9/3 From 1980: Streak Snapped; Solly Comeback; Game Stories; RIP Rip, Clyde; HBD Mad Capper

• 1983 - The Braves took an early 2-0 lead against Rick Rhoden at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, built around a Chris Chambliss double, and the game stayed that way until the seventh inning. The Pirates tied the score on a couple of walks and doubles by Bill Madlock and Johnny Ray. An intentional walk packed the sacks for Mike Easler, making his first appearance in 25 days after a thumb injury had sent him to the DL. His first at bat back was against relief ace Steve Bedrosian, taking over from Phil Niekro. The Hit Man missed nary a beat, drilling a grand slam to center on the first pitch to carry the Bucs to a 6-2 victory. Jim Bibby got the win in relief of Rhoden while Cecilio Guante picked up a save. 

Mike Easler - 1983 Topps

• 1983 - RHP Matt Capps was born in Douglasville, Georgia. The closer spent five years (2005-09) in Pittsburgh, putting up a record of 19-19-67/3.61. Though he went converted 27 of 32 save opportunities in 2009, his 5.80 ERA led to the Pirates to non-tender him after the campaign. After stints in Washington and Minnesota, he’s been out of MLB since 2013, signing several minor league deals and hanging ‘em up after the 2016 campaign. He went by the nicknames "The Mad Capper" and "Big Bull Rider," both integral parts of his scoreboard vid intro at PNC Park. 
• 1989 - Truett "Rip" Sewell passed away in Plant City, Florida, at the age of 82. Rip was a three-time All-Star who led the NL in wins, winning percentage, and complete games. A workhorse (eight years w/175+ IP), he posted four 15-wins seasons (w/two 21-win campaigns), and logged 200 or more IP four years in a row. A cousin of big league stalwarts brothers Joe and Luke Sewell, he is best known for the eephus pitch. The righty pitched virtually his entire career in Pittsburgh, from 1938-49, starting 243 games, winning 143 (with 15 saves tossed in) while posting a 3.43 ERA. 
• 1992 - Orlando Merced drove in five runs on three hits including a double to help the Pirates complete a three-game sweep of the Giants with a 9-3 victory at TRS. Alex Cole also helped the cause with a personal-high four hits, tripling twice. Doug Drabek worked into the seventh for the win.   
• 2000 - Longtime Pirates coach and scout Clyde Sukeforth passed away in Waldoboro, Maine, at the age of 98. He caught for 10 years with the Reds and Dodgers and then became a Brooklyn coach, moving to Pittsburgh to join Branch Rickey in 1952, where he coached, managed in the minors (he turned down the Pirates reins in 1957, bringing on Danny Murtaugh) served as a super scout (he was one of several who bird-dogged Roberto Clemente) until 1965, then serving as an Atlanta scout to close out his career. 
• 2002 - Salomon Torres pitched his first MLB game since July 20th‚ 1997‚ and went 8-1/3 scoreless innings against the Braves, also collecting his first hit since 1994 in the Pirates 3-0 win. Torres‚ 30‚ retired as an active player in 1997 and served as Montreal's pitching coach in the Dominican Summer League before he signed with Pittsburgh in January. Torres now runs three training complexes for minor leaguers in the Dominican Republic to prep them for baseball and life in the US. 

Jack Wilson - 2007 Bowman

• 2007 - Jack Wilson had a big game, going 4-for-5 with a homer and double, scoring twice and driving in three as the Bucs beat the St. Louis Cards 11-0 at Busch Stadium. Ronnie Paulino was hot, too, going 3-for-4 with two doubles, three runs and two RBI while Ian Snell and Juan Perez combined on a six hit shutout. 
• 2013 - Travis Snider’s ninth inning homer lifted the Pirates to a 4-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park and gave Pittsburgh a two-game lead in the NL Central. It also was Pittsburgh’s 81st win and snapped a 20-year losing streak by the franchise, unmatched by any other major professional sports team in North America. There were more contributors than Snider, though - Andrew McCutchen, Justin Morneau and Marlon Byrd combined to go 7-for-10 with three RBI and three runs scored, Mark Melancon picked up the save for Vin Mazzaro, and Gerrit Cole, who gave up a pair of first inning runs after just three batters, came back to put up zeroes through six innings and retired the last 12-of-13 hitters he faced. Cutch’s homer was his 100th, putting him in the Bucco 100 HR/100 steal club along with Barry Bonds, Al Martin, Andy Van Slyke, Dave Parker and Paul Waner. And in a final bit of irony, the Brewers had broken their club record 12-season losing streak at PNC Park in 2005, so it was fitting the Bucs returned the favor at Miller. 
• 2017 - Jordy Mercer hit his 13th home run of the season to set a personal season homer high in the Pirates’ 3-1 win over the Reds at PNC Park. Rookie Trevor Williams threw seven shutout innings while scattering eight hits and fanning five. Starling Marte added a solo homer and rookie Jordan Luplow chipped in with an RBI single. The Bucs needed the power burst as they could only muster five hits. Daniel Hudson and Felipe Vazquez finished out the game, with Vazquez picking up the save.

Monday Off Day - Call Ups, Notes

Indy ends its season tonight; it'll be interesting to see who the Bucs call up. The 40-man has a who who's of pitchers who have been up-and-down: Montana DuRapau, Dovy Neverauskas, Alex McRae, and Luis Escobar, with JT Brubaker still out of commission. RHP Yacksel Rios, who was claimed from the Phils last month, is on the 40-man, and is the only healthy arm on the list who hasn't been called to Pittsburgh yet. That's in addition to Chris Archer, Chris Stratton and Yefry Ramirez, all on the 10-day IL. What will be most telling isn't who gets the call, but who doesn't.

The odd-man-out position players on the 40-man are SS Cole Tucker, OF Jason Martin and IF Kevin Kramer. Ke'Bryan Hayes and Will Craig aren't on the 40-man, nor are a couple of vets who might be useful off the bench, Jake Elmore and JB Shuck. They could also add a third catcher, although nobody in the minors has really earned the promotion.

He'll be back but will Clint use him? - image Pittsburgh Pirates

You'll see Tucker and most likely Martin. We're not so sure what the plan is with Tuck, as sitting down Kevin Newman isn't really in the cards. Perhaps they'll get into a sort of rotation with Fraze, with K-Man flipping between middle infield spots. The problem with the Indy Five are that four of them are hitting in the .260 range and Craig is at .250, so it's not really like they're kicking the door down to get to Pittsburgh. Playing time will be convoluted, especially if they keep looking at Colin Moran in an everyday role and shuffling Joey Osuna around the corners.

Clint will have a voice in the player movement and innings, but be assured that he'll have his marching orders for PT from upstairs.

We'll find out if the Bucco FO is ready to start tinkering with the 40-man this early on; it would go against SOP. They did began housekeeping by waiving RHP Rookie Davis, who went unclaimed and was then sent to Indy. That opened one 40-man roster spot after waiver claim LHP Wei-Chung Wang had filled the list (with six more players on the 60-day IL - Nick Burdi, Chad Kuhl, Edgar Santana,  Jameson Taillon, Gregory Polanco and Lonnie Chisenhall).

We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Notes:

• LHP Wei-Chung Wang is scheduled to report to the Bucs tomorrow.
• The Bucs were talking about a Keone Kela-Jeremy Jeffreys trade with the Brewers back in July, per Robert Murray of The Athletic (Brew Crew beat guy). Jeffreys just was DFA'ed.

9/2 Through the 1920’s: 9 Straight; First Claimed; Game Stories; HBD Milo & Ben

• 1907 - IF Ben Sankey was born in Nauvoo, Alabama. His MLB career lasted for 72 games from 1929-31, all as a Bucco, and he hit .213 over that span. Ben stuck at it, playing minor league ball until 1941, waiting until he was 33-years-old before unlacing the spikes. The slick fielder spent six years with Montreal and three more with Baltimore in the International League, earning a spot in the IL Hall of Fame in 1947. 

Ben Sankey - photo via Find-A-Grave

• 1909 - Per Charlton’s Baseball Chronology, Boston's Cliff Curtis pitched his first MLB game and beat the Pirates 1-0 to give the Doves their only win against Pittsburgh that year. The Pirates, who would claim the NL pennant, won the nightcap at the South End Grounds 5-3, took all the remaining September games and finished the season 20-1 against last-place Boston.  
• 1917 - The Pirates won a wild one at Redland Field as they held off the Cincinnati Reds 8-7. Hans Wagner had three hits, including his final MLB two-bagger (which sent home Max Carey in the ninth with what proved to be the game-winning run). Bill Evans got the win in relief of Burleigh Grimes with Bob Steele saving it by working the final two frames. 
• 1925 - The Pirates won their ninth straight game by defeating the Cincinnati Reds 8-2 at Forbes Field. It was scoreless going into the sixth when the bats woke up. The Redlegs put up a pair and the Bucs answered with seven tallies. George Grantham led the attack, going 4-for-4 and falling a homer short of the cycle while Eddie Moore chipped in with three raps. Glenn Wight added two hits, two runs and two RBI to the cause. Johnny Morrison went the distance; he was touched up for 12 hits but stranded 11. The Pirates streak ended the next day against the Cards, who rallied in the ninth to topple the Buccos. It was a good year for Pittsburgh, which took the pennant and then the World Series in seven games from the Washington Senators. 
• 1927 - The Pirates took over first place with a 5-3 win over the St. Louis Cards at Forbes Field. Ray Kremer won against Grover Cleveland Alexander, and added an RBI to the effort. The Waner brothers went 7-for-10 with two runs scored and two RBI. The Bucs never relinquished first place after the victory, and nosed out the Cards for the title by a 1-½ game margin. 

Milo Hamilton - photo via Baseball Hall of Fame

• 1927 - Leland Milo Hamilton was born in Fairfield, Iowa. Milo had the unenviable and ultimately untenable job as Bob Prince’s replacement in the broadcast booth. His quiet demeanor was a stark contrast to the Gunner’s folksy ways and boosterism and the gig wore thin on both Hamilton and the City. He moved on to the Cubs job in 1980 and discovered that working with Harry Caray wasn’t much easier than replacing Prince. Milo finally found a home in Houston in 1985, where he broadcast for 28 years until his retirement in 2012. Hamilton was the 1992 recipient of the Baseball Hall of Fame's Ford C. Frick Award and was also inducted into the National Radio and Texas Radio Halls of Fame.

9/2 From 1930 Through the 1960’s: 8-In-A-Row; Ooops; Game Stories; HBD Luke

• 1933 - Pittsburgh won its eighth straight game by a 4-1 tally over the St. Louis Cardinals at Forbes Field. Woody Jensen and Tommy Thevenow each had a pair of hits with a triple each and together drove in three runs to give Howie Meine the win. The Cincinnati Reds ended the streak convincingly the next game by a 9-3 score. 

Tommy Thevenow - 1933 Big League

• 1943 - LHP Luke Walker was born in DeKalb, Texas. He worked eight years (1965-66, 1968-73) for the Bucs, with a line of 40-42-9/3.47. Walker had a breakout 1970, going 15-6 with a 3.04 ERA and was a member of the 1970-72 championship teams. He started, closed and did everything in between. The lefty worked just one more MLB campaign beyond Pittsburgh, when he was sold to the Tigers before the 1974 season. 
• 1944 - The Pirates slid by the first-place St. Louis Cards 5-4 at Forbes Field‚ giving Ted Wilks his first loss after he had reeled off 11 straight victories. The Bucs walked it off in the bottom of the ninth when Bob Elliott, who was 4-for-5 with a homer, singled home Jim Russell to give Max Butcher the victory. The lead switched hands several times during the game; Dick Fortune of the Pittsburgh Press called the contest “...a ding dong battle all the way.”
• 1948 - The Bucco hand was caught in the cookie jar... Commissioner Happy Chandler fined the Pirates $2‚000 for violating the NL bonus rule when the Pirates signed ML Lynch as a scout while offering his son Danny a $6,000 contract. Chandler saw the deal (and probably rightly so) as an attempt to sway the second baseman's decision. Lynch was declared a free agent and signed with the Cubs. He played just seven MLB games. 
• 1958 - Bob Friend and the Pirates held off the Phils at Forbes Field by a 3-2 count. The Bucs built an early lead of homers by Bill Virdon & Frank Thomas, along with a Ted Kluszewski rap that chased home Roberto Clemente after a triple. Philadelphia scored singletons in the eighth and ninth, but Friend fanned the last two batters to nail down his 19th win. Friend would win 22 times before the campaign ended, the only time in his career that he would claim twenty victories. The game moved the once sad-sack Buccos into second place, albeit eight games behind Milwaukee, and that’s how they’d finish the 84-70 season. 

Dick Stuart - 1961 Topps

• 1961 - Dick Stuart had a pair of homers, but his biggest hit was a broken-bat single that went off the pitcher’s mitt in the eighth to plate Dick Groat. That knock proved the game winner in a 5-4 Buc victory over the St. Louis Cards at Busch Stadium. Stu had all five RBI and ElRoy Face shut the door in the last two frames to earn the win. OF’er Joe Christopher threw out Stan Musial in the sixth, trying to go from first-to-third on a single to right. That was followed by a pair of knocks, so Joe’s arm defused a possible big frame.
• 1966 - The Pirates claimed first place by topping the Cubs 7-5 on a Roberto Clemente homer‚ his 2,000th career hit. Clemente's long fly gave him 101 RBI for the year‚ the first time he reached the century mark. He ended up with a career high of 119 RBI in 1966, and collected 110 the next season, the only other time he drove in 100+ runs. The Bucs would finish third with 92 wins, three games behind the LA Dodgers.

9/2 From 1970: Veale Sold; Roberto Record; Leyland Hot; 10,000 Bombs; Game Stories; HBD Sean & Gaby

• 1970 - LHP Sean Lawrence was born in Oak Park, Illinois. Drafted by the Pirates in the 6th round of the 1992 draft out of the College of St. Francis, his seven games in 1998 as a Bucs was the extent of his big league career, finishing with a slash of 2-1/7.32. He later pitched in the San Diego and Arizona systems, retiring in 2002 to become a police officer in the Village of Westmont. 

Sean Lawrence - 1995 Signature Rookie

• 1972 - With his 2,971st knock as a Bucco, Roberto Clemente broke Honus Wagner's record for the most hits in the history of the franchise. The record-setting blow was a three-run homer off Giant hurler Sudden Sam McDowell in the bottom of the fourth inning during an 6-3 victory at Three Rivers Stadium. 
• 1972 - LHP Bob Veale, 36, was sold to the Boston Red Sox after an 11-year career in Pittsburgh that saw him win 116 games and save six more, starting 255 times in his 341 Buc outings. His 1,652 strikeouts are still the Pirate mark for a LHP and second overall in Bucco history. 
• 1978 - Willie Stargell blasted a three-run homer in the first, but the Braves chipped away to tie the game at TRS and send it into extra innings before Dave Parker’s 12th-inning rap past a drawn-in infield gave the Pirates and Grant Jackson a 4-3 win. Phil Garner was on third with an out when the Braves worked around Frank Taveras and intentionally walked Omar Moreno to get to The Cobra (Atlanta manager Bobby Cox feared the squeeze was on with Frankie & Omar, and so took his shot with Parker, who had hit into two DPs during the contest). Kent Tekulve & Stargell almost became the goats in the 10th. With pinch-runner Rod Gilbreath on, Teke threw wildly to first. Gilbreath made it all the way to third, but held up as 1B Pops ran the ball down, not wanting to challenge his arm. Good thing - as Willie went to turn and throw home, he slipped and fell, but the runner had already hit the brakes. It was the Pirates sixth straight win over the Bravos and their 11th-of-12 at TRS. 
• 1983 - 1B Gaby Sanchez was born in Miami. He joined the Pirates from the Marlins in 2012 as the right-hand half of a first base platoon, first with Garrett Jones and then with Ike Davis. He played for the Bucs through 2014, hitting .241, before going to Japan. He spent a year there and then dropped off the pro ball radar after the Mariners released him in camp the following spring. 
• 1988 - After a 2-1 loss to the Braves, Jim Leyland lit into his players in a 15-minute scolding of which “...six minutes were spent throwing nachos all over the place, three minutes were devoted exclusively to expletives and six minutes were the sermon” per Press beat man Bob Hertzel. Vet Andy Van Slyke, for one, thought it was due, telling the Post Gazette's Paul Meyer "After the way we've played the last month, you can tell the people of Pittsburgh to start following the Steelers." The tirade mostly centered on paying attention to the details of the game and to quit listening to their agents and their emphasis on individual stats rather than team performance. It didn’t particularly light the fire Leyland hoped it would, although the team did finish 14-12 during the rest of the season after replenishing their nacho stash. 

Tim Wakefield - 1992 Score

• 1992 - Tim Wakefield came one out away from a complete game as the Pirates beat the Giants 3-2 at TRS. Bob Patterson came in to get the final out while picking up his ninth save. The Bucs took the lead for good in the sixth inning on a two-run homer from Barry Bonds after Don Slaught’s blast in the fifth provided the first score. The victory was in the midst of a seven game Pirate winning streak and kept the Bucs comfortably in first place by a three game margin. 
• 1997 - In front of 43,380 at TRS, newcomer Shawon Dunston hit a pair of homers to lead the Freak Show Bucs to a 6-4 win over the Cleveland Indians. His four RBI powered Jose Silva, with help from the bullpen, to the victory and helped pull the Pirates to within 1-½ games of first, the closest they would come to the top spot for the rest of the season. 
• 2009 - The Pirates were swept by the Reds 5-3, the first time they were broomed in Cincinnati since 1975. But it wasn’t all gloom (although in a 99-loss season, there weren’t many highlights) as Garrett Jones hit the club's 10,000th home run since Pittsburgh joined the NL in 1887.

Brault Brilliant; Bucs Broom Rox 6-2

Adam Frazier kept the mojo working at the leadoff spot; he banged Jeff Hoffman's first pitch out of the yard. B-Rey singled and Redbeard walked two outs later, but were left on the pond. Steven Brault tossed a quiet opening frame. The Bucs got an Eli knock in the second; nada for the Rox. Reynolds opened the third with a rap. Colin doubled with two away, with B-Rey cut down at the plate on what wasn't the best thought-out send by Joey Cora. A single, DP and final grounder tucked Colorado away. Joey O flew out to the track to start the fourth. An Eli rap followed by an error put a couple of Bucs aboard, and they became the fifth and sixth Buccos stranded. Steven lost a pair of Rockies to walks on 3-2 counts but escaped, and is still in a very good place with 40 pitches. Reynolds opened the fifth with his third hit and Starling's knock sent him to third. Marte got picked off, breaking early on a steal attempt, but J-Bell softened the blow by singling Reynoldo home. A Redbeard DP continued the Bucs bleeding of runners. Moran booted a ball to start the Rox half, and Garrett Hampson stole second. A fly with one gone moved him to third; Steven left him there.

B-Rey doesn't have an off switch - photo Pittsburgh Pirates

Jesus Tinoco got the sixth; a two-out single by Erik Gonzalez was negated when he was thrown out trying to stretch it as Ian Desmond threw a strike to second. Nolan Arenado cut the lead in half with a two-gone solo shot. Steven made up for that by swatting a homer of his own to start the seventh. Fraze singled and Marte walked an out later. J-Bell hit a DP ball, but the relay throw got past the 1B'man, allowing another Buc to cross the dish. James Pazo took the ball and closed it out with the score 4-1. The Rockies opened with a bunt knock and a pop that fell (Fraze was charged with an error). A flare single brought in a run and Ric Rod. He got a tapper that nailed the lead runner at home, after a challenge by Colorado was nixed on the collision/blocking rule. A whiff kept the damage at one. Carlos Estevez worked the eighth without a drop of sweat. Keone Kela left a walk at first. Jairo Diaz claimed the slab in the ninth. Melky reached via a boot and Big Joe ran for him. With an out, an eaten grounder put Bucs on the corners, and Starlings roller chased home Moose. Redbeard and J-Bell hit consecutive singles to add another tally and build a 6-2 edge. No foolin' around today; Felipe came in and bopped a batter with two outs, then whiffed it to an end. Raise the Roger.

Pirates did good, though today a little shoddy fielding and some baserunning misadventures held them down. But compared to the Rox, the Bucs are a gold glove squad, and Steven was brilliant today. Now to get home and roast some doggies in the back yard to celebrate...

Notes:

• B-Rey had three raps and is hitting .335. Fraze, J-Bell, Redbeard and Eli had a pair of knocks each. Pittsburgh, which had been red hot with RISP, sputtered today at 2-for-12, but still chased home plenty enough for the sweep.
• The Bucs banged out 37 runs and 63 hits in the 36-inning, four-game set. 
• Fraze and K-Man have led off three-of-four Rockie games this series with a homer; two were on the first pitch of the game. Speaking of homers, Steven's shot in the seventh was his first MLB bomb, and it was no cheapie - it landed in the second deck and was measured at 441', the longest blast by a pitcher this season. Nevertheless, he was given the classic silent treatment in the dugout, a common yuk for first-time long ball hitters..
• The Astros Justin Verlander just became the sixth pitcher in MLB history to throw three no-hitters with today's no-no against Toronto. He joins Larry Corcoran, Cy Young, Bob Feller, Sandy Koufax (4), and Nolan Ryan (7) on the leaderboard; that's a list of keepers.

Steven v Jeff Hoffman, Lineup & Notes - Holmes Back

Game: The getaway day matinee starts at 3:10 and will be aired by AT&T SportsNet & 93.7 The Fan. The Bucs are looking to complete a four-game sweep.

Lineup: Adam Frazier 2B, Bryan Reynolds LF, Starling Marte CF, Josh Bell 1B, Colin Moran 3B, Jose Osuna RF, Elias Diaz C, Erik Gonzalez SS, Steven Brault P. Hmmm...Newman down, E-Z in; hopin' K-Man is due one of Clint's rest days.

Steven on the bump - photo Pittsburgh Pirates

Pitchers: LHP Steven Brault (3-3/4.06) closes the set against RHP Jeff Hoffman (1-4/7.81). Steven has been Mr. Dependable, putting up a 2.84 ERA over his last dozen starts, though it doesn't show in his W-L record. His pitching superpower is keeping the ball in the park, with just 8 homers against in 88+ frames. He's met Colorado twice, in 2017 & '18, and been batted around, giving up seven runs in seven IP. Hoffman was up and down; and just got recalled from AAA Albuquerque for today's start. The 26-year-old has struggled in nine starts for the Rockies this season and didn't fare much better at AAA with a 6-8/7.70 slash. He tossed against the Bucs in 2017 and gave up seven runs in three frames.

Notes:

• First September move: Clay Holmes has been reinstated off the IL.
• Colin Moran has an 11-game hitting streak going into today and Starling's is up to 10. Marte has hit safely in 23-of-28 games during August, and only once went hitless in back-to-back games. He's hit .339 over that stretch.
• Colorado has lost 11 of its last 13 games and finished August with a 9-19 record, following a 6-19 July. So Pittsburgh isn't the only gang singin' the summertime blues. And does this sound familiar? Today's Denver Post notes that "The failure of the front office to stock any quality depth behind the initial starters the team opened the season with continues to haunt the Rockies..."
• The Bucs get a day off tomorrow, then host the Fish and the Cards for three-game sets at PNC Park.
• Various reports say that Tyler Glasnow is ahead of schedule in rehab and may join the Rays as a reliever in a week or so.

9/1 Through the 1910’s: Triple Bill; Baldwin Bagged; Game Stories; HBD Joe L, Shoemaker, Jim & Sam

• 1877 - Jim “Pud” Galvin and the Alleghenys edged St. Louis in 15 innings‚ 1-0. Two days earlier, they had beat Milwaukee by the same score in 12 innings, per Charlton’s Baseball Chronology. Both games were played in the International Association, making the Alleghenys the first local minor league club; the other area nines were independent/sandlot teams. The Alleghenys finished the season with a 13-6 record, the second best record in the league. The club consisted of twelve players in 1877, all of which later made it the majors, and was managed by Denny McKnight, a lifelong Pittsburgh native who also served as the International Association's president. The team folded the next season, not to return until the 1882 campaign. 

Pud Galvin - 1887 Goodwin/Old Judge

• 1890 - On Labor Day at Washington Park, the Brooklyn Bridegrooms, later known as the Dodgers, won all three games against Pittsburgh in the first tripleheader ever played. The home team swept the visiting Alleghenys, who were renamed the Pirates next season, 10-9 (The Alleghenys scored nine times in the ninth with Doggie Miller tossed out at home trying to stretch a triple into a game-tying homer), 3-2, and 8-4. Allegheny hurler Dave Anderson went the distance for games two and three and took both losses (ouch). The Alleghenys then lost to them the next day 5-4 to run their losing streak to 23 games. The Pittsburgh franchise would also play MLB’s last tripleheader in 1920 against the Reds, doing a bit better by winning one of the contests. 
• 1890 - C Olaf “Sam” (his middle name was Selmar) Brenegan was born in Galesville, Wisconsin. He got the briefest of time in the majors - he caught a couple innings for the 1914 Pirates, not long enough to get an at bat but long enough to allow a passed ball. Per Paul Dickson’s “Baseball Dictionary,” his passed ball came about when he was hit in the hand with the pitch, which allowed a baserunner to advance. For some time afterwards, any catcher who took a ball off his bare hand was said to have "pulled a brenegan." Even with that rep, he played pro ball until 1919, closing out his baseball days at St. Joseph’s in the Western league. 
• 1892 - The Pittsburgh Commercial Gazette headline was “Baldwin Bagged - Pirates Prize Pitcher Charged With Riot.” Pirates P Mark "Fido" Baldwin was arrested in his hometown of Homestead (his dad sold real estate & insurance there) on charges of riot and providing the Carnegie Steel strikers with weapons. Baldwin posted a $2‚000 bond and claimed to be an onlooker, not a participant, in the mill melee. Fido was indicted on the charges but never brought to trial. On the diamond, he finished the year with a 26-27/3.47 slash, pitching 440-⅓ IP in 56 games, but had a contract squabble and was released the following season after one outing. After baseball, Fido became a MD and worked out of Passavant Hospital. 
• 1894 - OF Fred “Shoemaker” Nicholson was born in Honey Grove, Texas. He played for the Bucs from 1919-20 as a platoon outfielder and pinch-hitter, putting up a .342/.389/.505 slash during those seasons. Nicholson left the team as part of the 1921 Rabbit Maranville deal and spent a couple of years with the Boston Braves before settling into a minor league career that lasted through the 1935 campaign when he was 40 years old. 

Fred Nicholson - Mears/TSN

• 1917 - The Pirates lost their third straight 1-0 game to the St. Louis Cardinals at Robison Field. The Cards‚ behind the pitching of Red Ames, Oscar Horstmann and Milt Watson‚ won the tag team match against Bob Steele, Wilbur Cooper and Hal Carlson. With the three pack of 1-0 wins, the Cards tied the MLB mark and set the NL standard. 
• 1918 - GM Joe L Brown was born in New York City. Brown served as the general manager from November 1, 1955, through the end of the 1976 season, replacing mentor Branch Rickey. Under his watch, the Pirates became world champions in 1960 and 1971. Ever a loyal Pirate, after a decade of serving as a Southern California-based scout for the Bucs, Brown was called back in 1985 to serve as acting GM when the Pirates, rocked by a drug scandal, poor play and falling attendance, were sold by the Galbreath family to a local group. He oversaw the transition and acted as a bridge between GMs Pete Peterson and Syd Thrift. 
• 1919 - RHP Jim Hopper was born in Charlotte, North Carolina. He got has MLB games on his resume for the 1946 Pirates; he gave up five runs in four innings. Jim could be forgiven - he won 30 games in two minor league seasons, but lost his edge after serving two years in the military, returning in ‘46. He never got the edge back and was done with pro ball after the 1949 season, spent in Class D ball.

9/1 From the 1920’s Through the 1960’s: Woodie Fans 15; Sandy & Don Dropped; Game Stories; HBD Vic & Dave

• 1922 - IF Vic Barnhart was born in Hagerstown, Maryland. Vic got cups of coffee in 1945 & 1947, seeing almost all of his playing time in 1946 for the Pirates. That was the sum of his career - 74 games and a decent .270 BA. He spent five years in the minors (he refused a 1947 trade to the Dodgers) before retiring. He then worked for the Maryland Correctional Institute where he was the Athletic Director. Vic’s dad was Clyde Barnhart, who played for the Bucs through the 1920s. 

Vic Barnhart - photo Mears/TSN

• 1925 - The Buccos defeated the Philadelphia Phils 10-3 to sweep a five-game series at the Baker Bowl. The Pirates outscored Philadelphia 54-18 during the set and scored in double digits in every game. Pie Traynor had four hits while Earl Smith (w/four RBI) and winning pitcher Vic Aldridge added three knocks and homer apiece. That Pittsburgh club won the NL title, the World Series and their 912 runs scored were the most tallied by the franchise in the modern era. (the Pittsburgh Alleghenys of 1893-94 put up 970 & 965 runs, averaging over seven runs per game!) 
• 1927 - The Pirates tied for the NL’s top spot by beating the Cubs‚ 4-3 at Forbes Field. Joe Harris homered and doubled, with two runs and two RBI, to back Lee Meadows. The Waner brothers cut down Chicago runners at home and third. The Bucs whipped the Cards the next day to take sole possession of first place and never looked back, winning a sizzling pennant race by 1-½ games. 
• 1957 - LHP Dave Rucker was born in San Bernardino, California. Rucker was a seven-year MLB vet who tossed his last campaign in 1988 for the Pirates with an 0-2/4.76 slash in 31 games. He joined Dan Quisenberry and Ewell Blackwell as LaVerne University Leopards that made it to the show. The hurler also tossed for Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals, and Philadelphia Phillies, later becoming an instructor after he hung ‘em up at Yorba Linda’s Baseball Softball World Academy. 
• 1963 - The “Quail,” CF’er Bill Virdon, hit a two-out, walk-off grand slam off Al Worthington to give the Bucs a dramatic 6-4 win over the Reds at Forbes Field. Willie Stargell drove in the other runs with a homer and double. Earl Francis, the third Buc pitcher, got the win. 

Bill Virdon - 1963 Topps

• 1965 - The Bucs laid losses on aces Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale on the same day during a Forbes Field twinbill with last at-bat rallies. The Pirates defeated Koufax, 3-2, in 11 innings in the opener and then beat Drysdale, 2-1, in the nitecap. Joe Gibbon and Vern Law picked up the victories. Jim Pagliaroni doubled home Willie Stargell to claim the opener while Bill Virdon scored on a two-out error in the eighth to take the nitecap. It was the Bucs 12th win in 14 games and moved them within 2-½ games of LA in the NL pennant race. 
• 1967 - Woodie Fryman had missed a good chunk of his second campaign and at 2-7 was a bit underwhelming when healthy, but the lefty showed his promise by fanning 15 Phils in a complete game three-hitter, winning 3-0 at Forbes Field. He fell one short of the team single-game record of 16 K held by Bob Veale, who had just set the standard a year earlier. Woodie added a hit to the cause and scored the Pirates second run; an error let the first tally plate for Pittsburgh, then Maury Wills and Bill Mazeroski later chased home the insurance markers.

9/1 From 1970: All-Black Lineup; Robo-Pitcher; Teke In Left; MLB Scouting; Game Stories

• 1971 - The Pirates fielded baseball's first all-black lineup 24 years after Jackie Robinson broke the color line in a 10-7 win over the Phillies at TRS. The card read: Rennie Stennett (2B), Gene Clines (CF), Roberto Clemente (RF), Willie Stargell (LF), Manny Sanguillen (C), Dave Cash (3B), Al Oliver (1B), Jackie Hernández (SS) and Dock Ellis (P). Richie Hebner (3B) and Gene Alley (SS) were both injured, with Stennett (Cash moved from 2B to 3B) and Hernandez filling in. The usual 1B, Bob Robertson, got a rest day, so Scoops moved to the infield and Clines took center. They played pretty well; six starters had two hits and every position player reached base during the game. The historic lineup went almost unnoticed in Pittsburgh as both newspapers were on strike. Bob Prince and Nellie King, the radio announcers, mentioned it in passing, and Bill Guilfoile, the Pirate PR man, said they had to check the records after the game to see if it really was the first all-black lineup (in 1967, Harry Walker had a lineup with eight black position players, but Dennis Ribant was on the hill). Even Al Oliver said "When we took the field we didn’t give it any thought. It was probably about the third inning when I finally looked at Cash and said, ‘We’ve got all brothers out here, man.’" 

Image via Baseball Emporium

• 1973 - Bruce Kison and some timely glovework by his mateys put the Pirates into a virtual first-place tie (they were actually .0001 percentage points ahead of St. Louis) with a 1-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs at TRS. Kison went eight innings, giving up four hits & four walks, while Dave Giusti worked the final frame for the win. Chi-town’s Burt Hooton was equally tough, having surrendered just three hits going into the ninth before the Bucs struck. With an out, Richie Hebner singled and Al Oliver doubled. An intentional walk loaded the bases for Richie Zisk, who got ahead 2-0 before banging the next pitch over a shallow outfield for the walk off win. The Pirates fielders bailed the Pirates hurlers out several times during the game, when three times they turned DP’s (one a strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out, twin killing) with two Cubbies aboard and threw out another Bruin trying to go from first-to-third against LF Willie Stargell. 
• 1974 - The Major League Scouting Bureau, the offspring of the Central Scouting Bureau, was founded (Pirates GM Joe Brown was one of its early proponents) to cut costs and centralizing scouting. Membership wasn’t mandatory until 1984 when the bureau was made a part of the Commissioner’s Office. 
• 1979 - Chuck Tanner sent reliever Kent Tekulve from the mound to left field and brought in southpaw Grant Jackson to face lefty Darrell Evans against the Giants with two down in the ninth. (He wanted Tekulve available in case Evans got aboard.) Evans hit a fly to Teke, who waved his arms although no one was within 100’ of him and made the catch to finish the game, a 5-3 Bucco win in the opener of a DH at Candlestick Park. It was Teke’s only appearance in the field anywhere but on the mound during his entire pro career. Willie Stargell had two homers and Dale Berra added another in support of the Bruce Kison win. Jim Bibby pitched the Bucs to a 7-2 sweep in the nitecap, backed by Lee Lacy’s three hits, including a homer, two runs scored and three RBI. 

Teke - photo Pittsburgh Pirates

• 2004 - The sputtering Bucco offense was rescued by Craig Wilson, who drilled a two-out homer in the ninth off closer Dan Kolb to tie the Brewers 2-2 at Miller Field. The Pirate attack woke up in the 10th when Ty Wigginton’s two-out, bases loaded infield knock plated a run and Jose Castillo provided the insurance with a two-run two-bagger. Ryan Vogelsong started for Pittsburgh, with the 5-2 win going to Salomon Torres and the save to Jose Mesa. The Pirates' first run was scored by Jack Wilson, who was chased home by Daryle Ward’s double.
• 2013 - The opening pitch was tossed out not by a human celebrity, but by a trebuchet (a catapult), designed by the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh. The first machine to ever toss a ceremonial ball at PNC Park (it was named “Rookie of the Gear”), it delivered a strike to the designated catcher, the Pirate Pirate, 10 minutes before the game against the St. Louis Cards was to begin. The Bucs might have been better off keeping the contraption on the mound to pitch, as they lost to the Redbirds, 7-2.