By 81omar_moreno

Former players born on this date include Charles "Whammy" Douglas, whose career didn't amount to much, but he was part of an important trade made by the Bucs. Born in 1935, the right-handed starter joined the Bucs on July 29, 1957 and lost to the Cardinals 4-0. He got his 1st win vs Don Newcombe and the Dodgers on August 11th, in the second game of a doubleheader. Douglas finished the season 3-3 3.26 in 11 games, 8 as a starter.

By 81omar_moreno

On this date in 1952, coach Honus Wagner announces his retirement, ending his baseball career which began with Louisville way back in 1897. Honus joined the Pirates after the 1899 season and played with them till retiring as a player in 1917. In his career he hit .327 with 3415 hits and over 1700 runs scored and RBI's. He also managed the Bucs for a very short time during the 1917 season. Wagner rejoined the Pirates as a coach on Feb 2,1933 and he was named to the Baseball Hall of Fame exactly 3 years after that.

By 81omar_moreno

On this date in Pirates History just 2 former players were born. First, Barry Jones who played for the Bucs from 1986-1988 turns 40 today. A big righty relief pitcher, he made his ML debut on July 18, 1986 during a 12-7 win Vs the Padres at Three Rivers. During his rookie season he would go 3-4 2.89 with 3 saves in 23 games. His ERA placed him 2nd on the team just behing Pat Clements among relievers. He picked up his 1st save 10 days after being called up from the minors in a 7-4 win Vs the Expos in Montreal.

By 81omar_moreno

Former Pirate players born on this date include Earl "Oil" Smith, who was a member of the 1925 and 1927 World Series teams. Born in 1897, the lefty hitting catcher came over to the Pirates from the Braves midseason 1924 and in 39 games would hit .369 with 21 RBI's. In 1925 Earl platooned with Johnny Gooch during the championship season, and they provided the Bucs with great offense from the Catcher position. In 109 games, Smith hit .313 with 64 RBI's and Gooch hit .298 with 30 RBI's in 79 games. The Pirates that season had 10 players with over 150 at-bats and all of them hit at least .298 and the team hit .307 combined on the year.

By 81omar_moreno

Former Pirates players born on this date include Pete Castiglione, who was a 3rd baseman / infielder for the Bucs from 1947-1953. Born in 1921, Pete was a September call up in 1947. He played just 17 games total between his first 2 seasons. In 1949 Frankie Gustine, who spent the previous 10 seasons with the Bucs, was now a member of the Cubs, and it opened a spot for Castiglione. In 118 games, Pete hit a career high .268 with 43 RBI's and 57 runs scored. He played 98 games that season at 3B, but also played 17 games at shortstop without an error.

By 81omar_moreno

On this date in Pirates History in 1912 the Bucs traded Vin Campbell, who had hit over .300 in 2 partial seasons with the Pirates, to the Braves for Mike Donlin. Known as Turkey Mike, he was a great hitter, who left baseball right after his best season to pursue a career in vaudeville. At the age of 30 in 1908, Mike hit .334 with 106 RBI's, but left for 2 full seasons before returning briefly to the Giants in 1911, who in turn sold him to the Braves midseason. Mike also missed all of the 1907 season as a holdout.

By 81omar_moreno

On this date in Pirates history way back in 2001, Three Rivers Stadium was imploded. The Pirates had played there since 1970 when they moved over from Forbes Field on July 16th. The stadium held 47,971 fans for baseball and approx. 11,000 more for football. The outfield dimensions when it opened were 340 down the lines and 410 to straight away center, but they were moved in, in 1975 (5ft down the lines, 10 in center). The Bucs won 9 division titles and 2 world series in their 31 seasons there. The highest single season attendance at Three Rivers was 1991 when over 2,065,000 fans showed up.

By 81omar_moreno

Former players born on this date in Pirate history include starting pitcher Larry McWilliams, who played for the Bucs from 1982-1986. A tall lanky left hander, Larry was acquired in a trade for Pascual Perez from the Braves in June of 1982. McWilliams was a starter his first 4 seasons, but he was moved to the bullpen by the Braves before the trade. In 18 starts for the Bucs in 1982, he went 6-5 3.11 with 2 shutouts and even got a save in his only relief appearance.

By 81omar_moreno

Former Bucs players born on this date include pitcher Eddie Solomon, who played for the Pirates from 1980-82. Being the only player born on this date that I've seen play out of the 7 guys born on this date, I decided to start with him. Acquired from the Braves on March 28, 1980 in exchange for pitcher Greg Fields, Eddie was coming off a season where he went 7-14 4.21 in 31 games. Born in 1951, Eddie had his best years while with the Bucs, going 7-2 2.69 in 26 games (12 as a starter) in 1980 and then 8-6 3.12 in 22 games (17 starts) in the strike shortened 1981 season.

By 81omar_moreno

Former Pirates born on this date include Monty Basgall, who was a light hitting second baseman for parts of 3 season from 1948-51. Born in 1922, Monty originally signed with the Dodgers as a teenager, but never played for them in the majors. He made the Pirates out of spring training in 1948, but appeared in just 38 games, many as a pinch hitter / pinch runner or defensive replacement. In 22 games at 2nd base, Basgall was flawless in the field. In 51 at-bats he hit .216 with 6 RBI's and 12 runs scored.