7/11 Through 1974: Pops #1, Stu Slam, Lefty Out; Vic Gem, Game Tales; Roberto Stars, Friend Wins, Kiner Swats, Forbes Field ASG; HBD Otter, Skeets, Harry & Pop

• 1865 - C William “Pop” Shriver was born in Brooklyn. He was a part-time catcher for the 1898-1900 Bucs, hitting .265 toward the end of a 16-year career. He played one more year for St. Louis, then hung them up after 1901. He’s part of early baseball’s folklore when in 1894 he was alleged to have caught a ball tossed from the top of the Washington Monument, over 500’ high, by Clark Griffith, who at the time was a pitcher and Pop’s teammate on the Chicago Colts. The usual tale is that he missed the first ball Clark dropped from the memorial, but snagged the second arc, although some say that the ornery ball popped out of his mitt. 
• 1884 - OF Harry Wolter was born in Monterey, California. The seven-year MLB vet started out in 1907 and played for four teams, including Pittsburgh. The Bucs bought his contract from the Cincinnati Reds and he got one outing for the Bucs as a pitcher (he was converted to an outfielder and sometimes 1B in 1910) and worked two innings, giving up a run before being sold to the St. Louis Cardinals. The Santa Clara alum played pro ball from 1905-20, taking his final bow as a player/manager in 1927. Following his playing career, he coached baseball at Stanford University for 26 years (1916, from 1923-1943, and one more time from 1946-49) and also coached the 1936 US Olympic team. 
• 1902 - “Pittsburg won from New York yesterday but at a terrible price. Lefty Davis caught his foot in second base and fell with a fractured leg,” was the Pittsburgh Press lead. Davis had stolen the bag and bounced up to head to third when the throw got away, but stumbled over the sack, breaking his ankle, passing out in pain and then being carried to the clubhouse. The 27-year-old outfielder never quite recovered; Davis was a .287 hitter with 45 steals in 171 big league games up to that point, but missed the rest of the campaign and finished his remaining 177 games batting .234 with 20 thefts. The Pirates won the ballgame at the Polo Grounds, 6-3, as five Bucs banged out a pair of hits in support of Deacon Phillippe, who went the distance for the victory. 
• 1908 - Per the Pittsburgh Press’ Ralph Davis: "In a game filled with pretty fielding plays and delightful batting rallies..." Vic Willis tossed a complete-game one-hitter in a 6-2 win over the Giants at Exposition Park. Mike Donlin's triple was the only New York knock. Roy Thomas had three hits for the Bucs (two were triples) and Hans Wagner added a pair of knocks. 

Hal "Skeets" Gregg - undated photo via Alchetron

• 1921 - RHP Hal “Skeets” Gregg was born in Anaheim, California. He worked for three years (1948-50) for the Bucs after a five-year run in Brooklyn. Skeets tossed mostly from the pen and went 3-6-1/4.85 as a Pirate when he was on the downside of his career, suffering arm and back woes. Quick factoid: Gregg was noted for his fastball, which he honed as a child by rifling oranges at various targets on his parent's grove. While it strengthened his arm, it didn’t do much for his accuracy - his final MLB line showed five walks/nine innings to just four whiffs. 
• 1925 - The Bucs jumped ahead early but managed to blow a five-run lead to the Brooklyn Robins at Ebbets Field by giving up a six-spot in the eighth inning. Back-to-back triples by Clyde Barnhart and Pie Traynor in the top of the ninth regained the momentum and pushed the Pirates to a 7-6 victory, a nailbiter that was finally sealed by a running grab of a shot to deep center by Max Carey with the tying run on base. Lee Meadows went the distance for the win. 
• 1938 - The Pirates were in a feisty mood as they visited Wrigley Field. First, coach Jewel Ens got tossed in the top of the seventh inning, then C Al Todd joined him in the shower during the Chicago half of the frame. Ens was upset over an out call at home on Johnny Rizzo while Todd continued chatting to the man in blue about the same decision when he went behind the dish. Al didn’t go quietly; he had to be separated from the ump, George Barr, and fired some bats from the dugout as he departed. Both Ens and Todd were fined $50 for yapping. But the Bucs battled back in the ninth, scoring three times to rally for their 12th straight win (the streak reached 13 games before it was snapped) by a 5-3 tally over the Cubs, with the big blow being a two-run knock by pitcher Jim Tobin. He got the win in relief of Bill Swift, while Mace Brown earned the save. 
• 1939 - The Pirates sent SS Arky Vaughan to the All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium. He went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored, but the AL took the game, 3-1. To keep things honest, the umpires swapped spots in the middle of the fifth inning – Cal Hubbard of the AL left home, replaced by the NL’s George Magerkurth, and the other two men in blue also traded bases. 

Arky Vaughan All-Star - 7/1/1939 Press

• 1944 - The Pirates hosted their first All-Star Game at Forbes Field, the 12th Midsummer Classic, the first night ASG hosted by the NL. The NL won, 7-1, as Phil Cavarretta of the Cubs set an ASG record by reaching base five straight times on a triple, single, and three walks. Rip Sewell worked three innings, giving up a walk and whiffing a pair. 3B Bob Elliott went 0-for-3, while OF Vince DiMaggio played in the field but didn’t bat. SS Frank Zak, an emergency replacement who didn’t get named to the squad in time to make the program, didn’t get into the game at all. 
• 1950 - It was back-and-forth baseball at Chicago’s Comiskey Park during the All-Star Game. The National League tied the match, 3-3, in the ninth dramatically on lone Pirates rep Ralph Kiner’s homer (he also had a double, going 2-for-6) before Red Schoendienst's long ball in the 14th inning won it for the Nationals. As noted by BR Bullpen, it was a game of firsts - the first extra-inning All-Star Game, the first time the NL won at an AL park, and the first All-Star Game ever shown on national television (Jack Brickhouse announced the game on NBC). 
• 1951 - C Ed Ott was born in Muncy, PA, near Williamsport. He caught righty but hit lefty, putting him in a platoon role for Pittsburgh for seven seasons (1974-80), batting .259. He was effective in the 1979 World Series; in three starts, he hit .333 with three RBI in a dozen at-bats. “Otter” managed Pirates farm teams in 1985-86, was a skipper in the indie leagues for three seasons, and then coached for the Houston Astros under former Pirates teammate Art Howe from 1989-93. He later returned to coaching at the indie level, finally retiring in 2014. 
• 1958 - 25-year-old Dick Stuart belted a grand slam in his second MLB game to lead the Bucs to a 7-2 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field, giving Ron Kline, who tossed a six-hitter, all the runs he needed. Frank Thomas also went deep for the Bucs. Big Stu had made his MLB bow the day before; he belted a two-run long fly in the ninth inning of his debut in a losing cause. 

Big Stu - 1958 photo Jay Publishing

• 1960 - One-hit shutout pitching by Bob Friend over three innings led the Nationals to a 5-3 win over the Americans at Kansas City's Municipal Stadium in the first of two All-Star Games. Friend was credited with the victory, making him the winner of two of the NL's last three All-Star contests (he also earned a dub in 1956). This dub was saved by teammate Vern Law, who got the last two outs following a scoreless stint by ElRoy Face. OF Bob Skinner went 1-for-4 with a run scored, RBI and stolen base while 2B Bill Mazeroski went 1-for-2 with an RBI and HBP. OF Roberto Clemente and C Smoky Burgess both were 0-for-1, and SS Dick Groat got in as a defensive sub. For Clemente, it was his AS debut, and his out was a loud one that Jim Lemon ran down at the wall. 
• 1961 - In the All-Star game at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, OF Roberto Clemente had a coming out party. The Great One tripled and scored the game's first run, drove in another with a sac fly, chased Mickey Mantle to the centerfield fence to corral his next blast, and capped the day when he delivered a walk-off single off knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm in a 5-4, 10-inning NL win. Danny Murtaugh was the skipper of the Nationals; 1B Dick Stuart belted a pinch-hit double, C Smoky Burgess went 1-for-4 and reliever Roy Face was a spectator who never got the call from the bullpen. The game cemented Candlestick’s rep as a wind tunnel; Stu Miller was blown off the mound and charged with a balk when a sea breeze sent him sailing in mid-delivery. 
• 1963 - In a 3-0 win over the Colt .45s at Forbes Field, Roberto Clemente’s bullet chased Jim Wynn from the infield to a career in the pasture. As the 21-year-old Toy Cannon, who was a rookie playing SS (it was his second MLB game), told Baseball Digest “Clemente hit a screaming line drive, and I got my glove up just as the ball hit the left field wall. After that, I told the coaches and manager to get me out of the infield.” Wynn was eventually granted his wish and played 1,810 games in the OF after 21 appearances auditioning at short during his rookie campaign. Roberto’s wicked double was cashed in by Donn Clendenon in the eighth inning and was the game’s winning run; Don Cardwell went all the way for the win, giving up just two singles to the ‘Stros. 

Roberto Clemente - 2020 Topps Numbers Game

• 1967 - The National League won another All-Star pitching battle against the Junior Circuit, taking a 2-1 decision at Anaheim Stadium in 15 innings with Tony Perez’s homer the difference. OF Roberto Clemente went 1-for-6, and the starting middle infield of 2B Bill Mazeroski and SS Gene Alley went a combined 0-for-9 at the plate, although Maz did lay down a successful bunt. The rosters were loaded for this match; 22 players and coaches on the Midsummer Classic rosters ended up in the Hall of Fame. The 15 innings was the longest Midsummer Classic match played, later tied by the 2008 contest. 
• 1973 - Willie Stargell cracked the 302nd home run of his career to pass Ralph Kiner as the all-time Pirate HR leader in a 10-2 victory over the Padres at San Diego Stadium. Bob Robertson, Al Oliver and Dal Maxvill each had three hits while Nellie Briles went the distance, tossing a solid seven-hitter with seven punchouts. Willie would pile on to his franchise-leading number of dingers, retiring after the 1982 campaign with 475 bombs to leave Mr. Swat in the rear view mirror.