10/5 From 1970: Playoff Action - Bert & Bob Gems; Tanner, Murtaugh Staff Shakeups; Tracy Fired, Heads Roll; RIP Woody

• 1970 - Johnny Bench and Tony Perez homered off Bob Moose in the first inning and the Reds beat the Pirates, 3-2, to sweep the NLCS at Riverfront Stadium. After the Pirates had tied the game in the eighth, Cincinnati scored the winner after two outs when a walk, single and Bobby Tolan’s knock off reliever Joe Gibbon plated the game winner. The Pirates collected 10 hits, but stranded a dozen runners. Willie Stargell went 3-for-4 with a walk and an RBI while Roberto Clemente, Al Oliver and Richie Hebner had two hits each. The Reds lost the World Series to Baltimore in five games. 

Bob Johnson - 1971 Pirates Picture Pack

• 1971 - Richie Hebner's homer off Juan Marichal in the eighth inning gave Pittsburgh a 2-1 victory over the Giants at TRS and a 2-1 lead in the NLCS. Bob Johnson went eight innings of five-hit ball with seven K and Dave Giusti picked up the save. The Bucs’ first tally came in the second on another solo blast, this one by Bob Robertson. For Hebner, it was an act of redemption; his throwing error on a bunt led to SF’s only score, an unearned sixth-inning run. Robertson’s homer was his fourth of the series, setting a record. 
• 1973 - After taking over the coaching reins from Bill Virdon in September, Danny Murtaugh announced a shakeup of The Quail’s field staff, firing pitching coach Mel Wright and bullpen coach Dave Ricketts while adding Bob Skinner. He also said that he planned to retain Don Leppert and Bill Mazeroski. Don Osborn took over the pitching chores, but Maz didn’t make the final cut as expected (he did remain as a spring instructor), with Jose Pagan instead coming aboard. Leppert ended up the sole survivor from Virdon’s staff. 
• 1974 - Don Sutton held Pittsburgh to four hits at TRS in the first game of the NLCS to claim a 3-0 win. It was a 1-0 duel between him and Jerry Reuss until the Dodgers added a pair of ninth inning tallies off of Dave Giusti. Willie Stargell had two of the Pirates four hits. Before today’s game, LA had been 0-6 at TRS during the regular season. 
• 1975 - Fred Norman limited the Bucs to five hits at Riverfront Stadium as the Cincinnati Reds easily took a two games to none lead in the NLCS by a 6-1 tally. Rennie Stennett and Richie Zisk had two knocks each; the only other Bucco hit was Willie Stargell’s RBI double. Jim Rooker took the loss, chased after just four innings. 

Bert Blyleven - 1979 Hostess

• 1979 - The Pirates swept the NLCS, beating the Reds, 7-1, at TRS behind Bert Blyleven, who went the distance (eight hits, nine whiffs) for the series clincher. Willie Stargell, who homered, doubled and had three RBI, was named Series MVP. Bill Madlock also went long for the Bucs. The blowout was an outlier; it had taken the Bucs extra innings to win the first two contests. 
• 1984 - 3B coach Joe Lonnett, 1B coach Al Monchak and pitching coach Harvey Haddix were let go by GM Pete Peterson and manager Chuck Tanner. Lonnett, who had spent 14 years with Tanner, had raised hackles earlier in the year with criticism of some of the players, Monchak had health problems, and The Kitten was replaced by Grant Jackson. He was a surprise, as the Pirates led the NL in ERA, but the team felt that much of the credit belonged to Tanner, who was deeply involved in the pitching schematics. Steve Demeter and Milt Graff replaced the base coaches, with Bob Skinner and Rick Peterson remaining as holdovers. 
• 1990 - The Reds tied the NLCS at a game with a 2-1 win at Riverfront Stadium as Tom Browning bested Doug Drabek. Paul O’Neill drove in both runs for Cincinnati, both set up by stolen bases, while Chico Lind’s solo homer was it for Pittsburgh. Both pitchers were sharp; the Reds managed five hits and the Pirates six. 
• 2001 - Forrest “Woody” Jensen passed away in Wichita, Kansas. Woody spent his nine-year MLB career as a Pirate from 1931-39, batting .285 over that span. The left fielder was most productive in the mid-thirties, starting and hitting leadoff from 1935-37. Between being named Forrest and getting his start in the semi-pro Timber League, his nickname Woody was a natural. He was recognized in 2004 when he was selected to the Wichita Sports Hall of Fame. 

Woody Jensen - 1936 Goudey Wide Pen

• 2007 - The Pirates fired manager Jim Tracy after two years and a 135-189 (.417) record. He was replaced by John Russell. As part of the purge by new GM Neal Huntington, director of player development Brian Graham, scouting director Ed Creech, director of baseball operations Jon Mercurio and Tracy's entire coaching staff also lost their jobs.