who were anticipating Josh Vitters (who was taken one pick ahead of Moskos and fizzled) Matt Wieters (who signed for $6M and thus fit into the “too-cheap Pirates” narrative, taken next after Moskos), or perhaps Jason Heyward (who was the 14th pick) to be the selection. Moskos was signed by scout Greg Schilz to a $2.475M deal, but ended up a bust. He tossed for part of the 2011 season for the Bucs in his only MLB campaign, going 1-1/2.96 but with serious control issues. He last pitched in the Mexican League in 2018 and then retired; he’s an instructor at a baseball school now. 
• 2010 - The Pirates defeated the Brewers for the second consecutive game to take the series at Miller Field with a 6-5, 14-inning victory. The Bucs tied the game in the ninth on a Ryan Doumit homer off Trevor Hoffman (the second straight game that Hoffman, the all-time saves leader, had blown a save against the Bucs) and went ahead in the 10th on a Cutch long ball. The Brew Crew came back to tie it off Octavio Dotel, who left the bases full of Brewers before escaping the frame. Garrett Jones doubled home Akinori Iwamura with two down in the 14th while DJ Carrasco worked three innings of scoreless, one-hit relief for the win. 

Jeff Locke - 2013 Topps Heritage

• 2013 - The Bucs beat St. Louis 9-0 behind rookie Jeff Locke’s seven-inning, three-hit performance at Busch Stadium to take the division lead. C Russell Martin had three hits - a pair of homers and a double - while RF Garrett Jones also had three knocks including a HR and two-bagger. The victory was also Clint Hurdle’s 700th win as a big league manager. The Bucs turned the corner during this campaign, finishing with their first winning season since 1992 (and what a monkey-on-the-back that losing streak was!), coming in second place in the NL Central with 94 wins and advancing to the NLDS where they lost in five games to the Cards. 
• 2017 - Pittsburgh reeled in the Fish 12-2 at Marlins Park, sparked by an eight-run second inning that saw eight straight Bucs reach base after two outs. Winning pitcher Jameson Taillon struck out with the bases loaded twice to bracket that run, saving Miami further embarrassment. The attack was led by a pair of rookies who had started the campaign at Indy, OF Jose Osuna and 2B Gift Ngoepe. Jose went 4-for-5 with a free pass; Gift collected three knocks and walked twice as the pair reached base safely 10 times in 11 appearances. Ngoepe became the first Pirate since Eddie Moore in 1923 to reach base five times in his first MLB start. The contest was also the first time since August of 2013 that the Pirates hit three triples (Fran Cervelli, Ngoepe and Alen Hanson) in a game; Jordy Mercer added a long ball.

Bics Take Opener 2-1

Today's Game: The Royals stranded a two-out single against Tyler Anderson to open the game. The Bucs accepted a gift when Bryan Reynolds walked with two gone, went to second on a wild pitch and scored on Colin Moran's rap. It was a clean second for Tyler while the Buccos led off with back-to-back knocks by Jake Stallings and Gregory Polanco, but couldn't make hay against Jakob Junis. In the third, KC manufactured a run on a walk, bunt, right-side grounder and infield single. Pittsburgh went without a peep. KC banged a two-out single for their fourth inning action while the Pirates made nary a peep. In the fifth, the Royals drew a walk while Pittsburgh went down in order once again. It was a 1-2-3 sixth for Anderson; the Bucs got a two-out single for their efforts. 

Tyler's ERA is now 3.38 - photo Pirates

Duane Underwood spun a quiet seventh as Anderson took a seat after 90 tosses. Jake opened with a single. and an out later Kevin Newman sent him to third with a knock off the SS's mitt. Scot Barlow got the ball and Wilmer Difo grabbed a bat. He dropped a single into center for the lead before Fraze ended the party prematurely with a 4-6-3 DP. Sam Howard gave up an infield rap in the eighth while Greg Holland stranded Redbeard at second after he doubled with two away. Rich Rodriguez three-upped, three downed the Royals in the ninth; raise it.

Notes:

• Colin Moran had three hits and Jake Stallings banged out a pair.
• The attendance was 5,510.

Tomorrow's Game: The turnaround game will start at 6:35 and will be carried by AT&T SportsNet & 93.7 The Fan.

Tuesday: KC Comes To Town, Tyler Anderson v Jakob Junis Open Two-Game Set; Tom Reports, Castro Sent Down

Today's Game: The game starts at 6:35 and will be aired by AT&T SportsNet PITT2 & 93.7 The Fan. And don't sleep on KC; at 14-7, they have the best mark in the AL. And hey, it's gonna be a great night for baseball with temps in the 70's, so...

Lineup: Adam Frazier 2B; Phil Evans LF; Bryan Reynolds CF; Colin Moran 1B; Erik Gonzalez 3B; Jake Stallings C; Gregory Polanco RF; Kevin Newman SS; Tyler Anderson P. The usual suspects...

Ka'ai Tom is in town - photo Norm Hall/Getty

Pitchers: LHP Tyler Anderson (2-2/3.92) opens against RHP Jakob Junis (1-0/3.01). Anderson was brought in to be a steady inning-eater and been just that so far as the southpaw has gone at least five innings with no more than three runs allowed in any of his four starts this season. This is the first time the 31-year-old has met the Royals. Junis was a rotation back ender in 2018-19 with over 60 starts, 350 IP and 18 wins, but Covid and a bad back laid him low for most of last year. After being on the bubble to start this season, he's gotten off to a solid start to reclaim a spot. This will be his first outing against the Pirates.

Notes:

• As expected, OF Ka'ai Tom has joined the team and IF Rodolfo Castro has been sent back to the alt camp.
• Tyler Anderson and JT Brubaker are the only two Pirates starters who average 5+ IP per start in the early going.
• Head on: Pittsburgh has won 10 of its last 15 games while KC has won 10 of its last 13 contests.

Tomorrow's Game: The turnaround game will start at 6:35 and will be carried by AT&T SportsNet & 93.7 The Fan.

4/27 Through the 1970s: Willie Record; B-2-B, B-2-B; Expo Days; 23 Run w/o HR; Game Tales; HBP Paul, Phil & John

• 1893 - The Pirates opened the season against the Cleveland Spiders and were spanked by Cy Young, losing 7-2 in front of 7,600 fans at Exposition Park. The team had a strong season despite that sluggish start, finishing second in the National League with a 81-48 mark. Lou Bierbauer had two hits, as did Jake Beckley and Denny Lyons. Frank “Lefty” Killen took the loss (The Pittsburgh Press, somewhat unkindly, noted that “Killen was an easy mark for the visitors”) after surrendering four first inning runs. But it was a noteworthy game - it was the last time a season-opening game was played in Pittsburgh until 1954, a 61-year streak of road kickoff trips. 

Deacon Phillippe - 1903 Breisch-Williams

• 1902 - Pittsburgh whipped Chicago 2-0 at Exposition Park‚ as Deacon Phillippe bested rookie Jim St. Vrain. St. Vrain only gave up a single to Ginger Beaumont, but it came after the Pirates had loaded the bases on an error sandwiched between a pair of plunked batters in the eighth inning. Phillippe fanned seven and all the other outs were recorded by the infield, with 1B Kitty Bransfield recording 16 putouts. St. Vrain wasn’t quite as sure of himself in the box as he was on the mound. He grounded a ball to Honus Wagner in the seventh and lost his bearings; the confused 19-year old ran toward third base as the astonished Hans threw him out rather easily, per Gene Alston’s Journal column. 
• 1912 - The Pirates walloped Cincinnati 23-4 at Forbes Field‚ and without a home run (although they had five doubles and three triples among their 27 hits). Reds reliever Hanson “Hans” Horsey surrendered 14 hits and 12 runs in four innings in what would be his only MLB appearance. Dots Miller went 5-for-6 w/five RBIs, Hans Wagner went 4-for-5 w/five RBIs & three tallies, and Bobby Bryne went 5-for-6 with four runs scored & three stolen sacks. In fact, every position player had at least two hits (winning pitcher Howie Camnitz was the only Pirate to not join the hit parade). To add some salt to the wound, the Bucs also swiped eight bases Vice President James “Sunny Jim” Sherman, a big baseball fan, attended the game along with PA Congressman Jim Burke, Lieutenant Governor JM Reynolds and an assortment of politicos and generals. 
• 1918 - Usher Phil Coyne was born in Oakland. He started out by dusting seats at Forbes Field in 1936 at the age of 18 and continued to serve the fans through the TRS era and at PNC Park until 2017. He retired after 81 years as a Pirates employee and good will ambassador at age 99 for health reasons, but came back to the old ballyard as the Buccos’ guest to be honored pre-game during his 100th birthday. Phil passed on to handle the seating for St. Peter in 2021. 
• 1918 - Umpire John Rice was born in Homestead. After serving in the Marines during WW2 (Rice fought in Guadalcanal and Peleliu), he began his umpiring apprenticeship in 1948. Rice graduated to the AL in 1955 working through 1973, and arbitrated four World Series, including the 1971 Pirates-Orioles clash, and three All-Star Games. He made his home in Chicago after the war and was inducted into the Chicago Sports Hall of Fame in 1999. 

Adam Comorosky 1929 Conlon Collection

• 1930 - The Pirates won their seventh straight game 9-5 over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. OF Adam Comorosky went 4-for-4 with two doubles and three RBI. Gus Suhr drove home three more and Ira Flagstead homered. Larry French got the win with Steve Swetonic notching the save. The Bucs were off to an 8-1 start on the campaign before Chi-town derailed them the next day. 
• 1954 - Toby Atwell and Jerry Lynch hit homers in back-to-back at-bats in the sixth and eighth innings, the first Pirates to accomplish the feat in the 20th century (Neil Walker & Gaby Sanchez matched the deed in 2014). It wasn’t quite enough as Pittsburgh lost to the Reds 8-7 at Crosley Field as Ted Kluszewski hammered a pair of long balls for Cincy. 
• 1965 - RHP Paul Miller was born in Burlington, Wisconsin. Miller’s MLB career lasted 10 games (two starts), tossed between 1991-93 for the Bucs with a line of 1-0/4.10. Paul Miller spent his entire pro career in the Pirates organization, selected in the 53rd round of the 1987 draft and remaining a Bucco until retiring in 1994 after a final campaign with AAA Buffalo. 
• 1970 - Steve Blass lost a pitching duel to Joe Decker and the Chicago Cubs 1-0 at Forbes Field. Blass surrendered just four hits over eight innings. One was a two-out triple by Glenn Beckert; he tried to stretch it into an inside the park HR and was dead at home, but Manny Sanguillen whiffed on the relay throw to allow the unearned, and only, run of the game to score. Roberto Clemente was thrown out at the plate twice during the game, once trying to score on a Willie Stargell double and again in the ninth when he tripled but was caught in a rundown a batter later, trapped following a comebacker. The Cubbies ran their winning streak to 11 games with the victory, a string the Pirates would snap the next day. 
• 1971 - Willie Stargell set a then-MLB record with his 11th HR in the month of April, a shot over the TRS center field wall against LA’s Pete Mikkelsen, in a 7-5 loss. The record stood for 36 years until it was broken by Albert Pujols, who hit 14 opening-month bombs in 2006. Pops lost quite a few baseballs that season as he hit a career-high 48 homers.

4/27 From 1980: Diaz Deal; Backman Six-Pack; Wakefields' 172 Pitches; #300 For Jose; Matty Mo Goes; Miller Hex Ended; Clemente Highway; Game Tales

• 1985 - Pittsburgh traded minor league C Steve Herz to the Phillies for utility PH Mike Diaz. Diaz fit in nicely as a bench player for a couple of seasons, putting up a line of .250/28/89 in 606 PA while Herz never made it out of AAA. 
• 1986 - The Pirates used offense from unexpected sources to pound the Phils 13-5 at TRS. Bill Almon went 3-for-5 with two runs, four RBI, two doubles and a homer while pitcher Bob Walk went 2-for-2 with a pair of two-baggers. Tony Pena added three hits while Mike Brown chipped in two more; the Buccos collected eight doubles during the contest. The Pirates jumped out to a 7-1 second inning lead, saw the Phils cut it to 7-5, and then iced it with a five-spot in the eighth. Mike Bielecki got the win and Walk added a save to his hitting heroics, tossing 3-1/3 frames of scoreless, one-hit ball. 

Bill Almon - 1986 Donruss

• 1990 - Wally Backman became the first NL’er to get six hits in one game in 15 years when the 3B’man went 6-for-6 against the Padres at Jack Murphy Stadium in a 9-4 Pirate win. The Bucs banged out 19 hits, with Barry Bonds collecting four, including two homers and a double. Neal Heaton claimed the win. 
• 1991 - The Bucs had their way with the Mets at Shea Stadium, winning 10-1. Randy Tomlin and Bob Patterson combined on a four hitter while a trio of Pirates had three hits - Bobby Bonilla, who had four RBI and a run scored, Spanky LaValliere, with two runs driven in and one scored, and Curtis Wilkerson, who plated three times. Pittsburgh took over sole possession of first place, and never lost it as they won the division by 14 games. 
• 1993 - Tim Wakefield threw 172 pitches in defeating Atlanta‚ 6-2‚ in 11 innings at Fulton County Stadium, and he didn’t even go the distance. He was relieved by Paul Wagner in the 11th after issuing a leadoff walk. It was the most pitches tossed by one pitcher in a single game during the nineties and the most ever by a Pirate. Fernando Valenzuela was the last to throw that many pitches in a game back in 1987. The Pirates took command of the game when Mike Stanton threw away a bunt attempt by Wakefield in the 11th, setting up a pair of two-out knocks and four unearned runs. 
• 2005 - Jose Mesa sat Houston down 1-2-3 in the ninth to save Kip Wells’ 2-0 victory. Wells went seven four-hit frames before Rick White and Mesa closed it out. It was Jose’s 300th career save, making Mesa the 19th pitcher in MLB history to reach that mark. Jason Bay and Jack Wilson chased home the runs at PNC Park, and Bay made the play of the game when he kissed the wall hauling in Morgan Enberg’s two-out drive to record the final out of Mesa’s historic save. 
• 2008 - RHP Matt Morris, GM Dave Littlefield’s final swing-and-miss, was released by the Pirates after going 1-2/3 innings against the Phillies and giving up six runs on six hits. The 33-year-old compiled an 0-4 record with a 9.67 ERA in his five outings with Pittsburgh in 2008. He retired soon after, but the Bucs ate $11,037,283 in salary, including a $1M buyout for 2009. Pittsburgh replaced him by calling up RHP John Van Benschoten. 

Dewey - 2010 Topps Heritage

• 2010 - A five-run ninth inning sparked by Ryan Doumit's grand slam and Ronny Cedeno's solo shot off Trevor Hoffman ended the Pirates 22-game losing streak in Milwaukee as the Bucs took a 7-3 victory at Miller Park. The Brew Crew's hometown hex over the Bucs was the longest held by one team over another since the Browns/Orioles lost 27 consecutive contests to the Indians in Cleveland from 1952-54. 
• 2018 - The Pirates spotted the Cardinals a five run lead at PNC Park, then began chipping away. In the sixth, a Gregory Polanco homer and Corey Dickerson sac fly made it 5-2, but the Pirates were stymied in the seventh and eighth. In the ninth, the first four Pirates reached and the game was knotted at five after Jordy Mercer’s two-bagger. He reached third with no one out, but a pop up and two whiffs later, there he remained. The 10th went quietly and the Cards put up a zero in the 11th. But with two outs and David Freese at second via a walk and wild pitch, Starling Marte flicked a two-strike slider into center to walk off a 6-5 win. The Bucco bullpen - Kyle Crick, Tyler Glasnow, Richard Rodriguez, Felipe Vazquez and George Kontos (who got the win) tossed 6-2/3 scoreless frames after Steven Brault had been banged around early. Fran Cervelli had three hits; Marte, Polanco and Corey Dickerson each had a pair.
• 2018 - Roberto Clemente is more than a local hero; the state of New Jersey named the part of Route #21 running through Newark as the Roberto Clemente Memorial Highway. "As one would drive up and down the highway - you can see the number 21. It was almost screaming for it to be changed, (to) Roberto Clemente,” Luis Angel Maisonave of Newark's Roberto Clemente Little League said.

4/26 Through the 1970s: Expo Crowd; Don't Try; Game Tales; HBD Francisco, Curt, Amos, Fire & Ron

• 1900 - The Bucs drew 11,000 to the newly expanded Exposition Park, the biggest Pittsburgh baseball turnout to date, with a couple of thousand more fans trying to get in. The Pirates were fortified by the recent influx of Louisville players like Honus Wagner, but dropped a 12-11 slugfest to Cincinnati as the Reds lit up Rube Waddell and Jack Chesbro. The Bucs made a game of it by rallying for seven ninth-inning runs. 
• 1905 - The Cubs beat Pittsburgh at Exposition Park, 2-1 as Chicago’s Jack McCarthy became the only major league OF’er to throw out three runners trying to score in one game, with all three assists were on tag-up tries following triples. The game story in the Pittsburgh Press stated simply in the headline that “McCarthy Made the Throws.” 
• 1917 - Coach Virgil “Fire” Trucks was born in Birmingham, Alabama. After a long pro career, he became the bullpen coach/batting practice pitcher for Pittsburgh in 1960 and stayed with the Pirates until 1963. Trucks later operated baseball camps for the Bucs. Jack House, sportswriter for the Birmingham News, gave him the apt moniker “Fire,” not because he chased red engines but because of his blazing heater; Trucks tossed two no-hitters for Detroit in 1952.

Virgil "Fire" Trucks - 1963 Associated Press

• 1920 - Coach Ron Northey was born in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania, near Hazelton. An outfielder with some pop and a good eye (he walked more than he whiffed), Northey played 12 MLB seasons, missing some time for WW2. After his playing days, he spent three years as a coach on Danny Murtaugh’s staff from 1961-1963 before becoming a White Sox scout. 
• 1940 - After putting up four runs in the eighth the day before and falling just short, the Bucs crossed home seven times in the eighth this day to roll over the St. Louis Cardinals 10-4 at Forbes Field. Debs Garms and Joe Bowman both had homers with three RBI to spark the rally and earn Mace Brown his second relief win in four days. 
• 1947 - OF Amos Otis was born in Mobile, Alabama. He played the final year of his 17-season career with the Pirates in 1984, coming over after 14 campaigns with the KC Royals. (He actually had been dealt to the Bucs during the 1976 off season, but as a 5 & 10 year player vetoed the trade of him and Cookie Rojas for Al Oliver.) His TRS season wasn’t much of a swan song for the 37-year-old: in 97 at-bats, he hit .165 and he was released in August. Amos worked briefly for the San Diego Padres and Colorado Rockies as a hitting instructor after he left the playing field and then retired to Las Vegas. 
• 1958 - With Pittsburgh and Cincinnati knotted 4-4 at Crosley Field heading into the eighth, Bill Mazeroski took over. First, he drilled an eighth-inning solo shot to put the Pirates on top, then his three-run bomb in the top of the ninth sealed the deal, 8-4. It was the first of eight multi-homer games in his career, with his next coming less than a month later on May 10th. 1958 was also the year Maz earned his first of seven All-Star spots. Billy’s heroics gave Don Gross the win after he spun four innings of one-hit relief, with Roberto Clemente, Bob Skinner and Ted Kluszewski adding three hits apiece to aid the cause. 

Maz - 1958 Topps

• 1961 - IF Curtis Wilkerson was born in Petersburg, Virginia. Wilkerson spent 11 years in the show as mainly a bench guy, getting into 85 games for the Pirates in 1991 and hitting .188. After he retired, he managed for three years in the Rangers system and then three more years (1999-2001) for the Buccaneers squads in Williamsport and Lynchburg. He then skippered in the indy leagues and at last look was managing in a collegiate summer league in Texas. 
• 1972 - RHP Francisco Cordova was born in Cerro Azul, Mexico. He spent his five year MLB career (1996-2000) as a Pirate, first as a reliever who notched 12 saves in his rookie year before becoming a starter. His slash was 42-47-12/3.96. Arm injuries derailed his career, but he did continue to toss in Mexico through the 2011 campaign. He was part of one of the great Pirate moments on July 12th, 1997 at a sold out Three Rivers Stadium when he pitched nine innings of a combined 10-inning no-hitter, with Ricardo Rincón closing it out. The Pirates won the game on a three-run, pinch hit home run in the bottom of the 10th by Mark Smith. 
• 1978 - Ed Ott hit an 11th-inning home run at Shea Stadium to give the Bucs and Bert Blyleven, who pitched a complete game six-hitter, a 1-0 win. It took 35 years for another Pirate, Neil Walker, to homer for the only run in a Bucco extra inning victory.

4/26 From 1980: Paul Picked; Gift's Debut; Fans Behaving Badly; Hack's Day; Kiner Statue; Long Taters; Deal Ditched; HBD S-Rod

• 1980 - The Pirates scored five times in the first inning and cruised to a 9-2 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Pittsburgh pounded out 17 hits, led by three apiece from Mike Easler and Dave Parker. John Candelaria went the distance, allowing two runs on eight hits as the Pirates split a brief two game series with Chicago. 

S-Rod - 2017 Topps

• 1985 - Utilityman Sean Rodriguez was born in Miami. In his career, S-Rod has played every position but pitcher and catcher. The Bucs traded for him during the 2014 off season and he played around the field for Pittsburgh. He was signed up again for 2016 after hitting .246 and playing six different spots in 2015. The super-sub had a super year, batting .270 w/18 HR and turned that into a nice FA deal with Atlanta. He missed much of the 2017 campaign due to a shoulder injury suffered in an off-season car accident and returned to the Bucs via the trade route in August. He last played with Miami in 2020. 
• 1995 - 34,841 fans at TRS disrupted a delayed Opening Day by throwing whatever was handy (mainly giveaway day Bucco pennants) on the field to show their displeasure with the freshly resolved player’s strike and some shoddy play by the Bucs. The game was delayed for 17 minutes until the announcer told the unruly crowd that the contest was about to be forfeited. It might as well have been; Montreal won the game 6-2, chasing Jon Leiber in the fifth. The team was lucky they weren’t wrapped in Jolly Rogers and tossed overboard after one of the worse innings in their history. Going into that fateful frame, it was a 1-1 game between Pittsburgh and Montreal before the floodgates opened. There were two outs, Expos on the corners (the runner on first reached when his right side, shoulda-been inning-ending nubber was fielded but nobody covered the sack) and one run in when Roberto Kelly bled another soft roller, this one up the left side. 3B Jeff King flipped the ball into the outfield; RF Orlando Merced missed the mark on the throw home, and all three Montreal runners scored. Montreal added another run on a hit batter, single and wild pitch. Jason Christiansen added a throwing error to the pot before the Bucs got back into the dugout (and the ground crew picked up a field littered with pennants tossed by frustrated fans). So instead of being out of the inning, it ended up game, set and, match for Montreal, 6-2 winners. C Mark Parent told the Post Gazette’s Paul Meyer “That whole fifth inning was a fiasco. It was like Murphy’s Law.” 
• 1995 - As the Pirates were bungling away at the North Shore, Mayor Tom Murphy and Vince Sarni, chairman of the Pittsburgh Associates, left the Duquesne Club and announced that they had reached a framework to sell the Pirates and keep the team in Pittsburgh with Chambers Development Company chairman John Rangos, saying that an agreement could be reached within a week. They were wrong; the deal was never finalized and the PA held on to the team until selling it to the McClatchy group in 1996. 

  Kiner statue - photo Kenny Muz/Flickr

• 2008 - Alhambra, California, dedicated a bronze statue to honor of its native son Ralph Kiner for his "accomplishments and contributions to the game of professional baseball and sports broadcasting.” The former Pirates slugger, a member of the Hall of Fame, grew up in Alhambra and graduated from its high school in 1940 before moving on to Southern Cal and the Buccos. 
• 2010 - The Brewers romped over the Bucs 17-3 for their 22nd straight win over Pittsburgh at Miller Park after they had already taken the opening series by 8-1, 8-0 and 20-0 tallies. The curse, dating back to 2007, was snapped the next day 7-3 by the Pirates, who also took the third game of the series for good measure. 
• 2011 - The Pirates selected OF Xavier Paul off waivers from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Xavier proved useful off the bench, getting into 121 games, but the corner outfielder hit just .254 with little power (2 HR) or patience (.293 OBP) at the plate. He was released after the campaign and played as a sub for three more MLB seasons with the Reds and D-Backs, followed by some bouncing around in the minors with stops in Mexico and the indie leagues. 
• 2016 - Pittsburgh pounded five home runs in the thin air of Coors Field to claim a 9-4 win over the Colorado Rockies. Andrew McCutchen hit three long balls and chased home five runs. With his second career three-dinger match, Cutch joined Ralph Kiner (four), Willie Stargell (four) and Roberto Clemente (two) on the list of players who have multiple three-homer games as Pirates. Starling Marte and David Freese (his first as a Pirate) added to the fence busting party, propelling Gerrit Cole to victory. 
• 2017 - IF Gift Ngoepe made his first MLB appearance, going 1-for-2 (he singled in his first big league at-bat) with a walk and turning the game-ending DP as the Pirates hung on to beat the Cubs 6-5 at PNC Park. Ngoepe was the first African native (he’s from South Africa) to ever play in the majors, and it took the 27-year-old eight-plus minor league seasons to get the call. Pittsburgh jumped off to a 5-1 lead, started off by Josh Harrison’s lead-off homer in the first. Josh Bell later went long (both Joshes collected a pair of hits), but the Cubs kept chipping away. After an error on a potential inning-ending DP ball in the ninth left two Cubbies aboard, Tony Watson served up another grounder that did the trick to save Wade LeBlanc’s win. 

Gift Ngoepke - 2017 Topps Now

• 2017 - Ellwood City’s Hack Wilson, who banged 56 home runs and drove in a major league record 191 runs in 1930, was recognized before the Cubs game at PNC Park. It was the 117th anniversary of Wilson’s birth, who put up those big 1930 numbers as a Cubbie (he spent half his 12-year career in Chicago from 1926-31), the night’s opponents. It was a nice touch by the Ellwood City Area Historical Society to recognize a local boy that made good, even if the Cubs didn’t opt to participate in the celebration. Proving once again that karma is a beach, Chicago lost 6-5.