"Had 'Em All the Way": The 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates

by Thad Mumau

Overview

The 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates were a special team—team being the operative word. There were no superstars, although Roberto Clemente would become one, and nobody had a record season. The Battling Bucs frequently came from behind to win late in the game, with Pirates broadcaster Bob Prince signing off, “We had ’em all the way.” Pittsburgh was the Sad Sack of baseball through most of the 1950s, and as the Pirates grabbed the National League lead early in the 1960 season, fans wondered if the guys in vest-shirts and black sleeves could indeed hang on. And then there was the World Series, the one everybody but the Pirates thought would be won by the Yankees, in which Bill Mazeroski provided the most dramatic finish of all sports championships. This book, featuring interviews with Clemente, Dick Groat, Bob Friend and Dick Schofield, chronicles the Pirates of 1960—a team of friends—and their push through a long and magical season.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476619378
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	07/14/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	5 MB

About the Author

Freelance sportswriter Thad Mumau wrote for the Fayetteville Observer for more than 35 years and for the Atlantic Coast Conference Sports Journal for 22. He lives in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments  vi
Preface  1
Introduction  5
One. Unlikely Champions  11
Two. Baseball’s Landscape in 1960  20
Three. Building the Roster  28
Four. Making Spring Count  36
Five. A Fast Start  43
Six. The Little Irishman  49
Seven. Invasion of the Giants  58
Eight. Heart of the Pirates  69
Nine. Staying in Front  81
Ten. A Friend, a Face and the Law  91
Eleven. The Great One, Billy and Bob  104
Twelve. The Road Through Milwaukee  112
Thirteen. Dog Days and Doubleheaders  125
Fourteen. Bucs’ Bench Just Ducky  145
Fifteen. Character and Characters  153
Sixteen. World Series Mismatch  162
Seventeen. Six Games of Sparring  170
Eighteen. The Game  192
Nineteen. How It All Happened  201
Twenty. What Next?  210
Chapter Notes  219
Bibliography  224
Index  225