7/15 Through 1974: Jake Rakes; Elliott Cycle; Hoyt 1-Hitter; TSN Manny; Gems & Game Tales; HBD Enrique, Don, Donn & Red

• 1893 - Jake Stenzel banged a homer and a triple, both with the bases loaded, collecting five hits and eight RBI as Pittsburgh crushed the Washington Senators, 19-0, at Exposition Park. The Bucs banged out a double, four triples and four homers in routing the DC squad. Sealing the deal at both ends, Frank Killen tossed a six-hitter, leading the Pittsburgh Press to write that the Sens were “...completely at the mercy of the clever left-hander.” 
• 1893 - LHP John “Red” Oldham was born in Zion, Maryland. Red tossed for Detroit for five years, dropped out of sight for a couple of seasons, dedicating himself to business and some indie league play, then resurfaced in 1925 at the age of 32 with the Pirates. His first season was solid enough at 3-2-1/3.91, but his big moment came in the World Series. Red pitched the final inning of Game 7 before 42,856 fans at Forbes Field. The Pirates took a 9-7 lead in the eighth and called on Oldham to put it away against the heart of the Washington Senators lineup that featured three future Hall of Famers. He caught Sam Rice looking, got Bucky Harris on a liner and then rung up Goose Goslin. His performance went downhill in 1926 (2-2-2/5.62) and was released in July. 
• 1905 - In a showdown twin bill between the first place New York Giants and the second place Bucs at the Polo Grounds, Pittsburgh overcame a 6-0 deficit against Iron Joe McGinnity to take a 7-6 lead in the seventh, but lost on a ninth inning homer, 8-7, as Christy Mathewson shut them down over the last 2-2/3 innings. The Pirates took the nitecap, 3-0, behind Deacon Phillippe's four-hitter. Honus Wagner clinched the victory with a two-run homer that hit the el tracks in the eighth inning. The powerhouse Giants eventually won the pennant with 105 victories (Pittsburgh had 96 wins) and then swept the Philadelphia Athletics in the World Series. 

Deacon Phillippe - Helmar T206

• 1908 - The Pirates tied the Boston Doves in the ninth thanks to a George Gibson triple and won in the 10th inning, 3-2, when Fred Clarke was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded for a walkoff plunk. Sam Leever went the distance for the victory at Exposition Park. The win put the Bucs back in the top spot, 1/2 game ahead of the NY Giants and a game up on Chicago. The pennant chase remained tight all year; the Cubs held off Pittsburgh and New York by one game. 
• 1932 - The Pirates got plenty of pitching from Ray Kremer, who tossed a three-hitter and needed it to take a 1-0 victory over the Boston Braves at Forbes Field as part of a four-game sweep of Boston. LF Dave Barbee doubled home Arky Vaughan in the fourth inning with the only score; the Buccos only had five hits off tough-luck loser Hub Pruett. Neither slabster was particularly overpowering as each posted just one whiff during their complete game outings. 
• 1934 - Waite Hoyt tossed a one-hitter against Boston, surrendering a single to Tommy Thompson in a 5-0 win in the opener of a twin bill at Braves Field. The offense was a team effort; five Bucs had two hits and all eight position players scored and/or drove home runs. Beantown’s Ed Brandt returned the favor in the nitecap, limiting the Bucs to three hits in a 4-0 Brave victory. 
• 1935 - 1B Donn Clendenon was born in Neosho, Missouri. An all around athlete at Morehouse College, he turned down offers from the Cleveland Browns and Harlem Globetrotters to sign with the Bucs. He spent eight years (1961-68) as a Pirate with a line of .280/106/488. Clendenon hit .302 as a rookie in 1962 (he didn’t play enough in ‘61 to qualify) and was runner up to Chicago’s Ken Hubbs in the Rookie of the Year voting. He spent a couple of off-seasons (1962-64) as an Allegheny County detective and eventually earned a law degree from Duquesne in 1978 that carried him into his post-baseball career. Family Act: Clendenon's stepfather was Nish Williams, a noted Negro League player and manager. Donn was a three-sport star as a youth, and is said to have selected baseball as his focus because of the respect he held for Nish. 

Donn Clendenon - 1964 Topps Standup

• 1942 - CF Don Bosch was born in San Francisco. He started his four-year run in the show with two hitless at bats for the Pirates in 1966 after signing with the club in 1960. He went to the New York Mets in the ‘66 off season with pitcher Don Cardwell as part of the Dennis Ribant/Gary Kolb deal. At the time, Bosch was a highly regarded prospect and AAA All-Star, but fizzled in the majors, batting just .164 during his career. His last MLB season was 1969 with the Montreal Expos, and he retired from pro ball after the 1970 campaign at age 27. 
• 1945 - The Pirates bombed the visiting Brooklyn Dodgers in a Forbes Field doubleheader, slamming them by 9-1 and 15-3 tallies. Frank Gustine drove home three runs in the opener while Bob Elliott hit for the cycle. Pete Coscarart scored five times in the nitecap as part of a 19-hit onslaught. Rip Sewell and Ken Gables went the distance for the wins. Despite the blowout, the teams had a spirited competition during the year with da Bums holding a 12-10 season edge. 
• 1947 - Enrique Romo was born in Santa Rosalia, Mexico. The righty pitched for the Pirates for four seasons (1979-82), going 25-16-26/3.56 after coming over from Seattle. Before that, he had spent 11 seasons pitching in Mexico, mainly as a starter (he was converted to the pen in the majors) and was a 20-game winner for Mexico City in 1976. Romo appeared in 84 games for the World Series champs in ‘79 and was an integral part of the Buc bullpen his first two years, but went noticeably downhill in his last two campaigns, ending his six-year MLB career. 
• 1967 - In the fourth inning of a game at Busch Stadium, Bob Gibson suffered a broken fibula on a line drive off the bat of Roberto Clemente. He pitched to three more batters, issuing two walks around a flyball before the leg literally snapped (and Roberto’s liner was the only hit Gibson gave up). It was a kind of karmic payback; in his book “Stranger to the Game,” Gibson said of Clemente, “I always threw at him. He swung way too hard against me...” It usually worked; Clemente hit just .208 off Gibby. The Great One collected three raps (two off relievers) to lead the Bucs and Juan Pizarro to a 6-4 win over the eventual World Champion Cards. 

Roberto Clemente - 1969 Transgram

• 1971 - The Pirates beat the San Diego Padres, 4-3, at TRS by never saying die. Pittsburgh rallied to tie the game in the bottoms of the ninth, 13th and 16th innings before winning it on Roberto Clemente’s HR in the 17th. San Diego’s Danny Coombs was hit with a double whammy, credited with a blown save in the 16th and then the loss in the 17th. It was the first time in franchise history that the Bucs had overcome a pair of extra-inning deficits to win, a feat that wouldn’t be repeated again by the club until 2015 at PNC Park against the Cardinals. 
• 1972 - Manny Sanguillen was featured as the cover story of The Sporting News in an article titled “Durable Mitt Star.” For seven of his first eight years with Pittsburgh, he caught at least 113 games (with 151 games behind the dish in 1974). The only year he didn’t was in 1973, when he auditioned unsuccessfully as a right fielder after Roberto Clemente’s death.