Baseball Wiki
Don't have an account?
Register
Advertisement
Register
Baseball Wiki
Baseball Wiki
10,324
pages
in: Articles with unsourced statements, Pittsburgh Pirates seasons, 1979 Major League Baseball season,
and 4 more

1979 Pittsburgh Pirates

Revision as of 12:05, 14 November 2019 by 24.101.138.76 (contribs)
 Sign in to edit
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates
1979 NL East Champions
1979 NL Champions
1979 World Series Champions
Major League affiliations
*National League (since 1887)
:*Eastern Division (since 1969)
Location
*Three Rivers Stadium (since 1970)
*Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania[1] (since 1907)
Results
Record 98–64 (.605)
Divisional place 1st
Other information
Owner(s) John W. Galbreath (majority shareholder); Thomas P. Johnson (minority shareholder)
General manager(s) Harding "Pete" Peterson
Manager(s) Chuck Tanner
Local television KDKA-TV 2
Milo Hamilton, Lanny Frattare, Nelson Briles
Local radio KDKA–AM 1020
Milo Hamilton, Lanny Frattare
Stats ESPN.com
BB-reference
 < Previous season     Next season  >

The 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates had 98 wins and 64 losses and captured the National League East Division title by two games over the Montreal Expos. The Pirates beat the Cincinnati Reds to win their ninth National League title, and the Baltimore Orioles to win their fifth World Series title – and also their last playoff series victory to date. The disco hit "We Are Family" by Sister Sledge was used as the team's theme song that season.[2]

Offseason

  • October 23, 1978: Will McEnaney was released by the Pirates.[3]
  • December 4, 1978: Ken Macha was drafted from the Pirates by the Montreal Expos in the 1978 rule 5 draft.[4]
  • December 5, 1978: Odell Jones, Rafael Vásquez, and Mario Mendoza were traded by the Pirates to the Seattle Mariners for Enrique Romo, Rick Jones and Tom McMillan.[5]

Regular season

Key transactions

Season standings

Template:1979 NL East standings

Record vs. opponents

Template:1979 NL Record vs. opponents

1979 National League Records
Team ATL CHC CIN HOU LAD MON NYM PHI PIT SD SF STL
Atlanta — 4—8
Pittsburgh 8—4 —

Detailed records

National League
Opponent W L WP RS RA
Atlanta Braves
Month Games Won Lost Win % RS RA
Total 162 97 65 0.599 788 599
Games Won Lost Win % RS RA
Home 81 48 33 0.593 399 339
Road 82 50 31 0.617 376 304
Total 163 98 64 0.599 775 643

Game log

Regular season

Postseason

Roster

Batting

Regular Season[6]
Player Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr
Rhoden, R.R. Rhoden 1 1 1 1.000 0 0
Alexander, M.M. Alexander 44 13 7 0.538 0 1
Madlock, B.B. Madlock 85 311 102 0.328 7 44
Parker, D.D. Parker 158 622 193 0.310 25 94
Garner, P.P. Garner 150 549 161 0.293 11 59
Foli, T.T. Foli 133 525 153 0.291 1 65
Nicosia, S.S. Nicosia 70 191 55 0.288 4 13
Moreno, O.O. Moreno 162 695 196 0.282 8 69
Stargell, W.W. Stargell 126 424 119 0.281 32 82
Easler, M.M. Easler 55 54 15 0.278 2 11
Milner, J.J. Milner 128 326 90 0.276 16 60
Ott, E.E. Ott 117 403 110 0.273 7 51
Robinson, B.B. Robinson 148 421 111 0.264 24 75
Lacy, L.L. Lacy 84 182 45 0.247 5 15
Taveras, F.F. Taveras 11 45 11 0.244 0 1
Stennett, R.R. Stennett 108 319 76 0.238 0 24
Sanguillén, M.M. Sanguillén 56 74 17 0.230 0 4
Berra, D.D. Berra 44 123 26 0.211 3 15
Robinson, D.D. Robinson 29 49 10 0.204 0 3
Coleman, J.J. Coleman 10 5 1 0.200 0 0
Bibby, J.J. Bibby 34 45 8 0.178 2 5
Romo, E.E. Romo 84 12 2 0.167 0 1
Kison, B.B. Kison 37 55 8 0.145 1 6
Tekulve, K.K. Tekulve 94 15 2 0.133 0 1
Candelaria, J.J. Candelaria 33 68 9 0.132 0 6
Blyleven, B.B. Blyleven 38 70 9 0.129 0 3
Rooker, J.J. Rooker 19 33 4 0.121 0 0
Boyland, D.D. Boyland 4 3 0 0.000 0 0
Ellis, D.D. Ellis 3 1 0 0.000 0 0
Jackson, G.G. Jackson 72 9 0 0.000 0 1
Roberts, D.D. Roberts 21 5 0 0.000 0 1
Whitson, E.E. Whitson 19 13 0 0.000 0 0
Hargis, G.G. Hargis 1 0 0 — 0 0
Lois, A.A. Lois 11 0 0 — 0 0

Postseason[7][8]
Player Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr
Stennett, R.R. Stennett 2 1 1 1.000 0 0
Garner, P.P. Garner 10 36 17 0.472 1 6
Stargell, W.W. Stargell 10 41 17 0.415 5 13
Parker, D.D. Parker 10 41 14 0.341 0 6
Madlock, B.B. Madlock 10 36 12 0.333 1 5
Sanguillén, M.M. Sanguillén 3 3 1 0.333 0 1
Foli, T.T. Foli 10 42 14 0.333 0 6
Moreno, O.O. Moreno 10 45 14 0.311 0 3
Ott, E.E. Ott 6 25 7 0.280 0 3
Lacy, L.L. Lacy 4 4 1 0.250 0 0
Robinson, B.B. Robinson 10 22 5 0.227 0 2
Blyleven, B.B. Blyleven 3 6 1 0.167 0 0
Candelaria, J.J. Candelaria 3 6 1 0.167 0 0
Milner, J.J. Milner 6 18 3 0.167 0 1
Nicosia, S.S. Nicosia 4 16 1 0.063 0 0
Romo, E.E. Romo 4 1 0 0.000 0 0
Jackson, G.G. Jackson 6 2 0 0.000 0 0
Bibby, J.J. Bibby 3 4 0 0.000 0 0
Rooker, J.J. Rooker 2 2 0 0.000 0 0
Tekulve, K.K. Tekulve 7 3 0 0.000 0 0
Easler, M.M. Easler 3 2 0 0.000 0 0
Kison, B.B. Kison 1 0 0 — 0 0
Roberts, D.D. Roberts 1 0 0 — 0 0
Robinson, D.D. Robinson 6 0 0 — 0 0
Alexander, M.M. Alexander 2 0 0 — 0 0

Pitching

Regular Season[9]
Player Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr
Ellis, D.D. Ellis 3 7 0 0 2.57 1
Tekulve, K.K. Tekulve 94 Template:Sortfrac 10 8 2.75 75
Bibby, J.J. Bibby 34 Template:Sortfrac 12 4 2.81 103
Jackson, G.G. Jackson 72 82 8 5 2.96 39
Romo, E.E. Romo 84 Template:Sortfrac 10 5 2.99 106
Kison, B.B. Kison 33 Template:Sortfrac 13 7 3.19 105
Candelaria, J.J. Candelaria 33 207 14 9 3.22 101
Roberts, D.D. Roberts 21 Template:Sortfrac 5 2 3.26 15
Blyleven, B.B. Blyleven 37 Template:Sortfrac 12 5 3.6 172
Robinson, D.D. Robinson 29 Template:Sortfrac 8 8 3.87 96
Whitson, E.E. Whitson 19 Template:Sortfrac 2 3 4.37 31
Rooker, J.J. Rooker 19 Template:Sortfrac 4 7 4.6 44
Coleman, J.J. Coleman 10 Template:Sortfrac 0 0 6.1 14
Rhoden, R.R. Rhoden 1 5 0 1 7.2 2

Postseason[10][11]
Player Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr Template:Abbr
Jackson, G.G. Jackson 6 Template:Sortfrac 2 0 0.00 4
Rooker, J.J. Rooker 2 Template:Sortfrac 0 0 1.04 4
Blyleven, B.B. Blyleven 3 19 2 0 1.42 13
Bibby, J.J. Bibby 3 Template:Sortfrac 0 0 2.08 15
Tekulve, K.K. Tekulve 7 12 0 1 3.00 12
Romo, E.E. Romo 4 5 0 0 3.60 5
Robinson, D.D. Robinson 6 7 2 0 3.86 6
Candelaria, J.J. Candelaria 3 16 1 1 3.94 8
Kison, B.B. Kison 1 Template:Sortfrac 0 1 108.00 0
Roberts, D.D. Roberts 1 0 0 0 — 0

Postseason

National League Championship Series

Main article: 1979 National League Championship Series

Game 1

October 2, Riverfront Stadium

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 R H E
Pittsburgh 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 5 10 0
Cincinnati 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 7 0
W: Grant Jackson (1-0)  L: Tom Hume (0-1)   SV: Don Robinson (1)
HRs: PIT – Phil Garner (1)   Willie Stargell (1)   CIN – George Foster (1)

Game 2

October 3, Riverfront Stadium

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 R H E
Pittsburgh 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 11 0
Cincinnati 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 8 0
W: Don Robinson (1-0)  L: Doug Bair (0-1)   SV: None
HRs: PIT – None   CIN – None

Game 3

October 5, Three Rivers Stadium

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Cincinnati 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 8 1
Pittsburgh 1 1 2 2 0 0 0 1 X 7 7 0
W: Bert Blyleven (1-0)  L: Mike LaCoss (0-1)   SV: None
HRs: CIN – Johnny Bench (1)   PIT – Willie Stargell (2)   Bill Madlock (1)

World Series

Main article: 1979 World Series

The Pirates became one of only six teams in the 20th century to have won a World Series after trailing three games to one. Two of those teams were the Pirates, in 1925 and 1979. The others were the 1903 Boston Red Sox (in a best-of-nine series), 1958 New York Yankees, 1968 Detroit Tigers, and 1985 Kansas City Royals. Five Pirates had 10 or more hits in this series, a World Series record.

Chuck Tanner's mother died the morning of Game 5 (this was mentioned during the telecast by announcer Howard Cosell). 1960 World Series hero Bill Mazeroski threw out the first ball in Game 5. The Pittsburgh Pirates were the last team in the 20th Century to win Game 7 of the World Series on the road. U.S. President Jimmy Carter made an appearance in Game 7, he threw out the first ball, and after the game made a visit to the victorious Pittsburgh locker room.

Willie Stargell at 39 was the oldest player to win MVP honors for both the National League and the World Series.[citation needed] In the World Series, he hit .400 with a record seven extra-base hits and matched Reggie Jackson's record of 25 total bases, set in 1977. Stargell, pitcher Bruce Kison, infielder Rennie Stennett, and catcher Manny Sanguillén were the only players left over from the 1971 World Series, when the Pirates faced the Orioles. Orioles' pitcher Jim Palmer, Mark Belanger, and manager Earl Weaver were the only ones who were still with the team that faced the Pirates in 1971.

As was the case when the same two teams played in the 1971 World Series, a game in Baltimore was rained out. Game 1 of this series was postponed, while Game 2 of the 1971 series had to be moved back a day. In this Series, it was the American League team's "turn" to play by National League rules, meaning that there was no designated hitter and the Orioles' pitchers would have to bat. While this resulted in pitcher Tim Stoddard getting his first major league hit and RBI in Game 4. Overall, it hurt the Orioles because Lee May, their designated hitter for much of the season and a key part of their offense, was only able to bat three times in the whole series. The Pirates wore four different uniform combinations during the series: gold cap, black jersey and gold pants for Games 1 & 5, black cap, gold jersey and black pants for Games 2, 6 & 7, black cap and solid white pinstriped uniform for Game 3 and a black cap and solid gold uniform for Game 4.

Game 1

October 10, 1979, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Attendance: 53,735

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Pittsburgh 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 4 11 3
Baltimore 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 6 3
W: Mike Flanagan (1-0)   L: Bruce Kison (0-1)
HR: PIT – Willie Stargell (1); BAL – Doug Decinces (1)

Game 2

October 11, 1979, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Attendance: 53,739

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Pittsburgh 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 11 2
Baltimore 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 6 1
W: Don Robinson (1-0)   L: Don Stanhouse (0-1)  S: Kent Tekulve (1)
HR: PIT – none; BAL – Eddie Murray (1)

Game 3

October 12, 1979, at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Attendance: 50,848

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Baltimore 0 0 2 5 0 0 1 0 0 8 13 0
Pittsburgh 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 9 2
W: Scott McGregor (1-0)   L: John Candelaria (0-1)
HR: BAL – Benny Ayala (1); PIT – none

Game 4

October 13, 1979, at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Attendance: 50,883

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Baltimore 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 6 0 9 12 0
Pittsburgh 0 4 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 6 17 1
W: Tim Stoddard (1-0)   L: Kent Tekulve (0-1)
HR: BAL – none; PIT – Willie Stargell (2)

Game 5

October 14, 1979, at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Attendance: 50,920

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Baltimore 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 6 2
Pittsburgh 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 3 x 7 13 1
W: Bert Blyleven (1-0)   L: Mike Flanagan (1-1)
HR: BAL – none; PIT – none

Game 6

October 16, 1979, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Attendance: 53,739

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Pittsburgh 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 4 10 0
Baltimore 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 1
W: John Candelaria (1-1)   L: Jim Palmer (0-1)  S: Kent Tekulve (2)
HR: PIT – none; BAL – none

Game 7

October 17, 1979, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Attendance: 53,733

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Pittsburgh 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 4 10 0
Baltimore 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 2
W: Grant Jackson (1-0)   L: Scott McGregor (1-1)  S: Kent Tekulve (3)
HR: PIT – Willie Stargell (3); BAL – Rich Dauer (1)

Composite Box

1979 World Series (4-3): Pittsburgh Pirates (N.L.) over Baltimore Orioles (A.L.)

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Pittsburgh Pirates 1 8 0 1 1 8 4 6 3 32 81 9
Baltimore Orioles 5 1 6 5 1 1 1 6 0 26 54 9
Total Attendance: 367,597   Average Attendance: 52,514
Winning Player's Share: – $28,264,   Losing Player's Share – $22,114 * Includes Playoffs and World Series

Awards and honors

All-Stars

1979 Major League Baseball All-Star Game

League leaders

  • Omar Moreno, National League stolen base leader, 77[12]
  • Dave Parker, led NL in extra-base hits
  • Dave Parker, led NL in sacrifice flies

Other team leaders

  • Runs scored – Omar Moreno (110)
  • Stolen bases – Omar Moreno (77)
  • Walks – Dave Parker (67)

Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball

Media

Local TV

TV Play-by-play #1 Play-by-play #2 Color commentator (s)
KDKA-TV 2 Milo Hamilton Lanny Frattare Nelson Briles

Local Radio

Flagship station Play-by-play #1 Play-by-play #2 Color commentator (s)
KDKA–AM 1020 Milo Hamilton Lanny Frattare Milo Hamilton
Lanny Frattare

Notes

  1. ↑ From 1882–1906, the team played in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, which became annexed by Pittsburgh as the North Shore in 1907.
  2. ↑ “Family” reunion; Close ties still bind 1979 Pirates (en-US) (2019-07-21).
  3. ↑ Will McEnaney at Baseball-Reference
  4. ↑ Ken Macha page at Baseball-Reference. Retrieved on September 5, 2008.
  5. ↑ Enrique Romo at Baseball Reference
  6. ↑ Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats. Pittsburgh Pirates.
  7. ↑ Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats. Pittsburgh Pirates.
  8. ↑ Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats. Pittsburgh Pirates.
  9. ↑ Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats. Pittsburgh Pirates.
  10. ↑ Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats. Pittsburgh Pirates.
  11. ↑ Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats. Pittsburgh Pirates.
  12. ↑ Stolen Bases Single Season National League Leaders by Baseball Almanac

References

Template:World Series champions Template:National League champions Template:National League East champions Template:1979 MLB season by team Template:1979 Pittsburgh Pirates Template:Pittsburgh Pirates

Opening Day lineup

Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
Advertisement

Fan Feed