4/23 From 1930: Hot Starts; Babe Sold; Bucco Squeakers; HBD Blackie & Happy Jack

• 1935 - RHP Ron “Blackie” Blackburn was born in Mt. Airy, North Carolina. His MLB career lasted two years, from 1958-59, both spent with the Bucs where Blackie slashed 3-2-4/3.50. Blackburn spent 11 campaigns in the minors, the last for Asheville from which he retired after the 1964 season to become a teacher and baseball coach at Western Carolina University before becoming the rec director at the Western Correction Center in North Carolina.
• 1946 - RHP “Happy Jack” (he was an upbeat guy) Chesbro was elected to the Hall of Fame. A spitballer who won 41 games in 1904 for the NY Highlanders, he tossed for the Pirates at the beginning of his career from 1899-1902 with a line of 70-38/2.89. Also selected was Rube Waddell, a colorful hurler who began his career with Pittsburgh in 1900-01. They were inducted on June 12th. 

Happy Jack Chesbro - Upper Deck Goodwin Champions

• 1946 - The Bucs sold 1B Ellsworth “Babe” Dahlgren to the St. Louis Browns. Dahlgren hit .271 with 176 RBI in his two-year stint with the Bucs, but faded badly with the Browns as a 34-year-old and ‘46 was his last season in the show. He’s noted as the man who replaced Lou Gehrig in 1939 while with the Yankees.
• 1947 - The Pirates were out of the gate in a hurry, winning their sixth of the first seven games of the season by an 8-5 count over the Cards at Sportsman’s Park. Billy Cox and Eddie Basinski each homered and combined for seven RBI. Ed Bahr tossed 6-1/3 shutout innings, giving up just three hits, to win in relief.
• 1962 - The Bucs record-setting ten-game, season-opening winning streak was derailed by the Mets and Jay Hook at Forbes Field. It was the first regular season victory ever for NY as they won 9-1 behind Hook’s five-hitter and it started the Pirates on a spiral of losing 13-of-17 games. 
• 1966 - The Pirates scored three times in the ninth inning to pull out a 5-4 win against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Pittsburgh trailed 4-2 heading into the ninth before Bob Bailey, Jim Pagliaroni, and Jose Pagan each hit solo homers off Dennis Aust and Hal Woodeshick to power the Bucs past the Cards. 
• 1982 - C Tony Peña went 2-for-5 with two doubles and three RBI in the Pirates 12-10 victory over Chicago at Wrigley Field. The Pirates kept the Cubbies in it with three errors that led to four unearned runs. The Buc bats atoned for the weakness of the leather by banging out 17 hits as every starter tallied at least one rap, including starting pitcher Eddie Solomon, who came away with the victory. Kent Tekulve pitched the final 1-1/3 innings to earn his first save of the season. Bill Madlock and Mike Easler each had three hits while Jason Thompson homered. Pena (3), Easler (3) and Omar Moreno (4) combined to chase home 10 of the 12 runs.

Mike Lavalliere - 1988 Panini Sticker

• 1988 - The Pirates-Cubs match at TRS was the NBC Game of the Week, the Buccos first GOTW slot since 1985. The network brass knew what they were doing as the game ended up a 5-4 squeaker in favor of the Buccos. Pittsburgh overcame a 2-0 deficit when Bobby Bonilla and RJ Reynolds homered in the sixth to put the Buccaneers up by a run. The Cubs struck back quickly in the next frame, putting up a pair off Jeff Robinson to retake the lead. The Bucs loaded the bases with an out in the eighth, and Spanky LaValliere came through, dropping a two-run single into short center to make it a 5-4 game. Jim Gott made it hold up to claim the win, the Pirates 12th in 16 games.

4/22 Through the 1900’s: Expo Opener, Parade & Anthem; Game Stories; HBD Terrible Ted, Sandy & Jake

• 1887 - RHP Sandy Burk was born in Columbus, Ohio. He had spent parts of four seasons in the majors and made his last hurrah as a Pittsburgh Rebel in 1915, jumping leagues after starting the year in Indianapolis. He started two games, going the distance and winning both, giving up just two runs/eight hits in 18 IP. Sandy pitched for Minneapolis the following year after the Players League folded, winning 21 games. He then served as an infantry sergeant during WW1 and tossed one last pro season upon his return in 1919. 
• 1891 - The Pirates played their first game at Exposition Park, located on the North Shore of the Allegheny River across from downtown Pittsburgh not far removed from where PNC Park sits now. Pittsburgh lost to the Chicago Cubs 7-6. The Pittsburgh Press printed a special “Sporting Edition” that included a game story and illustrations. The 16,000 seat yard featured 400-foot foul lines and a 450-foot center field fence and was their home field until 1909 when Forbes Field opened in Oakland. 

Expo Park in 1903 - photo RW Johnston Co/Boston Public Library

• 1892 - The Pirates set a franchise record when they scored 12 times in the first inning against St. Louis at Expo Park to beat the Browns 14-3. Doggie Miller led the hit parade with four knocks; four other Bucs (Lou Bierbauer, Ed Swartwood, Jake Beckley & Frank Shugart) had a pair of raps. The Pittsburgh Press wrote that “Fully 3,000 people turned out in the rain to see the game. It was too one-sided for interest after the first inning but the advantage was on the right side, so everyone was pleased. (Pud) Galvin (the winning pitcher) was fairly effective and did not have to work hard.” The game provided this footnote: Pittsburgh OF Elmer Smith worked a pair of free passes in that opening frame, the first time a major league player walked twice in one inning. 
• 1894 - 2B Jake Pitler was born in New York City. Jake’s major league career was spent in Pittsburgh between 1917-18. He played regularly the first season but got into just two games in the second, hitting .232 in his time as a Pirate. Pitler was raised in Pittsburgh and was a newspaper boy working in the Forbes Field area. That piqued his interest in baseball and he played semi-pro, advancing to the minor-leagues. The Pirates were looking for stability at second base so he got his shot when the Bucs picked him up from Chattanooga. He lost out in 1918 when Pittsburgh acquired vet George Grantham to play second and sent Pitler to minor-league Jersey City. He didn’t report and instead returned to his indie league roots. He eventually caught on with the Brooklyn Dodgers after his playing days and served as a long-time minor-league manager and big league coach. 
• 1898 - Cincinnati's Ted Breitenstein tossed a no-hitter against the Pirates, winning easily by an 11-0 count at League Field. He struck out two, walked one, and another runner reached via error. All in all, the Pittsburgh Press declared it “...a wonderful feat.” And sweet revenge; Breitenstein was the pitcher the Pirates chased six years earlier during a record-setting 12-run first inning when he was twirling for St. Louis. 
• 1897 - Per John Thorn’s must-read “Our Game,” the first major-league Opening Day at which the National Anthem was played took place in Philadelphia on this date when the Phils played the Giants at the Baker Bowl. From 1918 on, it was played at the opening of every World Series, but wasn’t universally adopted in MLB as a pre-game leadoff until 1942. 
• 1902 - The Pirates and their opponents, the Cincinnati Reds, marched in a raucous parade led by the Grand Army of the Republic band from the downtown Monongahela House hotel to Exposition Park for the Home Opener, cheered on by thousands per the Pittsburgh Press’ front page. The Bucs raised their 1901 pennant flag over the ballyard in front of a record 15,000 fans (the overflow was given SRO space behind ropes in the outfield, but “...gave the police no trouble and never once interfered with the players...” as noted by the paper) and then overcome an early three-run deficit to edge the Reds 4-3. Tommy Leach scored the winning run in the eighth, singling and then advancing from first-to-third on a bunt. He scored on starting (and winning) pitcher Sam Leever’s sac fly. 

Terrible Ted - photo 1942 Teenie Harris/Carnegie Museum of Art

• 1903 - Theodore Roosevelt “Terrible Ted” Page was born in Glasgow, Kentucky. The speedy and gritty OF’er played for the Homestead Grays (1931-32) and Pittsburgh Crawfords (1932-34). He grew up in Youngstown and turned down a football scholarship offered by Ohio State to focus on baseball. The lefty Page batted .335 for his career, but injured his knee in 1934, leading eventually to his retirement in 1937. He stayed in Pittsburgh and his sports focus switched. After baseball, Page ran bowling alleys, including Meadow Lanes (he was hired to work there by former teammate Jack Marshall), and wrote a bowling column for the Pittsburgh Courier. He met a tragic end, beaten to death at home during a robbery, and is buried at Allegheny Cemetery. According to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, he earned his nickname because of his fiery on-field (and sometimes off-field) personality. Bullheaded and aggressive, he “played to win,” per his bio, “and would intimidate a player with his spikes or with rough language.”

4/22 From 1910 Through the 1960’s: Osborn, Brown Sales; Latino Raid; Cap Run In; Game Stories - Streaks & Sticks; HBD Mickey

• 1913 - Manager Fred Clarke was suspended for five days after a “run in” with umpire Brick Owens, who called strike three on a Red at Forbes Field for the final out of a Bucco win on 4/19, only to change his mind and decide it was a ball, after all. The Pirates had started to trot off the field, allowing a runner to scoot to third while the club was in disarray. It became a moot point when the Bucs held on for a 6-5 win over Cincinnati. Afterward, Clarke admitted that he had used “forceful language” in arguing his case, but given the circumstances, was still upset by the time off. First-place Pittsburgh was already missing injured stars SS Hans Wagner and C George Gibson and would shortly start a slide that dropped them out of contention. 
• 1918 - Mickey Vernon was born in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. Vernon spent 1960 as the Bucs' first-base coach and was actually added at age 42 to the active roster in September, going 1-for-8 in nine games. He went on to manage the Washington Senators, returning to Pittsburgh as a coach in 1964. The 1B’s MLB career spanned four decades (1939-60) and after Pittsburgh he coached for the St. Louis Cardinals, LA Dodgers, Montreal Expos and NY Yankees. He managed at the AAA and AA levels of the minor leagues and served as a batting instructor in the Kansas City Royals and Yankees' farm system before retiring from baseball. 

Mickey Vernon - 1980 TCMA, 1960 Pirates

• 1931 - RHP Bob Osborn was sold to the Pirates by the Cubs. The early season move was triggered because pitchers Ervin Brame, Remy Kremer and Steve Swetonic were all out of action at the time with various ailments. The Pirates used Osborn mostly as a short reliever (he started twice) and he ended the season with a slash of 6-1/5.01 with his six wins in relief tops in the NL. He was sent to the Cards the following year as part of the Bill Swift trade. 
• 1937 - Dominican Republic dictator Rafael Trujillo signed several players from the Crawfords including Cool Papa Bell, Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige, to his Dragones of Ciudad Trujillo squad. It was the blow that eventually brought down the Pittsburgh team as a powerhouse Negro League club. The Crawfords were sold in 1939 and moved to Toledo. 
• 1941 - Pitcher Mace Brown was sold to the Brooklyn Dodgers. Mace had spent seven years as a Pirate, doing everything from starting to closing, but Brooklyn converted him to one of the MLB’s first full-time relievers. He was fairly effective over the next three years, then lost 1944-45 to the war while serving in the Navy, and 1946 was his last major league campaign. 
• 1949 - The Pirates won their home opener‚ beating the Reds 5-4 behind Ralph Kiner's third-inning grand slam. The Bucs had fallen behind 4-0 in the first, but Bill Werle tossed 7-2/3 frames of scoreless relief to claim the win. 
• 1951 - Led by Gus Bell‚ who went 5-for-5 with a homer‚ three doubles, and a single while scoring three times‚ the Pirates defeated the Reds 7-5 at Crosley Field. Ralph Kiner was 1-for-2 with a triple and was walked three times behind Bell. Bill Werle tossed 2-1/3 scoreless relief frames to claim the win. 
• 1953 - As noted by Pirates Prospects John Dreker, the Pirates lost for the 12th straight time to the New York Giants’ righty Jim Hearn. The final at Forbes Field was 4-2 with Hearn tossing a four-hitter, albeit with five walks. But the worm would turn. That streak ended on this date and Hearn would go on to lose his next five decisions against Pittsburgh. He ended his 13-year career with a 21-10/3.45 slash v the Pirates. 

Hank Foiles - 1957 Topps

• 1957 - Hank Foiles hit a 425’ triple and a 258’ homer off the RF foul pole in a 3-1 loss to the Giants at the weirdly configured Polo Grounds. Willie Mays’ two-out, three-run homer in the third off Luis Arroyo carried NY to victory. 
• 1962 - The Pirates won their 10th straight game, 4-3, over New York, equaling the major league record to start a season. Bob Veale beat the Mets at Forbes Field; the NY nine tied a NL record going in the opposite direction by opening the year 0-9. The Pirates won it in the bottom of the eighth when Bill Mazeroski’s double scored Roberto Clemente. Pittsburgh won 93 games, but that was only good enough for a fourth-place finish in the NL, eight games behind the LA Dodgers.

4/22 From 1970: Ward Signed; Wood Claimed; Corner of Hope; Game Stories - Kendall Walkoff, Close Wins, Lop-Sided Losses; RIP Steve;

• 1974 - RHP Steve Swetonic passed away at age 70 in Canonsburg. Steve was from Mt. Pleasant and Pitt, spending his entire, too-short career with the Pirates. He tossed for five years (1929-33) after coming up from the minors and was considered a hot prospect, but a variety of injuries ground his career to a halt. He had appendicitis in 1930 and missed two months. Then he had elbow surgery the following campaign that put him on ice until late June and kept him from going longer than four innings in any outing. In 32, he again had arm pain that knocked him out for three weeks and only allowed him one start from mid-August on; some feel his injury cost the Bucs a shot at the flag. They were 1/2 game behind before he was hurt and finished four games off the pace with Steve out. In 1933, he set personal highs in wins (12), starts (21) and IP (164-2/3), but had off season hand surgery and never tossed in the show again after a short-lived 1935 comeback attempt. He retired and became a salesman for the Blaw Knox company.
• 1978 - The Bucs did it the hard way, but they overcame a pair of late Cardinal leads to rally for an 8-7, down-to-the-wire victory at TRS. The hero was Duffy Dyer, who had been activated from the DL (he had broken his thumb) just before the game. He batted in the ninth, pinch-hitting as the last man left on the Bucco bench. After two were gone Ed Ott doubled and Phil Garner worked a walk to keep the Bucs pulse beating and give Duffy his chance. The nine-year vet came through by lining a ball barely inside the chalk in left off John Urrea to chase both runners home. Rennie Stennett had three hits, two RBI and a run; Bill Robinson added two knocks, a run driven in and plated twice, while Willie Stargell homered. Teke had tossed the ninth for the win in a game started by Bert Blyleven. 

Duffy Dyer - 1978 Topps

• 1993 - Knuckleballer Tim Wakefield won his second consecutive start while walking nine batters when he ended a five game Bucco skid with a 5-4 decision over the Cincinnati Reds at Three Rivers Stadium. He only allowed four hits while going the distance. Wakefield made it a nail biter by walking the bases loaded on 14 pitches after two outs in the ninth, but Barry Larkin inexplicably offered at the first pitch following that third free pass and tapped into a game-ending comebacker. Lonnie Smith led a balanced Pirates attack with two RBI and a run scored, while Carrick’s John Wehner made his first pro start in center field, replacing Andy Van Slyke. 
• 1997 - The Pirates signed OF Turner Ward to a $300K deal after he was released by the Brewers. He had two solid years for the Bucs, including an all-time TV moment when he crashed through the TRS wall. But he hit under the Mendoza line in 1999 and was released in August.
• 2001 - Jason Kendall gave the Bucs their first walk off win at PNC Park with a two-run homer off Chicago’s Jeff Fassero in the 10th inning. The Cubs took a 3-2 lead in the top of the 10th on a leadoff homer by Gary Matthews. In the home half, Kevin Young answered by delivering a pinch-hit single and Kendall followed with his blast to give the Bucs and Mike Williams the win. 
• 2010 - The Pirates were humiliated by the Brewers at PNC Park 20-0 for their worst loss in their history. Six Bucco pitchers surrendered 25 hits. The victory completed a three-game sweep of the Bucs in which the Brew Crew outscored Pittsburgh, 36-1. "It was fun..." said Brewer Ryan Braun, who homered, doubled, singled and drove in five runs. 
• 2011 - IF Brandon Wood was claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The utilityman ended up getting into 99 games during the season, starting 55, mainly at third base, although he did play all four infield spots. He got a good look, but only hit .220 and was DFA’ed at the end of the year. Wood then bounced around in various minor league systems until 2014, when he retired. 
• 2016 - The Bucs held off the Diamondbacks 8-7 in a game that featured some epic long taters. It was in the nineties in Arizona, and the Chase Field roof was open, setting up perfect conditions for a slugfest. Each team had three homers (Welington Castillo had two) but the Buc blasts were seismic. Sean Rodriguez and Gregory Polanco hit the longest pair of back-to-back homers since official measurements began in 2009 at 458 and 461 feet. They were topped by Jordy Mercer’s launch of 466’, the longest home run of the year to date. Those bombs were three of the six longest homers hit so far during the season. Jon Niese got the win (it was the first time the vet started a campaign with a 3-0 record) and Mark Melancon earned the save. 

Jon Niese - 2016 Topps

• 2017 - The Perry Hilltop Citizens Council held the "Corner of Hope Celebration" to unveil nine revamped Negro League All-Star murals and the small park the artwork is located in at the corner of Wilson Avenue and West Burgess Street in North Side. Originally dedicated in the late nineties, the faded Negro League murals were restored by students at The Pittsburgh Project who also cleared the run-down lot with Oakglade Realty providing funding for the project. The murals are of Josh Gibson, who lived in the neighborhood, and fellow stars Ray Dandridge, Rube Foster, Gus Greenlee, Pop Lloyd, Satchel Paige, Cum Posey, Jackie Robinson, and Mule Suttles. 
• 2019 - The Pirates were blown out by the Arizona D-Backs, 12-4, after the bullpen melted down to allow 11 tallies in the seventh and eighth innings. Joe Musgrove had left them with a 4-1 lead at PNC Park after six, which was quickly frittered away. To add injury to insult, Nick Burdi developed a nerve problem and had to go on the IL. But there was some silver lining involved: Gregory Polanco returned after being out since last September, going 2-for-4, and OF JB Shuck (he had pitched in college at Ohio State) tossed a scoreless ninth inning, giving up a hit and a walk while flashing a 91 MPH sinker. It was his second big league mop-up outing and lowered his career ERA to 4.50.

4/21 Through the 1960’s: Chief Debuts; Game Stories; HR Day, Rip & Remy Gems; HBD Stan

• 1913 - The Pirates banged out eight straight hits plus a sacrifice fly to score seven times in the sixth inning and rally past the St. Louis Cards‚ 8-5. Babe Adams went the distance for the win at Robison Field. Honus Wagner & Solly Hofman led the attack with three knocks apiece. The victory moved Pittsburgh into a short-lived spot on top of the standings; they finished fourth in a year the NY Giants ran away from the NL field. 

Stan Rojek - 1951 Bowman

• 1919 - SS Stan Rojek was born in North Tonawanda, New York. He played for the Pirates from 1948-51, starting the first two seasons and hitting .266 during his Pittsburgh years. The Bucs got him from Brooklyn, where he was a backup infielder behind Pee Wee Reese. He hit .290 his first Bucco season as the starter but after a beaning that sent him to the hospital, his bat was never quite the same and he was traded to the Cardinals in May of 1951. The Pirates gave him a couple of nicknames, per Edward Veit of SABR. “Initially Rojek’s Pirates teammates called him ‘Reject’ because he had been dumped by the Dodgers. He also was called ‘The Happy Rabbit’ because of...his attitude, and his quickness in scurrying around shortstop.” 
• 1921 - Moses “Chief” Yellowhorse won his first MLB game and the first ever by a full-blooded Native American (he was Pawnee) by working 3-1/3 innings in Pittsburgh’s 8-7 win over the Reds at Forbes Field in the season’s home lidlifter. Rabbit Maranville led the attack with three hits, including a triple, two runs scored and three RBI. Chief Yellowhorse relieved Elmer Ponder, who had come on after Babe Adams stumbled against Cincinnati in the third. 
• 1927 - In their home opener at Forbes Field, Pirates ace Ray Kremer did it all. He tossed a complete game four-hitter while blasting a two-run home run off Reds starter Eppa Rixey to lead the Bucs to a 3-2 victory in front of 33,439 fans. 
• 1933 - The Bucs won their Home Opener at Forbes Field 5-1, rallying in their last at-bat to break up a pitcher’s duel. The Pirates Bill Swift was locked up with Si Johnson of the Reds going into the bottom of the eighth with Cincy up 1-0; Swift had surrendered just two hits, but one was a homer. Manager George Gibson started the eighth frame off with pinch hitter Woodie Jensen (per beatman Volney Walsh of the Pittsburgh Press: “Mr. Jensen was enjoying his usual afternoon siesta on the bench when Gibby summoned him...”) and Woodie lit the fuse - he singled to start a parade of knocks; the Bucs scored five runs behind a two-RBI double by Pie Traynor, Gus Suhr’s triple to chase home two more runs and Tony Piet’s knock to send the final tally plateward. Bill Harris worked the ninth to tuck the game away. 
• 1943 - Rip Sewell ruined the Cubs home opener at Wrigley Field as he tossed a three-hit, 6-0 shutout behind the three hits of Frank Colman & Al Lopez, with a pair of RBI chased home by Vince DiMaggio. Sewell had the Cubbies’ number and won five more contests from them during the campaign. He wasn’t the only ace on this date - there were four games played around the league and they all ended in shutouts, a MLB record. 

Rip Sewell - photo Hall of Fame/Getty Images

• 1957 - In the first game of a doubleheader at Ebbets Field, Frank Thomas, Paul Smith, and Dick Groat hit consecutive home runs in the third inning off Brooklyn’s Don Newcombe to lead Pittsburgh to a 6-3 victory. Bob Skinner also went yard while Roberto Clemente collected three hits. Bob Purkey got the win for the Pirates. Don Drysdale evened things up by winning the nightcap 7-4 for the Dodgers, as Don Zimmer homered and drove in three runs. 
• 1964 - The Bucs beat the Cubs 8-5 at Wrigley Field. Every run scored was the result of a homer to set a MLB standard, and nine different players went long, tying another record. Roberto Clemente, Ducky Schofield, Jim Pagliaroni, and Gene Freese (who hit a three-run bomb in the ninth to win it) went yard for Pittsburgh while the Cubs added five solo shots. 
• 1968 - Roberto Clemente hit one inside-the-park homer after being thrown out at home the inning prior against San Francisco. The four-bagger was a Forbes Field special when a hard-hit single took a giant bounce off the hard turf and over G-Man outfielder Ty Cline’s head; by the time he caught up to the ball and got it in, The Great One had a stand-up dinger. In his previous at-bat, he had drilled a ball off the batting cage in center field 457’ away. Clemente admitted he cost himself that homer by cruising around the bases as he assumed he had a stand-up triple until he saw third base coach Alex Grammas wave him around at third, and a perfectly executed relay cut him down at the plate. The run was fortunately meaningless in a 10-0 Al McBean win. Willie Stargell went long the traditional way while the Pirates banged out 16 hits, with every starter including McBean banging out a hit.

4/21 From 1970: Dunne Deal; Pops Poundin'; Bucs Sue Cobra; Game Stories/Big Frames; HBD Kip, Brent & Ronny

• 1971 - “Pops” Stargell hit three long balls for the second time in 11 days to lead Pittsburgh to a 10-2 win over the Braves. It was the fourth time he had three homers in a game, tying him with Ralph Kiner for the team record. Captain Willie collected five RBI and scored three times at TRS while Dock Ellis tossed a five-hitter to keep the Bravo bats at bay. 
• 1977 - RHP Kip Wells was born in Houston. The righty came to Pittsburgh in the 2001 off season as part of the Todd Ritchie deal with the White Sox and tossed for five Bucco campaigns (2002-06), winning 36 times. The Texan started off well with ERAs of 3.58 and 3.28 in 2002-03 but faded and was sent to the Rangers for Jesse Chavez. Kip played through 2009, went through a couple of years when he couldn’t land an MLB job, and closed out his career in 2012 as a Padre, retiring the next season. 

Ronny Paulino - 2006 Bowman Heritage

• 1981 - Ronny Paulino was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He was thought to be the Bucco catcher of the future and started behind the dish in 2006-07. That was enough time to prove he wasn’t the answer and after the 2008 season he was dealt to the Phils for Jason Jaramillo. Paulino spent four years as a Pirate and hit .278. Ronny bumped around the league for four more seasons and finished his career in the Mexican League. 
• 1986 - The Pirates filed a lawsuit in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court against Dave Parker to cut his deferred contract money. It sought to relieve the club of the $5,312,475 still owed to the OF’er, with the Bucco claim based on his drug testimony which they alleged triggered a clause that forfeited the back pay. He was the only player they sued after the fact, probably due to a combination of Parker playing for another team, not being very popular among the fans, and the Pirates sinking financial condition. A confidential settlement was reached between the club and The Cobra in 1988 before the case went before a judge. 
• 1987 - 3B Brent Morel was born in Bakersfield, California. Brent got six years in the show, primarily as a depth piece. He finished his MLB career in Pittsburgh, getting into 26 games during 2014-15 and hitting .196. Brent spent his last two pro years in Japan, retiring after the 2017 campaign. 
• 1989 - In a deal of hopefuls, the Pirates traded former first round pick OF/1B Mark Merchant along with pitchers Mike Dunne & Mike Walker to the Seattle Mariners for SS Rey Quinones and UT Bill Wilkinson. The change of scenery didn’t help and all five players quickly faded from the MLB landscape. 
• 1991 - The Pirates became the first MLB team to ever come back from a five run deficit in an extra inning to rally for victory. After the Cubs scored five runs, thanks mostly to a grand slam by Andre Dawson, the Pirates plated six times in the 11th inning at TRS to claim a 13-12 victory with Don Slaught's double the game winner. Nine Bucs batted in that frame, collecting two doubles, three singles, three walks and a sac fly as they small-balled their way to a big inning. Bob Patterson was charged with giving up three runs in an inning of work, but was credited with the win. The loss was pinned on former Pirate Mike Bielecki.

Vicente Palacios - 1992 Pinnacle

• 1992 - The Bucs scored five times in the first inning and held on to beat the Expos 8-7 at Olympic Stadium. Andy Van Slyke put the Bucs ahead in the first with a two-run triple and finished the game with three RBI. Barry Bonds went deep in the third inning for his seventh homer of the year to make it 6-2 Pittsburgh. Vicente Palacios picked up the win in relief with two scoreless frames while Roger Mason earned the save. 
• 2002 - The Pirates won their sixth straight game and 7-of-8 by a 9-3 count over the Phils at PNC Park to run their record to 12-5. The Bucs had a 2-1/2 game lead in the division but alas, by mid-May they were below .500 once again and would finish with 72 victories, 24-1/2 games out of the top spot. The Buccos ran up a five-spot in the second to ice the game, keyed by a two-out, bases-loaded triple by Jason Kendall. Light-hitting Abraham Nunez led the parade with three hits, including a double, two steals and three runs scored to plow the road for Kip Wells. 
• 2014 - The Bucs blew an early lead, but an Andrew McCutchen homer in the eighth tied it and Neil Walker’s two-out RBI bloop to right later in the frame was the game winner as the Pirates outlasted Cincinnati 6-5 at PNC Park. Jared Hughes stranded a pair of Reds in the ninth to earn the win. Ike Davis hit his second grand slam of the year and both were against the Reds, one as a Buc and one as a Met. He became the first player in MLB history to hit two grand slams with two different teams before the end of April and the third player to hit two grand slams against the same opponent for two different teams.

4/20 Through the 1970’s: All-Timers Honus & Pie; Close But No Cigar; No Hands; Game Stories; HBD Sam & Steamer

• 1869 - OF Sam Nicholl was born in County Antrim, Ireland. After a strong year at Wheeling, Nicholl finished out the 1888 campaign with the Alleghenys. He went 1-for-22, but his BA was considered bad ball luck as he hit the ball well, and he was also a plus defender. He was a late cut in camp the next season despite a solid showing and sent back to Wheeling. Sam got one more shot in 1890 with Columbus, then closed out with five years in the Western Association before a leg injury effectively ended his career. He went on to become a hotel keeper in Steubenville. 
• 1881 - OF Jim “Steamer” Flanagan was born in Kingston, Pennsylvania, across the Susquehanna River from Wilkes-Barre. He was rumored to have turned down a scholarship to Notre Dame to turn pro in 1901. He played for the Pirates briefly in 1905 as September insurance, and showed well, hitting .280 with seven runs scored and three stolen bases in seven games. Steamer was considered a five-tool guy, but for reasons unknown, he never got another shot at the majors, playing in the minors through the 1915 season. After his ball-playing days, he lived in Wilkes-Barre as a cop, sandlot player, manager and umpire, while also serving as a bird dog for the Red Sox and Athletics. Per Jack Smiles of SABR, “he ran, it was said, like a steam locomotive” and hence his nickname.

Jimmy Callahan , right team, wrong uni - 1916 Holmes Bread

• 1916 - The Pirates lost the home opener at Forbes Field to St. Louis 5-0, held to five hits by Harry “Slim” Sallee in front of 20,000 or so on a sunny spring day. But there was some early excitement. With two on and a 3-1 count on the batter, manager Jimmy Callahan, coaching third, stepped out of the box to talk with base runner Doc Johnston between pitches. He apparently placed his hand on Johnston during the chat and plate umpire Ernie Quigley called Doc out on coaches interference due to Callahan’s contact. The Bucs protested to no avail, and owner Barney Dreyfuss protested the game to NL President John Tener. Ralph Davis of the Pittsburgh Press wrote that at a smoker that evening, Dreyfuss went on about a conspiracy with the boys in blue having secret league instructions (he didn’t disclose their nature) and went so far as to call them “...pin-headed umpires.” Tener rejected the protest, though he did clarify that the rule was to be in effect only when the player was physically assisted leaving or returning to a base by a coach. 
• 1930 - Long-time baseball writer Irwin Howe of the Chicago Tribune picked his all-time MLB team, and it included SS Honus Wagner and 3B Pie Traynor. Howe had the background for the job - he was a baseball historian, the secretary for the Chicago chapter of BBWAA and the AL’s official statistician. 
• 1932 - Mt. Pleasant native and Pitt grad Steve Swetonic came as close as any Pirate pitcher (Bob Moose matched his feat in 1968) to tossing a no-hitter at Forbes Field. He surrendered a two-out knock in the eighth to the Card’s George Watkins that spoiled his bid. Though he gave up a couple of anti-climatic ninth inning singles, he cruised to a 7-0 victory. His career was short circuited after five years when he retired at the age of 28 because of a chronic sore arm. 
• 1936 - The Bucs’ Gus Suhr slugged a two-out, three-run homer in the ninth off Roy Henshaw to erase an early six-run deficit and give Pittsburgh a 9-8 win over the Cubs at Forbes Field. Pep Young and Cookie Lavagetto also went long, and Bill Swift worked the final four frames for the win. 
• 1946 - Rip Sewell spun a four-hitter to win a duel against the Cards Bucky Walters 2-1. Walters scored his clubs’ only run by stealing home, but RBI from Bob Elliott and Elbie Fletcher sent the Forbes Field crowd of 27,891 (and Rip) home happy. 

Rip Sewell - 1947 Tip Top

• 1948 - Rip Sewell did it all; he tossed a complete game six-hitter and homered as the Bucs won their home opener 3-2 over the Cubs. Rookie second baseman Monty Basgall had the game winner, his first big league homer, in the sixth inning. 
• 1970 - Willie Stargell belted a homer off Jim Bouton that cleared the RF roof at Forbes Field as the Pirates took a 3-1 decision from Houston. Dock Ellis went six innings for the win, with Dave Giusti covering the last three frames. The deed wasn’t witnessed by very many; there were only 4,015 fans in the house.

4/20 From 1980: Ta-Ta Teke & Tim; Historic Hans; Extra Innings & Game Stories; HBD Chris

• 1980 - CF Chris Duffy was born in Brattleboro, Vermont. Duffy hit .269 in his three Buc years (2005-07) but butted heads with manager Jim Tracy who wanted him to change his batting style. Duffy stormed home after a closed-door session with the skipper and his career pretty much sank after that affair. He played one more season for Pittsburgh, and in 2008 was injured and released. He would play just 13 more MLB games. 
• 1985 - Kent Tekulve’s Pirate career ended after a dozen seasons when he was traded to the Phils for Al Holland. He became a set-up man there and remained rubber-armed, appearing in 291 games in four years with a 24-26-25/3.01 line in Philly, then finished out with a season in Cincinnati.

Roundabout start for Barry Jones - 1987 Donruss

• 1986 - The Pirates and Cubs played 13 innings, only to have their game at Wrigley Field suspended due to darkness after four hours and 48 minutes and the score tied 8-8. The Cubs scored three times in the bottom of the ninth inning to send the game into extra innings. The contest was completed on August 11th with the Bucs winning 10-8 in 17 innings. The total game time from start-to-finish was six hours and nine minutes. Johnny Ray & Joe Orsulak combined for seven hits and five runs while Sid Bream and Steve Kemp homered. Barry Jones picked up the win, going four scoreless innings while whiffing eight. Oddly, though Jones wasn’t called up until July, he set the MLB record for whiffs in a debut as a reliever (tied in 2016 by then-Astro Joe Musgrove). It was in actuality his 10th appearance, but the game date reverted back to when the contest’s first pitch was tossed, making it his first outing in the record books. 
• 1992 - The Pirates broke open a tight game with a nine-run outburst in the ninth to defeat the Montreal Expos at Olympic Stadium by an 11-1 score. The inning was highlighted by a Kirk Gibson grand slam and a three-run shot by Barry Bonds. Randy Tomlin carried the game into the seventh inning and earned the win. 
• 1995 - Pittsburgh released knuckleballer Tim Wakefield. He was picked up a week later by Boston, where he spent the next 17 seasons, tossing over 3,000 innings and winning 186 games. He mastered his pitch in the Red Sox system under the tutelage of Phil and Joe Niekro. 
• 1998 - Pennsylvania placed a state memorial plaque, sponsored by the local historical society, at 605 Beechwood Avenue in Carnegie, near the site of Honus Wagner's birthplace to honor the Pirates Hall of Fame shortstop. Hans had been born in Chartiers, now part of Carnegie, in 1874 to an immigrant coal mining family, playing for local sandlot and company teams until he joined the local semi-pro Mansfield Indians and began his road to Cooperstown.
• 2009 - Ross Ohlendorf tossed the Bucs’ fourth shutout of the season (in 13 games), giving up two hits in seven innings in an 8-0 win over Florida to end the Marlins’ seven-game winning streak. The Bucs had recorded just two shutouts in all of 2008. Nate McLouth gave Ohlie all the support he needed by driving in four runs, three touching home after a sixth-inning homer. 

Ohlie - 2009 Topps Update

• 2014 - Milwaukee topped the Pirates 3-2 in 14 frames on Easter at PNC Park, but the game took a back seat to the on-field action in the third inning. Brewer Carlos Gomez admired a ball that didn’t quite get out of the yard. He made it to third and Gerrit Cole let him have it verbally for hot-dogging it. Gomez went after Cole, the benches emptied and a basebrawl broke out. Travis Snider went after Gomez, Rickie Weeks grabbed him by the arms and Martin Maldonado took advantage to poke a defenseless Lunch Box, leaving him with a shiner. Maldonado was suspended five games, Gomez received a three-game suspension (he also threw his helmet at the Bucco mob), and Snider was suspended two games. Fran Cervelli later challenged pugilist Maldonado to an off season boxing match for charity, but was never taken up on the offer. As for the game, Neil Walker had three hits, including a homer, but Khris Davis’ extra-inning blast off Jeanmar Gomez carried the day (all three Milwaukee runs were solo dingers, including the ninth-inning game-knotter by Ryan Braun off Jason Grilli) despite eight innings of six-hit, one-run ball by Cole.

4/19 Through the 1950’s: Hans Debut; Bootball; Honey Boy; Game Stories; HBD Babe & RJ

• 1900 - The Pirates lost their opener to St. Louis 3-0 at Robison Field as Cy Young pitched a five-hitter and K’ed nine. The game was auspicious because it marked the Pittsburgh debut of Honus Wagner (in right field), 26, who had played for Louisville of the American Association for three seasons. He didn’t disappoint, getting two of the Bucs five hits, though he did manage to get picked off. Hans went on to hit a league-leading .381 with 22 triples and 176 OPS+.

Hans - 1903 Pittsburgh Press photo

• 1902 - The Cardinals booted 11 balls in a 10-4 loss to the Bucs at Sportsman Park‚ setting a NL record. The Pirates mishandled four more plays to help set a single game NL record for errors. The Pittsburgh Gazette described the affair as a “game that would make amateurs blush.” 
• 1908 - C Ernest “Babe” Phelps was born in Odenton, Maryland. Babe finished his 11-year big-league career as a Pirate in 1942, hitting .284 with nine homers in 257 AB while sharing catching duties with former teammate Al Lopez. He batted .310 over his MLB years with a .362 OBP & .472 slugging %, joining the NL All-Star Team from 1938-1940. His moniker of "Babe" came about because of his resemblance to the Bambino, whom he would become tight with later in his career. Cort Vitty of SABR wryly noted that “Later in his career, as his physique matured, Phelps would also be referred to as ‘Blimp.’"
• 1912 - The Pirates and Cardinals spent the evening at the Lyceum Theater on Penn Avenue taking in “George Evans’ Honey Boy Minstrels” show per the Pittsburgh Press. Evans was born in Wales, became a popular entertainer here, and like many young immigrants, developed a jones for baseball. He awarded a loving cup to baseball’s leading hitter from 1908-12 (engraved to the "World's Championship Batsman"), with Hans Wagner earning the first and Ty Cobb then running the table.
• 1935 - Cy Blanton threw a complete game, one-hit, one-walk, shutout against the St Louis Cardinals at Forbes Field, only giving up a second-inning single to Spud Davis. The Bucs won 3-0, scoring all their runs in the third inning against Wild Bill Hallahan; Blanton chipped in with an RBI. Arky Vaughan and Tom Padden backed up Cy’s gem with three hits apiece. Beat man Edward Ballinger of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote “Blanton’s fireball worked so beautifully and his curves worked so artistically that the Redbirds expressed disgust by throwing down their bats after missing strikes.”
• 1938 - Trailing 3-2 entering the ninth inning, SS Arky Vaughan hit a two-run homer to give the Pirates a 4-3, season-opening victory at St. Louis’ Sportsman Park. Paul Waner went 3-for-4 with a double, triple and two runs scored. The win marked the beginning of a seven-game winning streak to open the season. Alas, they needed that winning touch at the end of the year. Instead, they dropped 6-of-7 in the closing days of the campaign to finish two games behind the Cubs.

Arky Vaughan - 1937 Wheaties

• 1948 - The Reds opened the season with a 4-1 win over the Pirates at Crosley Field in a game delayed by a shower of bottles in the eighth frame. The Bucs went down fighting when Cincy’s Babe Young doubled after Hank Sauer’s homer and got tangled with Buc SS Stan Rojek. Young went after Rojek, failing to note that the ball was back in play, and was tagged out. The players jostled and a fan jumped the railing to go after ump Jocko Conlin, who had rung Young up. First base ump Beans Reardon came over to help get things in order, but instead got into a fight with the riled rooter. Police restored peace while the Queen City faithful pitched a few bottles the Buccos’ way. The fighting fan, btw, was allowed to return to his seat. The game was noteworthy in a couple of other ways - it marked the Pirates switch to black & gold trim from the traditional red and blue piping along with the introduction of the still-in-use block lettering instead of script, and it marked Billy Meyer’s debut as manager. Despite the bumpy baptism, he would become 1948’s The Sporting News Manager of the Year.
• 1949 - Rip Sewell whipped Dutch Leonard 1-0 in front of Illinois Governor Adlai Stevenson and Chicago Mayor Martin Kennelly at Wrigley Field, marking the third time Sewell blanked the Cubbies on Opening Day. The Pirates scored in the ninth when pinch-hitter Les Fleming’s grounder scored pinch runner Jack Cassini for an unearned run; he was in for Dixie Walker, who reached on an error.
• 1959 - Robert James “RJ” Reynolds was born in Sacramento. The switch-hitter spent six seasons with the Pirates, hitting .269 as a platoon outfielder and pinch hitter from 1985-90. He often played with Barry Bonds and Andy Van Slyke, but age and Bobby Bo’s emergence was the beginning of the end for RJ, who finished his career playing in Japan and Mexico.

4/19 From 1960: Foli-for-Frank; Crash Landing; No Deal; Game Stories; HBD Zach, St Mary's Joe & Big Sweat

• 1960 - The newspapers sniffed out a proposed deal with the Phils; the Pirates were looking for pitching (specifically Don Cardwell) and Philly needed help behind the plate and in the outfield, where the Pirates were deep. The rumors didn’t pan out (the Phils liked Bill Virdon, which may have been a deal-breaker), and swapped Cardwell to the Cubs three weeks later. But the Pirates FO’s interest in Cardwell didn’t fade; they got the righty in the 1962 offseason as part of the Dick Groat deal with the Cards. 
• 1977 - Joe Beimel was born in St. Mary’s in Elk County. The lefty from Duquesne University started his career in Pittsburgh (2001-03) and made another stop in 2012. He was 11-20 in his four campaigns with the Bucs, pitching to a 5.03 ERA. The Bucs released him after he had TJ surgery in 2012. Joe last pitched in the majors in 2015 and retired in 2017 after 13 MLB campaigns. In all those seasons, he pitched without a safety net - Beimel never had a contract that was for longer than one year. 

St. Mary's Joe - 2003 Upper Deck 40-Man

• 1977 - LHP Denny “Big Sweat” Reyes was born in Higuera de Zaragoza, Mexico. Denny spent 15 years in the majors with 12 very forgettable outings as a Pirate in 2003 when he gave up a dozen runs in 10+ innings. The Bucs waived him in May and he bounced around until catching a second wind in 2006 with the Twins; he put up five solid seasons with them and the Cards before tossing his last outing in 2011 for the Red Sox. As for his nickname - at 6’3” and 250 pounds, there were plenty of big sweats dripping off Denny. 
• 1979 - The Mets traded Tim Foli and minor league prospect Greg Field to the Pirates in exchange for SS Frank Taveras. Foli solidified the infield for the eventual World Champs, batting .291 and appearing in 133 games. He stayed with the Bucs through 1981, went to the AL for three seasons and spent his last year as a Pirate in 1985. Frank was solid offensively through 1980, and in three years with the Mets hit .253 with 90 swipes before closing it out in 1982 with the Expos. 
• 1983 - LHP Zach Duke was born in Clifton, Texas. He spent the first six years of his career in Pittsburgh and put up a line of 49-75/4.99. Called up in July of 2005 after being named the Bucco Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2004, he went 8-2 with a 1.81 ERA, but never posted an ERA south of four afterwards as a Pirate, leaving the club after the 2010 season. Zachster had TJ surgery in 2017, coming back in late July to work for the Cards. He’s a free agent this season. 
• 1986 - Happy birthday to me! Leadoff hitter RJ Reynolds celebrated his 27th birthday with a grand slam off Chicago’s Scott Sanderson in the fourth inning at Wrigley Field during a 14-8 Pirates win. The game featured six home runs (three by each team) and 28 hits (14 by each team). 
• 1991 - The Pirates took a 3-0 lead into the ninth against Chicago at TRS behind one-hit pitching by Vincente Palacios, Bob Patterson & Stan Belinda and a two-run Andy Van Slyke bomb and later sac fly, but it went by the wayside in a hurry. Belinda went an inning too long, giving up a hit, walk and beaning before allowing a pinch-hit grand salami to Andre Dawson. But Pittsburgh had a rally left in them; old Cubbie Curtis Wilkerson and Gary Redus opened with back-to-back singles. A wild pitch tied it and a couple of batters later, Jeff King dumped a single off the end of his bat into center for the game winner. King and Don Slaught had a pair of hits and Belinda, despite having his cage rattled in the ninth, got the victory, which snapped a six-game win streak by Chicago. 

Wandy - 2012 Topps Update

• 2013 - Wandy Rodriguez tossed seven innings of one-hit ball as the Bucs beat the NL-leading Atlanta Braves 6-0 at PNC Park. The Bravos ended up with two hits with both runners erased on DP balls. There were no walks or errors, allowing the three Pirate hurlers (Wandy, Mark Melancon, Vin Mazzaro) to face the minimum 27 batters. 
• 2017 - The Pirates were swept by the St Louis Cardinals in a three-game set at Busch Stadium by identical 2-1 scores. It was the first time since 1888 that the Pirates (then the Alleghenys) had given up six or fewer runs in a three-game series and lost all three times (1-0, 1-0, 2-0). The hard-luck losers were Ivan Nova, Chad Kuhl and Gerrit Cole. It was also odd in that it continued a pattern of sweeps in April - the Pirates were swept by Boston, took three from Atlanta, were swept by Cincinnati, won a three-gamer against the Cubs and were broomed by the Redbirds. Bucco historian John Dreker of Pirates Prospects noted that the 1890 Pirates/Alleghenys had six straight sweeps from Aug 13th-Sept 2nd. Technically, that streak reached eight sweeps if you count a series that was just one game due to bad weather. 
• 2019 - Ouch: SS Erik Gonzalez and CF Starling Marte crashed into one another chasing down a Texas Leaguer during the Pirates 4-1 win over the Giants at PNC Park. Gonzo broke his collarbone, went on the 60-day IL and was out until August; Starling bruised his abdominal wall and went on the 10-day list. That meant the Pirates top two SS’s (Gonzalez and Kevin Newman) were on the IL and their top four outfielders (Marte joined Gregory Polanco, Corey Dickerson & Lonnie Chisenhall) were out of action. To boot, starting second baseman Adam Frazier was out with back spasms. Despite being battered and bloody, the Pirates were on a four-game winning streak and at 11-6 were off to the best start of anyone in the NL; the “next man up” process was working just fine (so far).