6/24 From 1950: Gonzales Inked; Pops Trio; 1,000 For Clint; SI ElRoy; PNC's 1st Million; Game Tales; HBD Ken

• 1951 - 3B Ken Reitz was born in San Francisco. He ended his 11-year MLB career on a quiet note with the Pirates in 1982, going 0-for-10 with four whiffs. Ken had been a Cardinal mainstay at the hot corner for eight years, earning an All-Star spot, Golden Glove and the nickname “Zamboni” for his ability to scoop up grounders before bowing out with the Bucs. 
• 1963 - The Baron of the Bullpen, ElRoy Face, was the featured cover story of Sports Illustrated as a tease to the article “The Forkball and Roy Face,” which touted him as “Baseball’s Best Reliever.” The timing was a bit off - he cobbled together a workmanlike 3-9-16/3.23 line that season after a strong 1962 campaign where he slashed 8-7-28/1.88. 
• 1965 - Willie Stargell’s first career three-homer game (he had four lifetime) sparked the Bucs to a 13-3 romp over first-place Los Angeles at Dodger Stadium. Pops also lined a shot off the outfield railing for a double, just a gnat’s eyelash from his fourth long fly. Roberto Clemente added three knocks and the Bucs hit five dingers during the match, with Bob Bailey and Jim Pagliaroni also going yard, while Don Cardwell tossed a four-hitter to whip Don Drysdale. 
• 1977 - The Expos’ Wayne Twitchell was sitting on a no-hitter and 5-0 lead going into the eighth inning at TRS in front of 27,650 glum Pirates faithful, but escaped with neither as the Bucs came alive to rally for a 6-5, 10-inning win. An infield hit and Al Oliver homer halved the score, Fernando Gonzalez’s single chased home another run, and with two on and two gone, Montreal’s Joe Kerrigan issued back-to-back walks to cut the lead to a single tally. In the ninth frame, Bobby Tolan’s rap tied it as Bruce Kison, running for Willie Stargell, touched home. Pittsburgh kept the pressure on in the 10th. Phil Garner opened with a double off Kerrigan and after an intentional walk, Bill Robinson, whose infield single in the eighth opened the floodgates, dropped a ball into right to win it. Goose Gossage, the fourth Bucco twirler, got the win after Grant Jackson and Larry Demery put up goose eggs following Jim Rooker’s early departure from the hill. 

Goose - 1977 Topps

• 1978 - What started out as a pitcher’s duel ended up a 12-inning see-saw affair, but John Milner’s grand slam was enough for the Bucs to claim a 7-4 victory at Shea Stadium. Jim Bibby and Craig Swan left a 2-2 game to the bullpens after both had held steadfast until the final frame. Milner hit his granny against the team that he had played with for six seasons after taking a pitch that almost caught him in the chicklets. The high and tight message didn’t bother him, he said, but tipped him that the Mets wanted to work him inside, and hunting that zone, he blasted a low, tight heater yard on the next pitch. Ed Whitson inherited a big lead - Omar Moreno had singled in a run before Milner’s blast - but left after giving up a run in the New York half. Dave Hamilton entered and surrendered another score, getting the last out with the bases filled with Mets. Milner and Moreno were big time - John had four hits while Omar had a game-saving catch to go with eight other grabs in center, and stole three bases. More drama was about to take place as a death threat was phoned in saying that Chuck Tanner “would not leave the stadium alive,” and after the game, he got a police escort. Tanner said he attributed the threat to the closeness of the game. In fact, it was the eighth time the two clubs had met in ‘78, with five games going into extra innings. 
• 2001 - A Sunday crowd of 36,826 jammed PNC Park and broke the million-fan mark after the ballyard’s 33rd game, the quickest pace to reach that figure in franchise history. However, it was the Same Ol’ Bucs, who went down, 11-4, to the Expos. The loss left Pittsburgh at 25-47 and in the Central Division basement, where they would finish the year. 
• 2008 - For the first time since Game 7 of the 1960 World Series, the New York Yankees visited Pittsburgh. Bill Mazeroski threw out the first pitch at PNC Park, and it was deja vu all over again as the Bucs broke out the bats to win, 12-5. Freddy Sanchez had three hits and three runs scored while Ryan Doumit and Adam LaRoche also had three knocks with a pair of RBI each. The Bucs were the last MLB team to earn a regular season win against the Yankees. Also true to form, they were clobbered, 10-0, by the Bronx Bombers the following day. 

Clint Hurdle - 2016 Topps Heritage

• 2016 - Clint Hurdle won his 1,000th victory as a skipper as the Bucs beat the Dodgers, 8-6, at PNC Park. Jameson Taillon started the game, and it took six Pirates twirlers to nail it down. Neftali Feliz earned the win while Mark Melancon converted his 17th straight save opportunity to close it. Matt Joyce went 3-for-4 with a homer, double, & two RBI while Starling Marte had a pair of hits and Jung-Ho Kang went deep. It was also a red letter day for Adam Frazier, who made his big league debut and singled off LA reliever JP Howell for his first MLB hit. 
• 2017 - The Bucs used a wild streak to ice a 7-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Ahead 5-1 in the sixth inning thanks to a homer & three RBI from Jordy Mercer and a solo shot by Josh Harrison, the Pirates had a runner on second with two outs. Eight hitter Chris Stewart was intentionally walked and pitcher Gerrit Cole was unintentionally lost on a 3-2 pitch from Lance Lynn. John Brebbia relieved and plunked Adam Frazier in the foot on an 0-2 pitch to force home one tally and the Fat Lady began to warble after J-Hay was smacked above the hip to plate another Bucco runner. Wade LeBlanc gave up a pair of scores in the ninth frame, but he, Tony Watson and Jhan Marinez brought the win home for Cole, who tossed a six-inning five-hitter. 
• 2020 - The Pirates signed first round draft pick (#7 overall) SS Nick Gonzales, 21, of New Mexico State, where he worked his way from walk-on to first rounder. After passing his physical the day before, he received a bonus of $5,432,400, slot value for his draft spot. Gonzales hit .399 for NMS and was shifted from short to second base; hand and heel injuries have held him back in the past two campaigns. He’s now at Indy, playing second, third and short. 
• 2021 - The Pirates broke a five-game losing streak against the Cards, 8-2, at Busch Stadium. St. Louis had no answer for the top three in the lineup - Adam Frazier, Ke'Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds - who went 8-for-12 with two home runs, five RBIs, six runs and three walks. Winner Chad Kuhl tossed six innings of one-run, three-hit ball before a trio of relievers finished it off.