1979 Pittsburgh Pirates season

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
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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.

Offseason

October 23, 1978: Will McEnaney was released by the Pirates.^[2]
December 4, 1978: Ken Macha was drafted from the Pirates by the Montreal Expos in the 1978 rule 5 draft.^[3]
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.^[4]

Regular season

Key transactions

April 19, 1979: Traded Frank Taveras to the New York Mets for Tim Foli and Greg Field (minors).
June 28, 1979: Traded Fred Breining, Al Holland and Ed Whitson to the San Francisco Giants for Bill Madlock, Lenny Randle, and Dave Roberts.

Season standings

NL East	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Pittsburgh Pirates	98	64	0.605	—	48–33	50–31
Montreal Expos	95	65	0.594	2	56–25	39–40
St. Louis Cardinals	86	76	0.531	12	42–39	44–37
Philadelphia Phillies	84	78	0.519	14	43–38	41–40
Chicago Cubs	80	82	0.494	18	45–36	35–46
New York Mets	63	99	0.389	35	28–53	35–46

Record vs. opponents

1979 National League Records Sources:
Team	ATL	CHC	CIN	HOU	LAD	MON	NYM	PHI	PIT	SD	SF	STL
Atlanta	—	4–8	6–12	7–11	12–6	1–9	4–8	7–5	4–8	6–12	11–7	4–8
Chicago	8–4	—	7–5	6–6	5–7	6–12	8–10	9–9	6–12	9–3	8–4	8–10
Cincinnati	12–6	5–7	—	8–10	11–7	6–6	8–4	8–4	8–4	10–7	6–12	8–4
Houston	11–7	6–6	10–8	—	10–8	7–5	9–3	5–7	4–8	14–4	7–11	6–6
Los Angeles	6–12	7–5	7–11	8–10	—	6–6	9–3	3–9	4–8	9–9	14–4	6–6
Montreal	9–1	12–6	6–6	5–7	6–6	—	15–3	11–7	7–11	7–5	7–5	10–8
New York	8–4	10–8	4–8	3–9	3–9	3–15	—	5–13	8–10–1	4–8	8–4	7–11
Philadelphia	5-7	9–9	4–8	7–5	9–3	7–11	13–5	—	8–10	9–3	6–6	7–11–1
Pittsburgh	8–4	12–6	4–8	8–4	8–4	11–7	10–8–1	10–8	—	7–5	9–3	11–7
San Diego	12–6	3–9	7–10	4–14	9–9	5–7	8–4	3–9	5–7	—	8–10	4–8
San Francisco	7–11	4–8	12–6	11–7	4–14	5–7	4–8	6–6	3–9	10–8	—	5–7
St. Louis	8–4	10–8	4–8	6–6	6–6	8–10	11–7	11–7–1	7–11	8–4	7–5	—

Detailed records

National League
Opponent	W	L	WP	RS	RA
NL East
Chicago Cubs	12	6	0.667	86	68
Montreal Expos	11	7	0.611	89	66
New York Mets	10	8	0.556	78	73
Philadelphia Phillies	10	8	0.556	94	79
Pittsburgh Pirates
St. Louis Cardinals	11	7	0.611	82	77
Total	54	36	0.600	429	363
NL West
Atlanta Braves	8	4	0.667	65	54
Cincinnati Reds	4	8	0.333	46	55
Houston Astros	8	4	0.667	70	49
Los Angeles Dodgers	8	4	0.667	46	33
San Diego Padres	7	5	0.583	55	36
San Francisco Giants	9	3	0.750	64	53
Total	43	29	0.597	346	280
Season Total	98	64	0.605	775	643

Month	Games	Won	Lost	Win %	RS	RA
April	18	7	11	0.389	85	93
May	27	16	10	0.615	130	104
June	27	14	13	0.519	116	103
July	31	20	11	0.645	143	119
August	30	21	9	0.700	151	121
September	30	20	10	0.667	150	103
Total	163	98	64	0.605	775	643

Total	163	98	64	0.605	775	643
	Games	Won	Lost	Win %	RS	RA
Home	81	48	33	0.593	399	339
Away	82	50	31	0.617	376	304

Game log

1979 Game Log: 98–64 (Home: 48–33; Away: 50–31)^[5]

April: 7–11 (Home: 5–6; Away: 2–5)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record	Streak
1	April 6	Expos	2–3 (10)	Sosa	Tekulve (0–1)	—	36,141	0–1	L1
2	April 7	Expos	7–6	Jackson (1–0)	Sosa	—	8,700	1–1	W1
3	April 8	Expos	4–5	May	Romo (0–1)	Palmer	8,680	1–2	L1
—	April 9	@ Phillies	PPD, RAIN; rescheduled for Apr. 10
4	April 10	@ Phillies	3–7	Ruthven	Romo (0–2)	—	48,235	1–3	L2
5	April 11	@ Phillies	4–5	Carlton	Blyleven (0–1)	—	26,281	1–4	L3
6	April 12	Cardinals	3–1	Robinson (1–0)	Denny	—	3,986	2–4	W1
7	April 13	Cardinals	7–6	Bibby (1–0)	Schultz	Jackson (1)	4,395	3–4	W2
8	April 14	Cardinals	7–4	Whitson (1–0)	Forsch	Jackson (2)	10,940	4–4	W3
9	April 15	Cardinals	4–9 (10)	Littell	Tekulve (0–2)	—	3,012	4–5	L1
—	April 16	Phillies	PPD, RAIN; rescheduled for Aug. 3
10	April 17	Phillies	2–13	Carlton	Blyleven (0–2)	—	7,739	4–6	L2
11	April 18	Phillies	2–3	Lerch	Robinson (1–1)	—	12,195	4–7	L3
12	April 20	@ Astros	4–5 (10)	Sambito	Bibby (1–1)	—	19,834	4–8	L4
13	April 21	@ Astros	4–5 (10)	Andujar	Tekulve (0–3)	—	48,977	4–9	L5
14	April 22	@ Astros	2–3	Andujar	Candelaria (0–1)	Sambito	22,403	4–10	L6
15	April 24	@ Reds	9–2	Robinson (2–1)	Pastore	—	18,372	5–10	W1
16	April 25	@ Reds	3–2 (11)	Tekulve (1–3)	Tomlin	—	20,155	6–10	W2
17	April 27	Astros	8–9 (11)	Riccelli	Whitson (1–1)	—	5,767	6–11	L1
—	April 28	Astros	PPD, RAIN; rescheduled for July 19
18	April 29	Astros	10–5	Kison (1–0)	Niekro	Jackson (3)	7,598	7–11	W1

May: 16–10 (Home: 7–4; Away: 9–6)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record	Streak
19	May 1	Braves	2–5	Niekro	Tekulve (1–4)	—	5,122	7–12	L1
20	May 2	Braves	10–2	Candelaria (1–1)	Mahler	—	4,840	8–12	W1
—	May 3	Braves	PPD, RAIN; rescheduled for July 23
21	May 4	@ Cardinals	3–4	Sykes	Robinson (2–2)	Schultz	13,525	8–13	L1
22	May 5	@ Cardinals	6–5	Jackson (2–0)	Vuckovich	Whitson (1)	17,440	9–13	W1
23	May 6	@ Cardinals	2–4	Martinez	Kison (1–1)	Knowles	20,966	9–14	L1
24	May 7	@ Braves	4–2	Candelaria (2–1)	Mahler	Tekulve (1)	8,166	10–14	W1
25	May 8	@ Braves	1–4	Solomon	Rhoden (0–1)	—	5,741	10–15	L1
26	May 9	@ Braves	17–9	Bibby (2–1)	Garber	Tekulve (2)	6,855	11–15	W1
27	May 11	Reds	4–8	Tomlin	Whitson (1–2)	Bair	14,115	11–16	L1
28	May 12	Reds	3–2	Bibby (3–1)	Pastore	Jackson (4)	18,745	12–16	W1
29	May 13	Reds	3–7	LaCoss	Candelaria (2–2)	—	10,253	12–17	L1
30	May 15	Mets	0–3	Swan	Robinson (2–3)	Lockwood	6,097	12–18	L2
31	May 16	Mets	4–3 (13)	Romo (1–2)	Lockwood	—	7,621	13–18	W1
32	May 17	Mets	6–5	Tekulve (2–4)	Orosco	—	6,295	14–18	W2
33	May 18	@ Cubs	9–5	Candelaria (3–2)	Holtzman	—	12,578	15–18	W3
34	May 19	@ Cubs	3–0	Rooker (1–0)	Krukow	Jackson (5)	29,460	16–18	W4
35	May 20	@ Cubs	6–5	Robinson (3–3)	McGlothen	Tekulve (3)	30,998	17–18	W5
36	May 21	@ Expos	4–2	Blyleven (1–2)	Sanderson	Tekulve (4)	25,154	18–18	W6
37	May 22	@ Expos	3–6	Grimsley	Whitson (1–3)	Fryman	15,227	18–19	L1
38	May 23	@ Expos	0–3	Rogers	Candelaria (3–3)	—	7,041	18–20	L2
39	May 25	@ Mets	3–3 (11)			—	6,611	18–20
40	May 26	@ Mets	8–10	Lockwood	Tekulve (2–5)	—	20,272	18–21	L3
41	May 27	@ Mets	2–1	Jackson (3–0)	Murray	—	25,545	19–21	W1
42	May 28	@ Mets	6–1	Candelaria (4–3)	Falcone	Jackson (6)	10,619	20–21	W2
43	May 29	Cubs	8–0	Robinson (4–3)	Holtzman	—	7,196	21–21	W3
44	May 30	Cubs	9–2	Rooker (2–0)	McGlothen	—	7,107	22–21	W4
45	May 31	Cubs	4–3 (10)	Kison (2–1)	Sutter	—	6,438	23–21	W5

June: 14–13 (Home: 7–9; Away: 7–4)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record	Streak
46	June 1	Padres	9–8	Tekulve (3–5)	Shirley	—	12,928	24–21	W6
47	June 2	Padres	1–3	Perry	Candelaria (4–4)	—	20,977	24–22	L1
48	June 3	Padres	7–0	Kison (3–1)	Owchinko	—	13,370	25–22	W1
49	June 4	Dodgers	2–4	Sutcliffe	Rooker (2–1)	—	14,727	25–23	L1
50	June 5	Dodgers	3–1	Blyleven (2–2)	Sutton	Tekulve (5)	11,088	26–23	W1
51	June 6	Dodgers	5–4	Romo (2–2)	Welch	Tekulve (6)	16,666	27–23	W2
52	June 8	Giants	3–2	Romo (3–2)	Curtis	Jackson (7)	18,227	28–23	W3
53	June 9	Giants	2–6	Blue	Kison (3–2)	—	25,814	28–24	L1
54	June 10	Giants	4–7	Lavelle	Romo (3–3)	—	25,536	28–25	L2
55	June 12	@ Padres	3–6	Perry	Candelaria (4–5)	—	23,759	28–26	L3
56	June 13	@ Padres	2–3	Owchinko	Kison (3–3)	Fingers	17,845	28–27	L4
57	June 14	@ Padres	1–2 (14)	D'Acquisto	Candelaria (4–6)	—	15,444	28–28	L5
58	June 15	@ Dodgers	6–2	Blyleven (3–2)	Sutton	Tekulve (7)	50,299	29–28	W1
59	June 16	@ Dodgers	6–3	Robinson (5–3)	Welch	—	49,448	30–28	W2
60	June 17	@ Dodgers	5–1	Whitson (2–3)	Reuss	Tekulve (8)	45,835	31–28	W3
61	June 19	@ Giants	9–4	Candelaria (5–6)	Montefusco	Romo (1)	39,861	32–28	W4
62	June 20	@ Giants	8–5	Jackson (4–0)	Lavelle	Tekulve (9)	19,637	33–28	W5
63	June 22	Cubs	7–2	Blyleven (4–2)	Holtzman	—	21,006	34–28	W6
64	June 23	Cubs	3–4	Krukow	Robinson (5–4)	Sutter	18,513	34–29	L1
65	June 24	Cubs	0–5	Reuschel	Kison (3–4)	—	43,402	34–30	L2
66	June 25	@ Mets	8–1	Candelaria (6–6)	Swan	—		35–30	W1
67	June 25	@ Mets	0–4	Falcone	Rooker (2–2)	—	14,666	35–31	L1
68	June 26	@ Mets	2–1	Blyleven (5–2)	Hausman	Jackson (8)	11,903	36–31	W1
69	June 27	Mets	9–12	Twitchell	Jackson (4–1)	—	13,168	36–32	L1
70	June 28	Mets	2–3	Allen	Bibby (3–2)	Glynn	10,137	36–33	L2
71	June 29	Expos	6–5	Kison (4–4)	Lee	Tekulve (10)	35,677	37–33	W1
72	June 30	Expos	3–5	Sanderson	Blyleven (5–3)	Fryman	13,865	37–34	L1

July: 20–11 (Home: 8–5; Away: 12–6)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record	Streak
—	July 1	Expos	PPD, RAIN; rescheduled for Sept. 24
—	July 1	Expos	PPD, RAIN; rescheduled for Sept. 24
73	July 2	@ Cardinals	5–4	Romo (4–3)	Knowles	Jackson (9)	18,042	38–34	W1
74	July 3	@ Cardinals	4–1	Candelaria (7–6)	Forsch	Romo (2)	17,130	39–34	W2
75	July 4	@ Cardinals	6–4	Blyleven (6–3)	Vuckovich	Jackson (10)	14,766	40–34	W3
76	July 5	@ Cardinals	0–2	Fulgham	Rooker (2–3)	—	16,626	40–35	L1
77	July 6	@ Reds	1–2	Bair	Jackson (4–2)	—	32,264	40–36	L2
78	July 7	@ Reds	2–6	Moskau	Robinson (5–5)	—	36,300	40–37	L3
79	July 8	@ Reds	2–4	Norman	Candelaria (7–7)	—		40–38	L4
80	July 8	@ Reds	2–1	Jackson (5–2)	Tomlin	Tekulve (11)	43,099	41–38	W1
81	July 10	@ Astros	4–3	Bibby (4–2)	Andujar	Tekulve (12)	31,341	42–38	W2
82	July 11	@ Astros	5–1	Kison (5–4)	Richard	—	25,330	43–38	W3
83	July 12	@ Astros	5–3	Blyleven (7–3)	Niekro	Tekulve (13)	22,956	44–38	W4
84	July 13	@ Braves	4–13	Niekro	Rooker (2–4)	—	17,018	44–39	L1
85	July 14	@ Braves	5–1	Candelaria (8–7)	Matula	—	25,083	45–39	W1
86	July 15	@ Braves	7–3	Bibby (5–2)	Solomon	—	11,304	46–39	W2
50th All-Star Game in Seattle, Washington
87	July 19	Astros	9–5	Roberts (1–0)	Forsch	—		47–39	W3
88	July 19	Astros	4–2	Kison (6–4)	Niekro	Jackson (11)	33,464	48–39	W4
89	July 20	Astros	9–3	Candelaria (9–7)	Richard	—	23,585	49–39	W5
90	July 21	Astros	6–5	Romo (5–3)	Sambito	Tekulve (14)	19,570	50–39	W6
91	July 22	Braves	5–4	Robinson (6–5)	Solomon	Tekulve (15)		51–39	W7
92	July 22	Braves	3–2	Bibby (6–2)	Mahler	Tekulve (16)	29,533	52–39	W8
93	July 23	Braves	7–1	Blyleven (8–3)	Hanna	—		53–39	W9
94	July 23	Braves	0–8	Niekro	Rooker (2–5)	—	27,148	53–40	L1
95	July 24	Reds	5–6	Norman	Kison (6–5)	Bair	19,517	53–41	L2
96	July 25	Reds	5–6 (10)	Bair	Tekulve (3–6)	—	17,296	53–42	L3
97	July 26	Reds	7–9	Soto	Roberts (1–1)	Hume	20,339	53–43	L4
98	July 27	@ Expos	5–4	Tekulve (4–6)	Sosa	Romo (3)		54–43	W1
99	July 27	@ Expos	9–1	Blyleven (9–3)	Sanderson	—	59,260	55–43	W2
100	July 28	@ Expos	5–3	Bibby (7–2)	Schatzeder	Tekulve (17)	38,661	56–43	W3
101	July 29	@ Expos	3–5	Rogers	Kison (6–6)	—	35,245	56–44	L1
102	July 30	Mets	8–5	Jackson (6–2)	Bernard	Tekulve (18)	11,837	57–44	W1
103	July 31	Mets	1–2	Twitchell	Blyleven (9–4)	Glynn	10,739	57–45	L1

August: 21–9 (Home: 12–4; Away: 9–5)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record	Streak
104	August 1	Cardinals	4–3	Romo (6–3)	Forsch	Tekulve (19)	16,124	58–45	W1
105	August 2	Cardinals	4–5	Frazier	Jackson (6–3)	Knowles	25,163	58–46	L1
106	August 3	Phillies	6–3	Romo (7–3)	McGraw	—		59–46	W1
107	August 3	Phillies	5–1	Bibby (8–2)	Christenson	—	45,309	60–46	W2
108	August 4	Phillies	4–0	Candelaria (10–7)	Espinosa	—	34,754	61–46	W3
109	August 5	Phillies	12–8	Tekulve (5–6)	Eastwick	—		62–46	W4
110	August 5	Phillies	5–2	Romo (8–3)	Noles	Tekulve (20)	46,006	63–46	W5
111	August 7	@ Cubs	2–15	Reuschel	Rooker (2–6)	—	34,641	63–47	L1
112	August 8	@ Cubs	5–2 (10)	Tekulve (6–6)	Tidrow	—	34,255	64–47	W1
113	August 9	@ Cubs	3–11	Lamp	Candelaria (10–8)	—	29,645	64–48	L1
114	August 10	@ Phillies	3–4 (12)	Eastwick	Jackson (6–4)	—		64–49	L2
115	August 10	@ Phillies	3–2	Kison (7–6)	Lerch	Tekulve (21)	63,346	65–49	W1
116	August 11	@ Phillies	14–11	Romo (9–3)	Eastwick	Tekulve (22)	51,118	66–49	W2
—	August 12	@ Phillies	PPD, RAIN; rescheduled for Sept. 19
117	August 13	@ Phillies	9–1	Bibby (9–2)	Christenson	—	43,111	67–49	W3
118	August 14	Padres	7–1	Candelaria (11–8)	D'Acquisto	—	23,210	68–49	W4
119	August 15	Padres	5–1	Blyleven (10–4)	Jones	—	14,219	69–49	W5
120	August 16	Padres	5–4	Kison (8–6)	Perry	Romo (4)	14,201	70–49	W6
121	August 17	Dodgers	6–7	Patterson	Bibby (9–3)	Castillo	22,416	70–50	L1
122	August 18	Dodgers	1–5	Reuss	Robinson (6–6)	—	40,238	70–51	L2
123	August 19	Dodgers	2–0	Tekulve (7–6)	Hooton	—	28,382	71–51	W1
124	August 20	Giants	6–5	Romo (10–3)	Lavelle	Tekulve (23)	18,714	72–51	W2
125	August 21	Giants	1–6	Knepper	Kison (8–7)	—	20,999	72–52	L1
126	August 22	Giants	8–6	Tekulve (8–6)	Lavelle	—	19,768	73–52	W1
127	August 24	@ Padres	2–3	Jones	Romo (10–4)	Lee	16,890	73–53	L1
128	August 25	@ Padres	4–3 (19)	Roberts (2–1)	D'Acquisto	—	14,607	74–53	W1
129	August 26	@ Padres	9–2	Kison (9–7)	Shirley	—	13,006	75–53	W2
130	August 27	@ Dodgers	2–4	Brett	Tekulve (8–7)	—	35,705	75–54	L1
131	August 28	@ Dodgers	4–1	Candelaria (12–8)	Hough	—	31,587	76–54	W1
132	August 29	@ Dodgers	4–1	Blyleven (11–4)	Reuss	Tekulve (24)	32,816	77–54	W2
133	August 31	@ Giants	6–4	Robinson (7–6)	Curtis	Jackson (12)	19,377	78–54	W3

September: 20–10 (Home: 9–5; Away: 11–5)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record	Streak
134	September 1	@ Giants	5–3	Kison (10–7)	Montefusco	Jackson (13)	25,551	79–54	W4
135	September 1	@ Giants	7–2	Bibby (10–3)	Knepper	—	27,382	80–54	W5
136	September 2	@ Giants	5–3	Candelaria (13–8)	Blue	—	15,663	81–54	W6
137	September 3	Phillies	0–2	Carlton	Blyleven (11–5)	McGraw		81–55	L1
138	September 3	Phillies	7–3	Rooker (3–6)	Lerch	Tekulve (25)	43,444	82–55	W1
139	September 5	@ Cardinals	7–5 (11)	Roberts (3–1)	Thomas	Tekulve (26)	23,059	83–55	W2
140	September 6	@ Cardinals	6–8	Martinez	Bibby (10–4)	McEnaney	14,767	83–56	L1
141	September 7	@ Mets	6–4 (14)	Jackson (7–4)	Allen	—	8,290	84–56	W1
142	September 8	@ Mets	2–3 (15)	Ellis	Rooker (3–7)	—	8,095	84–57	L1
143	September 9	@ Mets	6–5	Tekulve (9–7)	Glynn	—	9,093	85–57	W1
144	September 11	Cardinals	7–3	Roberts (4–1)	Denny	—	15,757	86–57	W2
145	September 12	Cardinals	2–0	Candelaria (14–8)	Forsch	Tekulve (27)	17,669	87–57	W3
—	September 13	Cardinals	PPD, RAIN; rescheduled for Sept. 27
146	September 15	Mets	5–4	Roberts (5–1)	Glynn	Tekulve (28)	18,060	88–57	W4
147	September 16	Mets	0–3	Falcone	Candelaria (14–9)	Allen	25,364	88–58	L1
148	September 17	@ Expos	2–1	Robinson (8–6)	Rogers	—	54,609	89–58	W1
149	September 18	@ Expos	5–3 (11)	Jackson (8–4)	Murray	Roberts (1)	56,976	90–58	W2
150	September 19	@ Phillies	9–6	Tekulve (10–7)	Eastwick	Jackson (14)		91–58	W3
151	September 19	@ Phillies	5–6	Kucek	Romo (10–5)	Saucier	30,566	91–59	L1
152	September 20	@ Phillies	1–2	Lerch	Tekulve (10–8)	—	16,299	91–60	L2
153	September 21	@ Cubs	0–2	McGlothen	Robinson (8–7)	—	9,552	91–61	L3
154	September 22	@ Cubs	4–1	Kison (11–7)	Riley	Tekulve (29)	24,657	92–61	W1
155	September 23	@ Cubs	6–0	Bibby (11–4)	Reuschel	—	24,571	93–61	W2
156	September 24	Expos	5–2	Blyleven (12–5)	Schatzeder	Tekulve (30)		94–61	W3
157	September 24	Expos	6–7	Grimsley	Jackson (8–5)	Sosa	47,268	94–62	L1
158	September 25	Expos	10–4	Rooker (4–7)	Sanderson	Romo (5)	31,348	95–62	W1
159	September 26	Expos	10–1	Kison (12–7)	Rogers	—	42,043	96–62	W2
160	September 27	Cardinals	5–9	Forsch	Roberts (5–2)	Littell	11,172	96–63	L1
161	September 28	Cubs	6–1	Bibby (12–4)	Reuschel	—	14,778	97–63	W1
162	September 29	Cubs	6–7 (13)	Caudill	Robinson (8–8)	—	25,734	97–64	L1
163	September 30	Cubs	5–3	Kison (13–7)	McGlothen	Tekulve (31)	42,176	98–64	W1

Legend: = Win = Loss = Postponement
Bold = Pirates team member

Composite Box

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	R	H	E
Opponents	81	77	81	69	56	82	67	67	48	9	1	2	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	643	1424	144
Pittsburgh	106	73	94	71	99	67	86	98	76	4	5	1	1	2	0	0	0	0	1	775	1541	134

Roster

1979 Pittsburgh Pirates

Roster

Pitchers

26 Jim Bibby

22 Bert Blyleven

45 John Candelaria

41 Joe Coleman

17 Dock Ellis

23 Grant Jackson

25 Bruce Kison

44 Rick Rhoden

49 Dave Roberts

43 Don Robinson

15 Enrique Romo

19 Jim Rooker

27 Kent Tekulve

31 Ed Whitson

Catchers

16 Steve Nicosia

14 Ed Ott

35 Manny Sanguillén

Infielders

4 Dale Berra

10 Tim Foli

3 Phil Garner

5 Bill Madlock

8 Willie Stargell

6 Rennie Stennett

10 Frank Taveras

Outfielders

36 Matt Alexander

24 Mike Easler

17 Lee Lacy

34 John Milner

18 Omar Moreno

39 Dave Parker

28 Bill Robinson

Other batters

44 Doe Boyland

2 Gary Hargis

37 Alberto Lois

Manager

7 Chuck Tanner

Coaches

57,31 Harvey Haddix (Pitching)

32 Joe Lonnett (Third base)

42 Al Monchak (First base)

48 Bob Skinner (Hitting)

Opening Day lineup

Player stats

Batting

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

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

Pitching

Regular Season^[9]
Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
D. Ellis	3	7	0	0	2.57	1
K. Tekulve	94	134¹⁄₃	10	8	2.75	75
J. Bibby	34	137²⁄₃	12	4	2.81	103
G. Jackson	72	82	8	5	2.96	39
E. Romo	84	129¹⁄₃	10	5	2.99	106
B. Kison	33	172¹⁄₃	13	7	3.19	105
J. Candelaria	33	207	14	9	3.22	101
D. Roberts	21	38²⁄₃	5	2	3.26	15
B. Blyleven	37	237¹⁄₃	12	5	3.6	172
D. Robinson	29	160²⁄₃	8	8	3.87	96
E. Whitson	19	57²⁄₃	2	3	4.37	31
J. Rooker	19	103²⁄₃	4	7	4.6	44
J. Coleman	10	20²⁄₃	0	0	6.1	14
R. Rhoden	1	5	0	1	7.2	2

Postseason^[10]^[11]
Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
G. Jackson	6	6²⁄₃	2	0	0.00	4
J. Rooker	2	8²⁄₃	0	0	1.04	4
B. Blyleven	3	19	2	0	1.42	13
J. Bibby	3	17¹⁄₃	0	0	2.08	15
K. Tekulve	7	12	0	1	3.00	12
E. Romo	4	5	0	0	3.60	5
D. Robinson	6	7	2	0	3.86	6
J. Candelaria	3	16	1	1	3.94	8
B. Kison	1	¹⁄₃	0	1	108.00	0
D. Roberts	1	0	0	0	—	0

Postseason

Postseason game log

1979 Postseason Game Log (7–3)

1979 NL Championship Series: vs. Cincinnati Reds (3–0)^[12]

1979 World Series: vs. Baltimore Orioles (4–3)^[13]

Legend: = Win = Loss = Postponement
Bold = Pirates team member

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

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. 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

Willie Stargell, Associated Press Athlete of the Year
Willie Stargell, 1B, Babe Ruth Award
Willie Stargell, 1B, National League Most Valuable Player Award
Willie Stargell, 1B, National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player Award
Willie Stargell, 1B, World Series Most Valuable Player Award

All-Stars

1979 Major League Baseball All-Star Game

Dave Parker, OF, starter, game MVP

League leaders

Omar Moreno, National League stolen base leader, 77^[14]
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

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Portland Beavers	Pacific Coast League	Johnny Lipon
AA	Buffalo Bisons	Eastern League	Steve Demeter
A	Salem Pirates	Carolina League	Jim Mahoney
A	Shelby Pirates	Western Carolinas League	Tom Zimmer
Rookie	GCL Pirates	Gulf Coast League	Woody Huyke

Notes

↑ From 1882–1906, the team played in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, which became annexed by Pittsburgh as the North Shore in 1907.
↑ Will McEnaney at Baseball-Reference
↑ "Ken Macha page at Baseball-Reference". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
↑ Enrique Romo at Baseball Reference
↑ "1979 Pittsburgh Pirates Schedule & Results". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
↑ "Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats". Pittsburgh Pirates.
↑ "Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats". Pittsburgh Pirates.
↑ "Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats". Pittsburgh Pirates.
↑ "Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats". Pittsburgh Pirates.
↑ "Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats". Pittsburgh Pirates.
↑ "Major League Baseball Stats | pirates.com: Stats". Pittsburgh Pirates.
↑ "1979 National League Championship Series". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
↑ "1979 World Series". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
↑ Stolen Bases Single Season National League Leaders by Baseball Almanac

References

1979 Pittsburgh Pirates at Baseball Reference
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates at Baseball Almanac
Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (1997). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (2nd ed.). Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America. ISBN 978-0-9637189-8-3.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] From 1882–1906, the team played in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, which became annexed by Pittsburgh as the North Shore in 1907.

[2] Will McEnaney at Baseball-Reference

[3] "Ken Macha page at Baseball-Reference". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 5, 2008.

[4] Enrique Romo at Baseball Reference

[5] "1979 Pittsburgh Pirates Schedule & Results". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 17 September 2018.

[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] "1979 National League Championship Series". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 15 February 2014.

[13] "1979 World Series". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 15 February 2014.

[14] Stolen Bases Single Season National League Leaders by Baseball Almanac

1979 MLB season by team
AL East	Baltimore Boston Cleveland Detroit Milwaukee New York Toronto
AL West	California Chicago Kansas City Minnesota Oakland Seattle Texas
NL East	Chicago Montréal New York Philadelphia Pittsburgh St. Louis
NL West	Atlanta Cincinnati Houston Los Angeles San Diego San Francisco
1979 MLB draft 1979 All-Star Game 1979 World Series

Pittsburgh Pirates 1979 World Series champions
3 Phil Garner 5 Bill Madlock 6 Rennie Stennett 8 Willie Stargell (NL, NLCS, and World Series MVP) 10 Tim Foli 14 Ed Ott 15 Enrique Romo 16 Steve Nicosia 17 Lee Lacy 18 Omar Moreno 19 Jim Rooker 22 Bert Blyleven 23 Grant Jackson 24 Mike Easler 25 Bruce Kison 26 Jim Bibby 27 Kent Tekulve 28 Bill Robinson 34 John Milner 35 Manny Sanguillén 36 Matt Alexander 39 Dave Parker 43 Don Robinson 45 John Candelaria 49 Dave Roberts
Manager 7 Chuck Tanner Coaches 31 Harvey Haddix 32 Joe Lonnett 42 Alex Monchak 48 Bob Skinner
Regular season National League Championship Series

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
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