- 1977 - Danny Murtaugh’s #40 was retired on Opening Day in front of 35,186 fans at TRS the year following his December death. He won a pair of World Series and was twice Manager of the Year. Known for his dry wit, The Whistling Irishman attributed his success to “brilliant managerial thinking and dumb Irish luck.” The game wasn’t much of a testimonial, though, as the Bucs lost, 12-6, to the Cards in what was the last time St. Louis played a home opener in Pittsburgh until 2016. It was also the home debut of Chuck Tanner, who watched Jerry Reuss, Larry Demery and Terry Forster serve BP to the Redbirds. The bats weren’t bad, though, as Duffy Dyer homered while Rennie Stennett and Dave Parker each banged out three hits. The season wasn’t a wash, either, as the Pirates finished second to Philadelphia in the NL East with a record of 96–66.
- 1978 - The Candy Man tossed a seven-hit shutout to thwart Rick Reuschel and the Chicago Cubs, 1-0, in the Pirates Home Opener at TRS. Bill Robinson was the hero; his hard slide into second after a Willie Stargell grounder broke up a potential inning-ending DP and allowed Frank Taveras to score the game’s only run. The Bucs collected just three hits in front of the 39,082 fans who got home happy and quickly; the game took one hour and 52 minutes to complete.
- 1979 - The Pirates traded LHP Jerry Reuss to the LA Dodgers for RHP Rick Rhoden after a week’s delay as the pair first worked out new contracts. Both sides got dependable starters out of the deal, as Rhoden won 79 games for Pittsburgh between 1980-86 (he was injured in 1979) and Reuss notched 84 victories in LA from 1979-85. Rick also earned an All-Star nod as a Corsair and won three Silver Sluggers; he hit .251 as a Bucco and banged five long balls. In other news, Dave Parker shared the cover of The Sporting News in its “Baseball Is Back” issue with the Padres’ Gaylord Perry, Boston’s Jim Rice and the Yankees’ Ron Guidry. It was well-deserved ink for the Cobra, who hit .310 w/25 HR, was an All Star, Golden Glove awardee and World Series champion. The tabloid couldn’t have come out on a more copacetic day, as Parker had two hits, a walk and scored the winning run during the Bucs’ 7-6 walkoff win against Montreal at TRS.
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| Steve Nicosia - 1981 Donruss |
- 1979 - Steve Nicosia banged his first MLB homer (and hit) as the Pirates were gifted with a 7-6, walk off win against Montreal. Pittsburgh blew a ninth-inning lead at TRS when three pitchers allowed four Expo tallies to fall behind, 5-4. But never say die - with two outs and runners on first and second, Willie Stargell won the game, not with a majestic blast but a one-hop comebacker to pitcher Elias Sosa. He threw the ball away, allowing Matt Alexander and Dave Parker to score, with the Cobra seemingly dead at home before he knocked the ball loose from catcher Gary Carter to earn the Bucs the win. Grant Jackson, who had been tagged for a two-run two-bagger in the top of the frame, was credited with both a blown save and victory for his efforts. Parker and Bill Robinson also banged long balls.
- 1983 - The Bucs had to put on their rally caps at the Astrodome to overcome a late 2-1 deficit to take home a 3-2 win against Houston. The Buccos leadoff hitter in the final frame, Dale Berra, smacked a homer to tie the game. Lee Mazzilli’s two-out knock sent Lee Lacy home with the game-winner after he had reached on a forceout and then stole second. Rod Scurry showed off his nasty curve for the win, striking out four ‘Stros in his 1-1/3 IP while leaving a pair stranded in the bottom of the ninth. Rick Rhoden and Alan Ashby started the contest before handing the ball off to the bullpens to determine the outcome.
- 1983 - Major League Baseball, ABC, and NBC agreed to terms of a six-year television package worth $1.2B. The two networks continued to alternate coverage of the playoffs, World Series, and All-Star Game through the 1989 season with each of the 26 clubs receiving $7M per year, up from the last package that netted each club $1.9M per campaign according to BR Bullpen.
- 1984 - The Dodgers banged out nine hits, but they couldn’t get on the scoreboard, losing 3-0 to the Bucs at Dodger Stadium. Pitchers John Candelaria and Don Robinson had something to do with that, but not as much as Amos Otis, who brought back a potential Steve Yeager homer and threw out two LA runners at second. Tony Pena caught another left coaster stealing; it was no wonder Big Blue was a little gun shy on the basepaths. The Pirates got a run in the fourth when a pickoff try went astray, allowing Marvell Wynne to come all the way around from first. They iced it in the seventh on Dale Berra’s two-run bloop single. It appeared to be a sure double off the bat, but Berra hit the brakes when he reached first. “I saw four guys thrown out at second (Johnny Ray had also been caught stealing),” Dale explained, “and I wasn’t going to be number five.”
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| Amos Otis - 1984 Fleer Update |
- 1995 - Camp opened late and the Bucs had one last piece of business to attend to: signing LHP Denny Neagle, the only arb-eligible player they hadn’t tied up. He agreed to a one-year/$720K deal, a nice bump over his 1994 salary of $220K. The Pirates also cut loose three veterans, CF Andy Van Slyke, OF Lloyd McClellan and IF Tom Foley. AVS joined the Orioles, Foley went to the Expos and Lloyd landed a minor league deal with Cleveland and retired after the year.
- 1996 - IF/OF Hoy Jun Park was born in Seoul, Korea. He signed with the Yankees as an international free agent in 2014 and spent most of his time in the minors, getting one at bat with the New York nine. He came to Pittsburgh in 2021 as part of the Clay Holmes trade and spanked a double during his debut Bucco at bat for his first MLB hit. He went north with the team the following season, earning a roster spot as a versatile bench guy. Hoy got into 23 games, hitting .216 while playing short, second, third and right field for the big club. He was DFA’ed during a November housecleaning, leading to a trade with the Boston Red Sox; Hoy is now with the Atlanta Braves.
- 1999 - It was a party night in Pittsburgh with an hour of speechifying featuring Senator Rick Santorum, Governor Tom Ridge, Mayor Tom Murphy, County Commissioners Mike Dawida & Bob Cranmer and owner Kevin McClatchy, a 10-minute fireworks display and a laser show with rock music to celebrate the groundbreaking of PNC Park. The cherry on top was the renaming of the Sixth Street Bridge to the Roberto Clemente Bridge (the consolation prize for not having the Stadium christened for the Great One), with wife Vera and sons Luis & Roberto Jr. present, along with Dick Groat, Bob Friend and Willie Stargell.
- 2001 - Two days before Willie Stargell died, his statue was unveiled at the Pirates' new stadium, PNC Park, as part of the opening-week ceremonies. Chuck Tanner and former players Bobby Del Greco and Nellie Briles were on hand, as was Vera Clemente and her & Roberto’s two sons, Luis and Roberto Jr. Pirates GM Cam Bonifay, Pittsburgh City Councilman Sala Udin and the statue's sculptor, Susan Wagner, were also there to unveil the 12-ton statue on Federal Street.
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| Willie Stargell statue - photo/Pittsburgh Murals |
- 2008 - The Pirates lost the first Home Opener of the Frank Coonelly/Neal Huntington era, dropping a 10-8 decision to the Cubs at PNC Park in 12 innings. The Bucs fell behind, 7-0, rallied to tie the score, and were set to win it in the ninth when Jose Bautista laid down a squeeze with Brian Bixler at third. Bix inexplicably lost his nerve and retreated back to the bag, costing Pittsburgh its last grab at the day’s brass ring. Rule 5 reliever Evan Meek walked four batters in the 12th frame, gifting Chicago two runs without a hit, to earn the giveaway loss.
- 2012 - Jeff Karstens and four relievers held the Phils scoreless for 9-2/3 innings to take a 2-1, 10-inning decision at PNC Park. After Juan Cruz stranded a pair in the top of the final frame, Rod Barajas led off the tenth with a double. Mike McKenry ran for him, and a hustling Alex Presley brought him home by legging out a bleeder to third with two outs for the walk-off win.
- 2022 - Pending his physical, the Pirates and 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes agreed on an eight-year/$70M contract extension with club option (2022-23, $10M; 2024-27, $7M; 2028-29, $8M; 2030, $12M club option; $6M buyout), eclipsing Jason Kendall’s six-year/$60M deal from 2000, the largest deal in team history before today The contract was officially announced when the Pirates returned home on April 12th. The good vibe didn’t carry over to the season’s kickoff; Key left the game in the first frame with a wrist cramp and the Pirates suffered their worst Opening Day defeat since 1922, losing 9-0 to the Cards and nemesis Adam Wainwright at Busch Stadium. The ‘22 loss? Yep, it was also to the Redbirds behind Bill Sherdel, 10-1, at Sportsman’s Park.
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