8/24 From 1985: Big Boomers, Grilli Gets 1st, Freak-y Show, No Ruben, Leyland Feisty, Ricardo Signs, '24 Pirates HoF
- 1987 – Peter Gammon wrote in Sports Illustrated that GM Syd Thrift called a team meeting for his young and underachieving Pirate club (53-71) and asked the team to set goals. Reliever Jim Gott suggested aiming for 25 wins in the final 38 games. “Be realistic,” Thrift replied. It ended up that Gott was indeed a bit unrealistic – the team won 27 down the stretch, starting a seven-game winning streak that night with a 5-4 win over the Reds. Gott earned the save. The Pirates hot streak allowed them to finish at a competitive 80-82, though they were still a couple of seasons away from contention under Jim Leyland in the early 90s.
- 1989 – The Pirates dropped the Houston Astros, 3-2, in 14 frames at Three Rivers Stadium. Doug Drabek tossed a nine-inning two-hitter that was tainted by two unearned runs due to three Bucco errors. Doug Bair got the win after Jose Lind’s bonus time sac fly brought home Gary Redus.
- 1992 – Knight-Ridder News reported that the Pirates were considered the frontrunners to land Texas Ranger rental OF Ruben Sierra, an All-Star hitting .278 w/14 HR. He was in the walk year of his contract and would be owed $1.35M for the rest of the year. Ruben was a right fielder, a spot the Pirates were filling by committee, and even wore #21 in honor of his countryman, Roberto Clemente, but he ultimately went to Oakland as part of a big trade package for Jose Canseco. The major hitch was that Texas wanted SS Carlos Garcia, and the Pirates were reluctant to deal a top prospect for a one-and-done player.
- 1993 – The Pirates visited LA and were clocked at Dodger Stadium by a 13-4 count. But there was a highlight film moment, albeit more appropriate for the WWF than MLB, when Jim Leyland showed more spunk than his club. It started when Kevin Gross hit Kevin Young high, in the neck/head area. Bob Walk later went old school and plunked Gross when he batted. Walkie was ejected with no warning, and Leyland visited the ump, Bruce Froemming, to argue that chain of events. Leyland was ejected, too, then chased down Gross. Jim launched a punch (and keep in mind that Gross was 6’5”, 220 lbs) to kindle a bench-clearing mixer. Froemming grabbed the Pirates skipper and Don Slaught put a hug on Gross, allowing peace in the valley to again reign.
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| Jim Leyland – Press photo 8/25/1993 – Jim Draper, AP |
- 1997 – The “Freak Show” Pirates were on a roll after sweeping the San Francisco Giants at Three Rivers Stadium, having won 9-of-12 games to claw their way to within three games of first. The Post Gazette had them featured above the fold on the front page and wrote “And what is this strange ailment suddenly gripping Western Pennsylvania…Pennant fever?” Alas, though it was a precursor of Buctober a couple of decades later, the Corsairs hit their high point on September 2nd when they got within a 1-1/2 games of first place, only to fade and finish in second, five games off the pace.
- 1998 – LHP Ricardo Rincon signed a two-year/$1.25M contract – his current, second-year deal was worth $245K – with incentives that could push the package to $2M if he was used as a back-end reliever rather than a set up man. The agreement was a few weeks away from being turned over to Cleveland; they traded for Ricardo during the winter, sending the Bucs Brian Giles.
- 2002 – The Milwaukee Brewers pounded out 20 hits against the Buccos at PNC Park but it was for naught as the Pirates out-slugged the Brew Crew, 17-10. Pittsburgh coasted with a 16-hit attack of their own and were up, 7-2, after three frames and 14-3 after seven innings. The Pirates had seven multi-hit performances, led by Brian Giles with three knocks, and banged out nine two-baggers and a pair of homers (Craig Wilson, Armando Rios) as every Pittsburgh starter scored (Pokey Reese & Rob Mackowiak touched home three times) and all but one chased home runs (Craig Wilson four RBI, Giles and Jason Kendall three). Kip Wells got the win with the finishing touches provided by three relievers. The Pirates banged out eight doubles, and three players (Pokey Reese, Brian Giles and Abraham Nunez) had a pair each, a feat not repeated again until 2025.
- 2005 – The Pirates were clobbered by the Cards at PNC Park, 8-3, but staged a much more competitive show before the gates opened. As the two teams were changing over during batting practice, 2-1/2 hours before the game, Redbird coach Dave Duncan chirped at Pirates reliever Rick White, who had buzzed Hector Luna earlier in the set after Luna had gone hard into Jose Castillo and tore up his knee. Lloyd McClendon took exception at the barking, the pair became animated during their discussion, and Bucco coach Gerald Perry stepped between the duo, eventually popping Duncan in the jaw. Dunc and St. Louis reliever Ray King were both dragged away from the escalating brouhaha, and peace was restored under the watchful eye of four bemused city cops (there was no ump intervention; the dance was over before they arrived in the yard).
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| X-Man – 2007 Topps Heritage |
- 2007 – The Pirates’ Xavier Nady hit a two-out homer to tie the game in the ninth off Brad Lidge and then the Bucs erupted in the 15th inning to take an 8-3 victory from the Astros at Minute Maid Park. Adam LaRoche’s three-run shot in the 15th off Travis Driskill was the big blow. Shane Youman picked up the win after two innings of scoreless relief with four K against Houston. Six Pirates relievers tossed eight shutout frames, giving up just six hits and striking out eight. The Nady-Lidge result was deja vu all over again from Opening Day in Houston, when the X-Man swatted a two-out, ninth-inning bomb to knot the score in a game that the Pirates went on to wrest from the ‘Stros in the 10th frame.
- 2011 – Jason Grilli spun 2-2/3 scoreless innings in relief of starter Aaron Thompson to pick up his first win with the Pirates, 2-0, against the Brewers at PNC Park. Jose Veras tossed a 1-2-3 eighth while Joel Hanrahan struck out the side with a walk and hit in the final frame to add some drama to his 32nd save. Andrew McCutchen scored Jose Tabata with a sac fly in the opening inning while Neil Walker added the insurance with another sac fly in the fourth to plate Josh Harrison. The pitchers reigned as the Bucs had four hits on the day and Milwaukee posted five.
- 2019 – After going 8-30 after the All-Star break and falling deep into the cellar, the Pirates showed signs of life against the Cincinnati Reds. After scoring twice in the ninth inning to walkoff Cincy, 3-2, the night before, the Bucs unloaded the lumber in a 14-0 romp at PNC Park. Colin Moran smacked a pinch-hit grand slam, Josh Bell swatted a three-run four-bagger and Kevin Newman reached base five times with three raps and a pair of free passes to lead the tidal wave. Trevor Williams scattered three hits over six innings with three guys behind him spinning shutout ball. The Corsairs followed up by jumping to an early lead in the third game of the set the next afternoon to broom the Redlegs, 9-8, their first series sweep since downing San Diego in June.
- 2024 – Barry Bonds (two-time NL-MVP), Jim Leyland (three division titles & 851 wins) and Manny Sanguillen (two-time World Series champ & three-time All-Star) were presented as the 2024 class of inductees of the Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame in a pregame ceremony before playing the Reds. They threw out the first pitch(es) and then partied to a Zambelli’s post game fireworks display. Their entry brought the three-year-old Pirates HoF roster up to 26 members. Alas, it failed to inspire the current club, who dropped a 10-2 decision to Cincinnati at PNC Park.
Source: https://oldbucs.blogspot.com/2025/08/824-from-1985-big-boomers-grilli-gets.html
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