Worley v Fiers, Lineup (Pedro, Polanco In), Russ, Josh D, Numbers...

Vance Worley (5-3, 2.92) shakes the broom at Mike Fiers (3-1, 1.29) in the series closer.

Vanimal took a first inning beating during his last appearance, then strung together a decent outing. He's not the most toolsy guy; when his stuff flattens out instead of sinking and stays upstairs, the batter's box turns into Cape Kennedy in full launch mode. But that hasn't happened often, and hopefully he'll climb back on the bar stool with a strong outing today.

He doesn't have a great track record against the Brewers. Vance is 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA in three career starts against Milwaukee, all as a starter for the Phillies. But he hasn't faced them since August, 2012, so we'll see how he fares today.

Fiers, after a bullpen callup in June, threw strong ball at AAA Nashville and stepped into the rotation when Matt Garza went down. Since then, he's 3-0 with a 0.86 ERA. Fiers has 25 strikeouts and three walks in that 21 inning span, giving up two runs and eight hits. He throws a fastball, cutter, curve and change, with the heater averaging just 88. Fiers depends on filling up the strike zone, keeping the ball down, and a little deception; his ball is hard to pick up out of his hand.

The good news is that he's just 1-3 against the Bucs with a 6.64 ERA in six outings (four starts). Two of those losses came last year, one in relief and the other as a starter.

The Lineup: Josh Harrison 3B, Gregory Polanco RF, Cutch CF, Neil Walker 2B, Russ Martin C, Pedro 1B, Starling Marte LF, Jordy Mercer SS and Worley P. Pedro & Polanco in; we're surprised Russ didn't get the usual night-to-day blow.

The game starts at 2:10 and will be aired on Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

• Russ Martin leads all MLB catchers in OBP (.414), is third in hitting (.292), fifth in RBI (51) and leads NL backstops in RISP (.382). Martin also shares the league lead in fielding percentage (.997), having made just two errors in 634 chances, and is tied for second with 20 caught stealings
• Josh Harrison's stick has been the big news, but his glove has been pretty solid, too. He has a UZR/150 of 9.1 at third, 4.8 in the outfield and 4.6 at second (don't ask about short, lol). For comparison, Pedro's is -19.8 at the hot corner, The Kid's -16.6 at second and Travis at -14.4 in the pasture.
• Pittsburgh is four games behind the Brew Crew in the NL Central and 3-1/2 behind the Cards for the top wild card spot. They're 1-1/2 games behind the Giants and 1/2 game in back of the Braves in the race for the second wild card position.
• The Pirates won four consecutive games over two series at Miller Park last season, but a win this afternoon would give them their first three-game sweep in Milwaukee since the 2004 season (April 30 - May 2).
• The Bucs lead all MLB teams with 49 pinch hits and 35 pinch-hit RBI.

8/24: Jewel Ens, Out of the Hat, 12-Hit Whitewash, 10 In a Row, Gott News, Going Long...

Jewel Ens, Out of the Hat, 12-Hit Whitewash, 10 In a Row, Gott News, Going Long...

• 1889 - IF Jewel Ens was born in St. Louis. He played for the Pirates from 1922-25, hitting .290 as a seldom used bench player. Jewel came back to manage the club from 1929-31, and put up an overall 176-167 slate, finishing second once. 

Jewel Ens 1925 Baseball Magazine cover

• 1928 - The Pirates romped over the NY Giants 16-5 at Forbes Field. The middle of the Pittsburgh order - Paul Waner, George Grantham and Pie Traynor - pounded out seven hits, including a homer and three triples, drove in 11 runs and scored six more. Every Pirate position player had at least two hits as the Bucs banged out 19 knocks. 
• 1956 - The Cards defeated the Pirates‚ 6-2 at Busch Stadium in a game notable for its batting order. Manager Bobby Bragan batted the pitcher seventh, Maz eighth and Hank Foiles ninth. Mazeroski went 1-for-3 while Foiles hit a HR. The pitcher, Fred Waters, went 0-for-3. 
• 1959 - Bob Friend gave up 12 hits‚ but shut out SF‚ 6-0. He struck out eight and stranded a dozen G-Men at Forbes Field, backed by a pair of Rocky Nelson homers. 

Rocky Nelson 1961 Topps series

• 1965 - The Pirates defeated the SF Giants 5-2 at Forbes Field behind Don Cardwell’s five hitter. It was a nondescript win except for Willie Mays, who according to Les Biederman of the Pittsburgh Press “...made an almost unbelievable throw...Mays took Donn Clendenon’s shot off the wall in left center (at the 406’ mark) and threw a strike to home plate on one bounce as the startled (Willie) Stargell was out by 15 feet.” Bob Stevens of the San Francisco Chronicle called it “...the greatest throw ever made in ancient Forbes Field.” 
• 1978 - The Pirates won their 10th game in a row by dropping the Braves 5-1 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. Bert Blyleven not only pitched his way to victory, but his two-out, bases loaded double in the seventh cleared the sacks to break a 0-0 tie. Pittsburgh dropped the next two games, then started a fresh 11 game winning streak. 
• 1984 - Jose DeLeon went into the seventh against the Reds pitching a no-hitter, but lost it and the game when ex-Buc Dave Parker singled in a run to give Cincy the lead and eventual 2-0 win at TRS behind a three-hitter by Jeff Russell. Parker had the only Red hit; Cincy scored thanks to a walk and two errors. 
• 1987 - As reported by Peter Gammon in Sports Illustrated, GM Syd Thrift called a team meeting for his young and underachieving Pirate club (53-71). He asked the team to set goals; reliever Jim Gott suggested aiming for 25 wins in the final 38 games. “Be realistic,” Thrift replied. It ended up that Gott was indeed a bit unrealistic - the team won 27 down the stretch, starting a seven game winning streak that night with a 5-4 win over the Reds. Gott earned the save. 

Jim Gott 1989 Fleer series

• 1989 - The Pirates dropped the Houston Astros 3-2 in 14 frames at TRS. Doug Drabek tossed a nine-inning two hitter, but gave up two unearned runs on three Bucco errors. Doug Bair got the win when Jose Lind’s sac fly brought home Gary Redus. 
• 2007 - The Pirates’ Xavier Nady hit a two out homer to tie the game in the ninth and then the Bucs erupted for five 15th inning runs to take an 8-3 victory from the Astros at Minute Maid Park. Adam LaRoche’s three run shot in the 15th off Travis Driskill was the big blow. Shane Youman picked up the win after two innings of scoreless relief with four K against Houston. Six Pirate relievers tossed eight shutout frames, giving up just six hits and striking out eight.

Bucs Bloop & Blast Brewers In 10-2 Runaway

Wily Peralta worked a 1-2-3 opener, and was hitting 96-98 on the heater. It was a good start for Eddie, too, who lost Jonathan Lucroy with one gone but three pop outs otherwise. Peralta cruised in the second, losing Pedro with two outs. He stole second, but Starling Marte swung through a 98 MPH fastball.

Eddie had two-strike problems. He fed Scooter Gennett an 0-2 curve, at the knees on the inside corner, the lefty sweet spot, and he golfed it down the line and into the seats. Khris Davis was plunked on a 1-2 change, and Lyle Oberbay bounced an 0-2 fastball up the middle; Davis went to third, looking like he lulled Cutch to sleep a bit, beating the throw and allowing Overbay to get to second. Volquez was equal to the task; he got a pop, K and soft roller to short to cap the damage.

Wily put the Bucs down in order in the third. This inning. Volquez's problems came not with two strikes, but with two outs. A-Ram drilled a single to left and Gennett followed with an end-of-the-bat flare into center. Davis drilled a splitter with no dive into left center for a double; Cutch cut it off to save one run, though Ramirez scored. A fly ended it with the score 2-0 Brew Crew.

The two-out demons bit Peralta in the fourth. After a couple of routine outs, The Kid walked and Russ hit a soft jam-shot double to left. Pedro got a two-seamer that ran across the middle of the plate and buried it high in the left field stands. Starling singled and stole second, so Jordy was worked around and walked to bring up Eddie, who K'ed.

Volquez had problems finding the plate. He went 3-0 on Elian Herrera before coming back to get him on a grounder and was ahead of Peralta 0-2, then missed with the next four. Gomez followed with a single on a 2-0 fastball. Lucroy hit a soft fly to right; Snider came in hard and looked like he had it measured, but pulled up a step short to let it drop and load the bases. No prob; Braun popped out behind the mound and A-Ram swung through a 95 MPH heater as Eddie pulled another Houdini.

The Bucs bombed Wily in the fifth, thanks to more shoddy infield play by the Brew Crew. with an out, Travis reached when his ball to second was thrown away. Cutch followed with a roller to third that went under A-Ram's glove that was ruled a single. The Kid blooped a ball just inside the left field line for a double and a run. Russ got ahead 2-0, sat dead red, got his heater and belted it into the bullpen.

Pedro matched him when he blasted his second long fly of the night the opposite way off a two-seamer. The Brew Crew got the call on a pair of bang-bangers at first, but not until the score was 8-2. With two outs, Overbay doubled on a grounder to left against the shift, but a Herrera liner to Cutch ended the frame.

Marco Estrada came on in the sixth. After Eddie's K, Josh doubled into the LF corner and Cutch walked an out later. The bloop parade continued when Walker dropped an RBI single just over Jean Segura's glove into left. Russ walked to juice the sacks, but Pedro was out of long balls, flying out to center. Gaby came in to replace him, which is a bit odd considering the score.

With an out, Gomez singled to left and Lucroy followed with another. Gomez forgot the score and tried to go to third, and Starling said no, gunning him for the second out. It helped; Eddie tried to get an 0-2 pitch in on Braun's hands, but he knocked it into right. Volquez was laboring and over 100 pitches; that single brought on a call for Jared Hughes. One pitch, one bouncer, one more inning ended.

Jeffrey Jeffress took the ball in the seventh. Starling beat out a bleeder for the only damage. Hughes stayed on; we thought Jeanmar Gomez would get a couple of innings work (and he would). Jared walked Overbay with two gone, and a grounder closed the door.

Zach Duke climbed the hill for the eighth and gave up a lead off single to Travis and a wild pitch moved him up a base. An out later, The Kid singled him in before a 6-4-3 by Russ stopped the music. Gomez did take over and Cutch got a blow, too, with Gregory Polanco coming on to reshuffle the outfield. Segura opened with an infield knock on a slow roller to third, but two pops and a fly sat the Brew Crew down.

Francisco Rodriguez took the bump for the ninth and worked a clean frame. Mark Reynolds walked to open the Brewer at-bat, but an out later was doubled off first on a liner to Gaby, and that was all she wrote.

A bunch of bloops and a couple three-run homers must have The Gunner smiling up in broadcaster heaven. It's hard to remember the game hung in the balance a couple of times, when Eddie, who seemed to pitch out of the stretch endlessly, had to work out of second and third with no outs, then later stare down Ryan Braun and Aramis Ramirez with the bases loaded, and did.

Like Locke's performance yesterday, it wasn't pretty but it worked as Milwaukee stranded 13 runners. And a struggling Pirate team now has its mojo back and a chance for a sweep at, of all places, Miller Park.

Vance Worley closes the series tomorrow afternoon against Mike Fiers.

• Pedro's homer was his first since July 11th. It was, though, his third two-homer game of the year. When he went back-to-back after Russ in the fifth, it marked the seventh time this year Pirates have homered consecutively.
• The starting 4-5-6 hitters (The Kid, Russ & Pedro) went 7-for-11 with two 2B, 3 HR, six runs scored, 10 RBI and three walks. They were sure a murderer's row tonight.
• This series, if you haven't noticed by the Root stand shots, is a father's trip for the Bucco players.

Volquez v Peralta, Lineup (Pedro on 1st), Comeback Kids, International Market

Edinson Volquez (10-7, 3.58) faces Wily Peralta (15-7, 3.27) tonight.

Eddie wasn't at his best last outing, nor was the Pirate defense behind him. He been fairly dependable, with his velocity strong all year and his command improved over past seasons. Volquez leads the starters with 10 wins, and his key this year has been the ability to pitch through adversity, belying his reputation as a guy who cracked when the pressure was applied.

He hasn't traditionally been very strong against the Brew Crew with a 6-4/4.57 slash in 15 career starts. But Eddie's been pretty good versus Milwaukee this season, going 1-1 with a 2.79 ERA in three starts.

Peralta is pretty much a two-trick pony, but those two tricks are pretty good. His sinker averages almost 96 MPH and he has a decent slider to go with it, along with a show-me change up that may get used a half dozen times per game. That's his missing link; until he develops his change, lefties are a problem for him, with a .303 BA and .812 OPS. Even with that, he's tied for the most wins in baseball.

He's 2-0/2.25 in three starts against Pittsburgh. Wily has a win and no-decision this year versus the Bucs, giving up just two earned runs in 14 IP (1.29 ERA).

The Lineup: Josh Harrison 3B, Travis Snider RF, Cutch CF, Neil Walker 2B, Russ Martin C, Pedro 1B, Starling Marte LF, Jordy Mercer SS and Volquez P. Pedro's in, Ike's out and Gregory Polanco is on the pine under he shortens up that swing.

The game begins at 7:10 and will be aired by Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

• Better late...Pittsburgh’s 33 comeback wins rank first in the NL and second in MLB, trailing only the Angels (39) and tied with the Tigers (33).
• Figuring it out: The Pirates have gone 7-7 in their last 14 games played at Miller Park, dating back to May 1st of last season. Prior to that 14-game stretch, Pittsburgh posted a 7-46 record in Milwaukee.
• Clint Hurdle expressed cautious optimism that Clint Barmes would be able to rejoin the team during a three-game series with St. Louis that starts Monday.
• A gathering storm: Jason Scherer of MLB Daily Dish warns that unless MLB acts, the small revenue teams will be trampled underfoot by the big boys in the international market place.

8/23: Short No-No, Don't Run On Me, Drysdale Loses twice, Roberto Bags Five Hits, Big Unit...

Short No-No, Don't Run On Me, Drysdale beat twice, Roberto Bags Five Hits, Big Unit...

• 1907 - Howie Camnitz threw a five inning no-hitter with four walks against Mike Lynch and the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds. The game was the nitecap of a doubleheader, and after the first match went extra innings (the Pirates won 4-2 in 10 frames behind Sam Leever and Honus Wagner’s three hits), the teams agreed to a shortened second game. Pittsburgh won 1-0. 
• 1910 - Despite manager and LF’er Fred Clarke’s four assists from the outfield, the Bucs fell 6-2 to the Philadelphia Phillies at Forbes Field. Clarke’s four toss-outs - one at home, another at third, and two more at second - set an individual NL record. He also made a neat running catch in the eighth inning to take away extra bases from John Titus. Chief Wilson added another assist from RF, and the team total of five for a game tied a NL mark. 

Fred Clarke 1910 American Caramel series

• 1959 - The Pirates swept a doubleheader from the Dodgers‚ beating Don Drysdale in both games. As a starter‚ Drysdale lost the opener 9-2, lasting 2-2/3 innings‚ then relieved in the nitecap, taking a 4-3 loss in the 10th. ElRoy Face won his 16th of the year without a loss in the second game, equaling Cal Hubbell's (1936) and Ewell Blackwell's (1947) record winning streaks. 
• 1970 - Roberto Clemente had his second straight five-hit game against Los Angeles, the first major leaguer this century to collect 10 hits in consecutive games. Clemente banged a homer, double, three RBI and scored four runs in the 11-0 win at Dodger Stadium. Bill Mazeroski added four hits while Freddy Patek, Matty Alou and Manny Sanguillen each had three knocks. Steve Blass cruised to the victory, tossing a complete game four hitter with eight whiffs. 
• 2001 - The Pirates defeated the Diamondbacks 5-1 despite a 16 strikeout performance by Randy Johnson, who became the first pitcher in history to fan 300 batters in four straight seasons. The big blows off the Big Unit were a two-run homer by Kevin Young and two-run pinch hit double by Keith Osik, both in the seventh.

Keith Osik 2002 Topps series

Two-Out Josh Drives Bucs To 8-3 Win Over Brew Crew

Yovani Gallardo had an easy first; except for a two-out boot, he was in control. Jeff Locke walked Jonathan Lucroy with an out. He worked exclusively upstairs on Ryan Braun, and he ripped a 3-2 change that hung over the upper part of the strike zone over the wall in left center to put the Brew Crew up 2-0. Aramis Ramirez walked, but was erased on a 6-4-3 DP hit into by Khris Davis. Ump Gerry Davis has called a pretty tight strike zone for both guys; that figures to hurt Locke, who lives on the edges, more than Gallardo.

Russ reached on another Brewer boot to lead off the second, followed by a walk to Gaby. Starling worked a lengthy at-bat and drew another walk off Gallardo. Jordy got ahead 2-0, got a juicy fastball and lifted it to fairly deep center to bring home Martin. Locke couldn't move them up, but Josh could. He doubled in a pair, sending a fastball into the right center gap off the wall and just over Braun for two bases to give Pittsburgh a 3-2 lead. Travis worked the count full, but never saw the deciding pitch; Josh was picked off second, which is becoming a bad habit with him, and it was registered as a caught stealing. Locke worked a clean frame.

Snider flew out short of the track in center to open the third, followed by an infield knock by Cutch. He motored home on The Kid's triple up the first base line to make it 4-2. Russ walked, but Gaby spoiled the party by rolling a slider down and away to second for a 4-3 DP; good idea but bad aim as the right side was wide open. Milwaukee was retired in order.

Starling started the fourth with a single; Jordy's hot shot to third, nicely flagged down by A-Ram, moved him up a station. An out later, Josh came up big again, flipping a slider into center and taking second on the throw home as Marte made it 5-2; they had a much better shot at Harrison. He stayed there as Travis bounced out. Ramirez broke an eight-out streak by the Brewers by drawing a one-out walk. Davis lined a 3-2 change short of the track in left that Marte pulled in. Ricky Weeks banged another change to left for a double, with Ramirez holding up at third. Mark Reynolds roped another change to left at Marte to end the frame; could be Locke might want to show another pitch pretty soon.

The Pirates kept adding on as Cutch drilled a fastball yard to right center, a 438' shot, to open the fifth. Two outs later, Gaby beat out his annual infield knock and was forced by Jordy. Jean Segura walked to start the Brew Crew half. Gallardo flew out; he's hit a couple of pretty good balls off Locke. Then something you don't see often happened. Carlos Gomez fouled out to Gaby - and somehow Segura managed to get doubled off first; maybe he thought the ball was going to drop fair. At any rate, thank you kindly, Jean!

Marco Estrada took the bump for the Brewers in the sixth, and got two whiffs and a soft liner to tuck the Bucs away. A-Ram walked with two down, and Davis waited out a free pass next. He fell behind Weeks 2-0, fooled him on a change, and escaped the inning when Ricky hit a ball in the hole; Jordy made the heads-up play and barely forced A-Ram at third. The Brewers challenged that Josh's foot was off the bag, but the call stood as there was no good replay angle to overturn the call. The Bucs may have dodged a bullet with that ruling.

With an out in the seventh, The Kid spanked a fastball away into left center for a two-bagger, but was left aboard. Jared Hughes raced in to take the ball.  With two gone, one turned on a nice grab by Josh at the hot corner o, pinch hitter Lyle Overbay drilled a 3-2 fastball up the middle for a single. Carlos Gomez flew out on the next pitch to sit down the Brewers.

Brandon Kintzler took the hill in the eighth. Marte opened by reaching on the Brewer's third boot of the night. The Brewers pitched out; Starling still stole second. A bouncer to short froze him, and Pedro grabbed a stick. He fouled off a fastball and swung through a pair of change ups *sigh*. But Josh likes two out pressure; he swung at ball four on a 3-2 count and yanked it up the line and over the left field wall to give Pittsburgh an 8-2 cushion.

John Axford took the bump against his old mates. After an out, Braun fought off a heater and sent it into right for a single. A-Ram took a 3-2 heater to right to put Brewers on the corners. Davis went down chasing high heat, but Weeks banged a grounder into right to score Braun before Reynolds grounded out to first. You can see Milwaukee knows him; they were patient and went with the pitch; four of the five hitters that put the ball in play took it to the right side as Axford likes to work up and on the outside half.

Old Bucco Tom Gorzelanny came in for the ninth. Russ rolled a single up the middle with two gone before Gbay flew out to end the frame. Justin Wilson took the ball and walked Gerardo Parro and Gomez back-to-back with one gone, just what you don't want to see with a five run lead, especially with the heart of the order coming up. He found the strike zone and got Lucroy to fly out to right. Braun bounced the next pitch to short, where Jordy made a nice snatch and Gaby a nice pick, to give the Bucs the first game of a big series.

Josh had his Superman cape on tonight, and Starling scored three times. The Bucs played very nice D, while the Brewers...well, didn't. The pitching still has to be a concern. Locke gave up two runs on two hits, but six walks and no K don't bode well as he was elevated and off the plate the whole six frames. Jared did what a reliever is supposed to, but Axford and Wilson had trouble throwing strikes with a big lead. But hey, it's a great start to the series, and the Bucs are in a stretch where they need to take series.

Edinson Volquez faces Wily Peralta tomorrow night.

• Josh Harrison had a career-high five RBI tonight - and all with two outs.
• Tony Sanchez played first tonight for Indy; it's the first time he's ever played the position as a pro.
• Jose Tabata has had multi-hit games in eight of last 13 contests for Indy.

Locke v Gallardo, Lineup, Travis, Stretch Run, Injuries, EL-All Stars

Jeff Locke (4-3, 3.73) opens the series tonight against Yovani Gallardo (8-6, 3.32).

Locke is coming off his most promising start in quite a spell against the Nationals. The Bucs, with Charlie Morton down, are going to need him to shake off his command issues, get down and aggressive in the strike zone and pitch like All-Star Jeff. He's not seen the Brewers very often, and hasn't had much luck against them when he has. Locke has a 1-2/4.55 line in five career starts against the Brew Crew, but had a good outing against them in June.

Gallardo is coming off a 3-2 win over Clayton Kershaw, but despite that has been a bit inconsistent this year. That win was only the second time this campaign that he's strung together back-to-back victories. Yovani pretty much thrives against the Bucs, though. He's put together a 12-4/2.57 slash in 24 career games against the Pirates and already beaten them once this season - a 1-0 victory at PNC Park against Locke.

The lineup: Josh Harrison 3B, Travis Snider LF, Cutch CF, Neil Walker 2B, Russ Martin C, Gaby Sanchez 1B, Starling Marte LF, Jordy Mercer SS and Locke P. No surprises.

Pittsburgh is 3-10 against the Brewers this year and 13-53 at Miller Park since 2007 (1-5 this year). But the Pirates are about as healthy as they've been in a while, so it's time to get out of survival mode, kick it into gear and start winning series again in the final five weeks.

The game starts at 8:10 and will be aired by Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

• Travis Snider enters tonight's contest with an 11-game hitting streak.
• The race: The Pirates are six games behind the Brewers in the NL Central race. The wild card has them behind the eight-ball, too. The Bucs are 4-1/2 games behind the Cards for the top spot and two games behind the Giants for the final spot.
• Injury list: Clint Barmes played in back-to-back rehab games at Indy and played his first full nine-inning contest yesterday as his recovery continues w/o hitch (except for that 1-for-11 batting line). Stolmy Pimentel pitched an inning for Altoona, using nine pitches to get three outs with a whiff. Charlie Morton, who has a sports hernia, will be out indefinitely.
• RHP Adrian Sampson and C Elias Diaz were selected to the Eastern League season-ending All-Star squad today. Both the former Altoona Curve players have been promoted to Indy.

8/22: Ned Hanlon, Howie Camnitz, DH Sweeps, Swatfest, Hot Hans, Big 3, Briles 1-Hitter, Long Ball & More...

Ned Hanlon, Howie Camnitz, DH Sweeps, Swatfest, Hot Hans, Big 3, Briles 1-Hitter, Long Ball & More...

• 1857 - CF and manager Ned Hanlon was born in Montville, Connecticut. He played in 1889 and 1891 for the Pirates, hitting .252, with a year in between spent as a Pittsburg Burgher in the Players League where he hit .278. He was a player/manager all three years, and “Foxy Ned” was credited with coming up with the "hit and run" and the Baltimore chop. Hanlon was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veteran’s Committee in 1996. 
• 1881 - RHP Howie Camnitz was born in Covington, Kentucky. He pitched nine seasons for Pittsburgh (1904-13), going 116-84 with a 2.63 ERA and posting three 20 win seasons. Camnitz was a member of the 1909 World Series club. He finished his career by pitching a couple of years in the upstart Federal League for the aptly named Pittsburgh Rebels. 
• 1903 - The Pirates beat the last place Phillies 7-4 in the second game of a doubleheader sweep at Philadelphia. With that win, the Pirates had 1,409 wins and 1,409 losses since playing MLB in 1882, originally as the Alleghenys of the major league American Association. Even with some rough decades of losing ball, the franchise hasn’t dipped below .500 since then, per Chris Jaffe of The Hardball Times. 
• 1906 - Vic Willis edged the NY Giant’s Christy Mathewson 2-1 at Exposition Park. After falling behind in the first inning, the Pirates evened the score in the fifth on two errors followed by two walks, then won in the ninth when Claude Ritchey walked, was bunted to second, and scored with two down on Fred Clarke’s double to right center. 

Vic Willis undated Hall of Fame series

• 1907 - As the Pittsburg Press reported “It was a regular swatfest from start to finish, the Buccaneers having no mercy...but hammering the ball to all corners of the lot” in a 20-5 win over the NY Giants at the Polo Grounds. George Gibson, Ed Abbaticchio and Alan Storke had four hits each while Tommy Leach and Fred Clarke had three. Lefty Leifield cruised to the win. 
• 1910 - Honus Wagner led the Bucs to a 6-2, 8-4, doubleheader sweep against the Philadelphia Phillies at Forbes Field, going 7-for-7 with two homers, three doubles and a sac fly. The Bucs set a record in the second game by hitting three homers in an inning for the first time when Howie Camnitz, Vin Campbell and Hans connected. It was Camnitz’s only MLB home run. 
• 1912 - Honus Wagner hit for the cycle in an 8-6 loss to the NY Giants at Forbes Field. 
• 1917 - The Pirates lost the longest game in innings they ever played, 6-5, in 22 frames to the Brooklyn Robins at Ebbet’s Field despite Carson Bigbee’s six hits (Bigbee set the MLB record with 11 at-bats in a single game). The game was the longest in NL history to that point. Poor Elmer Jacobs tossed 16-2/3 innings, giving up one run - and lost. The match was, as fate would have it, the opener of a double header; the second game went two innings before being called for darkness. It was the fourth straight extra-inning game for Pittsburgh, and third against Brooklyn. 

Carson "Skeeter" Bigbee - Oregon State Hall of Fame

• 1925 - The Pirates swept a doubleheader from the second place NY Giants by 8-1 and 2-1 scores at the Polo Grounds behind the pitching of Lee Meadows and Vic Aldridge to take a five game lead in the NL race. Kiki Cuyler had three hits, including a homer, three RBI and two runs scored in the opener, while Glenn Wright’s two run homer in the seventh was the difference in the nitecap. The Pirates pulled away from the Giants and won the pennant by 8-1/2 games. 
• 1928 - The Bucs big three of Paul Waner, Lloyd Waner and Pie Traynor led Pittsburgh to a 10-3 win over the Boston Braves at Forbes Field. Big Poison and Pie had three hits and three RBI apiece while the Waner brothers each scored three runs. Erv Brame tossed a six hitter for the win. 
• 1962 - Tom Sturdivant’s knuckler fluttered its way past the Colt .45 bats for eight whiffs as he tossed a three hit, complete game whitewash against Houston at Forbes Field, winning 3-0. Bob Skinner’s two run triple followed by Roberto Clemente’s sac fly in the third provided all the Bucco runs. Clemente preserved the shutout by making a wall-crashing grab of Jim Pendleton’s ninth inning drive with a runner on second.
• 1970 - The Pirates beat Los Angeles 2-1 in 16 innings at Dodger Stadium. Roberto Clemente went 5-for-7 and scored the winning run when he led off the 16th with a single, stole second and came in on Jerry May’s two out knock to left. Four Pirate pitchers scattered seven hits, with Bruce Dal Canton getting the W, but they kept it interesting by issuing 11 walks; they even allowed LA pitcher Don Sutton to steal the only base of his career. The Dodgers went 0-for-15 with runners in scoring position. 
• 1972 - Nellie Briles tossed a one hitter, giving up just a two-out, seventh inning single to Ken Henderson, to beat Juan Marichal and the SF Giants 1-0 at Candlestick Park. The game’s only score came in the first when Roberto Clemente reached on a two-out error by Tito Fuentes and came home on Willie Stargell’s double. Henderson was the only Giant baserunner; Briles didn’t walk anyone and whiffed six. 

Nellie Briles - Undated UPMC Card

• 1975 - Pittsburgh swept the Reds in a doubleheader at TRS by 7-2 and 4-2 tallies. In the opener, Richie Zisk homered twice and Rennie Stennett had three hits to support Larry Demery. John Candelaria spun a four-hitter in the second game, backed by homers off the bats of Dave Parker and Richie Hebner. 
• 1979 - The Pirates scored twice in the seventh and added two more in the eighth to rally past the SF Giants 8-6 at TRS. Tim Foli had four RBI, and his two-out, two run single up the middle drove in the winning runs in the eighth. Dave Parker also collected his 1,000th hit. Kent Tekulve, the last of four Pirate pitchers, got the win after tossing two scoreless innings of relief. 
• 2007 - The Bucs bashed out six homers (Nate McLouth - 2, Freddy Sanchez, Xavier Nady, Jason Bay, Jack Wilson) to bang out an 11-2 decision over the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Sanchez had four hits and three RBI to plow the road for Tom Gorzelanny’s win.

8/21: Rennie Breaks Leg, Chief Wilson, Leever, Maddox, Dickson, Lynch, Reuschel, Joey Bats, JT's Deal...

Rennie Breaks Leg, Chief Wilson, Leever, Maddox, Dickson, Lynch, Reuschel, Joey Bats, JT's Deal...

• 1883 - John Owen “Chief” Wilson was born at his family's ranch in Bertram, Texas. Chief, by the way, wasn’t a native American; his moniker was given by manager Fred Clarke, who thought the clean cut Wilson looked like a "Chief of the Texas Rangers." He set the organized baseball record of 36 triples in 1912. Chief was a Pirate for six years (1908-13), driving in a league-leading 107 runs in 1911 and hitting .274 as a Bucco. He was the starting RF for the 1909 World Championship club.
• 1902 - Sam Leever outdueled Christy Mathewson 2-0 in the opener of a doubleheader at Exposition Park; Leever surrendered three hits and Matty six. The NY Giant bats woke up in the second game as NY earned a split with an 8-1 victory. 
• 1908 - The Pittsburg Press wrote that “Nick Maddox was pretty nearly the whole show at Exposition Park...” and it was right. Maddox tossed a seven hit complete game, had three hits and drove in both Bucco runs in a 2-1 win over the Brooklyn Superbas. 

Nick Maddox 1909-11 White Border series

• 1916 - RHP Murry Dickson was born in Tracy, Missouri. He tossed five years (1949-53) for some sad Pirate teams, leading the league in losses in 1952-53. But he also won 34 games in 1951-52 for Buc squads that tasted victory just 106 times, so he was responsible for nearly ⅓ of the Pirate wins during that span. He was an All Star in 1953, with a Pittsburgh final line of 66-85/3.83. 
• 1953 - After 13 straight wins‚ the first place Dodgers finally lost‚ going down to Murry Dickson and the last-place Pirates 7-1 at Forbes Field. Frank Thomas had a homer and four RBI in the victory. 
• 1963 - Jerry Lynch set a MLB record for pinch-hit home runs when he hit his 15th to best George Crowe’s mark, a ninth-inning blast off Lindy McDaniel. He drilled a 3-1 fastball that gave the Pirates a 7-6 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Lynch retired in 1966 with 18 pinch-hit homers, the record until Cliff Johnson broke it in 1984. Matt Stairs now holds the MLB record. 
• 1977 - Rennie Stennett broke his right leg sliding into second against the Giants at TRS. Stennett never recovered fully, and his best BA after the accident was just .244. To rub some salt into the wound, the Bucs lost the game 5-4. And Stennett, who was leading the league in batting, fell 12 at-bats short of qualifying for the title, though his .336 BA would have been nosed out by the eventual winner, teammate Dave Parker, who hit .338. 

Rennie Stennett 1976 Isalys Disc

• 1987 - Vet Rick Reuschel was sent to the Giants for two pitchers, Jeff Robinson and Scott Medvin. Reuschel had two strong years on the Bay, winning 36 games and earning an All-Star berth. Robinson lasted three years in Pittsburgh as a fairly solid reliever/spot starter while Medvin put in one season for the Bucs.
• 2008 - Jose Bautista was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for a PTBNL, who ended up being C Robinzon Diaz. Bautista bloomed as a slugger in Toronto and while no one saw it coming at the time, it ended up among the worst deals in Bucco history. 
• 2011 - The Pirates announced a six year extension of Jose Tabata’s contract. It guaranteed him $15M and included three club option years. JT’s advisers quit, believing the terms were too team friendly; that has yet to be seen.

Jose Tabata 2012 Topps Heritage series

Bucs Finally Catch A Break In 3-2 Walk Off Win

We'll see if the Cole Train can pick up where he left off last year. At this point in 2013, he was 6-6/3.88; now he's 7-4/3.78. A big finish by the 23 year old would do a lot so far as holding together a staff that's been flagging of late.

A walk, a whiff and back-to-back singles made it 1-0 quickly, but Cole worked Chris Johnson for a 6-4-3 DP, so the damage wasn't too horrific. Josh opened with a double off Alex Wood and then got himself picked off second a pitch later, although it took a NY review to ring him up; we were a bit surprised that they overturned a bang-bang play. A pair of grounders ended the frame before the Pirates could get into any more mischief.

Evan Gattis led off the second with a double, but stayed put as Cole cut through the bottom of the Bravo order. With one gone, Gaby singled the opposite way but Wood came up with a couple more bouncers. The Bucs are in the hole at the plate a lot early on; they might note that both hits were on first pitch fastballs.

Cole tucked the Braves away with a couple of K in the third, though it took him 20 pitches to get three outs. Wood worked a clean frame, too. Gerrit was much more efficient in the fourth, sitting down the Bravos on seven pitches and is at a comfortable 48 tosses. Wood mowed down the Bucs with a pair of punchouts; his curve/change combo off his fastball is keeping Pittsburgh completely off balance so far.

It was 1-2-3 for the Braves in the fifth. With one gone for Pittsburgh, Travis singled on a hustle infield hit, but erased quickly when Stew grounded into a tailor-made DP. Jason Heyward turned on a fastball to open the sixth and doubled to right center. Andrelton Simmons bunted him up, earning Freddy Freeman an intentional walk. Cole threw a curve past Stewart, advancing the runners. Justin Upton walked to juice the sacks.

Chris Johnson blooped a 1-2 heater the opposite way to right; one run scored but a second was cut down at the plate by Travis. The play at home was reviewed, and no plate-blocking was detected, so the out stood. Gattis whiffed with Atlanta now up 2-0. The Pirates were retired in order; not much happening with the Louisville Sluggers so far tonight.

With an out in the seventh, BJ Upton walked after ump Paul Nauert missed a 1-2 strike; hopefully that won't bite the Bucs. He was bunted to second, but Cole got Heyward on a well hit ball to right, pulled in short of the track by Travis. Got to figure that at 97 pitches, Cole is done after a strong start; his heater sat at 94-96 and he touched 98, even in this frame, and his slider was a nice side pitch with a show-me curve. The Bucs went down in a row, Mercer and Marte both hit at 'em balls.

Tony Watson came on in the eighth, and the Braves were back in the field after eight pitches. Gaby walked to open the Buc half. Wood threw Travis three straight curves at the belt; he took the first two for strikes and drilled the next into right for a ground rule double.

That brought on Jordan Walden, who got Stew to bounce out to first for a productive out, scoring Gaby and moving Travis to third. The Kid hit for Jayson Nix. Gattis stopped one wayward slider to save a run, but couldn't stop a second off his knee pads, allowing Travis to score and also ball four to Walker. El Coffee grabbed a stick, but it was a wasted at-bat as he looked bad K'ing on three pitches. Josh bounced out to third to end the fun with the score now 2-2.

Walden has got one the weirdest deliveries in the game, sort of jumping at the batter, and it sure looks like he lifts his foot off the rubber before he delivers. But he's been getting away with it for five years, so...

Mark the Shark took the ball in the ninth, with The Kid staying in at second. Melancon's cutter was really moving, and he used it almost exclusively in pitching a routine frame. David Carpenter took the bump, and Jordy greeted him with a dink single to left. After Cutch popped out, Starling lifted a gapper and the Upton brothers weren't sure who should play it; Justin dropped the ball to put Bucs on second and third. Gaby did something quite unlike a Pirate batter; he hit a fly ball with a runner on third, and it was deep enough to plate Jordy as the Bucs snapped a long drought with a 3-2 win.

They were due for a break and finally got one; the win also coincides with a Buc pitcher not surrendering a big inning and the fielders not booting one in the clutch. So nice day at the office, and they need a bunch more. If they get hot, the schedule is their friend. If not...

The Bucs are off tomorrow as they travel to Milwaukee. If they can pick up their level of play, they have an opportunity to get into the mix again. The next stretch of games consists of series against the Brewers, Cards, Reds, Cards again and then the improved Cubs, which will carry them through the first week of September.

• Travis Snider extended his hitting streak to 11 games. Starling's ended at six.
• Gregory Polanco is in a 1-for-27 skid.
• There were 26,581 die-hards in the stands tonight. 
• Clint Barmes went 1-for-4 at Indy today, with a homer.