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7/11 Through the 1960s: Slammin' Stu; Lefty Out; Forbes Field, Friend & ASG's; Game Tales; HBD Otter, Pop, Skeets & Harry

Sunday, July 11, 2021 7:33

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1865 – C William “Pop” Shriver was born in Brooklyn. He was a part-time catcher for the 1898-1900 Bucs, hitting .265 toward the end of a 16-year career. He played one more year for St. Louis, then hung them up after 1901. He’s part of early baseball’s folklore when in 1894 he was alleged to have caught a ball tossed from the top of the Washington Monument, over 500’ high, by Clark Griffith, who at the time was a pitcher and Pop’s teammate on the Chicago Colts. The usual tale is that he missed the first ball but snagged the second, although some say (much after the fact) that the ball popped out of his mitt.
1884 – OF Harry Wolter was born in Monterey, California. The seven-year MLB vet started out in 1907, playing for three teams. The Bucs bought his contract from the Reds and he got one appearance for the Bucs as a pitcher (he was converted to an outfielder and sometimes 1B in 1910) and worked two innings, giving up a run before being sold to the Cardinals. The Santa Clara alum played pro ball from 1905-20, taking his final bow as a player/manager in 1927. Following his playing career, he coached baseball at Stanford University for 26 years (1916, from 1923-1943, and one more time from 1946-49) and also coached the US Olympic team in 1936.

Lefty Davis – 1902 image via The Sporting News

1902 – “Pittsburg won from New York yesterday but at a terrible price. Lefty Davis caught his foot in second base and fell with a fractured leg,” was the Pittsburgh Press’ lead. Davis had stolen the bag and bounced up to head to third when the throw got away, but stumbled over the sack, breaking his ankle, passing out and then being carried to the clubhouse. The 27-year-old outfielder never quite recovered; Davis was a .287 hitter with 45 steals in 171 big league games to that point, but missed the rest of the campaign and finished his remaining 177 games batting .234 with 20 thefts. The Pirates did win the ballgame at the Polo Grounds 6-3 as five Bucs banged out a pair of hits in support of Deacon Phillippe.
1908 – Per the Pittsburgh Press’ Ralph Davis: “In a game filled with pretty fielding plays and delightful batting rallies…” Vic Willis tossed a one-hitter in a 6-2 win over the Giants at Exposition Park. Mike Donlin’s triple was the only New York knock. Roy Thomas had three hits for the Bucs (two were triples) and Hans Wagner added a pair of knocks.
1921 – RHP Hal “Skeets” Gregg was born in Anaheim, California. He worked for three years (1948-50) for the Bucs after a five-year run in Brooklyn. Skeets tossed mostly from the pen and went 3-6-1 with a 4.85 ERA as a Pirate when he was on the downside of his career, suffering arm and back woes. Quick factoid: Gregg was noted for his fastball, which he honed as a child by rifling oranges at various targets on his parent’s grove. While it strengthened his arm, it didn’t do much for his accuracy – his final MLB line showed five walks per nine innings to just four whiffs.
1925 – The Bucs managed to blow a five-run lead to the Brooklyn Robins at Ebbets Field by giving up a six-spot in the eighth, but back-to-back triples by Clyde Barnhart and Pie Traynor in the top of the ninth were the spark that pushed the Pirates to a 7-6 victory, sealed by a running grab of a shot to deep center by Max Carey with the tying run on base. Lee Meadows went the distance for the win.

Jewel didn’t sparkle on this date – photo Mears Collection/TSN

1938 – The Pirates were in a feisty mood as they visited Wrigley Field. First, coach Jewel Ens got tossed in the top of the seventh inning, then C Al Todd joined him in the shower during the Chicago half of the frame. Ens was upset over an out call at home on Johnny Rizzo while Todd continued chatting about the same decision when he went behind the dish. He didn’t go quietly; he had to be separated from the ump, George Barr, and fired some bats from the dugout as he departed. Both were fined $50. But the Bucs did some baseball battling in the ninth, scoring three times to rally for their 12th straight win (the streak reached 13 games before it was snapped) by a 5-3 tally over the Cubs, with the big hit being a two-run knock by P Jim Tobin. He got the win in relief of Bill Swift, while Mace Brown earned the save.
1939 – The Pirates sent SS Arky Vaughan to the All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium. He went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored, but the AL took the game 3-1. To keep things honest, the umpires swapped spots in the middle of the fifth inning – Cal Hubbard of the AL left home, replaced by the NL’s George Magerkurth, and the other two men in blue traded bases.
1944 - The Pirates hosted their first All-Star Game at Forbes Field, the 12th Midsummer Classic, and the first night game in All-Star history. The NL won 7-1 as Phil Cavarretta of the Cubs set an ASG record by reaching base five straight times on a triple, single, and three walks. Rip Sewell worked three innings, giving up a walk and whiffing a pair. 3B Bob Elliott went 0-for-3, while OF Vince DiMaggio played in the field but didn’t bat. SS Frank Zak didn’t get into the game at all.
1950 – It was back-and-forth baseball at Chicago’s Comiskey Park during the AS Game. The NL tied the match 3-3 in the ninth dramatically on lone Pirates rep Ralph Kiner’s homer (he also had a double, going 2-for-6) before Red Schoendienst’s long ball in the 14th inning won it for the NL. As noted by BR Bullpen, it was a game of firsts – the first extra-inning All-Star Game, the first time the NL won at an AL park, and the first All-Star Game ever shown on national television (Jack Brickhouse announced the game on NBC).

Ralph greeted by Stan the Man after his ASG dinger, photo 7-11-50/AP

1951 – Ed Ott was born in Muncy, PA, just east of Williamsport. He caught righty but hit lefty, putting him in a platoon role for Pittsburgh for seven seasons (1974-80), batting .259. He was effective in the 1979 World Series; in three starts, he hit .333 with three RBI in just 12 at-bats. Not too surprisingly, he was nicknamed “The Otter.” He managed Pirates farm teams in 1985-86, was a skipper in the indie leagues for three seasons, and coached for the Houston Astros under former Pirates teammate Art Howe from 1989-93. He later returned to coaching at the indie level, finally retiring in 2014.
1958 – Dick Stuart belted a grand slam in his second MLB game to lead the Bucs to a 7-2 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field, giving Ron Kline, who tossed a six-hitter, all the offensive help he needed. Frank Thomas also went deep for the Bucs. Big Stu had made his MLB the day before; he belted a two-run long fly in the ninth inning of his debut in a losing cause.
1960 - One-hit shutout pitching by Bob Friend over three innings led the NL to a 5-3 win over the AL at Kansas City’s Municipal Stadium in the first of two All-Star Games. Friend was credited with two of the NL’s last three All-Star wins, with this one saved by teammate Vern Law, who got the last two outs following a scoreless stint by ElRoy Face. OF Bob Skinner went 1-for-4 with a run, RBI and stolen base while 2B Bill Mazeroski went 1-for-2 with an RBI and HBP. OF Roberto Clemente and C Smoky Burgess both were 0-for-1, and SS Dick Groat got in as a defensive sub. For Clemente, it was his AS debut and his out was a loud one that Jim Lemon ran down at the wall.
1961 – In the All-Star game at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, OF Roberto Clemente had a coming out party. The Great One tripled and scored the game’s first run, drove in another with a sac fly, chased Mickey Mantle to the centerfield fence to corral his next blast, and capped the day when he delivered a walk-off single off knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm in a 5-4, 10-inning NL win. Danny Murtaugh was the skipper of the NL; 1B Dick Stuart belted a pinch-hit double, C Smoky Burgess went 1-for-4 and reliever Roy Face never got the call from the bullpen. The game cemented Candlestick’s rep as a wind tunnel; Stu Miller was blown off the mound and charged with a balk when a sea breeze buffeted him in mid-delivery.

Roberto liked this day – 1962 Topps

1963 – In a 3-0 win over the Colt .45s at Forbes Field, Roberto Clemente’s bullet chased Jim Wynn from the infield to a career in the pasture. As the Toy Cannon, who was a rookie playing SS (it was his second MLB game), told Baseball Digest “Clemente hit a screaming line drive, and I got my glove up just as the ball hit the left field wall. After that, I told the coaches and manager to get me out of the infield.” Wynn was granted his wish, and played 1,810 games in the OF after 21 appearances at short during his rookie campaign. As for the Bucs, Roberto’s scary double was cashed in by Donn Clendenon in the eighth and was the winning run; Don Cardwell went all the way for the win, giving up just two singles.
1967 – The NL won another All Star pitching battle against the AL, taking a 2-1 decision at Anaheim Stadium in fifteen innings with Tony Perez’s homer the difference. OF Roberto Clemente went 1-for-6, and the starting middle infield of 2B Bill Mazeroski and SS Gene Alley went a combined 0-for-9 at the plate, although Maz did lay down a successful bunt. The rosters were loaded for this match; 22 players and coaches ended up in the Hall of Fame. The 15 innings was the longest ASG played, later tied by the 2008 contest.

Source: https://oldbucs.blogspot.com/2021/07/711-through-1960s-slammin-stu-lefty-out.html

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