9/11 Through the 1940s: Mr. Swat Stuff, Howie's 20th, 15 Scoreless, Game Days, Pie A Pirate, HBD Dave, Jackie, Glenn, Cool, Frank & Steve

1868 - OF Steve Brodie was born in Warrenton, Virginia. He had speed, a great glove and good bat, playing 13 years in the show. He was traded to Pittsburgh against his wishes (he enjoyed playing in Baltimore) and stayed from 1897-98, hitting .283 before being dealt back to the Orioles in mid-season. When he retired, he went on to a career as a college coach, served during WW1, and then returned to run Baltimore’s brand new Memorial Stadium.

1876 - RHP Frank Moore was born in Dover, Ohio. Frank got three scoreless innings to his credit in the show for the Pirates in 1905, and he earned the outing, beginning in the minors in 1902 and hangin’ in there through the 1912 campaign. In fact, his last two seasons at ages 33 & 34 were his best as he won 23 and 21 games for Portsmouth in the Ohio State League. He managed in the lower minors for a couple of seasons afterward before hangin’ up his mitt.

1901 - IF Elbert “Cool” Turner was born in New York. He was a multi-sport star at what is now West Virginia State University and played Negro League ball from 1921-32, with a stop in Homestead in 1929 where he was the Grays’ third baseman. He only hit .159 and moved on, playing for four more teams before he retired. Turner coached high school football in the off-season, and after his retirement became head baseball coach of the North Carolina Central University Eagles. He also umpired for seven years in the second Negro National League. By that time, his nickname had evolved from “Cool” into "Pops."  

1905 - RHP Glenn Spencer was born in Corning, NY. He was a Bucco in 1928, spent 1929 in the minors, then returned from 1930-32, going 23-29-8/4.48, mostly from the pen. Control was his Achilles Heel; he walked more batters than he K’ed in his five-year pro career which ended with the Giants during the 1933 campaign. He retired to become a salesman and served during WW2. 

Deacon Phillippe - 1906 Fan Craze

1906 - The Pirates and Reds played a 15-inning scoreless draw at Expo Park, the longest game to date at the venue. Deacon Phillippe started the game and Vic Willis finished, giving up 10 hits together while Bob Ewing of the Reds scattered eight knocks. The Reds golden opportunity was in the 13th inning when they loaded the bases with nobody out, but a pair of forces at home and a fly squelched that rally. The Bucs' big chance was foiled earlier when Tommy Sheehan bunted through an attempted squeeze play, leaving Dutch Meier hung out to dry. Meier was the only Pirate with more than a hit, collecting three knocks before ump Bill Klem called the game due to darkness.

1912 - Howie Camnitz tossed six scoreless innings in relief of Jack Ferry to earn his 20th win over Philadelphia at the Baker Bowl 10-3. Rosebud (he was a ginger) went 22-12-2/2.83 in 41 games (32 starts) to claim 20 wins for the third time in four seasons. Max Carey and Mike Simon led the attack with a combined seven hits and four RBI while “Turkey” Mike Donlin homered.

1920 - The Pirates bought Pie Traynor from Portsmouth for $10,000, then the highest price paid for the contract of a Virginia League player. The Boston Braves had stashed the infielder there on the handshake assumption that they would have first dibs on him, but even an appeal to AL President Ban Johnson didn’t help in lieu of a written agreement, and the Portsmouth owner was more than willing to let him go to the highest bidder. So instead of playing for his hometown Boston club - he was a native of Framingham, Massachusetts - Traynor spent his 17-year MLB career in Pittsburgh, eventually earning a spot in the Hall of Fame.

1940 - Jacinto “Jackie” Hernández was born in Central Tinguaro, Cuba. He had to slip into the USA; Cuba had cut its robust baseball program to the bone when Fidel Castro took over and Jackie made it stateside via Mexico to keep playing. He was ready to come home again, but his mom told him to stay right where he was at and chase his dream. The good glove, bad bat (.205 as a Pirate) SS played three seasons (1971-73) for Pittsburgh, and when the Bucs traded for him in 1970, manager Earl Weaver of the Baltimore Orioles said that “The Pirates will never win a pennant with Jackie Hernandez at shortstop.” Not only did they win the flag, but Jackie was the regular shortstop from late August forward in 1971 as Gene Alley, the starter, had a bad shoulder. As fate would decree, he put the final nail in the Oriole coffin during the Series; the last out of the Bucs seventh game victory was recorded 6-3, Hernandez to Bob Robertson. Jackie’s nine-year MLB run ended with Pittsburgh after the 1973 season, and he coached and played at different levels/leagues afterward. He was still helping the Bucs as an instructor at Pirate City until he passed away in 2019.  

Jackie Hernandez - 1971 NLCS Topps 1972

1944 - LHP Dave Roberts was born in Gallipolis, Ohio. In June, 1979 he was part of a big deal with the Giants, traded with Len Randle and Bill Madlock to the Pirates for Al Holland, Fred Breining, and Ed Whitson. He went 5-2-1/3.26 out of the pen for that club and after a cup of coffee with the team in 1980 was traded to Seattle. The vet was near the end; he worked briefly in 1981 before retiring after 13 years. He passed away in 2009 at age 64 from lung cancer. It’s thought that he suffered asbestos exposure during his younger years when he had to work in a boiler room to earn his daily bread while developing as a pro player.

1947 - Ralph Kiner blasted three successive homers and knocked home six runs in a 10-8 win over the Braves at Forbes Field in the nitecap of a DH. He also homered in game one, a 4-3 win that was decided in the 13th when pitcher Kirby Higbe took Johnny Sain deep to complete the first step of a Pittsburgh sweep of Boston. Kiner’s four homers in one day established a team record that wouldn’t be matched until 1984 by Jason Thompson. It also set a NL record of 10 multi-homer games in a season which stood until Sammy Sosa had 11 in 1998.

1948 - Out of the lineup because of a virus, Ralph Kiner came off the pine to whack an eighth-inning, pinch-hit grand slam to give the Pirates a 13-12 win over Chicago at Wrigley Field. Max West also homered and had three RBI as Mel Queen won with a save by Elmer Riddle.

9/11 From 1950: Toppin' It Off, 12 For Frankie, Hot In '90, Sweep, Gott Save Streak, Mad Dog Barks, Face Falters, Game Days, HBD Nik & Sluggo

1956 - The Pirates were four outs from defeat, losing to the Chicago Cubs 3-1 in the bottom of the eighth at Forbes Field before the muscle boys took over. Dale Long went opposite field for his 27th homer to cut the lead to one and Frank Thomas then swatted his 21st long ball to tie the game. Two Hall of Famers put the contest in the win column when Bill Mazeroski opened the final frame with a single, was bunted to second and walked it off on Roberto Clemente’s knock. Roy Face tossed scoreless ball in the eighth and ninth for the dub, his 12th.

1958 - C Don “Sluggo” Slaught was born in Long Beach. He came to the Bucs in 1990 and platooned during the pennant years with Mike “Spanky” LaValliere. Slaught was the primary catcher in 1993-94, then injuries in 1995 led to his release. Sluggo hit .305 as a Pirate. He was a hitting coach for Detroit in 2005-06, and then began his own private school for hitting instruction.

1959 - The LA Dodgers beat Pittsburgh 5-4; Elroy Face lost the save and the game in relief of Bob Friend in the ninth at Memorial Coliseum by giving up a pair of runs. It was Face's first loss after a record-setting 22 straight wins. The defeat was Face's first to the Dodgers since September‚ 1956, with his last loss to any team going back to May 30th, 1958, at the hands of the Milwaukee Braves, a run of 99 straight outings w/o a defeat. He finished the campaign 18-1, the best winning percentage ever posted by anyone with a minimum of 15 decisions. In an understatement, the Baron of the Bullpen told AP’s Alan Robinson "It was one of those years when nothing went wrong.” Junior Gilliam’s ninth-inning triple was the key blow against the Baron of the Bullpen in the defeat after Roman Mejias and Dick Stuart homers off Sandy Koufax built the slim edge. Chuck Churn beat the Baron; he had been a Pirate in 1957 and the victory was his second MLB triumph (he’d win one more in what was his final big league year). It was a bad day all around; the Bucs were shutout 4-0 in the second game of the twin bill.

1974 - The Pirates lost to Philadelphia 8-5 at TRS as the Phils Bill Robinson’s three-run shot off Ramon Hernandez in the eighth won the contest and cut the Pirates lead to 2-1/2 games with 20 remaining. Worse for the Pirates, Dock Ellis’ hand was broken after he was drilled by Willie Montanez’s liner. The righty had won eight consecutive games and nine out of 10, tossing seven complete games in that 10-game span. He missed the remainder of the season and the NLCS against the Dodgers, who took the set three games to one. Dave Giusti’s bad back continued to hinder him in the postseason, too (he was bombed in the playoffs) and his iffy status made manager Danny Murtaugh’s job tougher in trying to juggle holes in both the rotation and bullpen; Bruce Kison was the preferred fill-in for both Ellis and Giusti. But despite the leaking ship, the Bucs held on to top the St. Louis Cardinals and claim the NL East crown by 1-1/2 games.

Dock Ellis - 1974 Topps

1982 - Bill Madlock opened the ninth inning with a first pitch, walkoff home run, his third hit of the game, to give the Pirates a see-saw 10-9 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at TRS. The Bucs had jumped out to an early 6-0 edge, but they had frittered away the lead by the sixth. The Pirates went back on top in the eighth on a two-run, two-out double by Willie Stargell, but the Phils tied it with a two-out RBI single off Dale Berra’s glove, setting the stage for Mad Dog. Omar Moreno added a pair of triples. Kent Tekulve got the blown save/win combo.

1983 - It wasn’t bad enough that the Bucs lost to the Phils 5-3 at TRS to fall two games behind the Expos, but a fan in the cheap seats tossed a transistor battery at Dave Parker in right field, bouncing off the turf and past his head in the eighth inning, a frame after he made an error that allowed a run to score. Chuck Tanner said “It punctured our balloon. It’s a shame that an individual has to do that to get his kicks when everyone else is enjoying a great ballgame.” Parker, who had two hits, stayed in the game, saying “They’re not going to chase me out of there.” They may not have chased him from the game, but he did jump to his hometown of Cincinnati in the off season.

1987 - Jim Gott set a club record with a save in seven consecutive outings as the Pirates beat the Phillies 4-2 at Veterans Stadium. Gott entered the game with runners on first and third and one out in the ninth inning and retired the final two batters of the game on grounders for his 10th save. Doug Drabek got the win behind homers by RJ Reynolds and Bobby Bonilla.

1989 - LHP Nik Turley was born in La Canada, California. Turley had a cup of coffee with the Twins, but most of his experience was in the minors with stops in the indie league and DWL. The Pirates claimed him off waivers in the 2017 offseason, and a few weeks later he was suspended for PED usage. The Bucs kept him mostly in extended spring training in 2019 and he broke camp with the big league team in 2020, used mainly as a seventh-eighth inning bridge (0-3-1/4.98). Nik went to the White Sox in ‘21 and last pitched in Japan in 2025.

1990 - Randy Tomlin, Neal Heaton and Ted Power combined on a seven-hit 5-1 victory over the Phillies at Veterans Stadium. Lloyd McClendon broke the game open with a two-run, two-out pinch homer in the seventh. For the Bucs, it was their ninth win in 11 games and upped the division lead to 3-1/2 games. They went into a six-game tailspin after the victory and saw their lead dwindle to 1/2 game, but then won 10-of-11 to take the title comfortably.

Lloyd McClendon - 1991 Fleer Update

2013 - The Pirates completed a three-game sweep of the Rangers with a 7-5 win in Arlington’s Globe Life Park. AJ Burnett won while Kyle Farnsworth, the Bucs fifth pitcher, rang up his first save in almost two years with Pittsburgh’s back-end relievers Jason Grilli (because of performance) and Mark Melancon (because of workload) both on ice. Justin Morneau led the attack with four hits, Marlon Byrd chased home a pair of runs and Clint Barmes went deep while each starting position player reached base safely. For the local nine, it was their ninth consecutive interleague road victory as they finished 15-5 against AL teams. The win kept Pittsburgh one game behind the NL Central-leading St Louis Cardinals and two ahead of the Cincinnati Reds for the wildcard.

2014 - Francisco Liriano punched out a season-high 12 batters as the Bucs beat the Phils at Citizens Bank Park 4-1. Frankie went eight shutout innings giving up three hits - two were infield singles - and two walks while never allowing a runner past second. Pittsburgh iced the game in the fifth against old teammate AJ Burnett when Travis Snider, Andrew McCutchen and Neil Walker had consecutive hits. Walker's double scored Snider, Cutch scored on a Russ Martin sac fly and Walker scored on Gregory Polanco’s knock to give Frankie some padding.

2017 - Steven Brault, making just his second start of the year, earned his first MLB win as the Pirates snapped a five-game losing streak by a 7-0 tally over the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. In his six innings, Brault personally outhit the Brew Crew two-to-one with a run scored and a pair of RBI, backed by homers from Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte and Jordy Mercer. Steven, backed by relievers AJ Schugel, Daniel Hudson, Dan Runzler (in his first MLB appearance since 2012 with the SF Giants) and Felipe Rivero, matched a mound feat that was last performed by a Bucco (Randy Tomlin) in 1991 of not allowing an opposing runner past first base during the contest.

2021 - After a 9/11 memorial ceremony, the top four in the Bucco order (Ke’Bryan Hayes, Yoshi Tsutsugo, Bryan Reynolds and Colin Moran) combined to score five times and drive in six runs to lead the Pirates to a 10-7 slugfest victory over the Nats at PNC Park. Hoy Park also scored three times on one hit with three walks (Washington issued 10 free passes). Kyle Keller got the win and Chris Stratton the save as it took six Pittsburgh hurlers to finally put away Washington.

9/10 Through 1974: Willie+Richie, Dirtball, Burleigh's 1st & Last, Vic's 20th, 9/10 Through 1974: Game Days, HBD Bob, Brandy, Klu, Highpockets & Kid

1886 - P/OF Blaine “Kid” Durbin was born in Lamar, Missouri. He got 51 career at bats in parts of three seasons, and although he finished out his MLB days as a Pirate, he didn’t get any swings in with Pittsburgh after being acquired via a trade with the Reds for Ward Miller, entering just one game as a pinch runner. After a few years of farm league ball, he retired, got married and became a baker. His nickname was due both to his size (he was just 5’8” and weighed 155 pounds) and that he started his pro baseball career as a 17-year-old minor league pitcher.

1895 - 1B George “Highpockets” Kelly was born in San Francisco. He started as everyone’s replacement guy: the Giants wanted him to take over for Fred Merkle, the Bucs then snagged him for a brief period to be Hans Wagner’s caddy, getting in eight games and going 2-for-23 in 1917. He went into the service in 1918 and when he came out finally won a spot with the Giants when 1B Hal Chase was suspended. He proved to be a golden glove guy with some power and a reputation as a clutch hitter during his 16-year MLB career. Kelly was selected to join the Hall of Fame in 1973 by the Veterans Committee. His monikers of Highpockets and Long George were due to his 6’ 4” stature.  

1909 - RHP Vic Willis won his 20th game of the season when the Pirates beat the Reds 4-3 at Forbes Field. Hans Wagner banged two doubles & a triple, scoring twice, and Dots Miller chased home a pair of runs to lead the attack. It marked the fourth straight year that Willis won 20+ games for the Bucs, slashing 89-46-3/2.08 in his four years on the hill with Pittsburgh. The Hall-of-Famer (class of 1995) started his career in 1898, tossing for eight years for Boston, and finished it in 1910 with St. Louis, winning 249 games with a 2.63 ERA in his 13 MLB years.

1913 - Before the Bucs lost at Forbes Field to the NY Giants 5-2, Hans Wagner was gifted with a new piece of lumber. MA Seidel, a boyhood bud of the Dutchman who moved to Erie, presented the shortstop with a bat made from a timber of Commodore Perry’s flagship The Niagara, sunk in 1813, that was engraved with “We have met the enemy and he is ours.”

Al Mamaux - 1916 Sporting News

1916 - Both the Cubs and Bucs were in the second division and didn’t have much to play for, but the game at Weeghman Park proved to be worth the money. Rookie Frank Miller was yanked after five frames, down 5-0. Another rookie, Burleigh Grimes, came in and traded runs with the Cubbies, going into the ninth trailing 7-2. Pittsburgh conjured up a mixture of singles (six of seven hits were one-basers), a walk, an error and wild pitch to take an 8-7 lead. Grimes walked the first Chicago hitter and manager Nixey Callahan had run out of patience with his rookies. He called on veteran 21-game winner Al Mamaux, and he put it to bed. For the 22-year-old Grimes, it was his first MLB victory; over his 19-year career, he would post 270 wins, with 20 or more in five seasons.

1924 - 1B Ted Kluszewski was born in Argo, Illinois. After 11 years with the Reds, winning an MVP and four All-Star berths, Big Klu (6’-2”, 225 lbs.) came to Pittsburgh in 1958 for Dee Fondy in a swap of 1B. He hit .292 in 100 games that year and was sent to the White Sox at the 1959 deadline for Harry Simpson and a minor league player as Chicago was looking for some stretch run help. Both teams got him at the downside of his career. A back injury suffered in 1956 left him worse for wear, sapping his power, and he never hit double-digit homers in a season again after having launched 171 bombs from 1953-56.

1927 - OF Robert “Brandy” (his middle name was Brandon) Davis was born in Newark, Delaware. He signed with the Pirates in 1952 after playing at Duke. Davis was a burner (in 1951, he stole 82 bases in 85 tries in the minors) but in his 1952-53 tour of duty with the Pirates, he hit just .187. His 2005 obituary in the Wilmington News-Journal noted that “He was forced from the league after it was discovered that he could not successfully steal first base.” Brandy went on to coach, manage and scout for 10 major league teams over the course of his 52-year career. He was a 1989 inductee in the Delaware Sports Museum/Hall of Fame and a 1999 inductee of the Delaware Baseball Hall of Fame. 

1928 - RHP Bob Garber was born in Hunker, near New Stanton, in Westmoreland County. Garber only got two games with the 1956 Pirates for his career resume, doing pretty well - he gave up a run in two outings on three hits in four innings with three strikeouts and three walks while working mostly out of Hollywood of the PCL. He was a hit on the farm - in a nine-year career, he twice won 20 games before retiring in 1958, missing a couple of years thanks to the Korean conflict. After baseball Bob was a salesman before retiring in 1991. He and his wife then jumped into the RV and traveled the country in their golden years, visiting some 30 states and 40 national parks before he passed away.

Burleigh Grimes - Helmar Oasis

1934 - Hall of Famer Burleigh Grimes, closing out his career, got his last MLB win in relief as the Pirates beat the NY Giants 9-7 at the Polo Grounds. Grimes went two innings to claim his 270th victory. It was the Pirates seventh straight victory, and they overcame an early 5-0 deficit by scoring five times in the ninth to get Burleigh his win, with Ralph Birkofer closing it out. Grimes made three stops, including his rookie and final campaigns, and spent five years with the Corsairs, posting a line of 48-42-5/3.26. His last victory featured a stellar cast. As noted by John Dreker of Pittsburgh Baseball History, Grimes was one of seven Hall of Famers the Pirates trotted out for the game: Schoolboy Waite Hoyt started on the hill, and the lineup sported the Waner Brothers - Big (Paul) and Little (Lloyd) Poison - Arky Vaughan, Pie Traynor and Freddie Lindstrom. With his dub, Burleigh was the last legal spitballer to win a game (it was outlawed in 1920, but 17 guys were grandfathered in and permitted to toss a wet one, although it did remain legal in the Negro leagues throughout their duration.)

1938 - It was a rough start at Sportsman Park in St. Louis as Russ Bauers started and didn’t retire a single Redbird before being sent to the showers, while his replacement, Bill Swift, was only marginally better as the Cards took a quick 6-0 lead after three innings and were up, 7-3, going into the sixth before Lloyd Waner’s bases loaded triple pulled the Pirates within a run. Then the Buc bats exploded in the eighth for eight runs, keyed by Al Todd’s bases-loaded three-bagger (only the second time that the Pirates had hit two bases-jammed triples in a game; the first was in 1898) and Pittsburgh coasted to a 14-7 win. Todd also homered and had five RBI’s on the day while Lee Handley (who scored four times) and Johnny Rizzo each had three hits. The Pirates third hurler, Mace Brown, got the win, his 15th of the campaign, by tossing four innings of no-hit, one-walk ball.

1940 - The Bucs rolled 11 in consecutive games, sweeping a twin bill from the Phillies by 11-3 and 11-1 scores at Shibe Park. In the opener, Maurice Van Robays homered with four RBI while Arky Vaughan smacked two triples and drove in three runs to allow Joe Bowman to cruise to victory. Rip Sewell tossed a six-hitter in the closer. Van Robays had a double and three RBI, Al Lopez went 2-for-2 with three runs driven in, Vaughan added four more hits and Bob Elliott homered.

1958 - Dick Stuart banged a two-run, two-out 10th-inning homer, atoning for an earlier error that allowed a run to score, to give Bob Friend his 20th win of the year as the Pirates beat the Giants 6-4 at Forbes Field. Roberto Clemente added three hits, a run, RBI, stolen base and threw out a runner at third. Friend finished the year at 22–14 to lead MLB in wins, and became the first Buc pitcher to claim twenty conquests since Murry Dickson (20-16) in 1951. The victory guaranteed the ‘58 Pirates a winning record, snapping a nine-season drought suffered under Branch Rickey’s rebuild during the fifties “Rickey-Dinks” era.

Bob Friend - 1959 Topps

1960 - Bob Friend wasn’t at his sharpest, but he sure had his sinker working. He scattered nine hits to the Cubs but got the Chicago nine to bounce into five DPs (Bill Mazeroski participated in every one of them) to claim a 4-1 victory at Forbes Field. The Pirates scored three times in the fourth off Bob Anderson thanks to a pair of Cubbie errors and added another run on Dick Stuart’s solo homer, one of three hits he had during the game.

1970 - The Pirates were on a three-game losing streak that had dropped them into a tie for first place and were in need of a stopper; the unlikely hero was lefty Luke Walker, who spun a two-hit, nine-strikeout complete game gem against the Cards at TRS. Willie Stargell’s second-inning solo homer and Bob Robertson’s sac fly in the fourth weren’t much, but Walker made the two runs hold up. The Bucs righted the ship after that; they moved back into first place a game later and won the East Division pennant by five games over the Cubs and six over the Mets.

1973 - Willie Stargell and Richie Zisk combined for nine hits while Jim Rooker cruised on the bump as the Pirates blasted the Cubs 11-3 at Wrigley Field. Pops (4-for-4 w/two walks) was on a tear and was on a 14-of-17 roll at the plate; Zisk (5-for-6) was in a zone, too, with his first career five-hit day. Bob Robertson added three knocks while Rennie Stennett, Richie Hebner, Scoops Oliver and Manny Sanguillen each had a pair of raps. The Pirates collected 21 hits off five Chicago pitchers as they moved 1/2 game behind the Cards. 

1974 - The Pirates went on a rampage in Chicago, scoring all their runs in the first five innings on the way to a 12-4 win at Wrigley Field. Richie Hebner led the way with four hits, including a homer, three RBI and two runs scored while Rennie Stennett and Manny Sanguillen each had three knocks and scored five times between them. Ken Brett got the win with some late help.

9/10 From 1975: Paul's #200, Cutch 150/150 & 20 HR Clubs, JVB's 1st, AVS #1000, Game Days, HBD Phil, Cool Chad, Neal, Chad

1977 - OF Chad Hermansen was born in Salt Lake City. The first round (10th overall pick) of the 1995 draft straight out of high school, Hermansen played in parts of the 1999-2002 seasons with the Pirates. Considered the Bucco center fielder of the future, he hit only .199. Chad bounced around the league, mostly as a AAA player, until 2008, and is now a scout for the LA Angels. 

1983 - The Bucs had their rally hats on as they overcame a pair of late deficits to drop the Phils, 6-5, in 10 innings at TRS. Philadelphia was coasting with a 3-0 lead when the Bucs tied it up in the sixth by turning a walk, three singles and a sac fly into three runs. The Phillies came right back with two more scores to chase Larry McWilliams; the Pirates knotted it up in the eighth on a Brian Harper double, Tony Pena RBI knock and Dale Berra two-bagger. In the 10th, Gene Tenace walked and Doug Frobel came in to run; a one-out rap by Milt May sent Doug on his way to third. Gary Mathews’ throw to the hot corner skidded past Mike Schmidt & into the stands, and the umpires waved Frobel home for the victory. Kent Tekulve got the win after Cecilio Guante had pitched two scoreless frames ahead of him in relief of McWilliams. The victory left Pittsburgh one game out of first place as four teams - the Expos, Phils, Bucs and Cards - were all within 1-1/2 games of the top spot.

1985 - 2B Neil Walker was born in Gibsonia. The switch-hitting Pine-Richland grad, called The Pittsburgh Kid, was a three sport star in HS, and was drafted in the first round of the 2004 draft. Playing mostly catcher and third in the minors, he got his shot in 2010 at second base after Akinori Iwamura fizzled and Neil never looked back. He was sent to the Mets in 2016, the season before his walk year, and ended the year with September back surgery. Still, NY inked him to a one-year/$17.2M qualifying deal. Walker later suffered a hammy injury, missed some action and was dealt in August to Milwaukee, then moved on to the Yankees in 2018 and is now retired, popping up on occasion in the TV booth. 

1988 - Dave LaPoint spun a complete game six-hitter for his fourth win in five starts as a Buc in a 5-1 victory over the Phils at TRS in front of 29,831. Five of the first six Pirates batters reached in a three-run third inning; the game then remained tight until the eighth when two walks and a Philly miscue allowed two more Buccos to cross the plate. It would be LaPoint’s last win as a Pirate - he struggled some in his next three outings and the Pirates let him walk in the offseason to the Yankees, who doubled his salary. In the pregame ceremonies, the Pirates commemorated the 40th anniversary of the Homestead Grays victory in the last Negro League World Series. 11 members of the Grays and Pittsburgh Crawfords were present and led onto the field by Barry Bonds and Bobby Bonilla. They raised a pennant banner for the 1948 Homestead nine that flew beside the Pirates title flags. Then after the victory, the Friday post-game party kicked in as it was also Fireworks Night. 

Dave LaPoint - 1989 Donruss

1992 - RHP Chad Kuhl was born in Newark, Delaware. The Pirates drafted him in the ninth round of the 2013 draft from the U of Delaware. Kuhl made his major league debut on June 26th, 2016, as he & the Pirates defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers & Clayton Kershaw on ESPN 4-3. Chad joined the rotation full-time in 2017, overcoming a slow start by adding a little velocity and learning to work past lefties to become one of their more dependable pitchers during the campaign. His 2018 campaign was bumpy, and ended in late June with a lengthy DL stint followed by TJ surgery. He rejoined the rotation in 2020, and was the Opening Day pitcher in 2021. Injuries bumped him from starter to the bullpen in the late stages of that campaign, and he was non-tendered, signing a free agent contract with the Rockies for 2022. Chad moved on to the Nationals in ‘23, and was DFA’ed. Rather than join another club, he took off the rest of the year to help his wife, Amanda, as she battled cancer. He’s now a free agent after spending 2025 in the Atlanta Braves system.

1992 - IF Phil Evans was born in Whittier, California. The utility guy played a bit for the Mets from 2017-18 at 1B-2B-3B and LF before moving to the Cubs system. The Pirates signed him to a minor league deal in the 2019 offseason after a solid year in AAA, and he broke camp with the club in 2020. He was hitting the ball well (.359) and seeing considerable PT until mid-August when he collided with Gregory Polanco while chasing a pop in no-man’s land and breaking his jaw, costing him the remainder of the season. He bounced back nicely, beating out vet Todd Frazier for the corner bench spot in 2021, broken up by the occasional trip to the IL and Indy. He became a free agent after the season and played in the Arizona Diamondbacks, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves organizations. He’s now playing beisbol in Mexico for the Tijuana Toros. 

1993 - Andy Van Slyke collected his 1,000th hit as a Pirate (he finished with 1,108 hits as a Bucco) at TRS when Pittsburgh lost 9-8 in 11 innings vs Colorado. He homered, singled and drove in three runs. It was an exciting finish; the Rox scored three times in the top of the 11th, but the Bucs answered with a pair and AVS was on second as the equalizer when Dave Clark bounced into the final out of the game. Van Slyke had collected his 1,000th MLB hit (he spent his first four seasons in St. Louis) on May 10th, 1991 in a 5-2 Pirates win against the Braves.

2003 - The Bucs were down to the last three outs at GABP, behind the Reds 2-1 when Craig Wilson opened the ninth with a single. Rob Mackowiak grabbed a bat to hit for Jason Bay against RHP Chris Reitsma and sent a 1-2 fastball over the wall to give the Pirates the lead. Mack’s dinger would be the last that a Pirate pinch-hitter smacked when the team was trailing in the ninth or later as the go-ahead blow until Sean Rodriguez repeated the heroics in 2016 with a three-run jack. Mike Gonzalez and Julian Tavarez put the game away. Gonzo opened with a K, but the pitch escaped Jason Kendall and the runner reached first. Tavarez came on and coolly served up a DP ball and then whiffed Wily Mo Pena to ice the win.

2004 - John Van Benschoten, the Pirates top pick in 2001, won his first MLB game, topping the Astros 6-1 at PNC Park. JVB went eight innings, giving up a run on five hits, a walk and three whiffs. The Pirates were hoping he had turned the corner after a slow start, but it wasn’t to be. He ended the season with two surgeries on his shoulder (rotator cuff and then labrum) and never regained his form; he wouldn’t win a game again until 2008. Van Benschoten only got 19 starts total in his career, and they weren’t very sharp outings - he holds the all-time major league record for highest career ERA (9.20) for hurlers with at least 75 IP.

John Van Benschoten - 2004 Fleer

2014 - Andrew McCutchen hit the first inside-the-park home run of his career and the Bucs pounded out 13 hits in a 6-3 win over Philadelphia at Citizens Bank Park. Cutch was one of six Pirates with two hits - Josh Harrison, Starling Marte, Russ Martin, Travis Snider and Jordy Mercer joined him - and Martin added a long ball. Winner Vance Worley and his bullpen buds - Bobby LaFromboise, John Holdzkom, Tony Watson and Mark Melancon - teamed up to retire the last 16 Phil batters.

2015 - With an eighth-inning homer that tied the game at 3-3, Andrew McCutchen became the second player in franchise history to post at least 150 career home runs and 150 career stolen bases, joining Barry Bonds as the only other Pirate to accomplish the feat. Another notable moment celebrated the return of AJ Burnett, who started the game after spending nearly six weeks on the DL and was greeted by the Bat signal flashing off the downtown skyline. Those vibes weren't enough, though, as the Bucs went down in 12 innings to the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park by a 6-4 count. Radhames Liz, the Pirates eighth pitcher (Milwaukee also used eight; September once featured some pretty well-stocked bullpens) took the loss while 47 different players made the box score. Fran Cervelli was an on-base machine with three hits and two walks. 

2021 - Ke'Bryan Hayes claimed his first walkoff knock when he bounced a two-out single into right to plate Ben Gamel to give the Pirates a 4-3 victory over the Nationals at PNC Park. The Pirates had tied the game the batter before when Colin Moran’s grounder plated Anthony Alford. Chad Kuhl, the Bucs fifth pitcher, got the win behind Nick Mears, Sam Howard and Cody Pence. The pen foursome gave up one run in seven innings after coming on to pick up starter Steven Brault. 

2024 - Andrew McCutchen moved past Ralph Kiner into second for the most 20+ HR seasons as a Bucco when he posted his eighth with a three-run shot against the Marlins at PNC Park. It came in handy, too, as his bomb put the Bucs up 6-1 against the Marlins at PNC Park. It was a bullpen game for Pittsburgh, and they held off the Fish to take a 6-4 decision. As for the team long ball record, the Pirate with the most 20 or more homers can rest easy on his laurels - Willie Stargell posted 15 of those big-bopper campaigns. 

2025 - Paul Skenes became the eighth Pirates pitcher to fan 200+ batters in a season, joining Ed Morris (Alleghenies/AA), Bob Veale, Ollie Perez, Mitch Keller, AJ Burnett, Frankie Liriano and Gerrit Cole. Skenes spun five innings of two-hit, no-run, eight-K ball against Baltimore at Camden Yards, giving him 203 whiffs so far on the year. For all of Paul’s brilliance, the evening was the same ol’ vintage Bucs - they lost the game to the Birds 2-1 in extra innings, guaranteeing Pittsburgh its seventh straight losing season and the 29th-of-the-past-33 campaigns to end with an underwater record.

9/9 Through the 1970s: Arriba & Matty, Duels, Comin' Back, Game Days, Buc All-Stars, HBD Dan, Tom, Pete, Hugh, Frankie, Schoolboy, Dashing Dan, Dots & Elmer

1857 - LF Abner Dalrymple was born in Gratiot, Wisconsin. He had a long and illustrious career in early baseball - he was the first hitter to be issued an intentional walk with the bases loaded - and spent two seasons (1887-88) at the backend of his 12-year career with the Alleghenys. Abner hit just .215 with Pittsburgh, but got the team’s first National League at-bat against the White Sox on April 30, 1887, a 6-2 win at Recreation Park that is considered by the Pirates to officially mark the beginning of the franchise.  

1863 - The Alleghenies and the Keystones, after a two-year wartime hiatus, met on the West Common in Allegheny City in a match won by the Alleghenies. It helped to establish that the roots of local baseball dated back to at least the Civil War era. The Pittsburgh Daily Commercial wrote “...we hope that they and other clubs will keep it rolling and give us many more matches of the noble game.” 

1886 - IF Jack “Dots” Miller was born in Kearny, New Jersey. He played with Pittsburgh for five seasons, from 1909-13. He drove in 87 runs for the 1909 Series champs and had a .263 career average with the Pirates. According to Bucco lore (and the SABR Biography Project), he got the nickname "Dots" after a reporter asked Honus Wagner the whereabouts of the new kid. Wagner pointed to him in a corner and replied in his German accent, "Dots (That's) Miller." A good tale, but according to his family, Miller had a thick accent and also pronounced “dots” for “that’s” as a youth, and so Dots became his term of endearment. 

1891 - OF “Dashing Dan” Costello was born in Jessup, PA, in Lackawanna county. The LH hitter played three years (1914-16) for the Bucs as a reserve outfielder and utility man. He hit .241 as a Pirate. Pittsburgh released him in August of 1916, “...as he had been mixed up in several near fights because of his remarks to opposing players.” He also had authority issues, as the Pittsburgh Press added “...his attitude (bad) toward club officials and policy was well known,” probably not a wise tack for a .240 hitter of any era. As far as his nickname, we have not a clue - he was speedy (Dan stole 110 bases in six minor league seasons), or it may be in recognition of his reputed love of the nightlife.

Dashing Dan - 1916 Sporting News

1897 - 1B Wheeler “Doc” Johnston (sometimes referred to as Johnson) was born in Cleveland, Tennessee. Doc was bought for $7,500 from Cleveland in early 1915 to cover first base after starter Ed Konetchy jumped leagues by joining the Pittsburgh Burghers of the Federal League. Doc had a decent opening campaign, batting .265, but slumped the following year and was dealt after the 1916 season to Birmingham of the Southern Association as part of the Burleigh Grime package. Johnston played 11 years in the show, finishing his career with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1922. His nickname came about because he was a sickly youth and had broken a bone or two in an accident (he had a lifelong gimpy leg because of that), so he was an expert regarding various aches and pains.

1898 - Bucco skipper Frankie Frisch was born in the Bronx. He spent his Hall of Fame playing days with the NY Giants and St. Louis’ Gas House Gang. The Fordham Flash managed the Pirates from 1940-46, leading the club to five winning seasons and a second place finish in 1944, ending up with a 539-528 slate in Pittsburgh. Frankie also managed and coached with the Cards, Cubs and Giants, and later was a broadcaster. Frisch died in 1973 after a car crash. He was a track star in college at Fordham, hence the nickname "Fordham Flash.”

1899 - RHP and Hall of Famer Waite “Schoolboy” Hoyt was born in Brooklyn. Best known for his NY Yankee years, he tossed for the Bucs from 1933-37 as a multi-role arm, compiling a record of 35-31-18/3.08, winning 15 games in 1934. He got his nickname when John McGraw signed him when Hoyt was a teenager and he became known as "The Schoolboy Wonder.”

1913 - RHP Hugh Mulcahy was born in Brighton, Massachusetts. Hugh pitched for Philadelphia for eight years and lost almost five full seasons to WW2; he only got into two games as a Pirate in 1947, his final campaign. But Hugh did leave with one of the more memorable nicknames in baseball history - he was known as “LP” from his time with the Phillies. The moniker was taken from the box scores of his games, which 89 times read “LP, Mulcahy” as in losing pitcher. In justice, he could have just as easily been dubbed “Hard Luck” Mulcahy as some of the Philly teams he played for were terrible. He was a workhorse for those clubs and despite the setbacks even made the All-Star team once.

Paul Waner - 2021 custom card Roselle Avenue

1928 - The Pirates rallied with five runs in the eighth to overcome a 7-3 Cardinal lead and take an 8-7 victory home from Sportsman’s Park. Paul Waner went 4-for-5 with two RBI, including the game-winner, and a run while brother Lloyd chipped in with three knocks, including a double, triple, RBI and two runs scored. Joe Dawson worked two perfect innings for the win.

1931 - C Pete Naton was born in Flushing, New York. Pete was part of Holy Cross’ 1952 College Championship club and the Bucs signed him the following year. He got a couple of calls to the show during the 1953 campaign, getting in six games and going 2-for-12 with a pair of walks. That would be it for Pete, who spent six years in the minors before retiring. He was a successful businessman after he left the game, an avid amateur golfer (his memorial service was held at his golf club) and a member of Holy Cross’ Athletic Hall of Fame.

1934 - Gus Suhr led off with a homer in the ninth to give Larry French and the Pirates their sixth straight win over the first-place New York Giants and Fred Fitzsimmons 1-0 at the Polo Grounds. The drive carried into the second level of the right field stands and a fitting reward for French’s five-hit, complete-game  effort. The fielding for both clubs was top rate; Arky Vaughan made an over-the-shoulder grab in the ninth to keep French out of trouble and the Post-Gazette’s Ed Balinger wrote “Both sides performed frequent spectacular stunts afield...” 

1934 - The Pittsburgh Crawfords' Satchel Paige and the Philadelphia Stars' All Star, lefty Slim Jones, traded fastballs through nine innings at Yankee Stadium in a 1-1 draw, called after regulation due to darkness (they were the second game of a doubleheader, with the Chicago American Giants topping the New York Black Yankees 4-3 in the opener). Paige struck out 12 (he fanned the final two Stars hitters with the bases loaded in the ninth), giving up six hits, and Jones fanned nine while allowing just three knocks, pitching perfect ball over the first six frames and carrying a shutout until the eighth before 30,000+ fans. The pair faced one another a month later, and before that game, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson presented them with travel bags (a fitting gift for the well-traveled Satchel) in honor of the "greatest game ever played." Paige bested Jones 3-1 in the rematch.

Ed Brandt - 1937/38 Harwell Collection/Detroit Public Library

1937 - Ed Brandt outdueled the Reds Gene Schott 1-0 at Forbes Field, handing the Reds their 30th one-run loss of the year. Arky Vaughan's triple and Bill Brubaker’s single to lead off the ninth walked off Brandt’s four-hitter.

1958 - RHP Bob Friend, 2B Bill Mazeroski and 3B Frank Thomas were named to an NL All-Star Team that squared off against a squad of AL All-Stars at Yankee Stadium in October. The National League won the friendly exhibition 6-2. Willie Mays, returning to Gotham for the first time since the Giants moved, banged out four hits and starter Friend was credited with the victory.

1959 - SS Tom Foley was born in Fort Benning, Georgia. He played for 13 years, spending 1993-94 with the Pirates, getting into 145 games and hitting .246. Foley hung ‘em the next year and became the Rays minor league coordinator in 1996. In 2001, he joined Tampa Bay’s big league staff, retiring in 2019.

1966 - Roberto Clemente reached base five times (four hits, walk) and Matty Alou four times (three hits, walk), and the pair scored all three runs as the Bucs walked off the Cards 3-2 in 12 innings at Forbes Field. Willie Stargell plated each guy once, but the clincher was delivered by Bill Mazeroski, whose sac fly sent home Mateo, who had opened the extra frame with a single. The Pirates had plenty of chances to put the game away, stranding 12 runners, and both sides had a runner thrown out at home. Pittsburgh had enough in the tank to post a victory for ElRoy Face, who worked three scoreless frames behind Woodie Fryman and Pete Mikkelson.  The win kept the Buccaneers 1-1/2 games ahead of the Giants and Dodgers, but a September swoon (they lost 11 of their last 20 games) would land them in third place, three games off LA’s pace.  

1970 - RHP Dan Miceli was born in Newark. The reliever spent the first four years (1993-96) of his 14-season career in Pittsburgh, going 8-15-24/5.41 during that span. He was known for a power arm and shaky control throughout his MLB journey.  In 2003, he gained entry into a club with just a handful of members, that of players who appeared for four different teams during the same season.

9/9 From 1980: All #21, A Winner!, 14 For Ollie, Jeff Jolt, Game Days, Freddy Goes, Vogey Out, SI Cutch, Greg & David Winners, Ouch, HBD Wil

1987 - The Bucs nipped the Cubs 4-3 when an unlikely suspect, reliever Jeff Robinson, went yard on ace Chicago closer Lee Smith with two out in the ninth at Wrigley Field, smashing the first pitch into the bleachers. Coach Rick Donnelly told Paul Meyer of the Post Gazette that “Jeff Robinson and Lee Smith could stand out there the rest of their lives and not have that happen again.” Robinson agreed - “It was pretty much of a fluke,” he admitted. Still, a great series for Jeff; not only did he go deep for his first Pirates win, but two days prior, he tossed an immaculate inning against Chicago to post his first Bucco save. Jim Leyland told the media that he let Robinson bat because he thought he had the best shot at retiring the Cubs in the ninth and getting the game to Jim Gott. Robby did get the closer Gott on the mound an inning sooner than expected, and he struck out two for the save. RJ Reynolds led the attack with two hits and two RBI.

1991 - Jay Bell went 4-for-4 with a homer in Pittsburgh’s 12-10 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. The Pirates trailed 10-8 in the ninth inning after blowing an early 6-0 lead before rookie Orlando Merced connected for a three-run, pinch-hit homer to trigger Pittsburgh’s game-winning four-run frame. As the score indicated, the wind was blowing out - each team homered three times, doubled three times and together banged out 29 hits while burning through 12 pitchers. Stan Belinda claimed the win while Rosario Rodriguez nailed the save.

1992 - With the score tied in the bottom of the sixth with two on, one out and first base open, the Cubs intentionally walked Barry Bonds. It was his 28th IBB of the year, breaking the Bucs' single season record that was set in 1968 by Roberto Clemente (Bonds finished up with 32 by year’s end). The seemingly sound stratagem backfired, though, when Jeff King hit the first pitch he saw from Ken Patterson over the left field wall for his second career grand slam, a response to Ryne Sandburg’s granny in the top half of the frame that had briefly put the Cubbies ahead. Gary Varsho and Jay Bell also went long (Varsho’s was the first Pirates pinch-hit homer of the year) as Pittsburgh prevailed 13-8 at TRS, with Danny Cox getting the blown save/win combo.

1994 - RHP Wil Crowe was born in Kingston, Tennessee. He fought back from TJ surgery in college to become a second-round pick of the Nationals in 2017. Crowe debuted in 2020 and was traded in the off season to the Pirates as part of the Josh Bell deal. Despite a shaky start with Washington, he pitched solidly in the spring and went north with the big team and joined the rotation in late April. He was converted to the pen in 2022 and found a home there, slashing 6-10-4/4.38 while making a team-leading 60 outings and tossing a bullpen-leading 76 innings. He was injured late in the year and he started 2023 slowly. Crowe was put on the IL in April with a bum shoulder and DFA’ed in July. He went unclaimed and was outrighted to Indy. He started 2024 in Korea, where he pitched solidly (5-1/3.57) but underwent elbow surgery and was released. Crowe spent 2025 in the Philly system, but after 13 outings was released in late August and retired.

Wil Crowe - 2021 Panini Diamond Kings

1999 - The Pirates gave up on 3B Freddy Garcia, trading the 27-year-old Rule 5 pick (1995) to the Atlanta Braves for RHP Greg Dukeman. Garcia, who had hit .221 in his four-year Bucco career, got three at bats with the Bravos to end his MLB career. Dukeman worked in the minors before hangin’ ‘em up after the 2003 campaign, never advancing past High Class A.

2001 - Ryan Vogelsong had to leave the game with a sore elbow in a 5-3 loss to the Reds at PNC Park. The rookie righty, who had just been dealt for on July 30th, needed TJ surgery and was lost for the entire 2002 campaign. He joined Jason Schmidt (11 months missed), Kris Benson (missed all of 2001) and Francisco Cordova (never returned after 2000) as Bucco hurlers who had reconstructive surgery in the past 14 months. The other piece of trade that brought Vogey to Pittsburgh, Armando Rios, tore his ACL after playing just two games for the Bucs. Though not injury related, other than shooting oneself in the foot, the Pirates stranded 15 runners in the loss. The only bright spot was Humberto Cota, who spanked a pinch hit single for his first MLB hit and RBI.

2004 - It was a good day for Ollie Perez, who ended the Astro’s 12-game winning streak with a career-high 14 strikeouts at PNC Park in a 3-1 victory. He gave up three hits and an unearned run in eight frames to become the second Pirates pitcher - Bob Veale was the other - in history to crack the 200-K mark (Ed “Cannonball” Morris fanned 326 in 1886 after whiffing 298 in ‘85, but the team doesn’t recognize those as the Pittsburgh Alleghenys were in the American Association then). Perez ended the year with 239 whiffs; the Pirates modern single-season record belongs to Veale, who fanned 276 batters in 1965. Ollie needed his A game for his 10th win as the Bucs only had six hits themselves (Jose Castillo had three), but RBIs by Jason Kendall, Tony Alvarez and Ty Wigginton carried the day, with Jose Mesa nailing the save in the ninth. It was the opener of a twilight twin bill; Houston avenged the defeat by romping 9-2 in the nightcap. 

2007 - Sparked by a dazzling catch by Nyjer Morgan and an almost inside-the-park granny by Freddy Sanchez, the Bucs beat the Cubs 10-5 at PNC Park. The Bucs had an early 6-2 lead thanks to Steady Freddy’s bases-juiced triple (he was thrown out at home on a bang-bang call). The following inning, Aramis Ramirez spanked a ball the opposite way and Nyjer, who had played him to pull, made a diving catch at the corner of the Clemente Wall in right center to rob A-Ram, while barely avoiding right fielder Steve Pearce, who had to hurdle Morgan. Matt Morris went six innings for the win, followed by three relievers who held down the fort.

Gerrit Cole - 2013 Topps

2013 - The Pirates clinched their first winning season since 1992 with a 1-0 win over Yu Darvish and the Texas Rangers at the Ballpark in Arlington. Rookie Gerrit Cole went seven innings of three-hit ball, walking a pair and striking out nine, with Tony Watson and Mark Melancon pitching two innings of one-hit ball to seal the deal. The game was scoreless until two outs in the seventh when Marlon Byrd and Pedro Alvarez hit back-to-back doubles to produce the game’s only run. The win broke a four-game losing streak and moved the Pirates within a game of first place St. Louis, though the Cards held on to win the Central by three games. 

2013 - Andrew McCutchen was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated as part of Lee Jenkins story “The Bucs Start Here.” Cutch won the National League MVP that year with a .317/.404/.508 slash. 

2015 - Jung Ho Kang smacked a grand slam to break a 1-1 tie in the top of the sixth inning at Cincinnati, and the Bucs needed every one of those runs as they ran out the clock to take a 5-4 win from the Reds.

2016 - The Pirates were in a bad way, having lost four in a row and 12 of 14, and it looked like more of the same at Citizens Park against the Phils. Despite 11 K and stellar pitching by Ivan Nova, some sloppy fielding and an eighth inning wild spree by reliever Felipe Rivero had them in a 3-2 hole going into the ninth. Fran Cervelli led off with a walk against former Pirate Jeanmar Gomez, and Jordy Mercer, after fouling off a bunt, doubled him to third. Sean Rodriguez came off the bench, got a 2-2 fastball and lined it over the RF wall to lead Pittsburgh to a 5-3 win. It was the first time in 140 games that the Bucs had rallied from a ninth inning deficit. It was also the first ninth-inning-or-later pinch hit dinger to give the Bucs a come-from-behind lead since Rob Mackowiak’s blast in 2003. 

2016 - It was a busy day for Bucco trainers. Gerrit Cole was shut down with elbow inflammation, Josh Harrison’s year was done after a groin injury, catcher Chris Stewart took a trip to see Dr. Andrews with a knee injury that would require off-season surgery and minor league C Elias Diaz, a 2017 roster candidate, was out with cellulitis. In addition, relievers Neftali Feliz (arm) and AJ Schugel were also hors d’ combat and inactive, requiring the Bucs to call up minor league C Jacob Stallings and hurler Zach Phillips, then deal for pitcher Wade LeBlanc to fill the roster, even with the original wave of September call-ups on hand.

Roberto Clemente - 2020 Topps Allen & Ginter

2020 - On MLB’s Roberto Clemente Day, for the first time all the Pittsburgh Pirates and every MLB Puerto Rican ballplayer wore #21 during their game. Joey Cora became the first Bucco Puerto Rican to wear the retired 21 since Clemente, while before the game, Josh Bell was recognized as Pittsburgh’s nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award. None of it helped on the field, though, as the Bucs were trounced, 8-1, by the Chicago White Sox at PNC Park.

2022 - The MLB Joint Competition Committee, in a split decision, voted to restrict defensive shifts, use a pitch clock, limit pickoffs/step-offs, and increase the size of the bases (from 15-to-18”) to address pace of play and player safety issues. The changes were first unveiled and tested in minor league play and took effect in 2023. Robo umps didn’t make the cut in this round.

2023 - The Pirates topped the Atlanta Braves 8-4 at Truist Park behind two homers (Bryan Reynolds and Liover Peguero) and 5-1/3 innings of one-run relief work by five relievers (Ryan Borucki got the victory) following a short starting outing by Johan Oviedo. B-Rey had three hits with two RBI and two runs, and his long ball moved him into a tie with Bobby Bonilla for most consecutive 20-homer seasons by a Pirates switch-hitter with three, with Bo’s trio coming during 1988-90. (Reynolds posted his fourth straight 20+ HR campaign in 2024 to hold the record alone) Michael Andujar also added three knocks. The game opened with a little cha-cha as Ronald Acuna and Oviedo faced off with jaws flapping after a tight pitch, emptying the benches. But the ump kept the disputing pair apart while the teams exchanged their howdy-dos, and the dance ended quickly.

2024 - For the third straight year, reliever David Bednar was named as the Pirates Roberto Clemente Award nominee. The Renegade, born in Mt. Lebanon and raised in Mars, has been a ready and steady fixture in the community during his Bucco career, but lost out to a pair of pretty popular guys, Justin Turner and Aaron Judge, in those past seasons. Two Pirates have won the award (it dates back to 1973) - Willie Stargell in 1974 and Andrew McCutchen in 2015.

2025 - Pirates announcer Greg Brown was the Bob Prince Award winner as this year’s Outstanding Sports Personality at the annual Catholic Youth Association/Art Rooney dinner at Acrisure Stadium. Andrew McCutchen was the last Pirate to be honored in 2016, with Neil Walker, Billy Maz and Lanny Frattare past awardees.