9/30 Through the 1970s: Roberto's 3,000, Herman-Elliott, Frankie Replaces Pie; '79 Clincher, Candy's 20th, K-Day, Mr. Swat Slams, Game Tales, TSN Scoops, Mo Bros; HBD Pat

• 1886 - The American Association Alleghenys defeated the Brooklyn Grays, 12-0, at Recreation Park, leading the Commercial Gazette to write that Brooklyn “...had been used as mops to wipe up the diamond.” Cannonball Morris tossed a five hitter with six whiffs (the hard-throwing Morris had a monster campaign with a slash of 41-20-1/2.45) and added some salt to the wound with three hits; his batterymate Fred Carroll and Sam Barkley also added three raps. The Allies had a nice club, coming in second place with an 80-57-3 slate. They won their last five games, but they couldn’t catch the St. Louis Browns, winners of the NL and World Series. 
• 1891 - RHP Leo “Pat” Bohen was born in Oakland, Iowa. He got into two major league games; one was with the Bucs in 1914, when he gave up two runs on two hits with two walks in an inning of work. Bohen retired at age 24 after the 1915 campaign and became a machinist. 
• 1893 - The Pirates ended their season with an eight-game winning streak by topping the NY Giants by an 8-6 score to finish the year 81-48, five games behind the Boston Beaneaters. Pittsburgh’s partial owner William Chase Temple thought there should be a series between the top two teams (as his club was second) for the title, so he donated the Temple Cup to the league for a best of seven postseason championship series, to start in 1894. It lasted for four years, never being terribly popular among the players or fans, and didn’t help Temple’s Bucs at all - they never finished higher than sixth during the Cup’s existence. The winner was supposed to take 2/3 of the gate, but the first teams to play agreed beforehand on a 50-50 split, which the winning club then reneged on, causing Temple to sell his Pirate share in disgust with baseball. 
• 1908 - The Pirates beat the Cards, 7-5, at Forbes Field behind Sam Leever, who relieved starter Vic Willis, and “Wee Tommy” Leach’s home run. Pittsburgh fell behind, 5-0, in the home finale before tying the game in the seventh and pushing the winning runs across in the eighth. The victory put the Bucs in a virtual tie for first with the NY Giants and 1/2-game ahead of Chicago. In a wild NL finish, the Cubs would take the pennant by a game over both the Pirates and Giants. 

Wee Tommy - 1908 Real Photo postcard

• 1921 - RHP Phil Morrison got his only big league outing, tossing 2/3 of an inning against St. Louis in a 12-4 defeat, giving up a hit and getting a K. He’s noteworthy as one of the Pirates’ early brother acts, as he joined sib “Jughandle Johnny” Morrison on the roster that season. 
• 1939 - Buc President Bill Benswanger announced that Frankie Frisch would replace Pie Traynor at the helm of the Pirates, signing a two-year deal. Frankie would manage the club through 1946, finishing second once before he was replaced by Billy Herman. Frankie had six years as field boss (five as player/manager) under his belt after leading the St. Louis Cardinals from 1933-38, winning it all in 1934, and spent ‘39 as a Boston Bees radio announcer. 
• 1946 - 2B Billy Herman, who the Bucs wanted as a manager, was traded to Pittsburgh by Boston with OF Stan Wentzel, RHP Elmer Singleton and IF Whitey Wietelmann for three-time All Star 3B Bob Elliott and C Hank Camelli. Even Herman realized a lopsided deal when he saw one, saying "Why, they've gone and traded the whole team on me.” Elliott won the 1947 National League MVP award and led the Beaneaters to the 1948 NL pennant. Herman was announced as Bucco skipper after the deal and was inked to a two-year contract. 
• 1946 - The Bob Feller Major League All-Stars and the Satchel Paige Colored Stars opened the post-season touring circuit in Forbes Field before 4,592 fans, with the Colored All-Stars taking a 3-1 win. The big draw was a three-inning duel between Paige and Feller. Paige gave up a hit and fanned four; Feller gave up two hits and whiffed three, the aces leaving the game with the score 1-1. Ray Brown, long-time Grays’ twirler, was the real star, pitching six innings of one-hit, shutout ball to top Cleveland’s Bob Lemon, who gave up the final two Colored Stars’ runs. 

Satchel Paige, Sugar Ray Robinson & Bob Feller
Post-Gazette photo 10/1/1946

• 1949 - Ralph Kiner hit his 54th homer and 16th of September over the LF scoreboard at Forbes Field as the Pirates beat Herm Wehmeier and the Reds, 3-2, behind Bob Chesnes’ four-hitter. The monthly total eclipsed Cy Williams' 1923 NL mark (broken in 1965 by Willie Mays with 17), and 54 homers is still the Pirate standard for long balls in a season. 
• 1951 - Ralph Kiner hit a two-out, 425’ walk-off grand slam in the 11th inning to give the Pirates an 8-4 walk-off win over the Reds at Forbes Field. The four RBI gave him 109 on the year, his fifth straight season with 100+ runs driven home, tying the franchise record set by Pie Traynor. Bill Werle, the Pirates third pitcher, got the win in a match that was started by Howie Pollet.
• 1964 - The Pirates were struck out 19 times in 16 innings, but the Bucs still beat the Reds, 1-0, on Jerry Mays’ suicide squeeze, knocking Cincy out of the top spot in the National League. Starters Bob Veale struck out 16 in 12-1/3 innings while the Reds’ Jim Maloney K’ed 11 in eleven frames at Crosley Field. Al McBean worked the final 3-2/3 IP for the bonus baseball victory. 
• 1972 - Roberto Clemente hit a fourth-inning double off Jon Matlack’s 0-1 curve to become the 11th player in major league history (there are now 33; Miguel Cabrera is the most recent, joining in 2022) to reach the 3,000 hit plateau. As an added bonus, Clemente scored and his run was the game winner when Manny Sanguillen chased him home with the Pirates’ first tally. Take it with a grain of salt if someone told you they were there for the big occasion. Only 13,117 people showed up at TRS to watch the 5-0 win over the Mets on a raw Saturday afternoon. Dock Ellis took home the win and Bob Johnson worked three innings for the save as the pair combined on a two-hitter to stymie New York. 
• 1972 - Al Oliver was highlighted on the cover of The Sporting News for the featured story “Swat Artist.” And that he was; the 25-year-old Bucco center fielder slashed .312/18/89 and scored 88 times on the way to his first of seven All-Star selections and three Top 10 MVP finishes. 

• 1977 - John Candelaria became the first Bucco since Vern Law in 1960 to win 20 games (and it would take until 1990 for Doug Drabek to become the Pirates next) when he downed the Cubs, 3-1, at TRS. Al Oliver, Kenny Macha and Frank Taveras chased home the Pittsburgh runs. Candy Man scattered seven hits to go with seven whiffs, and his only mistake was a 3-0 meatball that Steve Swisher smacked into the seats. Candelaria went all the way to become the first Puerto Rican pitcher to notch a 20-win season (The Yankees’ Ed Figueroa became the first native-born Puerto Rican to win 20 games the following year). He finished the year 20-5/2.34, both top marks in the league. Jim Rooker didn’t have such a good day; he broke his arm and leg in a car accident. Rook returned next season, but never had another double-digit win year and retired after the ‘80 campaign. 
• 1978 - The Phillies clinched their third consecutive NL East title by eliminating the Pirates, 10-8, at TRS. The victory, fueled by Phil pitcher Randy Lerch’s two home runs, snapped Pittsburgh’s 24-game home winning streak. The Bucs went down fighting. They scored four times in the ninth and got the tying run to the plate twice, but Willie Stargell, who had earlier swatted a grand slam, whiffed and Phil Garner bounced out to end the rally. But just wait ‘til next year... 
• 1979 - The Pirates clinched the NL East crown with 5-3 win over the Cubs on the last day of the season in front of 42,176 jubilant fans at TRS. Bruce Kison and Kent Tekulve got the win and save, Dave Parker had three hits, Phil Garner added an RBI, and Bill Robinson’s two-run single in the seventh was the key blow as the Bucs finished the season two games ahead of the Montreal Expos, who dropped a 2-0 decision to Steve Carlton and the Phils. Willie Stargell became the Pirates all-time RBI leader when he bombed a solo homer in the fifth to overtake Honus Wagner. Pops’ pair of RBI were numbers 1,475 and 1,476; he would finish his career with 1,540 runners driven home.

9/30 From 1980: Kramer Deal; Dewey Dong, '18 Finale, Stayin' Alive, '90 Clincher, Cole-lossal, Game Tales, Hully House, Collins On Board; HBD Bull

• 1980 - RHP Bryan Bullington was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Ball State junior was the Bucs top pick and first selection overall in the 2002 draft. He made his debut in 2005 for the Bucs, then returned to toss some in 2007 after labrum surgery, going 0-3/5.89 in six games (three starts) as a Pirate. BB never made much headway in the show, winning just one game. After pitching for KC in 2010, he went to Japan where he tossed until a shoulder injury in 2015. 
• 1986 - In a minor league deal, the Pirates traded RHP Jeff Zaske to the Texas Rangers for RHP Randy Kramer. After a five-game trial in ‘88, Kramer had a workmanlike 1989 campaign as a swingman, posting a line of 5-9-2/3.96 in 35 outings (15 starts). He split 1990 between the big team and AAA Buffalo, and after struggling with the Pirates was traded to the Chicago Cubs in September. Afterwards, he got into four more games with the Seattle Mariners in 1992 before ending his MLB career. Zaske had a three-game cup of coffee with the Bucs in 1984 in his only MLB action, retiring from pro ball in 1988. 
• 1987 - The Bucs played a rain-out twilight twin bill at TRS against the Cubs. The Pirates won the opener, 5-3, as Brian Fisher not only went eight innings for the win, but 2-for-2 at the dish with a run scored and an RBI. The nightcap went Chicago’s way, 10-8, but don’t fault Darnell Cole. He went 4-for-4 with three homers, six runs chased home and he plated three times. John Cangelosi helped him out with two hits, including a triple, and two RBI. But the dynamic duo couldn’t overcome a Cubbie attack that banged out eight extra-base hits during the match. 
• 1988 - The Pirates hired Terry Collins to manage Class AAA Buffalo after he had won the Minor League Manager of the year award for the Dodgers Albuquerque club. Collins, who started out as a Bucco draftee in 1971, managed three years for the Bison, winning 246 games. He was promoted to bullpen coach for the Pirates in 1992, where he coached until the end of the 1993 season before taking the Houston managing job and later skippering for Anaheim and the Mets. 

AVS - 1988 Topps

• 1988 - President Ronald Reagan tossed out two ceremonial first pitches (and was greeted by Jim Leyland as Dutch left the hill for a handshake and quick chat) before the Cubs lost, 10-9, to the Pirates at Wrigley. The prez, a former play-by-play announcer, joined Harry Caray for an inning and a half in the WGN booth. Jose Lind and Andy Van Slyke combined for seven hits in the win, spoiling the Prez’s day. It was a wild finish; Pittsburgh and Chicago each scored five times in the eighth and ninth innings to end up with a 9-9 regulation stalemate before Andy Van Slyke drove in Rafael Belliard with the winner in the 10th. Scott Medvin, the fourth of five Bucco hurlers (the Cubs used six twirlers), claimed the victory with Brian Fisher earning his only save of the campaign. The Bucs finished the season with 85 wins, their highest victory total since 1979. 
• 1990 - Pittsburgh beat St. Louis, 2-0, at Busch Stadium behind Doug Drabek's three-hitter to clinch its first NL East title since 1979. Gary Redus and Andy Van Slyke had the RBIs as the Pirates finished up a seven-game winning streak and a stretch of 10 wins-in-11 games to pull away from the Mets (the Bucs finished four games ahead of NY; they were up by a game before the hot run). It took Drabek just 80 pitches to go the distance to set up a Pirates-Reds NLCS. Ironically, the old rivals were the only two NL teams not to win a division title in the 80s. 
• 1991 - In a pre-game ceremony, the Pirates officially named their TRS clubhouse for equipment manager John “Hully” Hallahan, who passed away three weeks prior at the age of 64 due to surgical complications. Hallahan spent 50 years in the organization, starting in 1941 as a bat boy for the visiting teams at Forbes Field and as the Pirates clubhouse manager since 1956. Then the Bucs went out and claimed a 6-5 win from Montreal, keyed by Jay Bell’s grand slam. 
• 1993 - Tim Wakefield shut out the Phillies on four hits (although he did walk six) in a 5-0 whitewashing at TRS. It was the first time Philadelphia had been shut out since September 19th, 1992 (that was also at TRS, spun by Doug Drabek), a National League record-setting stretch of 174 games between blankings. Pittsburgh’s home finale victory over Philadelphia was led by Dave Clark, who homered & tripled, and Tom Foley, who had three hits including a two-bagger. 

Dave Clark - 1994 Topps Stadium Club

• 2009 - Ryan Doumit went 4-for-4 with a home run, three runs scored and four RBIs in the second game of a doubleheader against the Chicago Cubs, an 8-3 Pittsburgh win behind Jeff Karstens. Dewey became the second Pirate catcher in the last 40 years to have at least four hits and four RBIs in the same game; Jason Kendall collected four knocks and five RBIs in a 13–1 Pirates victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on May 19th, 2000. The Bucs took the opener, too, by a 4-0 count. Charlie Morton spun a four-hitter with eight whiffs and Jason Jaramillo doubled in two runs to lead the attack. 
• 2012 - The Pirates were dropped by Cincinnati, 4-3, for their 82nd loss, finishing below .500 for the 20th straight season to extend their sad little record. The Bucs were 16 games over .500 on August 6th, but just as last year, a dog day’s collapse did them in. This one at PNC Park hurt, as the Reds scored twice in the ninth off Joel Hanrahan to steal the win in front of 32,814 fans. 
• 2015 - The Pirates stayed alive in the NL Central race by winning the lid lifter of a twin bill at PNC Park against St. Louis, 8-2, for Gerrit Cole's 19th win. The offense was generated via a grand slam by Francisco Cervelli, Neil Walker’s homer and Gregory Polanco chasing home two runs. But the Cardinals clinched the flag and a 100-win season when they won the back end, 11-1, chasing Charlie Morton in the third and getting a Jason Heyward grand slam of their own off Bobby LaFromboise. The Pirates hosted the Wild Card walk-in game for the third straight season. 
• 2017 - The Pirates had been held to one hit over eight innings by Max Scherzer, AJ Cole and Enny Romero, and were down 1-0 going into the ninth inning at Nationals Park. Washington sent Brandon Kintzler to close it out, and he got within a strike of doing it. With runners at first and second, Sean Rodriguez slapped a two-out, 3-2 sinker into left to tie the game. A walk loaded the bases and Max Moroff cleared them with a triple to weave a wide, three-run safety net. Felipe Rivero mopped up to save George Kontos’ win. Starter Jameson Taillon tossed seven innings of four-hit ball as the Bucs won, 4-1. 

Max Moroff - 9/30/2017 Pirates photo

• 2018 - The Pirates finished an 82-79, roller-coaster campaign with a 6-5, 10-inning win over the Reds at Great American Ball Park. The teams used 13 pitchers in a showcase of the young guys that featured four home runs, three errors and everything in between. Pablo Reyes scored on a wild pitch to win it for Michael Feliz, and Jose Osuna added a pair of doubles. The vets had a hand in it, too, as Josh Bell homered, Starling Marte went long & doubled, and Felipe Vazquez notched his 37th save. Some notable achievements: Marte became the third Pirate to have a 20 HR/30 SB season, joining Barry Bonds (four times) & Andy Van Slyke (1987-88). It was also the first time that the Bucs had two relief pitchers with at least 80 strikeouts in the same season as Vazquez punched out 89 and Richard Rodriguez, 88. And finally, Clint Hurdle got his 1,200th career victory in the show, finishing with 1,269 MLB dubs. He joined Bruce Bochy, Mike Scioscia, Buck Showalter and Terry Francona as active skippers in the 1,200 win club.
• 2022 - Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey declared it “Roberto Clemente Day.” The event included the playing of the 3,000th hit call by Bob Prince and the unveiling of the TRS home plate and second base markers, now part of a parking lot, with future plans calling for markers of all of the former stadium’s bases and the pitcher’s mound. The Pirates were repped by Steve Blass and president Travis Williams (the team was in St. Louis, where the Cards held a pregame ceremony to honor the 50th anniversary of Roberto’s 3,000th hit), a bevy of local politicians were on hand and Roberto Jr. called from St. Louis. Prior to the ceremony, Senator Bob Casey and Governor Tom Wolf had honored Clemente by proclamation.

Notes - A Final Middlin' Week & Some Season-Ending Stuff...

It's all over...

The Bucs were off on Monday before the Division champ Brew Crew came to town. Milwaukee took a no-sweat 7-2 dub in the opener. In the middle match, Luis Ortiz went seven strong innings, Liover Peguero doubled in two runs with two outs and the Pirates ended up on top by a 2-1 tally. The series went to Milwaukee, who claimed the rubber match, 5-2.

The season came to close in the Big Apple v the NY Yankees. The Bronx Bombers did the Pirates right: the Roberto Clemente 3,000 Exhibition, celebrating Roberto's 3,000 hits through photo and history displays, ran outside of Yankee Stadium during the series. The good vibe continued as two Bryan Reynold swats and strong outings by Jared Jones & Co. led the Bucs to a 4-2 win. The Pirates then turned the tables on the Bombers with five dingers (Yaz Grandal, Nicky G, Jared Triolo, Nick Yorke and Billy Cook) en route to a 9-4 dub. No sweep, tho - the bullpen had its final late meltdown of the year in a season-ending 6-4 loss.

Jared Jones - image via SportsNet Pgh.

The Bucs finished 2024 with the same record as in 2023, 76-86.

Injuries/Moves:

• The Pirates recalled INF Liover Peguero & OF Joshua Palacios from Indy and DFA'ed 1B Rowdy Tellez & CF Michael A. Taylor. Rowdy was four PAs shy of triggering a $200K contract bonus; seems on-brand for the Buccos. 
• RHP Mike Burrows was added to the Pirates Taxi Squad for the final series against the Yankees. He joined the active roster after Jones' start; Jared was optioned in a paper move to open a spot up on the active roster for Mike, who then worked in what was for all intents and purposes a bullpen game to earn his first MLB victory in his first MLB outing.
• The Bucs will send Termarr Johnson, 2B (Pirates #3/MLB #78); Mike Burrows, RHP (#16); Khristian Curtis, RHP (#27); Derek Diamond, RHP; Kervin Pichardo, INF; Geovanny Planchart, C; Sammy Siani, OF and Eddy Yean, RHP, to their Scottsdale Arizona Fall League club.

Stuff: 

• Paul Skene's rookie line: 23 starts/11-3/1.96/133 IP/94 hits/170 K. 
• Aroldis Chapman notched whiff #95 of the campaign on Wednesday, the most ever by a Pirates left-handed reliever. Chapman eclipsed Rod Scurry's 94 fans in 1982.
• Every which way... The 2024 season is the first in club history that the Pirates have had a lefthanded hitter (Oneil Cruz), a right-handed hitter (Andrew McCutchen) and a switch hitter (Bryan Reynolds) with 20-plus homers in the same year.
• The 2024 Pirates became the first club in franchise history to strike out over 1,500 times, finishing the year by fanning 1,506 times.

• The local Baseball Writers’ Association of American announced their 2024 Pirates award winners. OF Bryan Reynolds won the Roberto Clemente Award (team MVP) for the third time in four years, RHP Paul Skenes took the Steve Blass Award (team Cy Young) and DH Andrew McCutchen was given the Chuck Tanner Award (player most cooperative with the media); Cutch also won the honor in 2023. 
• For those keeping count, the Pirates attendance this year was 1,720,361, an increase of 5.5% from last year's 1,630,624. The Bucs were 39-42 at PNC Park. 
• .RHP Bubba Chandler was the only Pirates pup to earn a spot on the 24-man Baseball America Minor League All-Star Team that covers all levels. He was also BA's Pirates Minor League Player Of The Year.
• Pirates Fest will be 1/18/2025 at the DLL Convention Center.

9/29 Through 1964: Howie Gem, Game Tales, Rosey Day, NY Finale, KC Tops Grays, Spy Eye; HBD Ken, Paul, Hunky, Gus & Cannonball

• 1862 - LHP Ed “Cannonball” Morris was born in Brooklyn. Morris was considered by many to be the first great lefty to pitch in the majors. In 1884, Cannonball tossed a no-hitter against Pittsburgh for Columbus, and was purchased by the impressed Alleghenys five months later. The lefty pitched for the Allies from 1885-89 with a 171-122/2.84 line, winning 80 games from 1885-86. He struck out over 300 batters twice with 298 another year, and threw over 550 innings in two different seasons. He also worked a year with the Pittsburgh Burghers of the Players League in 1890, his last season in the majors. Afterward, he ran a hotel/saloon on Pittsburgh’s North Side and was a deputy warden at Western Penitentiary. He remained a fan, rarely missing a Pirates game, and in 1934 he was tapped by the team to pitch an inning during the Silver Anniversary of Forbes Field. As you may have guessed, he was nicknamed "Cannonball" for his velocity.
• 1866 - RHP “Rubber-Winged Gus” Weyhing was born in Louisville, Kentucky. In a 14-year career spanning over 500 appearances, he tossed one game for the Pirates in 1895. He won it before joining his hometown Louisville Colonels, his third team of the season (he tossed for nine clubs). Gus was a strong pitcher, winning 25+ games six straight seasons, but he was one of the old-timey pitchers that didn’t cope very well when the mound was moved back ten feet to 60’6” in 1893, though he did manage to hang around until 1901. He was also a colorful character - he jumped leagues twice and was an early wild child; he still leads the majors with 277 hit batsmen during his career. 
• 1884 - 3B/OF Royal “Hunky” Shaw was born in Yakima, Washington. The Washington U alum was claimed as a Rule 5 player from St. Paul of the American Association and posted one MLB at-bat (he whiffed) in 1908 as a Pirate. He played pro ball until 1924, mostly in the Northwest and Nebraska Leagues. Shaw retired and opened a sporting goods store, then became a club exec for the minor league Yakima Pippins; those gigs sure beat his former offseason job as an undertaker. 
• 1900 - Busted! Per the Pittsburgh Press after a 4-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds “...the disgrace of being beaten...was not the most humiliating experience the Pirates had at Exposition Park, and until they clear themselves of the charge of attempting the dishonorable Philadelphia trick of tipping off the signals (ie, stealing signs) of opposing clubs, they will get little sympathy from Pittsburg’s patrons of the national game.” Reds’ shortstop Tommy Corcoran pointed out to the ump an advertising sign in center field that could potentially be a roost for a hidden Bucco with binoculars to steal the catcher’s signals. Corcoran had a nose for opposing tricksters; he also uncovered the ploy in Philadelphia that involved a vibrating electronic gizmo buried in the third base box. The Reds filed cheating charges, and though we never found a formal resolution of the matter, it appears the Pirates defense of “how could we have cheated if we lost” carried the day. 

Howie Camnitz - 1908 Pgh Press

• 1908 - Pittsburgh blanked the Cardinals, 7-0, at Forbes Field behind Howie Camnitz in the first game of a doubleheader sweep. Camnitz had a no-hitter until the ninth when Claude Osteen singled as the last-place Redbirds were blanked for a record 33rd time. The Cards broke out the lumber in the nitecap, but still lost, 6-5, when Roy Thomas’ grounder brought home George Gibson in the ninth to give Vic Willis the win. The Bucs remained 1/2 game up with the brooming and were in the midst of a 13-of-15 streak to close the year, but still fell short to the Cubs by a game, losing the winner-take-all showdown at the West Side Grounds. 
• 1909 - RHP Harry Camnitz mopped up in the Pirates 6-1 loss to the New York Giants at Forbes Field. It was his only outing of the year (he had been purchased from the minor league McKeesport Tubers in July), but it made him part of the first brother act for the Pittsburgh Pirates to appear during the same season; he was the little bro of the team’s ace, Howie Camnitz. The Bucs added him to the roster after he picked up 27 wins with the Tube City nine. 
• 1932 - RHP Paul Giel was born in Winona, Minnesota. Paul was a two-sport star at the U of Minnesota and picked baseball over football (he was a highly touted QB) when he graduated. He spent parts of six seasons in the big leagues and made 20 appearances with the Pirates in 1959-60, going 2-0/7.30. He retired from baseball in 1961 and embarked on a journey through the Minnesota sports scene. Giel went to work for the Vikings briefly, spent a longer stretch with local sports broadcasting and then became the Athletic Director at his alma mater. 
• 1935 - In his only major league game, C Aubrey Epps went 3-for-4 with a triple and three RBI in the Bucs' 9-6 loss at Cincinnati, giving the Pirates a doubleheader split on the season’s last day. The touted 23-year old catcher ended up with identical career batting and fielding averages (.750) as he committed two errors in eight chances; we’d guess that’s why it was his only game. Aubrey caught pneumonia after the season, and although he did recover in time to report to 1936 camp, he couldn’t win a roster spot and spent the next six seasons in the minors. He was nicknamed “YoYo” for his proficiency with the toy, per Diamonds in the Dusk. 

Audrey Epps image - via Diamonds in the Dusk

• 1942 - Satchel Paige of the KC Monarchs tossed 5-2/3 innings of hitless relief against the Homestead Grays (although by that time, they split dates between Pittsburgh & Washington), winning, 9-5, at Shibe Park in Philadelphia to cap a four-game sweep of the 1942 Negro League World Series. The series featured seven future members of the Baseball Hall of Fame, three from the Monarchs (Satchel Paige, Hilton Smith, and Willard Brown) and four from the Grays (Josh Gibson, Jud Wilson, Ray Brown, and Buck Leonard). Paige had actually been slated to start but showed up late at the ballpark, claiming he was tardy because of a speeding ticket he picked up on the way to the park. 
• 1950 - IF Ken Macha was born in Monroeville. The Gateway HS & Pitt grad, a sixth round draft pick in 1972, played briefly for the Bucs (1974, 1977-78), hitting .263 as a corner utilityman. He made his name as a MLB coach/manager of the Oakland Athletics and Milwaukee Brewers. Ken is retired and now lives in Latrobe after a stint as a pre-game analyst for Root Sports. 
• 1957 - The New York Giants played their final game at the Polo Grounds before pulling up their stakes and heading west, losing to the Pirates, 9-1. Bob Friend got the farewell victory; Johnny Antonelli took the loss. Roberto Clemente, Johnny Powers and Friend each had three hits; rookie Powers hit the last homer and tallied the final RBI ever at the yard. After the game, 11‚606 fans swarmed for ballyard keepsakes as both teams retreated to the center field clubhouses for safety. Pittsburgh was the final home opponent of both Brooklyn and New York before the Big Apple nines jumped to the coast. 
• 1960 - Mayor Joe Barr declared it “Rosey Rowswell Day” at his memorial dinner at the Penn Sheraton Hotel. Governor Davey Lawrence was the main speaker, and the newly-crowned National League champs, the Pirates, led by Danny Murtaugh, Bob Friend, Roy Face, Bob Skinner and others, were in attendance. Though Rosey had passed on in 1955, the dinner tradition was continued as a fundraiser for his favorite charity, the Ward Home for Children in Mt. Lebanon.

9/29 From 1965: Clint Axed, Quail & Joe Retire; Jordy Jam, Cutch Crush, Walk Dates, Teke For 2, Game Tales, Brown Out, Po' Nellie; RIP Wee Tommy, HBD Thomas

• 1968 - Ahead of Matty Alou by a razor’s edge on the season’s last day, Pete Rose went 1-for-3 to keep his average at .335 while the Pirates outfielder wore an 0-for-4 collar in a 5-4 loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field, finishing the year with a BA of .332. The day before, the batting crown rivals were en fuego, combining to go 9-for-9 to set up the final day showdown. 
• 1969 - CF/3B Tommy Leach passed away in Florida at age 91. Leach spent 14 of his 19 MLB seasons with the Pirates (1900-12, 1918), batting .269 and playing all three outfield positions along with every infield spot but first base. The Pirates won the National League pennant four times and were World Series champions once during Leach’s tenure. He was known as “Wee Tommy” due to his 5’6” height, but was among the swiftest runners of his era, with 361 stolen bases, 1,355 runs scored, and 172 triples while finishing in the top ten six times each in triples, home runs and total bases. After he retired, he managed and scouted until 1941 along with running his Florida citrus grove. 
• 1972 - The Mets defeated the Bucs, 1-0, and you could excuse Nellie Briles if he seemed a little frustrated. It was his third start of the year against New York, and all three matches ended up 1-0 Met victories, with their only runs coming during their last at-bat. All three were duels left to the starters - Briles went wire-to-wire, as did the guys he lost to, Jon Matlock (twice) and Tom Seaver. The Pirates still won the East easily, only to drop the NLCS to the Cincinnati Reds three-games-to-two, though the Pirates won Nellie’s one start of that set, 3-2. 
• 1976 - Joe Brown announced his retirement as GM, a post he held since the end of the 1955 campaign as Branch Rickey’s replacement. Under his rein, the Bucs won a pair of World Series championships and five Divisional titles. He and his wife moved to Southern California, where he served as a special assignment scout for the Bucs. It took two men to fill his shoes, Joe O’Toole and Harding Peterson, until Pete was awarded the position as his own in 1979. 

Teke Takes Two - Press 9/19/1978

• 1978 - Kent Tekulve won both ends of double header against the Phils at TRS in relief, 5-4 and 2-1. He pitched two innings in the opener and 1-1/3 frames in the nitecap, winning in the 10th. Both victories were gift wrapped; the Bucs won the opener when the relay to third on Ed Ott’s leadoff ninth-inning triple (generously ruled; it was a skied fly that fell between a pair of Philly outfielders) got away, and the Phils balked in the walk-off run in the ninth inning of the nitecap. Bruce Kison made the pitcher trivia rounds in the second game when he homered off Steve Carlton. That gave him a natural batting cycle of a single, double, triple and homer in that order over the season. Of course, for a hitter, a natural cycle consists of a game; with pitcher Kison, it started with a single on July 20th, with quite a few outs sprinkled in between then and his dinger two months later. The twilighter drew 45,134 fans as a September run by the Bucs cut the Phils lead to 1-1/2 games after their 24th straight win at TRS. Pittsburgh ran out of time and finished two games back, but the stretch run kickstarted the Bucs on the road to 1979. 
• 1990 - Bob Walk threw a four-hit complete game, winning an 8-0 decision over St. Louis at Busch Stadium in a match between the top dog Pirates and cellar-dwelling Cards. The 6-7-8 bottom of the order batters (Sid Bream, Mike LaValliere & Chico Lind) had two hits each and scored six runs, with Walk even contributing with an RBI double from the nine-hole. The win almost put Pittsburgh over the top; they would clinch the East flag by eliminating the NY Mets the next day, claiming the division after suffering through a decade-long title drought through the 1980s. 
• 1992 - The Pirates won their sixth straight game by a 3-0 score over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field as Zane Smith, Paul Wagner (the winner), Steve Cooke and Stan Belinda (the save) combined on a two-hitter, and with only two whiffs, to put the Bucs nine games up in the Eastern Division standings. Andy Van Slyke homered and drove in a pair of runs to spark the Pirate attack. The Buccos' other run came on a Carlos Garcia sac fly that scored Gary Varsho. 
• 1993 - In the final appearance of his career, Bob Walk went five innings of five-hit, one-run ball to defeat the Phils at TRS, 9-1, behind four Bucco blasts (Jeff King, Dave Clark, Al Martin and Jerry Goff). The Whirlybird spent 10 of his 14 MLB years with Pittsburgh, putting together an 82-61-5/3.83 line in 278 games (196 starts). He also made seven outings (three starts) in the postseason for the Pirates, going 2-1-1/3.71. Walkie remained a Buccaneer fixture even after he left the mound, with 27 years spent entertaining fans from the broadcast booth. 

Bob Walk - 1993 Donruss

• 1994 - RHP Thomas Hatch was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A third-round draft pick from Oklahoma State by the Cubs in 2016, he was traded to Toronto and from 2020-23, he slashed 3-3/5.40 in 27 outings. Waived in August, 2023, the Pirates claimed him. He was optioned to Indy in September, though his line of 2-3/4.03 in 12 outings was a bit better than league average. The Corsairs released him in November so that he could pitch in his current posting, Japan. 
• 1996 - It was the end of an era as Jim Leyland managed his last Pirates game, an 8-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Dale Sveum had a homer and double, Keith Osik went long, and Jay Bell doubled; all three players chased home a pair of runs while Sveum and Mark Johnson scored twice to back winner Esteban Loiaza. The depleted Pirates finished 73-89 and finished in last place, 15 games behind the new Central Division champs, the Cards. In 11 seasons with the Bucs (1986-96), Leyland’s slate was 851-863 with three Division titles (1990-92). He moved along to Florida, where he would take the Marlins to a pennant and World Series crown the following campaign. He ended his skipper days with an eight-year run (2006-13) in Detroit. 
• 1999 - In a name game noted by BR Bullpen, the Bucs 1-2-3 hitters against the Milwaukee Brewers at County Stadium were Adrian Brown, Emil Brown and Brant Brown. Adrian had two hits and Brant drove in a run, but the Brownie troop couldn’t carry the day as the Pirates fell, 5-2. 
• 2002 - Bill Virdon retired from baseball at age 71 after serving as Lloyd McClendon’s bench coach during the season. After 52 years as a player, coach and manager, the Quail said “I’ve just had all the travel I could handle.” But he didn’t completely burn his bridges - for the next two decades or so, he returned as a Bucco instructor and torch-bearer during spring training. He passed on at the age of 90 in 2021 in Springfield, Missouri, his home base for several decades. 

Bill Virdon - Baseball Heroes deck

• 2012 - Andrew McCutchen hit a walk-off homer off Jonathan Broxton with one down in the ninth inning for his 31st long ball of the season, a career high, to give the Pirates a 2-1 win over the Reds at PNC Park in front of a Saturday night crowd of 38,623. Alex Presley doubled home Chase d'Arnaud in the seventh for the Bucs first run. Kyle McPherson started and Joel Hanrahan finished for the win. Cutch hit 20+ homers for eight straight campaigns (2011 - 18) and has hit double-digit dingers in all 16 of his MLB seasons while playing for five different ball clubs. 
• 2013 - Jordy Mercer had a huge day and the Bucs held off Cincinnati by a 4-2 tally at Great American Ball Park. Jordy flared an inside-the-park homer, a soft sinking liner that eluded Reds outfielder Jay Bruce, and a triple among his three hits while Garrett Jones added a late bomb. The bottom four, consisting of Mercer and Jones, along with John Buck and John Harrison, had a hand in producing all four runs by collecting eight hits to earn Brandon Cumpton the win with a Kyle Farnsworth save. It was a preview of the upcoming wildcard match, won by the Bucs at PNC Park in the Johnny Cueto game. 
• 2019 - 62-year-old skipper Clint Hurdle was let go just before the final game of the year, one that the Pirates lost to the Reds, 3-1, at PNC Park to finish 69-93 and last in the NL Central. Hurdle was hired as manager in 2011 and led the Pirates to winning seasons in four of his nine years, breaking a record string of 20 non-winning campaigns. They made the playoffs three times, the last ending in a 2015 NL wild-card loss to the Cubs. The 2019 Pirates had an injury list that was a mile long, locker room fights, their closer arrested, and went on a 25-48 tailspin after the All-Star game, but overall Clint finished with a 735-720-1 record during his Pirates tenure, winning 2013 NL Manager of the Year. Derek Shelton, bench coach of the Twins, was his replacement. Hurdle caught on as a special assistant for the Colorado Rockies organization.

9/28 Through the 1950s: Tiny Tosser, Homer In the Gloamin', Clarke Day, Game Tales, '52 Finally Ends; HBD Grant, Leon, Cy, Everett, Pete, Cy the III, Lou & Bill

• 1863 - RHP Bill Nelson was born in Terre Haute, Indiana. He tossed three games for the Alleghenys in September of 1884, going 1-2/4.50. His peripherals were a little bit rougher - in 26 IP, he gave up 21 runs (13 were earned), hit four batters and tossed five wild pitches. He was released at the end of the season; the Alleghenys were about to buy the Columbus roster, leaving no room for a pitching project. Little is known what happened to Bill afterward; it appears he got on with his life at home as he ended his days in 1941 back in Terre Haute. 
• 1865 - 2B Lou Bierbauer was born in Erie (some sources claim he was born in Philly, que sera, sera). The Pirates signed him in 1891, as he wasn’t on the reserved roster of his American Association club, the Philadelphia Athletics (he had skipped to the outlaw Players League Brooklyn Ward’s Wonders in 1890). His signing rights were decided by an arbitrator, and though the AA thought the Alleghenys’ act was “piratical,” Pittsburgh was awarded the unprotected Bierbauer and a new nickname, the Pirates. From 1891-96, Bierbauer was a defensive master and hit .260 for the Pirates. 
• 1883 - RHP Harlan “Cy the Third” Young was born in Portland, Indiana. The Pirates purchased Harlan’s contract from Wichita of the Western Association in 1908 and he did OK in a limited time, going 0-2/2.23 in three starts. Then it gets interesting. In Cy Young’s era, every pitcher named Young became a Cy of one stripe or another. Cy the Third, Harlan, was traded to Boston for Cy the Second (aka Young Cy), Irv Young. The association by name didn’t help Cy Two much nor Three at all. Irv did go 4-3/2.15 for Pittsburgh and lasted two more seasons with the White Sox, winning 63 games in six years. Harlan remained winless with Boston, and then bumped around in minor league ball until 1920. He retired to Florida, where he passed on at the ripe old age of 91. 
• 1889 - OF Anna Sebastian “Pete” Compton was born in San Marcos, Texas. Compton had a six-year run in MLB, playing for five clubs, with a brief stop in Pittsburgh in 1916, going 1-for-16 in five games. Though old Pete was just a .241 hitter in the show, he was handy with the wood in the minors - he played through the 1928 season, leaving pro ball after eight straight .300+ seasons, over 2,500 hits, and a career .307 minor league BA. And no, we don’t know how Anna morphed into Pete; we’d guess Ma and Pa Compton were hoping for a girl. 

Ed Booe - 1913 Voskamp

• 1891 - OF Everett Booe was born in Mocksville, North Carolina. His MLB days were from 1913-14; he spent his rookie campaign as a Bucco, batting .200 in 29 games before jumping to the Federal League. Booe was a speedster and did have a long playing career in the minors, stretching from 1910-30 with the last handful of seasons spent as a player/manager. After he was done, he retired with his wife to Kennedy, Texas, where he ran a lumber supply company, was active in community affairs, both civic and baseball and where he died in 1969 at age 77. 
• 1893 - 1B/OF Cy Rheam was born in Pittsburgh. Cy went to Indiana Normal School (now IUP) and the utilityman rostered for a couple of seasons with the Pittsburgh Rebels in 1914-15, batting .201 while playing six different positions. That was the sum of Cy’s MLB career, and he apparently stayed local after his playing days. He died in the City in 1947 and was buried in Allegheny Cemetery. 
• 1902 - RHP Leon Chagnon was born in Pittsfield, New Hampshire. He worked for the Bucs from 1929-30, then again from 1932-34 after spending 1931 in the minors. Mostly called to action from the bullpen, he went 19-14-2 with a 4.61 ERA during his Pirate career. He closed out his big league stay with the Giants in 1935, then spent two years in the minors before hangin' up the spikes. 
• 1909 - Player/manager Fred Clarke was honored at Forbes Field before the game, when, according to Ralph Davis of the Pittsburgh Press, “...Mayor WA (William) Magee presented him with a bag of gold coin ($600). Just as the money was being handed to Clarke, James Geary placed a wreath of evergreen on his brow and showered dozens of rosebuds all over him while the fans shouted themselves hoarse at the scene.” After all that, the Pirates went out and lost to the New York Giants, 13-9, but all’s well that ends well. The Pirates clinched the pennant when the Chicago Cubs lost to the Phillies, 3-2, and then went on to beat Ty Cobb’s Detroit Tigers in the World Series. 

Press - 9/29/1938

• 1938 - The Bucs lost the “Homer in the Gloaming” game to the Cubs at Wrigley Field, considered a highlight of one of the greatest pennant race finishes in baseball. The teams were tied for first and tied in the bottom of the ninth. The umpires ruled that the ninth inning would be the last to be played because of darkness; if it was still tied, it would become a no-contest and would be replayed the next day in its entirety. Chicago player/manager Gabby Hartnett came to bat with two out, fell behind 0-2, and then connected off Mace Brown, launching the ball into the left-center field bleachers for the walk off win and sending 34‚465 fans home in ecstasy, many of whom circled the bases with him. The Cubs won the next day (their 10th straight), the Pirates faded, and Chicago became the NL champs. The loss was so painful for manager Pie Traynor that it’s said to have been a major factor in his retirement after the 1939 season. 
• 1942 - LHP Grant Jackson was born in Fostoria, Ohio. Buck tossed for the Pirates from 1977-81 and made his last MLB outing as a Buc in 1982. His line here was 29-19-36/3.23, and he tossed scoreless ball in his six appearances during the 1971 NLCS/World Series campaign. After he retired, Jackson was hired as Pittsburgh's pitching coach in 1983. He held similar positions with four other organizations (Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees, Cincinnati Reds, and Baltimore Orioles) before he retired for good after the 2002 season. He got his nickname while in the minors; one of his teammates thought he walked like a cowboy buckaroo and so dubbed him “Buck.” 
• 1947 - Tiny Bonham tossed a two-hit whitewash as the Bucs defeated the Reds, 7-0, at Forbes Field to end a doleful season in Bill Burwell’s only game as a manager (he replaced Billy Herman, who resigned) on a high note. Pittsburgh finished 62-92, 32 games out of first. Dixie Howell and Frank Gustine homered in front of 33,794 fans. The Bucs took just 64 games the year before, but won 83 contests the following season under new skipper Billy Meyer. Herman wasn’t left in the cold; he still had a year left on his contract and pocketed $28K for 1948. 
• 1952 - The Post-Gazette lede told the story: “The Pittsburgh Pirates wound up the clubs losingest (sic) season in modern baseball history by doing just that - losing.” The Bucs at least put up a fight at Crosley Field as Gus Bell dinged a two-run homer in the ninth to tie the game briefly before the Cincinnati Reds stormed back in the ninth to claim a 3-2 win from Forrest Main. The Pirates finished the year with a 48-106 slate. Still, it was a profitable day for a couple of Bucs - in contests held before the game, Brandy Davis won $100 as the fastest player while Joe Garagiola ($50) and Frank Thomas ($25) came in 1-2 in the distance-hitting event.

9/28 From 1960: Ke' ROTM; Redbeard Rocks, JJ Cycle, Buc 6-Pack, Andy Dandy, Last TRS Walk-Off, Game Tales, Blass Day, Milo & Lanny Back, SI Irishman

• 1966 - Pittsburgh swept a doubleheader from the Philadelphia Phillies by 2-1 and 4-2 scores at Connie Mack Stadium. The strong mound work of Steve Blass and Bob Veale pulled the club within 1-1/2 games of first place Los Angeles. In the first game, Donn Clendenon homered and Manny Mota chased Matty Alou home for the Bucco offense. The big blows in the nightcap were a triple by Bill Mazeroski that plated a run and led to a second tally when Maz came home on a bad relay, followed by a two-out Roberto Clemente double that scored Matty Alou, who tallied after a single and error. But it was the last hurrah for Pittsburgh; the San Francisco Giants swept the final three-game set at Forbes Field and the Bucs finished in third place, three games off the pace. 
• 1970 - Danny Murtaugh was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated for the story “The Desperate Race.” It actually wasn’t that desperate; the Bucs’ lead had grown from two games into five by the time the issue was published after winning 6-of-7 down the stretch. That was the final margin over the Cubs before the Bucs dropped the NLCS to Cincinnati’s 102-win Big Red Machine. 
• 1978 - KDKA rehired Milo Hamilton and Lanny Frattare, both rumored to be on thin ice, to one-year contracts. Milo, who had a hard time filling the Gunner’s shoes, moved along after the 1979 season, jumping to the Cubs booth. He left there, too, and found a long-term gig in Houston. That job led Hamilton to the Baseball Hall of Fame's Ford C. Frick Award, the National Radio Hall of Fame and the Texas Radio Hall of Fame. Lanny became a lead announcer in 1980 after Hamilton left and broadcast 5,000+ Bucco games before retiring after the 2008 campaign to become a professor at Waynesburg College. 
• 1986 - The Pirates Bob Patterson and the Mets Bob Ojeda were involved in a dandy duel at TRS in front of 30,606 fans. The Bucs Jim Morrison added some drama with a two-out homer off Ojeda in the ninth to tie it, 1-1, before Darryl Strawberry launched an 11th inning, three-run bomb off Bob Walk to give NY the win. There was even a little more drama after the game. The Four Tops & Chuck Berry were scheduled to perform after the home season finale. Berry was scheduled to start at 5 PM but when the game ran long, he refused to take the stage as showtime was pushed back 45 minutes and walked out, despite having already been paid $10K up front. The Four Tops, a pro act, played a longer set to make up for Berry’s snit. The Pirates went on to sue him for $20,000 and ended up recouping the deposit and some of the damages. 

Jose Guillen - 1997 Donruss Coming Attractions

• 1997 - The Freak Show ended its run with the club’s 79th victory, 5-4, over Houston in 11 innings at the Astrodome. Jose Guillen swung the hot bat with a homer, two runs scored and three RBI to give Jason Christiansen the win, saved by Rich Loiselle, who were the fourth and fifth Buc pitchers following starter Jose Silva. The club wouldn’t match that victory total again until 2012. 
• 2000 - Pittsburgh scored twice in the ninth for a 3-2 victory over Houston to claim the last Bucco walk-off win in TRS history. The ‘Stros had taken a 2-1, ninth inning lead with a two-out single, but the Pirates had an answer. With two away and two aboard via walks, Jason Kendall knotted the score with a rap that plated Mike Benjamin. The next batter, Warren Morris, put it away with a walk-off knock that brought home John Vander Wal for the rally capper. Jose Silva, although dented for 10 hits, stranded nine Astros runners and went the distance for the victory. 
• 2009 - The Pirates won their home and season finale, 11-1, against the Dodgers, with Andy LaRoche hitting two homers and driving in six runs. John Russell drew the ire of the 16,696 fans in attendance at PNC Park when he inexplicably pulled starter Zach Duke, who was at 103 pitches, with two outs in the ninth after a sacrifice fly spoiled his shutout bid. 
• 2012 - The Bucs drew 34,796 fans to PNC Park, but the star of the show was Reds pitcher Homer Bailey, who tossed a no-hitter to outduel AJ Burnett and earn a hard-fought, 1-0, complete game win. Bailey walked one and fanned 10 as the Pirates were no-hit for the first time since 1971. It was the year of the no-hitter; Bailey’s was the seventh of the season, tying a modern-day MLB record that was matched in 2015 and broken in 2021 when nine no-nos were posted. 
• 2013 - Behind a six-home-run barrage (Neil Walker popped two while Andrew McCutchen, Pedro Alvarez, Marlon Byrd and Andrew Lambo each added one), the Pirates won home field advantage for their wild card game against the Reds by defeating Cincinnati, 8-3, at GABP. It was the first time since August, 2007, versus the Rockies at Coors Field, that Pittsburgh banged out that many long balls in a game. It was his first career multi-homer game for Walker and the first career MLB home run for Lambo. Alvarez became the first Pirate third baseman to drive in 100 runs since Aramis Ramirez chased home 110 tallies in 2001, and El Toro’s 36 homers were a club record for a third baseman. Vin Mazzaro came on in the fifth inning and was credited with the win. 

Andrew Lambo - 2014 Topps 1st Edition

• 2016 - Although eliminated from playoff contention the day before, the Pirates still had some spunk left in them and whipped the 100-win Cubs and Jake Arrieta, 8-4, at PNC Park. John Jaso led the attack by hitting for the first cycle in PNC Park history (it was the first Bucco cycle since Daryle Ward’s in 2004 and the first at home since Jason Kendall’s in 2000 at TRS) while chasing home five runs and scoring twice. Rookie Jameson Taillon spun a one-hitter through six innings and survived some occasionally shaky bullpen work to earn the win. Josh Bell, Sean Rodriguez and Eric Fryer each added a pair of knocks with S-Rod touching home three times for the Buccaneers. 
• 2019 - The Pirates and Mayor Bill Peduto declared it “Steve Blass Day,” and the Bucs helped celebrate it by announcing during a pregame ceremony that Steve would be part of the initial franchise Hall of Fame class, as selected by the fans and located in PNC Park in 2020. Blass retired the following day, after announcing the Pirates final home broadcast of the season. The Pittsburgh HoF was placed on hold because of Covid, and the first induction ceremony was delayed until 2022. 
• 2020 - It was a dismal campaign for the Bucs, and beset by injuries and underperformance, they finished the year at 19-41, the worst record in MLB. But there was one shining Steel City star; 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes, who was promoted to the big team on September 1st, hit .376 w/5 HR, 17 runs scored, 11 RBI and an OPS+ of 202 in 24 games per Baseball Reference to go with some dazzling glove work at the hot corner (+4 DRS). Although he was promoted too late in the year for serious consideration as Rookie of the Year, he was named the National League’s Rookie of the Month for September.
• 2021 - The Pirates were playing out the string to open their last home stand of the year but continued to give nine innings worth of effort in an 8-6 win over the Cubs at PNC Park. They jumped ahead 3-0 on Colin Moran’s first inning homer, but were down 6-3 after Mitch Keller failed to record an out in the fifth frame. No sweat; the Pirates kept comin’ and put up a four-spot in the sixth, keyed by Hoy Park’s two-run, two-out triple and a following rap by Michael Chavis. An error led to a later insurance run while five Buccaneer relievers tossed five frames of scoreless, three-hit ball with Enyel De Los Santos credited with the victory and Chris Stratton with the save. Captain Redbeard ended up with four RBI and Bryan Reynolds banged out three hits and scored three times. It was the 10th time the Bucs had rallied back from a three-run deficit during the year.

9/27 Through 1934: Waner +11, '01 Clincher, Game Tales, Josh Jacks, 15 Winners, 16 Straight; HBD Dick H, Johnny, Dick L, Marty, Doug, Willie, Alan & Joe

• 1859 - 1B/OF Joe Visner was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Joe, part of the league’s first wave of Native American players, had a good year in 1889 for the Brooklyn Bridegrooms and in 1890 jumped to the Pittsburgh Burghers of the Players' League where he was the starting right fielder. He batted .267, scored 110 runs and hit 22 triples. Joe played one more big league season after that and got on with his life after three more minor league campaigns. His post-baseball life was a story in itself; he inherited 400 acres of land and moved his family there. He tired of the farm life periodically and disappeared for long stretches to satisfy his wanderlust; he’d ride his bike across Canada, making his way augmenting his fur-trapping income by performing handyman chores. 
• 1884 - 1B Alan Storke was born in Auburn, New York. He was a Bucco from 1906-09 and while primarily a first baseman, he played every infield position with a .255 BA while a Pirate. He attended Harvard Law School in the off season, joining the Pirates in early June after classes ended per his understanding with Barney Dreyfuss. Despite all his efforts, the 25 year-old Amherst grad sadly never got to earn his Juris Doctor degree; he died in 1910 of a lung infection stemming from the flu (or "grippe" as it was then known) during his final term at school. 
• 1890 - RHP Jim “Willie” Adams was born in Clearfield, Pennsylvania. Willie worked two seasons for the St. Louis Browns before joining the Pittsburgh Rebels of the Federal League in 1914, slashing 1-1-2/3.74 in 15 outings (two starts). He yo-yo’ed back-and-forth between the bigs and the farm until 1922, when he suffered a heart attack that ended his baseball career. 
• 1891 - Utilityman Doug Baird was born in St. Charles, Missouri. He played for five teams in six years, starting his career in 1915-17 (in part) with Pittsburgh where he saw a lot of action (2B, 3B, LF, RF, CF) and hit .223 in 316 games. After his last MLB gig in 1920, Baird played for seven more years in the minors through the 1927 campaign, retiring at age 35. 

Deacon Phillippe - Helmar T206

• 1901 - Deacon Phillippe tossed the Pirates past the Brooklyn Superbas, 5-4, at Exposition Park to clinch the National League pennant, the first of three straight Senior Circuit titles for the Bucs. Pittsburgh scored three times in the bottom of the eighth to rally past Brooklyn, which had taken the lead in the top half of the inning. Kitty Bransfield’s single to left chased home Honus Wagner, who had doubled home a pair, with the pennant-clinching run. From August 31st forward to this date, the Pirates had won 26-of-30 games. It was Pittsburgh’s first NL flag and the franchise’s first title since the Alleghenys began playing major league ball in the American Association back in 1882. 
• 1905 - LHP Marty Lang was born in Hooper, Nebraska. He had a brief MLB stay with the 1930 Pirates, getting into two games covering 1-2/3 IP and being rattled for 10 runs. Lang spent a decade in the minors, mostly in the Western league, before last toeing the slab in 1938. 
• 1907 - In a game that ended in a 5-5 draw, the Bucs lost Honus Wagner for the last dozen games of the season when he was hit in the hand in the first inning by the Boston Dove’s Rube Dessau and broke a bone. The contest went 11 innings at Exposition Park before darkness claimed it. The injury was moot so far as affecting the pennant chase. Although the Bucs won 91 games that season, they still finished second, 17 games behind the Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance Chicago Cubs, the winners of the 1907 World Series. 
• 1909 - The Bucs won their 16th straight game, the longest winning streak a Pirate club has ever put together, when they beat the Giants, 6-1, behind Babe Adams in the first game of a twin bill at Exposition Park. The streak finally came to an end when they dropped the nitecap, 8-7, despite four hits from Bill Abstein and George “Mooney” Gibson’s three knocks and three RBI. That powerhouse club took the National League pennant by 6-1/2 games over the Cubs with 110 wins and defeated the Detroit Tigers in the World Series in a seven-game battle. 

Dick Lanahan - '40-41 photo by George Burke/Real Photo postcard

• 1911 - LHP Dick Lanahan was born in Washington, DC. After a previous pit stop with the Washington Senators, Dick got into 47 games for the 1940-41 Pirates, compiling a line of 6-9-2/4.35. He appeared in 40 outings in 1940, ninth-most in the NL, during his most productive MLB year. He toiled in the minors, with a military break, after his Pirates gig through 1948. 
• 1913 - The 20-year Bucco losing streak is seared in our memories, but today was the other side of the pillow as Pittsburgh won for the 78th time to cap their 15th straight winning campaign (1899-1913), the longest in franchise history. The Pirates won, 4-3, over the Cards at Robison Field behind Marty O’Toole and an attack that had almost as many stolen bases (6) as hits (8). They had guaranteed themselves a winning season earlier in the month, and as they weren’t a factor in the pennant race, the Bucs didn’t make up several rainouts. The club fell below .500 in 1914 at 69-85 to end the good times and wouldn’t finish with a winning slate again until the 1919 campaign. 
• 1919 - IF Johnny Pesky was born in Portland, Oregon. Johnny made his name as a Red Sox player, coach, manager and announcer but in between served some time with the Bucs. From 1965-67, he was Harry “The Hat” Walker’s first-base coach. After Walker's firing in 1967, Pesky managed the Bucs' AAA Columbus Jets squad of the International League to a second-place finish and moved to the Boston booth before returning to his familiar role of Red Sox coach and instructor. 
• 1930 - P/OF Dick Hall was born in St. Louis. Hall came up in 1952 as a light hitting outfielder; in 1955, he was converted to the mound and pitched until 1971. In his Bucco years (1952-59) he hit .218, and was 6-13-2/4.57 on the hill. He got better; Baltimore flipped him from starter to reliever, and he tossed for nine years in two stints as a Bird with a 2.98 ERA; he even threw a scoreless frame to earn a save against Pittsburgh in the 1971 World Series during his last campaign at age 41. He retired and later became a member of the Orioles Hall of Fame. 

Dick Hall - 1955 Topps

• 1930 - Paul Waner kept an 11-game hitting streak alive when he smacked a homer and single in an 11-8 win over St. Louis at Sportsman’s Park. That gave Big Poison 217 knocks during the year and 1,057 hits over his first five seasons, making him one of four players - Kirby Puckett, Earle Combs and Ducky Medwick are the others - to have 1,000+ hits in their first five campaigns. Waner had staying power; he finished his career with 3,151 hits and a place in the Hall of Fame. 
• 1930 - 18-year-old rookie Josh Gibson was credited with drilling what at the time was the longest home run ever hit in Yankee Stadium, a blast that was estimated to be anywhere from 460-505’, off the back wall of the left field bullpen (he was said to have landed another ball there in 1946). The Lincoln Giant’s “Broadway Connie” Rector gave up the three-run smash in the first inning of the Homestead Grays 7-3 playoff victory. A week earlier, Gibson was credited with being the first hitter to clear the 457’ mark at Forbes Field during the same series. 
• 1932 - The Pittsburgh Crawfords defeated the Casey Stengel National League All-Stars by an 11-2 count at York (PA) in front of 2,500 fans. The Pirates Bill Swift started for the All Stars and he gave up nine runs in three frames before another Bucco, Larry French, bailed him out. William Bell tossed for the Crawfords in a game that was part of the York County Fair schedule. They returned to the Hill and Greenlee Field the next day as the NL paid the Grays back in spades, romping to a 20-8 victory. The New York Giants Roy Parmalee easily bested the Crawfords Joe Williams, with Hack Wilson homering once and Pittsburgh’s Oscar Charleston twice during the barnstorming rematch.

9/27 From 1935: Bombers K-Man & Giles, Kiner Krown; DD Zippo, '92 & '70 Clinchers, Game Tales, Cincy Daddies, Blass Finale; HBD Vin, Pedro & Dave

• 1935 - RHP Dave Wickersham was born in Erie. The Ohio U grad had eight solid years in the AL when he came over to the Bucs from Detroit for Dennis Ribant in 1968, but he only got into 11 games for the Pirates with a respectable line of 1-0-1/3.48, and then was sold to his original MLB squad, Kansas City, in the off season. He tossed for them for one more campaign before retiring, long enough to enter the record books as one of four players to be members of both KC franchises, as he pitched from 1960-63 for the A’s. 
• 1952 - In the next-to-last game of the season, a 9-6 win over the Reds at Crosley Field, Ralph Kiner homered to finish the season with 37 long balls to tie Hank Sauer for the crown. It was Kiner’s record seventh consecutive National League home run title before Eddie Matthews bested him in 1953. 
• 1970 - The Pirates clinched the NL East title with a 2-1 victory over the Mets at TRS, thus eliminating the Cubs, in front of a record 50,469 fans. Dave Cash had two hits, a run scored and the game-winning RBI while Roberto Clemente banged out a pair of doubles to lead the offense. Dock Ellis got the win and Dave Giusti earned the save as the Pirates swept the three-game series from New York. The Pirates were broomed in the NLCS by Cincinnati’s Big Red Machine. 
• 1985 - IF Pedro Ciriaco was born in San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic. Ciriaco got his first taste of MLB in 2010-11, batting .333 for the Pirates in 31 games after coming over in a deadline deal with Arizona. He popped in and out of the majors through 2015 and then finished his baseball days by playing in the Mexican and Dominican Leagues through 2018. 

Pedro Ciriaco - 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter

• 1986 - RHP Vin Mazzaro was born in Hackensack, New Jersey. After working 2009-12 in the AL, Vinnie spent a couple of years in Pittsburgh with a line of 8-2-1/2.89 in 62 outings. Mazzaro was last in the show with the Giants in 2015 and pitched out of the indie leagues from 2017-19. 
• 1988 - In a contest that manager Jim Leyland called “...a stepping stone to the winner’s circle,” the Bucs won their 84th game (they finished with 85 victories, the most since the 1979 World Series club) to clinch second place with a 3-2 win over the Cardinals at TRS. The Pirates jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead on a Mike LaValliere grounder and Bobby Bonilla’s two-run, two-out single, then John Smiley and Jim Gott made it hold up. The outcome was in doubt until the ninth, when with one away, Luis Alicea softly lined Gott’s delivery to medium center with Jose Oquendo on third; he tagged and Andy Van Slyke’s strike cut him down at home. 
• 1989 - Doug Drabek spun a four-hit shutout as the Bucs edged the Cubs and Joe Magrane at TRS, 1-0. The Pirate run came in the fourth when Pittsburgh strung together three straight singles, with Dan Bilardello bringing home Jeff King with the contest’s only run. Doug finished the year with a 2.80 ERA, the first of three sub-three ERA seasons he posted as a Pirate. 
• 1992 - Pittsburgh won their third consecutive division crown by defeating the New York Mets in front of 31,217 fans at Three Rivers Stadium, 4-2. Danny Jackson went seven innings for the win, with Stan Belinda closing it out to earn the save. Gary Redus and Jay Bell each had a pair of hits; Redus scored twice and Bell chased home two runs. The club lost the NLCS to Atlanta, four games to three, when the Braves scored three times in the ninth inning of the seventh contest to erase a 2-0 deficit, taking the crown in the Sid Bream game. 
• 1998 - The Pirates ended a dismal season with a 4-1 loss to Cincinnati at Cinergy Field. They finished 69-93 thanks to a 5-25 finish to the campaign, 10 games worse than the ‘97 Freak Show squad. The loss was their eighth in a row and 11th in the final 12 games, with the last time the club had been at .500 being June 14th when they were 34-34. The club finished the campaign 33 games behind the defending champs, the Houston Astros, in the Central Division.

Solly Torres - 2003 Upper Deck 40-Man

• 2002 - The Bucs beat the Cubs, 13-3, as Brian Giles scored five runs and drove home six with a double & a pair of long balls, home runs #36 & 37. It was his fourth consecutive year with 35+ homers, joining Alex Rodriguez, Sammy Sosa, and Rafael Palmeiro in that select club. Salomon Torres went all the way for the win at Wrigley Field with a lot of help - every Pirate starter, including Torres, had a hit as the Bucs banged out 19 knocks against six Cubbie hurlers.
• 2009 - It ain’t over until it’s over: Pittsburgh scored four times in the ninth inning off Jonathan Braxton at PNC Park after the Dodgers took a 5-2 lead in the top of the frame by scoring three times off Matt Capps. Lastings Milledge delivered the game-winning hit, a two-run single to right-center, to plate Andrew McCutchen and Garrett Jones. Capps was credited with the win. 
• 2019 - After going through a miserable post-All Star stretch, the Pirates, without injured starters Josh Bell, Starling Marte, Bryan Reynolds and Colin Moran, fought back to win their fourth in a row when Kevin Newman banged a two-out walk-off homer (his second of the game) with Jake Elmore aboard to lead Pittsburgh to a 6-5 victory over the Reds at PNC Park. Newman had five RBI and scored twice to earn Yacksel Rios his first win as a Bucco. It was the 11th straight home win against Cincinnati, and came at an opportune time - it was retiring announcer Steve Blass’ final TV game, making the contest a memorable conclusion to Steverino’s six decades with the Pirates organization.

9/26 Through the 1960s: Cricket Chirps, F&F, Lefty Short No-No, Game Tales, Shep Axed, Grays In WS; HBD Brian, Steve, Glenn, Bobby, Al, Joe & Bob

• 1890 - C Bob Coleman was born in Huntingburg, Indiana. The back-up catcher played for Pittsburgh from 1913-14, hitting .245 in 200 ABs. He got one more taste of the majors in 1916 with the Cleveland Indians but would spend most of his innings on various farm clubs. He played until 1927 when he retired after the season at the age of 36 and continued on the road of a minor-league lifer. He skippered for 35 seasons (20 at Evansville), and Coleman's teams won 2,496 games. Bob also coached for the Tigers and managed the Boston Braves. 
• 1901 - The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Brooklyn Dodgers, 4-3, at Exposition Park, guaranteeing at least a tie for the 1901 NL pennant with Philadelphia. Jack Chesbro got the win and added an RBI. The other scores were driven in by Honus Wagner, Kitty Bransfield and Lefty Davis as the Pirates put together a four-run sixth inning for the win. They clinched the next day to take their first NL flag. 
• 1906 - Lefty Leifield hurled a six-inning no-hitter, the first in franchise history, although the no-no isn’t considered official as it didn’t go nine frames. He walked two and fanned six as the Bucs defeated Philadelphia at the Baker Bowl, 8-0, (per the Pgh Press, the Pirates were in “a swatting mood”) in the back end of a doubleheader that was shortened because of darkness. Pittsburgh won the opener by a shutout, too, taking a 5-0 win behind Vic Willis. The day’s hitting hero was OF Bob Ganley, who collected five hits and swiped a pair of sacks during the twin bill. 
• 1910 - LHP Joe Sullivan was born in Mason City, Illinois. Joe closed out his five-year major league career with Pittsburgh in 1941, going 4-1-1/2.97 in 16 games (four starts). Though manager Frankie Frisch was said to like him as a guy he could use in any situation, Joe had control problems, and in camp the following spring, he came down with an untimely case of tonsillitis. He was sent to the farm and never made it back to the majors. Joe retired to the Pacific Northwest (he spent several years in the Pacific Coast/Western Leagues after his MLB career) and worked in the Naval Shipyard. 

Al Helfer - photo via W&J College

• 1911 - Announcer Al Helfer was born in Elrama, in Washington County. Al played football and basketball at W & J College, taking his first job as a sports reporter for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette while also calling football games for the Pittsburgh Pirates, back in the days before they were known as the Steelers (1940), and Pitt Panthers for WWSW. He started broadcasting Pirates games off ticker updates in 1933, launching a career as “Mr. Radio Baseball.” Helfer also called the action for the Reds, Dodgers, Phils, Colt 45s, A’s, Mutual Broadcasting and the gridiron Broncos during his career. He was awarded the Ford C. Frick Award for Excellence in Baseball Broadcasting from the Hall of Fame posthumously in 2018 after passing away in 1975 at age 65. 
• 1920 - Babe Adams was pummeled, 8-0, by the Reds in the season finale, but it was a nice season for the 38-year-old who finished 17-13/2.16 and tossed 263 innings (he’d pitch through 1926). Babe set a MLB record by walking just 18 batters in his 35 games, averaging 0.6 walks per nine innings or just one free pass for every 14-2/3 IP. That set a single-season control record that stood until 2005 when Jose Silva walked 0.43 per nine frames in 188 IP for the Twins. 
• 1925 - LHP Bobby Shantz was born in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. Bobby worked 16 years in the show for seven clubs, stopping in Pittsburgh for the 1961 season. He went 6-3-2/3.32, making 43 appearances (six starts) as a Buccaneer. The little lefty was a three-time All-Star and won eight Gold Gloves before he retired to run a restaurant and bowling alley back home. 
• 1937 - The Pirates scored in just three innings (in a row) of a twin bill, but it was enough to win two games: The Bucs rallied to take the first game against Cincinnati, 5-4, after the Reds led 4-0 in the eighth. The Pirates answered three times that frame and twice more in the ninth for the victory. Jim Tobin not only went the distance, but had three hits, scored twice and drove in a run. Then Pittsburgh scored twice in the first frame of the nitecap and held on to claim a 2-1 win and sweep at Crosley Field. Gus Suhr doubled home Woody Jensen and Lloyd Waner to provide Bill Swift, who tossed a complete game eight-hitter, with the win. 

Willie Pope - via NLBPA

• 1948 - The Homestead Grays won the opening game of the Negro World Series, 3-2, over the Birmingham Black Barons at Blues Stadium in Kansas City. The Grays did all the scoring in the second inning, with Willie Pope banging a two-run triple and coming home after Luis Marquez’s two-out single. Ted Alexander scattered eight hits for the Homestead/Washington victory. 
• 1960 - Pirates coach Glenn Sherlock was born in Nahant, Massachusetts. His job focus was on coaching catchers and run prevention while also assisting with game prep and in-game management. He worked with the Yankees, D-Backs (19 seasons) and Mets (3 years), serving as a minor league manager/coach, bullpen coach, bench coach, catching coach, first base coach and third base coach during his 30-year career. Glenn coached in Pittsburgh from 2020-21, then left to become the Mets bench coach, returning to a club he had coached for from 2017-19. 
• 1961 - IF Steve Buechele was born in Lancaster, California. He spent parts of 1991-92 with the Bucs, coming as part of one deadline deal and leaving as part of another, playing 3B and hitting .248. After 11 years in MLB, Steve now works in the front office of the Texas Rangers. 
• 1962 - Earl Francis surrendered two hits in 10 frames to beat the Reds and Jim Maloney, 1-0. Bob Friend pitched the 11th frame to earn his only save of the year (he came in from the pen three times during the season), after Bill Mazeroski and Willie Stargell doubles produced the game’s only run. 

Earl Francis - 1963 Topps

• 1968 - LHP Brian Shouse was born in Effingham, Illinois. A 13th-round, 1990 draft pick of the Pirates from Bradley, the sidewinder got the call in 1993 for six games and four innings. He was sent to the farm, popping up again in 1998 with Boston before another stint in the minors. That one lasted until 2002, when KC gave him the ball. But he finally broke through after that; he joined the bullpen full-time in Texas in 2003 at the age of 34 and worked through 2009. His last MLB gig was as a pitching coach in the Rangers system, which lasted through the 2019 season. 
• 1969 - Dock Ellis spun a complete game five-hitter to tame the Cubs and 21-game winner Fergie Jenkins at Forbes Field by a 2-0 score. The runs were the result of a two-run homer by the least likely of suspects, Freddie Patek, who banged his fifth long ball in the third inning with Jose Pagan aboard. The Docktor took care of the rest as Chicago never got a runner past second base. 
• 1969 - Larry Shepard was fired as manager even though Pittsburgh had an 84-73 record. Coach Alex Grammas took over the club for the remaining week of the season before the Bucs returned to old faithful, Danny Murtaugh, for his third go-around as Pirates field boss. It was a good choice; the Whistlin’ Irishman won 89 games in 1970 and the World Series in 1971.