- 1878 - OF Mike “Turkey” Donlin was born in Peoria, Illinois. Mike played one of his 12 big league campaigns in Pittsburgh, hitting .316 as a 34-year-old in 1912. Known as "Turkey Mike" because of his strut, Donlin’s baseball career was held back by his bid for stage stardom. While a player, he spent three off seasons touring in a play called “Stealing Home” and after his retirement moved to Hollywood, where he appeared in 50+ films as a bit player.
- 1892 - Mark “Fido” Baldwin, a native Pittsburgher alleged to have the best fastball in the league, tossed both ends of a Pirates doubleheader sweep of the Baltimore Orioles at Exposition Park, winning 11-1 and 4-3. Baldwin went 26-27/3.47 with 45 complete games and 440 IP in ’92. A more fitting nickname for Baldwin would have been “Doc.” After he left baseball, he earned his medical degree and practiced at Passavant Hospital.
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| Jake Beckley - 1994 Origins of Baseball |
- 1893 - From Baseball Chronology: "Jake Beckley successfully pulls the 'ancient’ hidden-ball trick on Baltimore Oriole Joe Kelley as Pittsburgh wins 9-1.” The Bucs swept a doubleheader from the Birds (they were managed by former Pittsburgh field general Ned Hanlon, who in a three-year span skippered the Alleghenys, Burghers and Pirates) at Exposition Park, also claiming a 10-3 victory. It was a pretty good Pirates club; the team finished 81-48, five games behind the NL champs, the Boston Beaneaters.
- 1894 - RHP Al Mamaux was born in Dormont, a kissin’ cousin suburb of Pittsburgh. He went to Duquesne University and pitched for the Pirates from 1913-17. Mamaux was 49-36/2.61 during that time, and had strong seasons in 1915-16, going 42-23 with back-to-back 21 win campaigns. He spent the off-season as a crowd pleaser of another sort, touring for two decades as a vaudeville singer touted as "The Golden Voice Tenor.”
- 1912 - In a not-so-sweet deal, the Pirates sent veteran 3B/OF Tommy Leach and P Lefty Leifield to Chicago for UT Solly Hofman and P King Cole. Leach, 34, started the next two years for the Cubs and came back to retire as a Pirate in 1918. Lefty pitched five more seasons, with a four year stint in the PCL (1914-17), going 57-25. Cole lasted one year in Pittsburgh, going 2-2/6.43 while Hoffman played two years for the Pirates, playing 45 games and hitting .246.
- 1921 - There were four NL doubleheaders on this date, and all four resulted in a sweep. The Pirates did their part by taking two from the Chicago Cubs at Forbes Field, 13-0 and 6-3. Jimmy Zinn tossed a five-hitter in the opener, backed by four RBI from George Cutshaw and Possum Whitted, with Max Carey scoring four times. The nitecap was led by Whitted and Walter Schmidt who both went 3-for-4, with Possum scoring three times and Schmidt driving in a pair. Chief Yellow Horse, the third Pirate pitcher, went 7-2/3 shutout innings for the win and recorded the only strikeout of the day by Pittsburgh’s moundsmen.
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| Jimmy Zinn - 1920 photo via tnphoto/Out of the Ballpark Development |
- 1925 - The Pirates set a MLB record by hitting eight triples against the St. Louis Cardinals in spacious Forbes Field during the nitecap of a twinbill. Max Carey and Clyde Barnhart each banged out a pair of three-baggers while Kiki Cuyler, Pie Traynor (who added two doubles), Glenn Wright and Eddie Moore each had one. Barnhart had four hits, four runs and five RBI in the game as the Bucs ran their win streak to seven with a 15-5 romp. The Bucs took the opener 4-1 behind Emil Yde and four DPs. Max Carey had a pair of RBI and George Grantham had three hits, including two doubles, in that match. Every Pirates starter reached base safely; the club stranded 12 runners and had two more tossed out on the basepaths. The Pirates collected 32 hits during the day.
- 1927 - The Bucs lost the opener of a Forbes Field Memorial Day doubleheader to the Cubs, 7-6, in 10 innings, ending the Pirates 11-game win streak. The big play was made by Cubs’ SS Jimmy Cooney, who snared Paul Waner's liner, stepped on second to double up Little Poison, and then tagged Clyde Barnhart coming from first for an unassisted triple play. Pittsburgh came back to win the nitecap‚ 6-5‚ also in 10 innings. Lloyd Waner collected seven hits during the twin bill and Glenn Wright added five more knocks.
- 1932 - The Pittsburgh Crawfords and Homestead Grays played a Memorial Day weekend tripleheader. Pittsburgh captured the first two games by 4-1 and 10-0 scores at Greenlee Field in the Hill (the Crawfords home yard, named after owner Gus Greenlee), but fell to Cum Posey's Grays 9-2 in the evening finale played at Forbes Field, which had already hosted a Pirates-Reds doubleheader earlier in the day. Homestead pitcher George Britt won the closing match; he had caught the first two contests at Greenlee.
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| 1932 Crawfords - Harrison Gaines/Hall of Fame |
- 1939 - Johnny Rizzo set a club record that still hasn’t been matched by driving in nine runs against the St. Louis Browns in a 14-8 win at Sportsman's Park, gaining a doubleheader split for the Bucs. He banged a pair of homers and two doubles.
- 1958 - The Milwaukee Braves beat the Bucs and ElRoy Face, 7-4, at Forbes Field, scoring four times in the ninth to rally for victory. The Baron of the Bullpen, Elroy Face, gave up the runs, two of which were unearned, but came back strong; he wouldn’t lose again until September 1959, claiming 22 straight wins. The game hinged on two muffed pop ups, both fully weaponized by the Braves. The second game went the Bucs way, 12-6; Pittsburgh banged out 18 hits w/five doubles and two three-baggers to overcome four solo homers by Milwaukee. Dick Groat and Bill Mazeroski each had four Pirate knocks, scored seven times and chased four runs home. Howie Goss got the win following Curt Rayburn and Ron Blackburn. The Memorial Day twin bill drew 32,428 fans.
- 1969 - Al Oliver started a triple play that saw him get two putouts and two assists during the action against Houston at Forbes Field. With Jesus Alou at first and Doug Rader at second, Johnny Edwards grounded to Scoops, who took the out and then relayed the ball to Gene Alley at second. Alley chased Alou back and flipped to Oliver for the tag. Meanwhile Rader, who had stayed on second thinking Edwards had hit a line drive, broke for third late when the light went on but Oliver gunned him down with Richie Hebner slapping the tag. The Bucs won the twinbill opener, 9-3. Al had two of the Bucs 17 hits as Jim Bunning cruised to victory. The nightcap didn’t go so well as Bob Moose and Chuck Hartenstine got roughed up in a 9-6 defeat. Matty Alou and Billy Maz each had three hits but the Pirates couldn’t outgun the ‘Stros
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