Reds Play Longball, Romp In Nightcap 8-1 For Split

Bryan Reynolds doubled with two away against Sonny Gray for the first round damage. Mitch Keller walked his first batter after being up 0-2, followed by a rap to bookend Reds. Another walk loaded the sacks; ump Jansen Visconti behind the plate isn't giving up any low strikes. A whiff was followed by a rap to make it 1-0. Jose Iglesias cleared the bases with a granny *ugh*. After another out, a double on fan interference, an infield knock by the pitcher, and single plated another run before his second K ended it, after 41 tosses. Jake singled with two gone in the second to no avail. Mitch calmed down his pulse rate in the second and tossed a clean, two-strikeout frame. It was a 1-2-3 third for Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. It was a quiet fourth for the Pirates; the Reds managed a two-out knock. The Buccos loaded the bases in the fifth on a Joey O leadoff double and a pair of two-out walks before Gregory fanned; so much for igniting a comeback. Alex McRae got the ball; he bopped the first hitter, then served a pop up and around-the-horn DP; you won't see many Osuna-Moran-Bell double dippers scooped...

Josh is raking; he's hitting .340 - 2017 Topps Allen & Ginter

Bryan Reynolds singled and J-Bell doubled to open the sixth, and a Joey O bouncer chased a run home between a pair of K. McRae got through with just a two-out single. Cody Reed got the call in the seventh. McRae singled off him with an out; Starling rolled into a DP. McRae got two outs and was 3-2 on Derek Dietrich; the next two pitches to DD and Yasiel Puig both left the yard (and Dietrich put on quite the "look at me, I'm all that" show). Gregory and J-Bell singled around an out in the eighth, again leading to nothing. Ric Rod toed the slab for the second time today and tossed a clean frame. Matt Bowman was the ninth-inning guy and turned out the lights.

The Reds jumped Mitch in a hurry, but were pretty well tamed after the first frame. Alex McRae did well enough, except for a two-pitch sequence, and saved dinging the pen. Still, eight runs is a lot to overcome, especially when you're 0-for-9 w/RISP, but when you throw out the Sunday lineup, that's a pretty likely result. So a long day ended in a split with two more to go in Queen City.

Notes:

• Bryan Reynolds and J-Bell had two hits each; no other Buc reached base more than once.
• Mitch Keller retired 10 of his last 11 hitters after being toasted in the first inning, and fanned seven in four frames. He has a history of rough debuts at each level; we'll knock on wood that butterflies were the jinx in the first inning.

Let's Play Two: Mitch v Sonny Gray, Lineup & Notes

Game #2: The night portion of today's twin bill starts at 7:10. It will be on AT&T SportsNet and 93.7 The Fan.

Lineup: Starling Marte CF, Gregory Polanco RF, Bryan Reynolds LF, Josh Bell 1B, Colin Moran 2B, Jose Osuna 3B, Jake Stallings C, Cole Tucker SS, Mitch Keller P. Pretty interesting lineup behind Keller. Fraze did get a ball bounced off his foot in the first game; that may have played into putting together tonight's lineup. We are kinda surprised K-Man isn't at second and Redbeard at third; it may also just be that Clint wants to get Joey O some action.

Mitch to pitch. photo Dave Arrigo/Pittsburgh Pirates

Pitchers: RHP Mitch Keller v RHP Sonny Gray (1-4/3.78). Keller has shown promise in his past couple of Indy games while working on a new pitch and mechanics. The Bucs are calling him up based on need rather than readiness (at least that's their story) but either way, we finally get to see for ourselves. Gray has lost twice to Pittsburgh this year, with one not-so-hot outing where he was wild and chased in the third, followed by a three-hit, one-run game with seven K that he took into the seventh inning. Spoiler alert: the Reds were shutout in both his losses, 5-0 and 2-0.

Notes:

• Montana DuRapau was optioned back to Indy to clear a roster spot for Mitch Keller.
• We'd expect Frankie and Kyle to be on ice for this game, both being used for multi-innings in the opener. Liriano tossed the ball 30 times and Crick twirled 26. The Nightmare spun 23 offerings to get his four outs, and whether that gets him a seat or not will be seen (it's pretty likely).
• Ol' Bucco long man RHP Jeanmar Gomez was DFA'ed by Texas.

J-Bell, Starling Go Long; Reynolds Chases Home the Winner As Bucs Take Opener 8-5

Fraze banged Luis Castillo's second pitch into right to open the contest, then J-Bell walked with two gone. Melky spanked one, but right to second to end the frame. Nick gave up a two-out rap with no damage done. Eli walked with an out in the second; a DP took care of that. Nick tossed a clean frame; both twirlers have taken advantage of Laz Diaz's generous if erratic strike zone. Castillo walked Kingham to open the third but the Pirates aren't in a taking mood so far. The Reds led off with a knock, and with one out followed with another, mitigated by Bryan Reynolds, who tossed out the lead runner at third to help The King to a third goose egg. Melky was bopped with a fastball with an out in the fourth (he was hit in the elbow and his usually pro demeanor was replaced by some obvious displeasure at Castillo). He was balked to second (he was actually picked off before the ruling) and went to third on Redbeard's rap, who hustled to second when the throw went through. Cabrera plated on Eli's sac fly, sliding in just ahead of throw in a collision with the catcher; tough lap for the ol' vet. An infield single put Bucs on the corners before Nick K'ed, but at least the order turned over. The Cincy's got a two-out walk for their efforts.

Bryan's having a pretty good rookie campaign so far - photo Pittsburgh Pirates

The Bucs keep stacking up runners; a Fraze single was followed by a DP by another walk, but no scoring. Castillo has allowed five free men on base so far; only one has bitten him. The Reds moved a leadoff single to second with a bunt. He almost got away; back-to-back-to-back two-out doubles made it 3-1 to ruin a good opening; the third time around the order caught up. Ric Rod got a whiff to finish it up. Melky and Redbeard started the sixth with raps. Eli tried to hit into another DP, but Votto dropped the relay to leave Bucs at first and third. K-Man knocked a ball to short; the flip to second was muffed, allowing a run to score and keeping the party going. Gregory grabbed some lumber and lefty Amir Garrett grabbed the ball. He got ahead 0-2, wasted a chase slider, and then watched El Coffee slap a heater to left to tie the game before he stomped out the flames. Frankie took over and was met with an infield knock. A fly, caught by a sliding Melky, and twin killing TCB. With one gone in the seventh, J-Bell ran into a slider and the Pirates were up 4-3. Matt Bowman came in to take on Eli, and left him standing there after looking at three strikes.

Starling iced it - photo Pittsburgh Pirates

Frankie lost consecutive Redlegs after full counts with an out, and a single loaded 'em up, bringing in Kyle Crick. A sac fly tied it. David Hernandez worked the eighth, and Tuck doubled on a ball that ticked off the CF'ers mitt. Fraze took one for the team on a two-strike back-foot slider. Reynolds fell behind 0-2, trusted Laz Diaz by taking a couple of borderline pitches, then swatted a curve the opp way for two bags and two runs, going to third on the play (it was later ruled a triple). Starling then went long to right center and the pad was up to four runs. Wandy Peralta was waved in and calmed the waters. Crick was tagged for a leadoff double and then gave up a four-pitch walk an out later. He came back with a three-pitch whiff, then another walk (Laz missed strike three, but that fuzzy strike zone has been his MO for both sides all day, c'est la vie). Felipe came in to get the last out, and fell behind 3-1 but came back for the K. Wandy mowed down the Pirates in the ninth. Of course, it's never easy; the Reds opened with consecutive raps to put runners on the corners. A K, sac fly and bouncer closed it out with no further drama.  Raise the Roger.

Notes:

• Every Pirates position starter reached safely, with all but Eli ringing up a hit. Redbeard, Melky and Fraze each had two raps; J-Bell and Starling hit dingers and Bryan Reynold's triple plated the winning runs.
• No surprise that Felipe was rusty; he hadn't pitched since May 19th. The Nightmare earned the save as he faced the tying run in the eighth and then finished the game. Kyle Crick, btw, got the win/blown save combo. 
• Bryan Reynolds was touted as a CF candidate as a prospect, and while he's not been all that in the middle (-1 DRS), coming into today he's +5 DRS in left with a second assist picked up in this game. 
• Neal wants a free pass for catchers to get in-game concussion evaluations.
• In a depth move, the Pirates picked up RHP Yefry Ramirez from the Orioles for a PTBNL or cash. He's a starter/reliever with some MLB experience and will report to Indy.

Game #1: The King v Luis Castillo, Lineup & Notes - Ric Rod 26th Man; McRae Up & Dovy Down

Game #1: The day game starts at 1:10 at Great American Ballpark. It will be aired by AT&T SportsNet and 93.7 The Fan.

Lineup: Adam Frazier 2B, Bryan Reynolds LF, Starling Marte CF, Josh Bell 1B, Melky Cabrera RF, Colin Moran 3B, Elias Diaz C, Kevin Newman SS, Nick Kingham P. Looks like K-Man has taken over at short; makes sense to save the glove guy for defensive purposes later in the game. Redbeard is a no-brainer; he's hitting .327 over the past three weeks (17 games).

The King gets another shot - photo Pittsburgh Pirates

Pitchers: RHP Nick Kingham (1-1/8.76) v RHP Luis Castillo (5-1/2.38). In May, Nick has tossed 14-1/3 IP and doubled his ERA. He's gone 0-1/11.93 in those four outings (two starts) with 19 runs, 27 hits, 10 walks and three homers surrendered. Against the Reds, he made a pair of relief outings and is 1-0/4.50 with five whiffs in four frames, so there's that. And he hasn't had much ball luck - his FIP is 5.05, so he's due for good bounces. In six starts against the Bucs, Castillo slashes 1-3/3.58, but was dominant in his only start this year, giving up a run on two hits with eight K in late March.

Notes:

• Rich Rodriguez will be the 26th man for today's twin bill, which means he's here for one day. It also indicates that the Bucs are ready to give Mitch Keller more than one outing to show his stuff. No roster move has been announced yet to clear Mitch's roster spot; we assume that will be made between games.  Pittsburgh also called up RHP Alex McRae and optioned Dovy Neverauskas back to Indy. Corey Dickerson was flipped to the 60-day IL, leaving him a week of rehab at Indy before he's eligible to return.
• The Pirates haven't seen the Reds since April 7th, but they may be right on time - Pittsburgh has won five in a row against the Redlegs. The Bucs have held them to 2.5 runs/game; we'll see how the restructured staff measures up.
• Per Joe Block, this is the first Memorial Day doubleheader since 1932 between the Reds and Bucs. That was at Forbes Field; this is the first ever in Cincinnati.
• Richard Justice of MLB.com has J-Bell on his list of breakout players that look for real.

5/27 Through the 1960’s: Vinegar Bend Deal; Coop Streak; HBD Ross, George & Jacob

• 1921 - Wilbur Cooper won his eighth straight game, this one by a 5-4 count at Forbes Field against Cincinnati when the Pirates pushed across a ninth inning run. All eight of Cooper’s victories were complete games. Rabbit Maranville’s sac fly brought in Walter Schmidt with the winning tally in the home half of the ninth. Maranville also tripled and scored twice for the Pirates. Between June and July, Cooper would go on an 8-of-10 win streak, and his two hot spells would carry him to a 22-win season for the Pirates. 

Wilbur Cooper - American Caramel

• 1927 - The Pirates overcame a 7-1 deficit by scoring six times in the sixth and seventh innings to defeat the St. Louis Cards in 10 innings at Forbes Field by an 8-7 count. They ran their victory streak to nine games; it reached 11 before being snapped. Kiki Cuyler had three hits to spark the Bucs. Guy Bush pitched three innings of one-hit ball for the win. 
• 1929 - RHP George O’Donnell was born in Winchester, Illinois. The epitome of a AAAA player, the knuckleballer was signed out of high school by St. Louis in 1948 but only got one MLB shot, for the Pirates in 1954 when he slashed 3-9/4.53. O'Donnell tossed in the minors through 1961 as part of the Browns, Pirates, LA Dodgers and Senators systems. In all, George appeared in 530 MiLB games w/1,948 IP and a career 127-93/3.44 line with two 20 win campaigns. He also played in Mexico, Cuba, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. George retired to farm and then took a job with the state of Illinois. 
• 1955 - LHP Ross Baumgarten was born in Highland Park, Illinois. Ross tossed the last of his five big league campaigns with Pittsburgh in 1982, coming to town as the key piece of the Vance Law deal, and went 0-5, 6.75. Ross, who finished fourth in the Rookie-of-the-Year voting in 1979, hurt his arm as a Pirate, though the injury remains a mystery to even him. He told Ed Sherman of Spotlight Stories that “I went to see seven of the top doctors in the country, and I got like seven different diagnoses. In those days it was totally different than now. You know, there was no MRIs.” But he landed on his feet, using his U of Florida training to land a job in finance in 1984 and has been building portfolios ever since. 
• 1956 - On the way home from a Philadelphia rainout, 1B Dale Long took a detour and stopped in NYC as a guest of Ed Sullivan on his show “Toast of the Town” after hitting homers in seven straight games. After the appearance, he hurried back to Pittsburgh and hit his eighth against Brooklyn. 

Vinegar Bend - 1980 TCMA 1960 Pirates

• 1960 - Pittsburgh acquired 29-year-old LHP Wilmer "Vinegar Bend" Mizell from the Cardinals‚ along with LF Dick Gray‚ for minor leaguers IF Julian Javier and RHP Ed Bauta. Javier started at 2B for the Cards for a dozen years, but he was blocked in Pittsburgh by a guy named Bill Mazeroski. Mizell went 13-5 for the Bucs with a 3.15 ERA, solidifying their staff during their World Championship run. 
• 1963 - The Pirates and Indians held an interleague exhibition game at Forbes Field to help the Pirates Youth Organization program HYPO - “Help Young Players Organize” - with a special pregame ceremony for the Tribes’ Sam McDowell and Tito Francona, both local guys. The Pirates returned the favor in August, playing in Cleveland to help its youth baseball. The Bucs won the contest 10-9, in what the paper described as a “sandlot game” that featured six errors between the clubs. 
• 1965 - OF Jacob Brumfield was born in Bogalusa, Louisiana. Jacob spent the middle part of his seven year career as a Pirate from 1995-96, traded here for Danny Clymer. He hit .268 in Pittsburgh before being dealt to Toronto for a minor leaguer. He’s best remembered for his head-on collision with fellow outfielder Dave Clark. The two met full speed ahead and Clark broke his collarbone while Brumfield had 15 stitches worth of cuts on his face. 1999 was his final MLB year, followed by a season in the minors and one more season playing indie ball before he hung ‘em up for good.

5/27 From 1970: Big Boy Brett; Walking It Off; Game Stories; HBD Tanner

• 1974 - It was a big day for Ken Brett in a DH sweep against the San Diego Padres at TRS. In the opener, he carried a no-hitter into the ninth, settling for a two-hit, 6-0 win in a game that wasn’t decided until the Bucs put up a five spot in the eighth. With that, it took all of 1:38 to play. In the nitecap, his two-run pinch hit triple primed a five-run seventh that keyed the Bucs 8-7 victory (the match was eventually won in the ninth on a two-run, two out homer by Richie Hebner). Brett ended the day going 2-for-4 with a triple, two runs scored and three RBI to go along with his two-hitter in one of the Bucs’ top “do it all” performances. 

Ken Brett 1974 Topps

• 1993 - RHP Tanner Anderson was born in Boynton Beach, Florida. The Bucs drafted him in the 20th round of the 2015 draft as a senior from Harvard. Tanner worked his way through the system as both a starter and reliever; from the pen, he was 1-1-1/2.86 for AAA Indianapolis and got a call to the big club in late June of 2018. He was rocked in his first outing against the LA Dodgers, and sent down. He won his first MLB game against the Brewers after being recalled in July. He was sent to Oakland in an off season minor-league deal 
• 2006 - The Pirates won an 8-7, 18-inning match at PNC Park against the Astros when Jason Bay flattened Astros' catcher Eric Munson to score on Jose Bautista’s shallow sac fly. The game time of five hours, 49 minutes tied it as the longest contest ever played in Pittsburgh. Bay also hit a homer in his fifth consecutive game, the first Pirate player to do so in 50 years. While not quite in Dale Long territory, he became the first player in club history to hit nine home runs in nine games for the team. 
• 2015 - The Pirates scored five times in the seventh against the Miami Marlins after the bases were empty with two outs to turn a 2-0 deficit into a 5-2 win at PNC Park for their sixth victory in a row. Chris Stewart, Jose Tabata and Josh Harrison singled, scoring a run. Pedro Alvarez dribbled one through the SS hole against the shift to bring home the tying tally, then Andrew McCutchen walked to load the bases. Starling Marte took a 3-2 pitch down and away for a run-producing free pass and the lead. Jung-Ho Kang drilled a final two run-single, and that was the ballgame. Gerrit Cole got his seventh win while Mark Melancon earned his 12th save. 
• 2016 - The Pirates banged out four homers, hit by Starling Marte, Jung Ho Kang, Gregory Polanco and Andrew McCutchen, to defeat the Texas Rangers easily at Globe Life Park 9-1. Jon Niese went six innings for the win, with help from Wilfredo Boscan and Rob Scahill. They defeated former NL nemesis Cole Hamels, who had a 19-start streak without Texas losing (he personally went 12-0 during that span) snapped by the Buccos. 

John Jaso - image Positively Pittsburgh

• 2017 - The Pirates saved the best for last, scoring in the ninth to send the game into extra innings and winning in the 10th with a two-out, two-strike, walk-off knock. The victim in front of 31,658 fans at PNC Park was the New York Mets. The Metropolitans scored four runs in five innings off Gerrit Cole but missed golden opportunities galore, leaving runners on second and third four times in that span. Andrew McCutchen kept the Bucs in it with a two-run blast and doubled home another in the sixth. Pinch hitter John Jaso tied the game with an RBI knock in the ninth and delivered the game-winner an inning later, fouling off four 3-2 pitches before dropping a bases-loaded single into right. The Pirate bullpen worked five innings of two-hit ball, retiring 12 in-a-row at one point, to earn Tony Watson a true team win.

Bucs Broomed By Dodgers 11-7

Arch walked the first batter on a full count; two of the four balls were clean strikes *sheesh* and an out later (a nice diving grab by Bryan Reynolds), LA got an infield single. No damage was caused by the two cheapos, though. Kenta Maeda tossed a clean, 10-pitch opener. Corey Seager homered on the first pitch of the second, then the next pair of Dodgers (the 7-8 hitters) walked and were bunted along. Arch did keep them there; he's dodging the raindrops early on. The Bucs showed a spark. J-Bell started with a rap and Bryan Reynolds knocked a pitch into the bleachers; he was hunting a 3-0 heater and got one. Then Redbeard singled before Maeda settled down. LA opened the third with a knock; it'd be a little easier on Archie if he could get the leadoff guy out. But he punched out the next set of Trolley Dodgers and got a grounder to ease on out. The Bucs went down quietly. Archer got the first out in the fourth - yay - then walked the eight hitter *sigh* who was bunted up but not cashed in. Redbeard slapped a two-out single to right, costing Kenta five more tosses.

Bryan Reynolds had two hits, including his fifth HR (photo Pittsburgh Pirates)

Max Muncy started the fifth with a 12-pitch walk; Arch is up to 84 pitches. That was followed by a single and another walk. Arch griped about the zone - he lost a couple of borderline calls - and was less pleased when Matt Beaty, hitting .190, bounced a two-run seeing-eye rap into right. A soft grounder plated another Dodger, and another knock put Left Coasters at first and second. A strikeout/wild pitch moved them up before Maeda grounded out. Fraze got a run back with a blast to center; it's 4-3 after five. Montana DuRapau got the sixth; his second pitch was launched over the fence by Joc Pederson. An out later, a single/double combo kept him in hot water. Fraze booted a ball to let a run leak in, followed by a walk and bopped batter; homeward trotted another Dodger. Dovy Neveraukas came in, and he clipped his first hitter. A sac fly and single brought in two more. It was 10-3 before the onslaught ended. The Bucs put together a walk and small herd of singles to answer with three runs of their own off Caleb Ferguson, leaving Pittsburgh with a weak pulse at 10-6.

Clay Holmes got the seventh, and a walk, grounder and single added another tally. Pedro Baez put up a zero, leaving a walk aboard. Holmes hit the first batter in the eight, but a K and 4-6-3 DP mopped it up. Yimi Garcia gave up a knock but no runs. Kyle Crick was waved in for the ninth after three days off, and was tapped for a single. Ross Stripling surrendered a run on a Fraze single and Gregory two-bagger on his way to pulling the plug.

Fraze also added a couple of knocks and scored twice (image Pittsburgh Pirates)

The Dodgers are a better team than Pittsburgh, no question. But you have to wonder if Frankie got the sixth inning how the game would have turned. The Dodgers had the top of their lefty lineup due, and they hit .290 w/143 OPS+ against RHP. But Clint didn't call on him (too early in the game for his money, maybe), and the game got away at that point. Yet he used Crick in the ninth while behind five runs; maybe he needs a little flexibility in his role-playing, though a doubleheader coming up and Indy's bullpen in Pirate unis could have colored his judgment. Something does have to be addressed, though - the Bucs allowed 12 free runners with eight walks, three bopped batters and a boot. At least Mitch Keller doesn't have the bar set too high for his start tomorrow.

Notes:

• Colin Moran had three hits while Fraze and Bryan Reynolds added a pair.
• The Dodgers have won 10 straight against the Pirates and are 11-1 against the Bucs in the past two seasons.
• The crowd was announced at 25,260.
• Neal suggested that Mitch Keller's stay in Pittsburgh is yet TBD, saying "He could be one and back...or get an extended opportunity." Sounds like the door is ajar if he can impress.
• Cervy was the 22nd Pirates player to hit the IL in 2019; that's the most going back to 2000 per Elias Sports, and with four more months left in the campaign. Jose Osuna will be the 41st player and Mitch Keller the 42nd carried on the Pirates MLB roster this season; they went through 48 all of last year.
• Corey Dickerson started in left today for Indy during his rehab visit; he crashed into the wall to rob a homer (and the shoulder survived) then added an RBI knock (he did K twice).
• The Dodgers eight doubles last night set a franchise record.

Archie v Kenta Maeda, Lineup & Notes - Jake & Joey O Up, Fran on 7-Day IL, Elmore DFA'ed

Game: It's Kids Day with first pitch at 1:35. The game will be aired by AT&T SportsNet & 93.7 The Fan. Kiddos will get a voucher good for a free ice cream at the ol' ballyard. The weather could get iffy by gametime, so knock on wood.

Lineup: Adam Frazier 2B, Starling Marte CF, Gregory Polanco RF, Josh Bell 1B, Bryan Reynolds LF, Colin Moran 3B, Elias Diaz C, Kevin Newman SS, Chris Archer P. K-Man's at short; Clint went with lumber over leather today.

K-Man at short - 2019 Topps Inception

Pitchers: RHP Chris Archer (1-4/5.55) closes the set against RHP Kenta Maeda (5-2/3.51), who is just off the IL after bruising his leg. Arch hasn't been so hot since his thumb acted up. In fact, his thumb issue began during a short, losing outing (four innings/six runs) against LA in April, so this would be a karmic time for him to straighten up. Archer has given up 11 runs in his last 8-2/3 IP and hasn't got into the sixth inning since mid-April. Kaeda is carrying a 14-2/3 IP goose egg run (he's worked three of his last four games without giving up a run) and has fanned 18 in his past 12-2/3 frames. He hasn't faced the Pirates since 2017.

Notes:

• C Jake Stallings and cornerman Jose Osuna were called up while C Fran Cervelli went on the 7-day concussion IL and utility dude Jake Elmore was DFA'ed.
• Adam Berry of MLB.com has the backdrop on Mitch Keller. Looks like he'll start the second game tomorrow (not yet confirmed); he's supposed to join the club in Cincy.
• JHK will begin his rehab at Indy, joining Corey Dickerson and Keone Kela.
• By the way, if you ever needed a reminder of the value of a long at-bat as the game goes on, look no further than Chris Taylor's 10-pitch effort against Joe Musgrove. He singled, Big Joe then went full on the pitcher and gave up a run-scoring two-bagger, then yielded three straight doubles to open the next frame. You never know when one little, well-timed, play will become a pivot point...
• The Rays just moved Tyler Glasnow (forearm sprain) to the 60-day IL.

5/26 Expo Park-Forbes Field Era: Haddix 12 IP Perfecto; Long Reaches 7; Game Stories; HBD Chuck, Jack & Dann

• 1874 - RHP Jack Cronin was born in West New Brighton, New York. He tossed four games for the Pirates as a 24-year-old, going 2-2/3.54 after being purchased from Fall River of the New England League in July of 1898. He was released and ended up with the Reds the following year. Jack had a long pro career lasting from 1895 until he tossed his last inning for Reading of the United States Baseball League in 1912, including seven years in MLB, although he was only part of a regular big-league rotation twice in that span and appeared a dozen or fewer times in the other five campaigns. 

Red & some rowdy friends tamed Cleveland - Ars Longa 

• 1894 - The Pirates were thumping Cleveland 12-3 in the top of the ninth when the crowd of 6,200 at League Park began to riot after being taunted by the 500 rooters had made the trip from Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh Press wrote “A more disgraceful affair never occurred upon a ball field...when the disappointed Forest City fans, unable to endure the disgrace of defeat, attacked the Pittsburg club, the rivalry at white heat...In a second, cushions and pop bottles were flying in all directions...the crowd swarmed out of the stands...” and rushed the field. Red Ehret got the win, backed by an 18-hit Bucco attack. 
• 1925 - Max Carey walked and then swiped second‚ third‚ and home during the Bucs 7-2 win over the Chicago Cubs. Kiki Cuyler added a two run homer and Al Neihaus drove in two more scores as Ray Kremer coasted to the win at Forbes Field. 
• 1942 - RHP Chuck Hartenstein was born in Seguin, Texas. After three years with the Cubs, he came to Pittsburgh in a minor deal and worked from the pen in 1969, slashing 5-4-10/3.95. He got off to rough a start in 1970 and was released, playing for the Cards and later Red Sox during the campaign. Chuck spent from 1971-76 in AAA before making a brief comeback in 1977 with the expansion Blue Jays. He coached and scouted afterward, finally leaving the game in 1995. The 5’ 11”, 150 lb. Hartenstein went by the nickname “Twiggy” for fairly obvious reasons, bestowed on him by the Cubs’ Billy Williams. 
• 1946 - Josh Gibson launched another long blast, this one 440’ into the Yankee Stadium bleachers, as the Homestead Grays whipped the NY Black Yankees 11-8. It was the Grays’ fourth straight win and propelled them into first place in the Negro National League. 

Josh Gibson 1993 Ted Williams

• 1952 - The Pirates were a pretty poor excuse for a baseball team this season, but they were feisty. Bucco P Ron Kline whizzed one over Cincy C Andy Seminick’s noodle in the second inning of the game at Forbes Field, which led to words between the backstop and Pirates coach Bill Posedel. They were close to blows and a crowd gathered, but peace was restored. Kline batted in the second and escaped without wearing a baseball, but Seminick and Posedel kept at it, started brawling, and both gangs joined in. George “Catfish” Metkovich was exchanging love taps with various Reds when he was wrestled to the ground by Cincinnati trainer Dr. Wayne Anderson (it ends up they were old buds and the doc was trying to keep his friend out of harm’s way, per Catfish). The doc, Metkovich, Seminick and Posedel were all shown to the door. The Bucs won 6-3, with the win going to Bob Friend, in relief of Kline. Ralph Kiner paid a price, getting ticked by pitches twice after the melee, but he had the last laugh with a homer. 
• 1956 - Dale Long became the first player to go deep in seven straight games when he took the Phillies' Ben Flowers deep in the eighth inning during his final at-bat as the Bucs dropped Philadelphia 6-2 at Connie Mack Stadium. Frank Thomas and Hank Foiles also homered to give Vern Law the complete game win. Dale also doubled, and still wasn’t quite done with his streak. 
• 1959 - In baseball's ultimate pitching performance, Harvey Haddix threw 12 perfect innings against the Braves in Milwaukee’s County Stadium, only to lose the game, 1-0, in the 13th on a Dick Hoak error, sacrifice bunt, intentional walk and double that was a homer. (NL prez Warren Giles ruled that the final score should be 1-0‚ as runners Henry Aaron and Joe Adcock were ruled out, Aaron for leaving the field‚ and Adcock for passing him on the basepath. Adcock was credited with a double and not a HR.) In 1993‚ Bob Buhl admitted that the Braves pitchers were stealing the signs from C Smoky Burgess‚ who could not crouch down all the way because of his achy knees. They used a towel on the bullpen fence as a signal, making Haddix's effort even more remarkable. The only player who wasn’t impressed was Haddix, who told the Post Gazette afterward "My main aim all night long was to win. The perfect game would have meant something to me then. It's just another loss.” 

• 1959 - C Dann Bilardello was born in Santa Cruz, California. He spent most of his Pirates time at AAA Buffalo, hitting just .171 for Pittsburgh in 52 games played between 1989-90. Dann got some time at San Diego in 1991-92 and played his out his time at indie Winnipeg in 1994.

5/26 TRS-PNC Park Era: Ward Cycle; Philly Fireworks; Inside-the-Park Doublet; Game Stories

• 1971 - Steve Blass carried the Pirates to 2-0 victory over Cincinnati at Three Rivers Stadium, recording a career-high 11 strikeouts while tossing a five-hitter for his second shutout of the season. Willie Stargell hit a two-run homer off Reds starter Tony Cloninger in the sixth inning that proved to be the difference in the game. 

Steve Blass 1971 Dell's

• 1978 - Montreal’s Steve Rogers spun a four-hitter at TRS, but he gave up two of them back-to-back in the seventh, a Rennie Stennett single followed by Manny Sanguillen’s homer off a hung curve, and that was enough to carry John Candelaria and the Buccos to a 2-1 victory. Candy Man dodged raindrops throughout the contest, stranding 11, with the only blemish a Larry Parrish solo shot. Sangy, who was playing off the bench, manned first base (he got into 40 games at the spot in ‘78), replacing Willie Stargell who had a sore back. 
• 1980 - Lots of baseball fireworks as the Phils rallied to beat the Bucs 7-6 at Veteran’s Stadium. Bert Blyleven brushed back a couple of Phillies early on; Philadelphia reliever Kevin Saucier later plunked Pops to even the score. Then he went one better, bopping Blyleven, who charged the mound, bat in hand. A donnybrook ensued, and as it was breaking up, Phil’s coach Mike Ryan reignited things. Philly had the last laugh, scoring twice in the ninth off Kent Tekulve, who gave up four straight hits, to claim the victory.  
• 1997 - For the first time in twenty years, two inside-the-park homers were hit in the same inning when Sammy Sosa of the Cubs and Tony Womack both circled the bases five minutes apart in the sixth frame of Chicago’s 2-1 victory at Three Rivers Stadium. Womack’s homer was a legit gapper with a copacetic bounce; Sosa got his when Jose Guillen ran into Adrian Brown, who had briefly gloved the ball; after the collision, it rolled away into right field and Sosa won a bang-bang call at the plate. Francisco Cordova took the loss. 
• 2000 - Behind Francisco Cordova and a double steal gone awry, the Pirates bested the Colorado Rockies at Coors Stadium 2-1 in the second lowest scoring game played to date at the mile-high field. In a 1-1 game, the Rox tried a double steal; the lead runner, Tom Goodwin, stopped between second and third, and the back runner, Mike Lansing, turned and retreated to first as catcher Jason Kendall ran the ball toward him. The nimble backstop tagged Lansing and then threw to third to catch the slow-reacting Goodwin. Cordova celebrated by singling home Mike Benjamin with the game winner in the seventh. He was supposed to bunt, but the third baseman crept in too close, and Francisco took advantage by swinging away for the hit. Luis Sojo made a nice pair of plays at third in the final two frames to seal the deal, and the Pirates ended a five-game losing streak behind Cordova’s four-hitter. 

Daryle Ward 2004 Topps Total

• 2004 - Daryle Ward hit for the cycle with a career single-game high of six RBI against St. Louis at Busch Stadium as the Bucs won 11-8. Ward and his dad Gary became the first father-son team to hit for the cycle. The Pirates used six pitchers to close out the game, with the win going to starter Kris Benson.
• 2012 - The Cubs lost their 11th straight game, 3-2, to the Pirates, their longest losing streak since opening the 1997 season with 14 consecutive losses. The teams were tied in the bottom of the ninth at PNC Park when Jose Tabata led off with a single off Rafael Dolis. Two walks and two outs later, the aptly named “Hit Man” Matt Hague took a pitch in the ribs for a walk-off plunk. Joel Hanrahan earned the win in a game started by Kevin Correia.