9/18 From 1950: BB 30/30, NY Shootout, 5's Flip, Deac's #20, Game Tales, All-Century Team; HBD Donnie, Jody & Roger

• 1957 - RHP Roger Mason was born in Bellaire, Ohio. The nine-year vet rejuvenated his career in Pittsburgh from 1991-92, slashing 8-9-11/3.82. He worked for two World Series clubs and seven teams in his career while setting the dubious record of having the first three batters he faced in a game homer off him - San Diego Padres Marvell Wynn, Tony Gwynn and John Kruk - though Mason’s Giants won the game. He retired after the 1994 season. 
• 1960 - Vern Law picked up his 20th win with a complete game victory, 5-3, in the lidlifter of a Sunday doubleheader at Cincinnati's Crosley Field. The Deacon won the 1960 Cy Young award with a 20-9 record and 3.08 ERA; the Bucs didn’t have another 20 game winner until John Candelaria went 20-5 in 1977. Both Dick Stuart and Don Hoak homered, doubled and drove in two runs. The Pirates took the nitecap, 1-0, as Vinegar Bend Mizell tossed a three-hitter against the Reds and Bob Purkey. Ducky Schofield drove in the game’s only run. 
• 1971 - The Bucs clinched at least a tie for the Eastern Division title (they sewed it up two games later) with a 4-0 win against the New York Mets and Ray Sadecki at TRS. Richie Zisk smoked his first career homer to drive in a pair of runs and Dave Cash’s two-bagger plated the other two Buccos. Steve Blass tossed a two-hitter for the win, his 15th of the year, and his fifth shutout of the campaign. The 20,470 fans barely had time to gulp down a hot dog; the game was the fastest played contest of the year, taking 1:42 from the first pitch to the last out. 
• 1974 - After losing six in a row and dropping 2-1/2 games back in the race after losing the opener, 2-1, to the front-running Cards at TRS the night before, the Bucs needed to right the ship. Jim Rooker and Al Oliver took charge, with Rook spinning a six-hitter and Scoops doubling twice to drive in two runs while scoring once. Dave Parker also banged a pair of hits as the Bucs stayed alive with 14 games to go, eventually taking the flag by 1-1/2 games over the Redbirds. 

Jim Rooker - 1974 Topps

• 1977 - OF Jody Gerut was born in Springfield, Illinois. A touted outfield prospect, the Bucs got him at the 2005 deadline from the Cubs for Matt Lawton. He barely played for the Bucs (four games & 18 at-bats) as he haggled with the FO over a knee injury and sat out most of 2005; he wanted surgery that the Pirates felt unnecessary, and a grievance was filed. Though the two sides settled, Gerut didn’t play in 2006, was released and after a season in the Dominican League returned with the Padres in 2008. By 2010, he was done; his numbers were good but he never got to 300 PAs for a season. A Stanford grad, he stayed in the game in the business end after retiring as he went into financial advising for MLB players and later became a player agent. 
• 1979 - The Pirates scored three times in the first inning against the Expos at Olympic Stadium, then laid goose eggs for nine frames before finally denting Montreal pitching in the 11th to pull out a 5-3 victory. Willie Stargell delivered the telling blow, a two-run homer to win the game for Grant Jackson. 
• 1984 - LHP Donnie Veal was born in Jackson, Mississippi. Veal was a second-round pick of the Cubs in 2005 and the Pirates took him in the Rule 5 draft of 2008. He stuck on the roster in 2009, and was used as a reliever, putting up a line of 1-0/7.16 with 16 K in 16-1/3 IP but also issuing 20 BB. He missed 2010 with TJ surgery, spent a year on the farm and then he was signed by the Chicago White Sox where he had two decent seasons in 2012-13 before arm troubles again laid him low. He finished his career with the Atlanta Braves in 2015 and now coaches pitchers in the Chicago White Sox system. 
• 1987 - In a wild west shootout at TRS that took over 3-1/2 hours to play, the Pirates outhit the Mets to take a 10-9 victory. Mike Diaz went 4-for-5 with a 2B, 3B and four RBI, Junior Ortiz knocked in a pair, Felix Fermin had three hits and John Cangelosi homered, providing enough firepower for John Smiley to get the win in relief of Brian Fisher, with Jim Gott closing it out thanks to a game-ending strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out double play. 
• 1991 - Five was not the Pirates lucky number. They were down to the St. Louis Cards at TRS by a 5-0 score going into the bottom of the fifth before the double-five fate switched sides. The Buccos put together two runs in their half when Spanky Lavalliere and Chico Lind drove in Barry Bonds and Steve Buechele, and the Bucs knotted the score in their next at-bats thanks to Buechele’s three-run homer, 5-5. Pittsburgh kept coming, stranding three runners in scoring position with less than two outs three times before Cecil Espy’s sac fly plated Orlando Merced to walk it off in the ninth, earning a victory for b-day boy, Roger Mason. 

Steve Buechele - 1991 Upper Deck

• 1992 - Barry Bonds hit his 30th homer of the season off Philadelphia's Terry Mulholland in the Pirates' 5-2 win at TRS. Bonds became the fifth MLB player with a pair of 30 HR/30 SB seasons, his first being in 1990. The others were his dad Bobby, his godfather Willie Mays, Howard Johnson, and Ron Gant. The contest was a rain-shortened 5-1/2 inning affair, with Tim Wakefield and his fluttering knuckler surviving five walks to take home the win. 
• 1998 - A state historical marker was dedicated outside TRS to commemorate the first World Series, with games 4-7 played at Exposition Park between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Boston Americans in 1903. The plaque moved when PNC Park opened and is now located on the North Shore Riverwalk. 
• 1999 - The Pirate “Team of the Century,” voted on by fans, was announced. The winners were: C Jason Kendall, 1B Willie Stargell, 2B Bill Mazeroski, SS Honus Wagner, 3B Pie Traynor, LF Ralph Kiner, CF Lloyd Waner (barely edging out Andy Van Slyke), RF Roberto Clemente (Arriba’s selection left Paul “Big Poison” Waner off the club), LHP Harvey Haddix (the Kitten’s perfect game mystique eliminated the Pirates’ winningest pitcher, Wilbur Cooper), RHP Vern Law, reliever Kent Tekulve (in a close race with ElRoy Face) and manager Danny Murtaugh. 
• 2000 - The Pirates ended a nine-game losing streak by topping the Phils, 6-5, at Veterans Stadium. Philly jumped ahead, 3-0, after an inning until the Pirates finally took the lead in the eighth, 6-4, scoring four times on three doubles, an intentional walk, suicide squeeze and a strikeout/wild pitch. The Phils scored once in their half to cut the lead to one, and Mike Williams was faced with a runner on third with one gone in the ninth, but got a grounder and soft liner to escape with the save of Rick Loiselle’s win. The Pittsburgh attack was balanced; seven of the eight starters either scored, chased home a run or both. It was a record-setting day for Jason Kendall, too - he stole his 20th base, becoming the first NL catcher with 20+ swipes in three different (and consecutive) seasons.