This Day In Pirates History, April 12th
48 years ago today, the Pittsburgh Pirates opened up the 1960 season and most pundits at the time didn't give the Buccos much of a shot to do anything substantial. After posting an 84-70 record and finishing second in the NL to the Braves in 1958, the Pirates stumbled in 1959 and finished 4th in the NL at 78-76. The 1958 season ended nine straight losing years in Pittsburgh, but the off year in '59 put the Pirates firmly under the national radar entering 1960. Danny Murtaugh's team was an afterthought as most writers and fans once again focused on Milwaukee and their powerful duo of Hank Aaron and Eddie Matthews. The Braves also boasted a rock-solid pitching staff, anchored by Hall of Famer Warren Spahn and Lew Berdette, a powerful righty who would win 19 games in 1960 and 203 in his career.
On this date in 1960, the Pirates:
Lost 4-3 to the Braves in Milwaukee.
Nearly 40,000 fans showed up to County Stadium on Opening Day and watched Warren Spahn and Bob Friend duel for seven innings. Spahn went deep in the game, something he did 35 times during his illustrious career. Joe Adcock also homered for Milwaukee. The Pirates got RBIs from Roberto Clemente, Bob Skinner and Hal Smith, but it wasn't enough as Berdette came on in the 9th to record the save. Roy Face took it on the chin (bad pun, I know) and suffered the loss for the Bucs.
Mazeroski, Vern Law, Clemente, and Face - The anchors of the 1960 Championship team.
On this date in 1971, the Pirates:
Beat the Phillies 4-3 in Philadelphia.
Bob Johnson started for the Pirates and pitched nine strong innings, surrendering only Don Money's three-run homer in the 3rd. The Bucs had jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the 2nd inning and tied the game in the 6th. The score would remain knotted at 3 before the black and gold finally broke through in the top of the 11th when Pops Stargell singled home Dave Cash with the eventual winning run. The win gave the Pirates a 4-2 record. Richie Hebner had a nice day at the plate going 3/5 with a walk.
Pirates third-baseman Richie Hebner, stylin' and profilin'.
On this date in 1979, the Pirates:
Beat the Cardinals 3-1 at Three Rivers Stadium.
This one is a tad perplexing to me, only because of the attendance figure on the box score. It states that only 3,986 people attended the game. I've done some other research, to see if maybe weather was a factor, but I haven't found anything conclusive. Truthfully, if I were able to attend on my own (I was less than a year old at the time), I would have gone to see this game. Both lineups featured a number of big names. On the St. Louis side of the diamond, you had Lou Brock and Keith "Taco" Hernandez. For the Pirates that day, Dave Parker was in right, Phil Garner at third, and Don "Caveman" Robinson on the hill. But I digress...let's get to the game.
The aforementioned Taco took Caveman deep in the 4th inning to stake the Cards to a 1-0 lead. The Pirates scored two in the 6th, highlighted by Parker tripling home Omar Moreno. The Bucs would add an insurance run in the 8th on Rennie Stennett's RBI single. Caveman went the distance and the Buccos upped their record to 2-4 on the young season.
The Cobra: 1/3 man, 1/3 snake, 1/3 serial killer. Dave Parker taking batting practice...in a hockey mask? I'm sure no one bothered him that day.
On this date in 1960, the Pirates:
Lost 4-3 to the Braves in Milwaukee.
Nearly 40,000 fans showed up to County Stadium on Opening Day and watched Warren Spahn and Bob Friend duel for seven innings. Spahn went deep in the game, something he did 35 times during his illustrious career. Joe Adcock also homered for Milwaukee. The Pirates got RBIs from Roberto Clemente, Bob Skinner and Hal Smith, but it wasn't enough as Berdette came on in the 9th to record the save. Roy Face took it on the chin (bad pun, I know) and suffered the loss for the Bucs.
Mazeroski, Vern Law, Clemente, and Face - The anchors of the 1960 Championship team.On this date in 1971, the Pirates:
Beat the Phillies 4-3 in Philadelphia.
Bob Johnson started for the Pirates and pitched nine strong innings, surrendering only Don Money's three-run homer in the 3rd. The Bucs had jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the 2nd inning and tied the game in the 6th. The score would remain knotted at 3 before the black and gold finally broke through in the top of the 11th when Pops Stargell singled home Dave Cash with the eventual winning run. The win gave the Pirates a 4-2 record. Richie Hebner had a nice day at the plate going 3/5 with a walk.
Pirates third-baseman Richie Hebner, stylin' and profilin'.On this date in 1979, the Pirates:
Beat the Cardinals 3-1 at Three Rivers Stadium.
This one is a tad perplexing to me, only because of the attendance figure on the box score. It states that only 3,986 people attended the game. I've done some other research, to see if maybe weather was a factor, but I haven't found anything conclusive. Truthfully, if I were able to attend on my own (I was less than a year old at the time), I would have gone to see this game. Both lineups featured a number of big names. On the St. Louis side of the diamond, you had Lou Brock and Keith "Taco" Hernandez. For the Pirates that day, Dave Parker was in right, Phil Garner at third, and Don "Caveman" Robinson on the hill. But I digress...let's get to the game.
The aforementioned Taco took Caveman deep in the 4th inning to stake the Cards to a 1-0 lead. The Pirates scored two in the 6th, highlighted by Parker tripling home Omar Moreno. The Bucs would add an insurance run in the 8th on Rennie Stennett's RBI single. Caveman went the distance and the Buccos upped their record to 2-4 on the young season.
The Cobra: 1/3 man, 1/3 snake, 1/3 serial killer. Dave Parker taking batting practice...in a hockey mask? I'm sure no one bothered him that day.
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