Buccos Cove

On September 1st, 1971, the Pittsburgh Pirates were the first Major League Baseball team to field an all-minority starting lineup. We look back on the players who made up that lineup, and the significance it had on the game of baseball. The 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates were a team full of talent, and it showed when they claimed the 1971 World Series Championship. With guys like Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, and Steve Blass in the prime years of their careers, no matter who you had in the lineup night in and night out, you were bound to have a strong lineup. So, on September 1st, 1971, manager Danny Murtaugh was filling out the lineup card like he had all summer long. He was trying to construct the best lineup he could as the 82-56 Pirates took on the 57-78 Philadelphia Phillies. He wrote down the names of the eight best guys he had to back up star pitcher Dock Ellis on the mound. He didn't realize it at the time, but those nine names on that lineup card would end up mak...

So far, Yoshi Tsutsugo has been one of the best Pirates pick-ups of the season, hitting five home runs, including a walk-off home run yesterday. We look at what has made him more successful and how he is earning his way into next season's plans. If there is one thing the Pittsburgh Pirates have been lacking this season, it is a true power threat. Bryan Reynolds has emerged with 21 home runs this season setting a career-high, but there is no one in the lineup that when they come to the plate they strike fear into their opponents. The closest thing they have to that is still in the Minor Leagues in the form of Mason Martin, who has struggled mightily as of late. So, when the Pirates had two on and one out in the ninth inning while being down 3-1 to the St. Louis Cardinals yesterday, no one was really getting their hopes up. However, stepping to the plate was a guy who in 12 games with the Pirates had four home runs and was hitting over .300 in his first 26 at-bats. That g...