| 1960 Revisited - What became of the team members? |
By Bobster
Wrap up.
The 1960 World Champion Pittsburgh Pirates:
Danny Murtaugh, Mgr-Retired after 1964 season due to health problems. Took over 2nd half of 1967 as interim mgr when Harry Walker was fired. Returned as manager for 1970 and 1971, earning another World Series championship in 1971. Retired after 1971 season but returned in September 1973 after Virdon was fired as manager. Remained manager until he retired after the 1976 season, winning 92 games in 1975 and 1976. Died 12/2/76.
Frank Oceak-remained a Pirates coached through the 1964 season. Coached for the Reds in 1965. Managed in Pirates minor league system from 1966-69. Rejoined Murtaugh as Pirates 3rd base coach in 1970. Retired after 1972 season. Died 3/19/83.
Leonard Levy-Retired after the 1963 season. Died 2/2/93.
Sam Narron-Remained Pirates bullpen coach through 1964. His son Jerry Narron was a MLB catcher and managed the Rangers and Reds.
William Burwell-Retired as pitching coach after 1962 season. Died 6/11/73.
Virgil Trucks-BP pitcher in 1960. Remained with team through 1963. Nephew Butch Trucks was in the Allman Brothers Band.
George Sisler-Special assistant to mgr in 1960 and batting coach through 1962. Died 3/26/73.
Mickey Vernon (see players above).
Dick Stuart, age 27 in 1960. Traded to Boston in November 1962 with Jack Lamabe for P Don Schwall and C Jim Pagliaroni. Hit 42 HRs for Sox in 1963 and led A.L with 118 RBIs. Traded to Phillies after 1964 season. Also played for Mets and Dodgers in 1966 and appeared as PH’er for LA in 1966 WS. Played in Japan 1967-68. Returned to Angels in 1969. Retired after 1969 season at age 37. Had .264 career average and 228 HRs. Died 12/15/02.
Rocky Nelson, 35. Hit only .197 for Bucs as Stuart’s back-up in 1961 and then retired at age 36. Died 10/31/06.
Bill Mazeroski, 23. Retired after the 1972 season at age 36. Was on 1971 WS roster, but backed up Dave Cash at 2B and even played 10 games at 3B between ‘71 and ’72. Pinch ran for Clemente after Clemente’s 3000th and final hit in 1972. Recognized as possibly the best fielding second baseman in MLB history. Hall-of-Fame 2002.
Don Hoak, 32. Traded after 1962 season to Phillies for Ted Savage. Retired in 1964 at age 36. Career .265 hitter. Died 10/9/69.
Dick Groat, 29. Traded with Olivo 11/19/62 to St.L. for Don Cardwell and Julio Gotay.
Played for St.L. from ‘63-65. Was in 1964 WS for Cards. Played for Phillies 1966 and Phillies and Giants in 1967. Retired after that at age 37.
Dick Schofield, 25. Finally got his chance to play everyday when Groat was traded to St.L. in 1963. Hit .246 in ’63 and .246 again in ’64. Traded to SF in May 1965 for Jose Pagan. Played for SF, Yankees, Dodgers, Cards, Red Sox and Braves, retiring in 1972 at age 37. Career. 227 hitter who hit .333 for 1960 Bucs. Son Dick Schofield Jr played 14 years, mostly with Angels. Grandfather of Jason Werth.
Gene Baker, 35. Appeared in 9 games for the Bucs in 1961 and retired. Died 12/1/99.
Bob Skinner, 28. Trade to Reds in May 1963 for Jerry Lynch. He also played for Cards in 1964-66, and was 2 for 3 as PH’er for St.L. in 1964 WS. Retired after 1966 at age 35. Managed Phillies 1968-1969.
Bill Virdon, 29. Tied for N.L. lead in triples in 1962. Retired after 1965 season. Career .267 hitter. As coach in 1965, was activated and hit pinch hit HR. Managed Pirates, Yankees, Astros, Expos.
Roberto Clemente, 25. Led N.L. in hitting 1961, 1964, 1965, 1967. Led N.L. in hits in ’64 and led MLB in hits in ’67. At age 35 in 1969, he led MLB in triples. N.L. MVP 1966, WS MVP 1971. Got 3000th hit in last at bat in 1972. Died 12/31/72. Lifetime .317 hitter. Considered one of the greatest players in ML history. Hall-of-Fame 1973.
Gino Cimoli, 30. Traded in mid-season 1961 to Braves for infielder Johnny Logan. Played for Braves, A’s, Orioles and Angels. Was a starter for A’s in 1962-1963 and led MLB with 15 triples in 1962. Retired after 1965 at age 36 with .265 career average.
Joe Christopher, 24. Became the Pirates 4th outfielder in 1961, hitting .263 with no HRs and 14 RBIs. Christopher made Gino Cimoli expendable, and Cimoli was traded early in the ’61 season. Christopher was selected in expansion draft by 1962 Mets. Hit .300 with 16 HRs in 1964. Slumped to .249 in 1965 and retired after 1966 season at age 30.
Smoky Burgess, 33. Sold to White Sox in September 1964. Played for Sox as pinch-hitter deluxe until 1967. Retired at age 40 after 1967 season. Died 9/15/91.
Hal Smith, 29. Slumped in 1961 (.223, 3 HRs, 26 RBIs). Went to expansion Houston Colt 45s (now the Astros) in 1962-63. Played for Reds in 1964 retired at age 34.
Danny Kravitz, 29, began the 1960 season as one of 4 Pirate catchers. Traded to KC in June 1960, he hit .234 for the A’s the rest of the year, appearing in 47 games with 2 HRs and 14 RBI. That was his last season in the majors.
Bob Oldis, 32. Sold to Phillies after 1961 season. Backing up Clay Dalrymple, Oldis, who batted only 20 times for the ’60 Bucs, had his two highest AB totals in 1962 (80) and 1963 (85), hitting .263 in 1962 with his only career HR and .224 in 1963. He retired after the 1963 season at age 35.
Roman Mejias, 29. With Bucs early in 1960. Spent 1961 in minors. Went to 1962 expansion Colt 45s and played for Boston in 1963-64. Was starter for Colt 45s in 1962, hitting .286 with 243 HRs. Retired after 1964 at age 34.
R.C. Stevens, 26. (September call-up) Traded to Senators 12/16/60 for Bobby Shantz. Hit .129 for Senators in 62 games and was out of baseball in 1962 at age 28.
Mickey Vernon, 42. (Coach, activated as pinch hitter in September.) Named manager of Washington’s expansion team in 1961. Returned to Pirates as coach for the 1964 season. Died 9/24/08.
Harry Bright, 30. (September call-up) Traded to Senators 12/16/60 for Bobby Shantz. Played for Senators, Yankees, Reds, Cubs as utility infielder. Retired after 1965 season at age 36. Died 3/13/00.
Dick Barone, 27. (September call-up) Never appeared in the majors after his September call-up in 1960.
Vern Law, 30. Law’s heroic pitching in the 1960 series with a sprained ankle altered his delivery and caused shoulder problems. He spent most of 1961 on the DL, going just 3-4 with a 4.93 ERA in only 59 innings. Law continued to experience problems in 1962, although he went 10-7 in 139 innings. He spent most of 1963 on the DL, going 4-5 in 76 innings. But he came back in 1964 to pitch 192 innings, with a 3.61 ERA despite an unimpressive 12-13 record. By 1965, at the age of 35, he looked like the Cy Young Law of 1960 again, going 17-9 with a 2.15 ERA in 217 innings. Law won 12 games in 1966 and retired at the age of 37 in 1967.
Bob Friend, 29. Friend remained a hard luck pitcher for the Pirates. Always effective but never getting much run support. From 1961-1965, he posted ERAs of 3.85, 3.06, 2.34, 3.33 and 3.24. Yet his W-L records for those years were 14-19, 18-14, 17-16, 13-18 and 8-12. Friend won 17 or more games 5 times for the Pirates. Sold to the Mets June 15, 1966 and ended his career after that season at the age of 36.
Vinegar Bend Mizell, 29. Mizell had a 9-year ML career but never was as effective as his 1960 season (13-5) with the Bucs. He went 7-10 in 1961 with a 5.04 ERA. The Pirates traded him to the Mets in May 1962. He retired after that season at age 32. Served several terms as a Republican congressman from Mississippi from 1968 to 1974. Served as Assistant Secretary of Economic Development under President Gerald Ford, as Assistant Secretary of Agriculture under President Ronald Reagan, and as a member of the Council on Physical Fitness under President George Bush. Died 2/21/99.
Harvey Haddix, 34. Haddix continued to start for the Pirates in 1961-62, going 10-6 and 9-6. In 1963 at age 38, he moved to the bullpen with a 3-4 record, 3.34 ERA in 49 games. Traded to Baltimore in 1964, he went 5-5 with 10 saves and a 2.31 ERA. He retired from the Orioles at age 40 after the 1965 season. Haddix became a pitching coach for several teams including the Pirates, whom he coached from 1979-1983. He will forever be remembered because of his 12-inning perfect game in 1959, which was lost in the 13th. He was the winning pitcher in game 7 of the 1960 World Series. Died 1/8/94.
Elroy Face, 32. Face continued to dominate in the bullpen, leading the league in saves in 1961 and 1962. In ’62, his ERA was 1.88. After two poor seasons in 1963-64, he came back from 1965-1968 to post ERAs of 2.66, 2.70, 2.42 and 2.60 getting 43 saves between 1966 and 1968 combined. Sold to Tigers on 8/31/68 at age 40. Went 4-2 with 5 saves and ERA of 3.94 for Expos in 1969 at age 41. Retired after that season.
Freddie Green, 26. Never duplicated his strong 1960 season in the bullpen. Appeared in only 13 games for ’61 Bucs. Claimed by Washington 9/25/61 on waivers. Appeared in only 5 games for 1962 Senators. Returned to Pirates in 1964 got 8 games. Out of baseball after that at age 31. Died 12/22/96.
Joe Gibbon, 25. Became full-time starter in 1961 and led Pirates in K’s with 185. Went 13-10 with 3.32 ERA. Traded to Giants after 1965 season for Matty Alou. Traded back to Pirates in June 1969 for Ron Kline. Gibbon went 5-1 for Bucs in 1969 and appeared in 41 games in relief in 1970 at age 35, appearing in playoffs. Gibbon pitched for Reds in 1971, Reds & Astros in 1972 and then retired.
Clem Labine, 33. Labine remained with the Pirates in 1961 and posted a 4-1 mark with 8 saves and a 3.69 ERA in 92 innings. He even had a rare start on July 9th, 1961. Labine appeared in 3 games with the expansion 1962 Mets and retired at the age of 36.
Tom Cheney, 25. Traded in mid-season 1961 to Washington for P Tom Sturdivant. Set a ML record on 9/12/62 with 21 K’s in a game. Cheney led the Senators starting rotation in ERA in 1962 (3.17) and 1963 (2.71), going 7-9 and 8-9 in those seasons for the expansion team. Cheney remained with Washington until he retired in 1966 at age 32. Died 11/1/01.
George Witt, 26. Appeared in just 9 games in 1961. Sold to Angels 10/10/61. Appeared in 5 games for Angels and 8 games for Colt 45s in 1962 and then was out of baseball at age 29. After his remarkable rookie season in 1958 (9-2, 1.61 ERA, 3 shutouts), arm problems ruined the remainder of career. Witt finished with a lifetime record of 11-16 with a 4.32 ERA.
Jim Umbricht, 29. Appeared in only 1 game for ’61 Bucs. Went to expansion Colt 45s in 1962 with 4-0 record, 2 saves and 2.01 ERA in 61 games out of bullpen. Went 4-3 with 2.61 ERA for ’63 Senators. Umbricht died of cancer in April 1964 at age 33.
Bennie Daniels, 28. Trade to Senators 12/16/60 for Bobby Shantz. Became full-time member of Senators starting rotation from 1961-1965, teaming with fellow ex-Pirate Tom Cheney. Daniels best season was 1961 when he went 12-11 with a 3.44 ERA. A good hitter, Daniels hit 5 HRs in his career. He retired after the 1966 season at age 33 with a career mark of 45-76.
Paul Giel, 27. Giel pitched for the Twins and A’s in 1961 and then retired at the age of 29. Eventually, Giel would become the athletic director at his alma mater, the University of Minnesota, where he had been an All-American running back and a runner up in the Heisman trophy voting. Giel died in 5/22/02.
Earl Francis, 23. Francis, who only appeared in 7 games in 1960 but had a sparkling 2.00 ERA, spent most of 1961 and all of ’62 and ’63 with the Pirates. He was the Opening Day starter in 1963, but only compiled a 4-6 record and had back and hand problems. Appeared in only 2 games in ’64 and was with St.L. for 2 games in 1965 to end his career at age 30. Died in 7/3/02.
Don Gross, 29. Never again appeared in the majors after the Pirates optioned him in mid-season in 1960.
Diomedes Olivo, 41. After his rookie year in 1960 at age 41, Olivo did not play again in the majors until 1962. That year, at age 43, he appeared in 62 games for the Bucs with a 5-1 record and 2.77 ERA in 84 innings. Traded with Groat 11/19/62 to St.L. for Don Cardwell and Julio Gotay. Went 0-5 with 5.40 ERA for 1963 Cards and was out of baseball at age 44. Died 2/15/77.
***Although he never played for the Pirates, Julian Javier began the 1960 season as a top prospect with the Pirates AAA Columbus team. He was traded in May 1960 for Vinegar Bend Mizell. Javier immediately took over at 2B for St.Louis. He played 2B for the Cardinals from 1960-1971, and finished his career with the Reds in 1972. Javier had a career BA of .257. He appeared in 4 WS-(Cardinals ‘64, ’67, ‘68, Reds ’72). The Pirates minor league system developed several outstanding second basemen in the 50s-70s: Mazeroski, Javier, Dave Cash, Rennie Stennett and Willie Randolph.
Uniform numbers:
2 Oldis
4 Skinner
5 Smith
6 Burgess
7 Stuart
8 Barone (September)
9 Mazeroski
10 Kravitz (traded)
11 Schofield
12 Hoak
14 Nelson
15 Mejias (April, May)
15 Bright (September)
16 Baker
18 Virdon
19 Friend
20 Cimoli
21 Clemente
22 Gibbon
23 Christopher
24 Groat
26 Face
28 Giel (April-July)
28 Stevens (September)
29 Daniels (April-June)
29 Francis (June, July)
29 Labine (August, September)
30 Witt (April-May)
30 Mizell (May-October)
31 Haddix
32 Law
35 Green
37 Umbricht (April-June, September)
37 Cheney (July, August, WS)
38 Gross (April, May)
38 Olivo (September)
39 Witt (July-October)
40 Murtaugh (mgr)
41 Burwell (coach)
42 Vernon (coach/player)
43 Narron (coach)
44 Oceak (coach)
48 Cheney (September)
Transactions during the season:
May 12, 1960--Optioned Roman Mejias to Columbus (AAA) and Joe Christopher and George Witt to Salt Lake City (AAA) AAA to meet requirement of reducing roster from 28 to 25 players within 30 days of opening day.
May 28, 1960--Traded Ed Bauta and Julian Javier to St. Louis for Dick Gray and Vinegar Bend Mizell. Optioned Don Gross to Salt Lake City (AAA). Optioned Gray to Columbus (AAA).
June 1, 1960--Traded Danny Kravitz to Kansas City for Hank Foiles and cash. Recalled Joe Christopher from Salt Lake City (AAA).
June 2, 1960 Traded Hank Foiles to Cleveland for John Powers. Optioned Powers to Columbus (AAA).
June 27, 1960--Recalled Tom Cheney and Earl Francis from Columbus (AAA). Optioned Bennie Daniels and Jim Umbricht to Columbus (AAA).
July 14, 1960--Recalled George Witt from Salt Lake City (AAA). Optioned Paul Giel to Salt Lake City (AAA).
August 16, 1960--Signed Clem Labine as a free agent. Optioned Earl Francis to Columbus (AAA).
September 1, 1960--Activated coach Mickey Vernon. Recalled Diomedes Olivo from Columbus (AAA).
September 8, 1960—Recalled Dick Barone, Bennie Daniels and Jim Umbricht from Columbus (AAA) and Harry Bright and R.C. Stevens from Salt Lake City (AAA).
Wrap up.
The 1960 World Champion Pittsburgh Pirates:
Danny Murtaugh, Mgr-Retired after 1964 season due to health problems. Took over 2nd half of 1967 as interim mgr when Harry Walker was fired. Returned as manager for 1970 and 1971, earning another World Series championship in 1971. Retired after 1971 season but returned in September 1973 after Virdon was fired as manager. Remained manager until he retired after the 1976 season, winning 92 games in 1975 and 1976. Died 12/2/76.
Frank Oceak-remained a Pirates coached through the 1964 season. Coached for the Reds in 1965. Managed in Pirates minor league system from 1966-69. Rejoined Murtaugh as Pirates 3rd base coach in 1970. Retired after 1972 season. Died 3/19/83.
Leonard Levy-Retired after the 1963 season. Died 2/2/93.
Sam Narron-Remained Pirates bullpen coach through 1964. His son Jerry Narron was a MLB catcher and managed the Rangers and Reds.
William Burwell-Retired as pitching coach after 1962 season. Died 6/11/73.
Virgil Trucks-BP pitcher in 1960. Remained with team through 1963. Nephew Butch Trucks was in the Allman Brothers Band.
George Sisler-Special assistant to mgr in 1960 and batting coach through 1962. Died 3/26/73.
Mickey Vernon (see players above).
Dick Stuart, age 27 in 1960. Traded to Boston in November 1962 with Jack Lamabe for P Don Schwall and C Jim Pagliaroni. Hit 42 HRs for Sox in 1963 and led A.L with 118 RBIs. Traded to Phillies after 1964 season. Also played for Mets and Dodgers in 1966 and appeared as PH’er for LA in 1966 WS. Played in Japan 1967-68. Returned to Angels in 1969. Retired after 1969 season at age 37. Had .264 career average and 228 HRs. Died 12/15/02.
Rocky Nelson, 35. Hit only .197 for Bucs as Stuart’s back-up in 1961 and then retired at age 36. Died 10/31/06.
Bill Mazeroski, 23. Retired after the 1972 season at age 36. Was on 1971 WS roster, but backed up Dave Cash at 2B and even played 10 games at 3B between ‘71 and ’72. Pinch ran for Clemente after Clemente’s 3000th and final hit in 1972. Recognized as possibly the best fielding second baseman in MLB history. Hall-of-Fame 2002.
Don Hoak, 32. Traded after 1962 season to Phillies for Ted Savage. Retired in 1964 at age 36. Career .265 hitter. Died 10/9/69.
Dick Groat, 29. Traded with Olivo 11/19/62 to St.L. for Don Cardwell and Julio Gotay.
Played for St.L. from ‘63-65. Was in 1964 WS for Cards. Played for Phillies 1966 and Phillies and Giants in 1967. Retired after that at age 37.
Dick Schofield, 25. Finally got his chance to play everyday when Groat was traded to St.L. in 1963. Hit .246 in ’63 and .246 again in ’64. Traded to SF in May 1965 for Jose Pagan. Played for SF, Yankees, Dodgers, Cards, Red Sox and Braves, retiring in 1972 at age 37. Career. 227 hitter who hit .333 for 1960 Bucs. Son Dick Schofield Jr played 14 years, mostly with Angels. Grandfather of Jason Werth.
Gene Baker, 35. Appeared in 9 games for the Bucs in 1961 and retired. Died 12/1/99.
Bob Skinner, 28. Trade to Reds in May 1963 for Jerry Lynch. He also played for Cards in 1964-66, and was 2 for 3 as PH’er for St.L. in 1964 WS. Retired after 1966 at age 35. Managed Phillies 1968-1969.
Bill Virdon, 29. Tied for N.L. lead in triples in 1962. Retired after 1965 season. Career .267 hitter. As coach in 1965, was activated and hit pinch hit HR. Managed Pirates, Yankees, Astros, Expos.
Roberto Clemente, 25. Led N.L. in hitting 1961, 1964, 1965, 1967. Led N.L. in hits in ’64 and led MLB in hits in ’67. At age 35 in 1969, he led MLB in triples. N.L. MVP 1966, WS MVP 1971. Got 3000th hit in last at bat in 1972. Died 12/31/72. Lifetime .317 hitter. Considered one of the greatest players in ML history. Hall-of-Fame 1973.
Gino Cimoli, 30. Traded in mid-season 1961 to Braves for infielder Johnny Logan. Played for Braves, A’s, Orioles and Angels. Was a starter for A’s in 1962-1963 and led MLB with 15 triples in 1962. Retired after 1965 at age 36 with .265 career average.
Joe Christopher, 24. Became the Pirates 4th outfielder in 1961, hitting .263 with no HRs and 14 RBIs. Christopher made Gino Cimoli expendable, and Cimoli was traded early in the ’61 season. Christopher was selected in expansion draft by 1962 Mets. Hit .300 with 16 HRs in 1964. Slumped to .249 in 1965 and retired after 1966 season at age 30.
Smoky Burgess, 33. Sold to White Sox in September 1964. Played for Sox as pinch-hitter deluxe until 1967. Retired at age 40 after 1967 season. Died 9/15/91.
Hal Smith, 29. Slumped in 1961 (.223, 3 HRs, 26 RBIs). Went to expansion Houston Colt 45s (now the Astros) in 1962-63. Played for Reds in 1964 retired at age 34.
Danny Kravitz, 29, began the 1960 season as one of 4 Pirate catchers. Traded to KC in June 1960, he hit .234 for the A’s the rest of the year, appearing in 47 games with 2 HRs and 14 RBI. That was his last season in the majors.
Bob Oldis, 32. Sold to Phillies after 1961 season. Backing up Clay Dalrymple, Oldis, who batted only 20 times for the ’60 Bucs, had his two highest AB totals in 1962 (80) and 1963 (85), hitting .263 in 1962 with his only career HR and .224 in 1963. He retired after the 1963 season at age 35.
Roman Mejias, 29. With Bucs early in 1960. Spent 1961 in minors. Went to 1962 expansion Colt 45s and played for Boston in 1963-64. Was starter for Colt 45s in 1962, hitting .286 with 243 HRs. Retired after 1964 at age 34.
R.C. Stevens, 26. (September call-up) Traded to Senators 12/16/60 for Bobby Shantz. Hit .129 for Senators in 62 games and was out of baseball in 1962 at age 28.
Mickey Vernon, 42. (Coach, activated as pinch hitter in September.) Named manager of Washington’s expansion team in 1961. Returned to Pirates as coach for the 1964 season. Died 9/24/08.
Harry Bright, 30. (September call-up) Traded to Senators 12/16/60 for Bobby Shantz. Played for Senators, Yankees, Reds, Cubs as utility infielder. Retired after 1965 season at age 36. Died 3/13/00.
Dick Barone, 27. (September call-up) Never appeared in the majors after his September call-up in 1960.
Vern Law, 30. Law’s heroic pitching in the 1960 series with a sprained ankle altered his delivery and caused shoulder problems. He spent most of 1961 on the DL, going just 3-4 with a 4.93 ERA in only 59 innings. Law continued to experience problems in 1962, although he went 10-7 in 139 innings. He spent most of 1963 on the DL, going 4-5 in 76 innings. But he came back in 1964 to pitch 192 innings, with a 3.61 ERA despite an unimpressive 12-13 record. By 1965, at the age of 35, he looked like the Cy Young Law of 1960 again, going 17-9 with a 2.15 ERA in 217 innings. Law won 12 games in 1966 and retired at the age of 37 in 1967.
Bob Friend, 29. Friend remained a hard luck pitcher for the Pirates. Always effective but never getting much run support. From 1961-1965, he posted ERAs of 3.85, 3.06, 2.34, 3.33 and 3.24. Yet his W-L records for those years were 14-19, 18-14, 17-16, 13-18 and 8-12. Friend won 17 or more games 5 times for the Pirates. Sold to the Mets June 15, 1966 and ended his career after that season at the age of 36.
Vinegar Bend Mizell, 29. Mizell had a 9-year ML career but never was as effective as his 1960 season (13-5) with the Bucs. He went 7-10 in 1961 with a 5.04 ERA. The Pirates traded him to the Mets in May 1962. He retired after that season at age 32. Served several terms as a Republican congressman from Mississippi from 1968 to 1974. Served as Assistant Secretary of Economic Development under President Gerald Ford, as Assistant Secretary of Agriculture under President Ronald Reagan, and as a member of the Council on Physical Fitness under President George Bush. Died 2/21/99.
Harvey Haddix, 34. Haddix continued to start for the Pirates in 1961-62, going 10-6 and 9-6. In 1963 at age 38, he moved to the bullpen with a 3-4 record, 3.34 ERA in 49 games. Traded to Baltimore in 1964, he went 5-5 with 10 saves and a 2.31 ERA. He retired from the Orioles at age 40 after the 1965 season. Haddix became a pitching coach for several teams including the Pirates, whom he coached from 1979-1983. He will forever be remembered because of his 12-inning perfect game in 1959, which was lost in the 13th. He was the winning pitcher in game 7 of the 1960 World Series. Died 1/8/94.
Elroy Face, 32. Face continued to dominate in the bullpen, leading the league in saves in 1961 and 1962. In ’62, his ERA was 1.88. After two poor seasons in 1963-64, he came back from 1965-1968 to post ERAs of 2.66, 2.70, 2.42 and 2.60 getting 43 saves between 1966 and 1968 combined. Sold to Tigers on 8/31/68 at age 40. Went 4-2 with 5 saves and ERA of 3.94 for Expos in 1969 at age 41. Retired after that season.
Freddie Green, 26. Never duplicated his strong 1960 season in the bullpen. Appeared in only 13 games for ’61 Bucs. Claimed by Washington 9/25/61 on waivers. Appeared in only 5 games for 1962 Senators. Returned to Pirates in 1964 got 8 games. Out of baseball after that at age 31. Died 12/22/96.
Joe Gibbon, 25. Became full-time starter in 1961 and led Pirates in K’s with 185. Went 13-10 with 3.32 ERA. Traded to Giants after 1965 season for Matty Alou. Traded back to Pirates in June 1969 for Ron Kline. Gibbon went 5-1 for Bucs in 1969 and appeared in 41 games in relief in 1970 at age 35, appearing in playoffs. Gibbon pitched for Reds in 1971, Reds & Astros in 1972 and then retired.
Clem Labine, 33. Labine remained with the Pirates in 1961 and posted a 4-1 mark with 8 saves and a 3.69 ERA in 92 innings. He even had a rare start on July 9th, 1961. Labine appeared in 3 games with the expansion 1962 Mets and retired at the age of 36.
Tom Cheney, 25. Traded in mid-season 1961 to Washington for P Tom Sturdivant. Set a ML record on 9/12/62 with 21 K’s in a game. Cheney led the Senators starting rotation in ERA in 1962 (3.17) and 1963 (2.71), going 7-9 and 8-9 in those seasons for the expansion team. Cheney remained with Washington until he retired in 1966 at age 32. Died 11/1/01.
George Witt, 26. Appeared in just 9 games in 1961. Sold to Angels 10/10/61. Appeared in 5 games for Angels and 8 games for Colt 45s in 1962 and then was out of baseball at age 29. After his remarkable rookie season in 1958 (9-2, 1.61 ERA, 3 shutouts), arm problems ruined the remainder of career. Witt finished with a lifetime record of 11-16 with a 4.32 ERA.
Jim Umbricht, 29. Appeared in only 1 game for ’61 Bucs. Went to expansion Colt 45s in 1962 with 4-0 record, 2 saves and 2.01 ERA in 61 games out of bullpen. Went 4-3 with 2.61 ERA for ’63 Senators. Umbricht died of cancer in April 1964 at age 33.
Bennie Daniels, 28. Trade to Senators 12/16/60 for Bobby Shantz. Became full-time member of Senators starting rotation from 1961-1965, teaming with fellow ex-Pirate Tom Cheney. Daniels best season was 1961 when he went 12-11 with a 3.44 ERA. A good hitter, Daniels hit 5 HRs in his career. He retired after the 1966 season at age 33 with a career mark of 45-76.
Paul Giel, 27. Giel pitched for the Twins and A’s in 1961 and then retired at the age of 29. Eventually, Giel would become the athletic director at his alma mater, the University of Minnesota, where he had been an All-American running back and a runner up in the Heisman trophy voting. Giel died in 5/22/02.
Earl Francis, 23. Francis, who only appeared in 7 games in 1960 but had a sparkling 2.00 ERA, spent most of 1961 and all of ’62 and ’63 with the Pirates. He was the Opening Day starter in 1963, but only compiled a 4-6 record and had back and hand problems. Appeared in only 2 games in ’64 and was with St.L. for 2 games in 1965 to end his career at age 30. Died in 7/3/02.
Don Gross, 29. Never again appeared in the majors after the Pirates optioned him in mid-season in 1960.
Diomedes Olivo, 41. After his rookie year in 1960 at age 41, Olivo did not play again in the majors until 1962. That year, at age 43, he appeared in 62 games for the Bucs with a 5-1 record and 2.77 ERA in 84 innings. Traded with Groat 11/19/62 to St.L. for Don Cardwell and Julio Gotay. Went 0-5 with 5.40 ERA for 1963 Cards and was out of baseball at age 44. Died 2/15/77.
***Although he never played for the Pirates, Julian Javier began the 1960 season as a top prospect with the Pirates AAA Columbus team. He was traded in May 1960 for Vinegar Bend Mizell. Javier immediately took over at 2B for St.Louis. He played 2B for the Cardinals from 1960-1971, and finished his career with the Reds in 1972. Javier had a career BA of .257. He appeared in 4 WS-(Cardinals ‘64, ’67, ‘68, Reds ’72). The Pirates minor league system developed several outstanding second basemen in the 50s-70s: Mazeroski, Javier, Dave Cash, Rennie Stennett and Willie Randolph.
Uniform numbers:
2 Oldis
4 Skinner
5 Smith
6 Burgess
7 Stuart
8 Barone (September)
9 Mazeroski
10 Kravitz (traded)
11 Schofield
12 Hoak
14 Nelson
15 Mejias (April, May)
15 Bright (September)
16 Baker
18 Virdon
19 Friend
20 Cimoli
21 Clemente
22 Gibbon
23 Christopher
24 Groat
26 Face
28 Giel (April-July)
28 Stevens (September)
29 Daniels (April-June)
29 Francis (June, July)
29 Labine (August, September)
30 Witt (April-May)
30 Mizell (May-October)
31 Haddix
32 Law
35 Green
37 Umbricht (April-June, September)
37 Cheney (July, August, WS)
38 Gross (April, May)
38 Olivo (September)
39 Witt (July-October)
40 Murtaugh (mgr)
41 Burwell (coach)
42 Vernon (coach/player)
43 Narron (coach)
44 Oceak (coach)
48 Cheney (September)
Transactions during the season:
May 12, 1960--Optioned Roman Mejias to Columbus (AAA) and Joe Christopher and George Witt to Salt Lake City (AAA) AAA to meet requirement of reducing roster from 28 to 25 players within 30 days of opening day.
May 28, 1960--Traded Ed Bauta and Julian Javier to St. Louis for Dick Gray and Vinegar Bend Mizell. Optioned Don Gross to Salt Lake City (AAA). Optioned Gray to Columbus (AAA).
June 1, 1960--Traded Danny Kravitz to Kansas City for Hank Foiles and cash. Recalled Joe Christopher from Salt Lake City (AAA).
June 2, 1960 Traded Hank Foiles to Cleveland for John Powers. Optioned Powers to Columbus (AAA).
June 27, 1960--Recalled Tom Cheney and Earl Francis from Columbus (AAA). Optioned Bennie Daniels and Jim Umbricht to Columbus (AAA).
July 14, 1960--Recalled George Witt from Salt Lake City (AAA). Optioned Paul Giel to Salt Lake City (AAA).
August 16, 1960--Signed Clem Labine as a free agent. Optioned Earl Francis to Columbus (AAA).
September 1, 1960--Activated coach Mickey Vernon. Recalled Diomedes Olivo from Columbus (AAA).
September 8, 1960—Recalled Dick Barone, Bennie Daniels and Jim Umbricht from Columbus (AAA) and Harry Bright and R.C. Stevens from Salt Lake City (AAA).