MLB Baseball's Seasons: 1979

[Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] welcome to baseball seasons 1979 family [Applause] baseball 1979 began with expectations of the familiar after two straight years that had ended with the New York Yankees raising the World Series trophy [Applause] free-agency had just started in 1976 and some teams had learned very early that they weren't able to cope with the economy of a country was the same for every team but the economy of baseball was radically different for the haves and the have-nots and you already had teams in California and New York that were bidding high for free agents you can never stand that with a winning hand if you do you're gonna get beaten one of these days and by going after Tommy John we feel we got a plus and the Dodgers got a minus for the Angels the prize was Rod Carew obtained from Minnesota to help California make a run at George Brad and the Royals if you think that one player could could win for you make you a contender and put you in the World Series sure I'd depends the money but that Rod Carew had come over so I thought we had a good chance because I'm just trying to acquire talent to win in that division with George Brett over at the Kansas City so he gave us another edge and another great ballplayer in the NL there was a surprise in Cincinnati where management decided too much rust had gathered on what was left of the Big Red Machine and a signature star was allowed to leave talent Pete had been with the Reds so long that this was the discussion all winter around Cincinnati what is this team gonna do Pete Rose a lot of fans felt at a loss and they just didn't think it would be the same team it wasn't the same team without Pete but it was still a good team a team without Rose and the manager who delivered two World Series titles Sparky Anderson it was a very dramatic change John McNamara was a totally different type of manager much more serious than Sparky he knew how to manage a pitching staff Heep stressed solid defensive play more than Sparky had done but he didn't have the kind of offense that Sparky had managed with the previous Reds teams and right from the start the new-look Reds would be challenged by an unexpected rival the pitching rich Houston Astros with an arsenal of arms including ken Forsch who threw a no-hitter in just the team's second day with two outs I could still recall the ground ball that throw that Terry Reynolds made from shortstop all the way over to cobalt in the that was a special moment first half of that season seems like everything went right for us no you're scoring really really well on the base pass the feeling was spectacular pitching was really good the first time we had a feeling that we're all right we can compete meanwhile back East but Philadelphia Phillies will in search of a missing piece to help them turn division dominance into a World Series time so I immediately contacted Pete's agent Ruben Katz and I said you know if you're not gonna stay in Cincinnati we'd love to have you in Philadelphia in a few days later Petros signed with the Philadelphia Phillies this late sports were just in Pete Rose will sign with the Phillies silly thing they got wind Ernie's three Mophie rosing or have confidence it was something the rainy and El MVP had an ample supply Parker was the brash guy the talker he wasn't afraid to speak out say he was the greatest and then proven on the field he was almost the Muhammad Ali of baseball at the time confident level was very high I believed in my ability and I even made a quote one time if you want to know how good I am ask me I'll tell you but beyond the posturing there was tremendous talent I would say from 77 78 and 79 he was the best player internationally maybe even in all of baseball and a player who evoked memories of another great Pirates right fielder with his all-round skills an incredible arm we lost the great Juan Roberto Clemente and God give us babe pocket and they'd Park it was something similar about Clemente like Clemente Parker had a slugging cohort and Willie Stargell now an aging first baseman who'd won Comeback Player of the Year 78 together they'd quito late season run that had left chuck Tanner's team just short of the division title oh we were talking about series the last gang of 78 years we went in Chuck's office willing myself and told him that's all right coach we fell short this year but we'll get there next year self by honest I think that clubs who come very close don't get there it's a club that you really should people now next year or the next two years for a simple reason there's something about hunger that makes human more determined and a guy that just going on and I want to be good while free agency brought on a surge of capitalism in baseball in the late 1970s the American economy was suffering from a recession and an oil shortage it is a crisis of confidence the erosion of our confidence in the future is threatening to destroy the social and the political fabric of America part of America's fabric was baseball and in 1979 fans could find inspiration in teams making unlikely runs like the Astros Houston Astros are gonna win the national a blast no doubt in my mind the first half of that season seems like everything went right for us it was a really great run for us the Astros chief division rival was the Reds who had found the new offensive spark in the wake of Pete Rose's departure the one guy who really stepped in was Ray Knight and Ray Knight had not done much on the major league scene because he hadn't had a chance to Pete Rose had blocked his way at third base but this was his one big coming-out here to establish himself and he seized the opportunity and ran with it had a very good year in 79 as Cincinnati moved on without Rose at third the Phillies began to reap the many benefits of signing Charlie hustle he was one of the best I ever saw at talking about baseball and thinking about baseball and playing the game of baseball and I think that started to rub off on our guys roses determination was evident in battles like baseball's highest scoring game in more than a half-century a 2322 win over the Cubs [Applause] by late May though the fills had relinquished first place - a surprise contender the Montreal Expos May June it really became evident to us that we were not only hanging with the top teams in the division but that we were one of the top teams in the division youth was at the heart of their unexpected success starting with 25 year old Slugger Larry Parrish Parrish he could carry the team on his back for a week or 10 days and he did that there was also an emerging star in the Montreal outfield where the talents of Andre Dawson often seemed limitless Andre Dawson was a special player a special blend of power and speed a five-tool guy if there ever was one Patricia's mono a Gary Carter Lucy birthdays Expo and then there was the kid behind home plate 25 year old catcher Gary Carter we just really felt confident who really felt that exuberance and we're looking forward to having that winning season the season the Expos hope would finally unseat Philadelphia atop the division meanwhile in the AL West there were several teams looking to do the same - three-time Division champion Kansas City like the Angels and their new catalyst Rod Carew everyone expected me to come out and swing the bat consistently and moving honors get runners into scoring position for the guys like Baylor and with guru in front of him Don Baylor was better than ever set up a lot of things for me early in the season that really propelled me into driving a lot of runs out east baltimore manager Earl Weaver like to score runs with the three-run homer and got the most out of his players by platooning them in 79 but fundamentally focused Orioles seized control of first place in May he was not tolerant and throwing to the wrong base he expected things to be done the Oriole Way we had great ballplayers that could execute the fundamentals the way you want the job has to be done on the field not on paper or anything else so that was the Oriole Way they always said that if they could keep any team in baseball even for seven innings they felt that they neither win because their fundamentals were superior or the game would be handed to them because the other team's fundamentals were inferior by early July Baltimore's big division lead had led the fourth place Yanks to jettisoned manager Bob lemon in favor of familiar face Billy Marty as great as lemon has been and he's a great man and a great manager and my friend I think he agreed with me that maybe a change in the menu would be it would be time for it we're just gonna go right before we won before we're gonna do it again and because the question right now is get everybody healthy and do our thing our thing is winning the seven days offered style and showmanship no one more so in baseball than Bill and Mike black of the White Sox who put Chicago's South Side again in the spotlight in 1979 bill Veck always had some type of gimmick going he was one of the only owners who had unique ways of making people want to come to the stadium whether it was sending a up to the plate or put a shower out in the center field stands for Sox fans so they could cool off that's the thing about Bill Veck and you come up with a lot of great ideas and then you come up with ideas that should have died in the talking process it was called disco demolition night the gimmick bring a disco record and enter the ballpark for just 98 cents so radio shock jock was supposed to be blowing up all the disco records in Chicago the deejays name was Steve Dogg upset that disco was overtaking rock and roll on the air way he gathered the records and blow them up in centerfield in the middle of a doubleheader I mean he blew up all these disco records I don't even ever thought it'd be a good idea to blow a bunch of record line at centerfield between games of the doubleheader [Applause] then people start running on to the field [Music] a friend of mine and he was the first one to jump down he looked back and saying come on and we all just looked at each other we just like running toward the infield we didn't care what was going on on the field I mean it looked like something out of a disaster movie could have been a lot worse nobody was seriously injured they did eventually restore order although they did have to forfeit Game two I remember writing on my tickets the game forfeited due to disco demolition they may have been trying to kill disco in Chicago but in the blue-collar confines of the Steel City a 39 year old first baseman they called pops was encouraging everyone to embrace the message of a hit record [Music] it started on a rain delay they play music for the fans and hang around for the game and song came on we are family and Willie sin with dacovian total Kobe that's our theme song and it just caught on you're not getting sick of the song ever never get sick of that song I love it and from that time we call it the famine there was beautiful [Music] guys generally cared about each other we all go out sixteen twenty guys at a time and that's how you build that type of common Roderick the Bucks were also about image not just with the 18 varieties of they're flashy uniforms but also the Stargell stars rewarded for performance by the Pirates patriarch we call pops pops because he was our spiritual leader as well as our leader on the field he had this presence this air about him just this great aura that you get it's palpable when you're around him [Music] altogether he was like a father figure to everyone and he showed us how to enjoy the game like when we were kids the only thing that I did was legitimately care about the people that I was surrounded with and knowing that we had a job to do and it wasn't just that he talked to talk I mean he delivered [Applause] time time to get all season in the confidence that he had was infectious Stargell is confident and calming leadership kept the Bucks upbeat despite early stumbles in 79 the teams play was up and down and may in June and then when Pittsburgh required two-time batting champ Bill Madlock from the Giants the family welcomed a new member when we got mad luck that was it they just said here we come folks ready or not here we come we actually became better at two positions at the same time with Madlock coming in to play third base allowed us to move Phil garner from third base to second base and it was just a perfect infield off that simply and defensively Stargell at first garner at second Foley at Short Matlock at third that's when everybody felt like we're in for a fun ride on the mound the Bucks were anchored by former 20 game winners John Candelaria and Bert Blyleven one two from the Dutchman this is the year I think we've got to win we've got the personnel to do it we've got a good strong bullpen we've got a tent to call he can come around again have the year he had it's gonna be very interesting led by Parker and Stargell at the plate the Pirates sandwich the all-star break with a nine game win streak and in early August grabbed first place in the NL East [Applause] that's what the team was led by star Joe they were a family a family in Portal 2 fans in Pittsburgh the city particularly hard by the nationwide recession people have their issues and their jobs and career is a bigger fish to fry than watching their sports things but when the sports teams excel it's always a wonderful respiratory the reality of the challenges of life in a year that had already seen the Steelers win a Super Bowl the Pirates were doing their part to lift the spirits of their beleaguered city we had a very hard time coping and I think in the midst of that sport really becomes something that is at the core of the identity of this city there was a lot of excitement going on and through the dark Club it kind of caught the imagination of the city also so it was a good time to be a sports fan in Pittsburgh and it was a good time to be a player in Pittsburgh in 1969 an upstart team came out of nowhere to do the impossible when the amazin that's when the world says ten years later a team born in 69 was looking to do the same as the Expos fought the Pirates for the NL East title that was a pretty solid team for that seventy nine tenets stretch run we were a young team and we had never experienced that before they couldn't do it without pitching and leading the Montreal staff was an eccentric offseason acquisition the spaceman Billy 79 there were some missing pieces and having Billy come into that starting notation strike three call Hill brought a ton of talent and a ton of pitching knowledge then there was Steve Rogers who led the league in shutouts Steve was a quality pitcher that a lot of teams didn't like to face to me he had probably the best stuff I caught as the Expos won average attendance nearly doubled at Olympic Stadium creating afforable and by label home advantage it was a hot ticket it was the place to be it was a happening and we were battling then we were in a pennant race it became a very very loud venue meanwhile the surging Reds had their lone piece of 69 Mets magic in the form of Tom Seavers right arm swaggin about as well as his supreme confidence Tom Seaver won 16 games in 79 and he made a statement that was memorable long about maybe July or August the Astros had a pretty big lead on the Reds and Seaver said the Astros will drop like a lead balloon in the standings and it works he was right as the Reds chased Houston for first in the NL West all summer long the Orioles coasted atop the AL East to the delight of their colorful fans in 1979 the Orioles had an unofficial cheerleader a cab driver named Wild Bill Hagee who wore a battered straw cowboy hat he would lead the oriole cheer for this letters o RI o LEF [Applause] and in 79 Wild Bill was most excited by his team's strong arms we had tremendous pitching on that team Mike Flanagan won the sayang award we had Jim Palmer who had three sailing Awards we had a great left in Scott McGregor we had Dennis Martinez we knew that if we got one run with our pitching staff and our defense that we should win that game and at the plate the O's were anchored by Ken singleton who led the team in nearly every offensive category I think the guy that often gets left out is Ken singleton he was a solid 300 hitter singleton was a guy that knew the strike zone had a fantastic on-base percentage somebody has to get on if somebody's going to have RBIs but statistics and division races were suddenly overshadowed when tragedy struck the game one day in early August the New York Yankees and sports fans everywhere suffered a great loss tonight that of Star catcher Thurman Munson who was killed this afternoon in an airplane crash we went to the ballpark early George came down and told us what happened and George broke down cried like a baby as we all did Munson had died on a fateful visit home to see his family now his baseball family the Yankees attended his funeral in Ohio where his best friend Bobby Murcer delivered a eulogy there were months of the war the pinstripe suit number 15 but in living living and legend history with Court but number one it was an easy task I'm glad they asked me to do it back at Yankee Stadium that night Mercer and the Yanks did their best to honor their fallen teammate going out into left field will be Bobby Murcer who has to be emotionally drained he was one of those who delivered a eulogy today we knew Thurman metalife to the Yankees in their fans he was the captain of the team Guidry was pitching we were winning I believe four to nothing Bobby Mercer hit a three-run homer to make it four to three and then in the bottom of the ninth and he had a big hit off tippy Martinez [Applause] we end up winning the ballgame because of that so I ended up driving in all five runs that night [Applause] It was as if somebody was saying you're not thanks for being there the Yankee captain his gun and his team was left to pick up the pieces it was sad around that ballpark for a long time after that it took all the wind out of us we couldn't make a comeback like we planned on doing it was devastating 1979 was a year of personal milestones in baseball including the final season of Lou Brock's Hall of Fame career but before the Ray was stolen base gang left he joined one of the most de clubs in the game 20,000 men to play the game only 13 had gotten 3,000 hit at that moment sarva Kingdom 14 a month later in Boston Carl Yastrzemski became number 15 [Applause] he's got it it was a season of hitting achievements for the venerable Red Sox star [Music] [Applause] as yaz became the first al player in history to built both 400 home runs and stroke 3000 hits yes and the Sox won 91 days in 79 for a third place finish in second the Milwaukee Brewers who set a franchise record for wins under George Bamberger the organization turned around when George Bamberger puter 78 he expected you guys go up play hard play like you wanted to win it every single night but in 79 the Brewers 95 wins weren't nearly enough to win the AL East as that first-place Orioles won more games than any other team in baseball it all started with Earl Weaver who imparted to his players the absolute ability to win and win consistently in that year we went a hundred and two games and I ran away with things out west meanwhile the Royals were aiming for a fourth straight division title behind us super year from George Brett who became just the fifth player ever to hit 20 homers 28 doubles and 20 triples in his season when all around deer RBIs runs scored doubles triples home runs I think it was my best year but when September came it was the Angels leading the division thanks to a frontrunner for the MVP award [Music] giving temperature red hot California if there's anyone in the league that was gonna win it that year had to be daunting because every occasion when you needed a big hit or someone to hit the ball out of the ballpark Baylor was there winning the MVP really didn't cross my mind the only thing that crossed my mind was the Angels on the division and nearly two decades after they debuted in California the Angels finally comes their first playoff berth Tanana was on the mound it was a ground ball hit to Carew [Applause] we finally won a division [Applause] title they have said yes in the NL the races would prove more competitive and ferocious now of west Cincinnati and Houston battled for the title the despite scoring the fewest runs in the lead and having no player with no the nine harbors the Astros had the late season really we didn't have the power numbers I don't know where he will be hit maybe 50 home runs all year but we did have a good pitching and the defense was really good so we managed to win some ball games a year the race turn got a crucial to game series in mid-september with Houston leading by just half a year he placed so long with nobody expecting anything from you and then all of a sudden there's pressure on you that hey these guys can win I think that weight on a lot of us [Applause] grace was three they really pull together pretty well and as a team it was able to come from behind overtake the houston astros in September in the East the issue was still in doubt with a week left in the season when the upstart Expos arrived in the Pittsburgh clinging to a half game lead over Willie Stargell that is family we lost three out of four splitting the series would have given us the fighting chance losing three out of four it wasn't gone but it was now out of our hands on the season's final day the Pirates clinched their sixth division title of the decade their return made it four new teams headed to the playoffs after two years of repeat champions new adventures awaited on the diamond in October you can feel the excitement as we get ready for this championship series entering 1979 the legend pirates had met three times in the NLCS in the 70s since he had won each time that rivalry was just like booboo moose Rams pounding that each other cramp raise up and go bang risen powers going out of the ticket and in the 11th inning of Game one Stargell struck the first blow well there was a clutch hitter I know Tom Hume couldn't get him out every time he faced Tom Hill we took him deep jump out in front five to two the next night it was Dave Parker's turn as the game again went to extra innings and again a big pirate bat look to come through in a big spot he looked down the bench and you look and see who's gonna win the ballgame for us and two guys we look for Willie Stargell it for Dave Parker thanks to the clutch performances of their big guns the Pirates had taken two in Cincinnati setting the stage for a sweet [Applause] the Cincinnati Reds by the score of three to two and in Pittsburgh two days later it would be the man they called pops again leading the way with his back [Applause] we were sky-high for him we went to him like a buzz saw but it was about time one of the great players in all of baseball he says they're number one just internationally for now you got one more step to go against someone while Parker and the family swept past the Reds the ALCS pitted the battle tested against the upset minded tonight it is early birds Orioles against jim fregosi's angels the first and best of five we knew that the Orioles were a very tough ballclub we knew that we had our hands full going into the Angels series everybody around the Orioles expected them to win expectations in place in part because of Weaver's reputation for playing the right hand at the right time like sending a pinch-hitter John Lowenstein in the bottom of the 10th in Game one [Applause] we really kind of didn't know what hit us the first game it happened so fast and in Game two the Orioles looked to maintain momentum early [Applause] [Music] in a slugfest the Orioles would hang on for a nine a twin so the Orioles of the Angels now Game three of the playoffs tomorrow night in Anaheim the Angels were desperate and trailing three two and the ninth they put two on with one out for second baseman Bobby Grich and all of a sudden I saw the ball started to dive and I said to myself this ball is gonna fall in Bumbry playing centerfield cam and the ball just went off his glove I ended up scoring from second base and then to go on and win the ballgame I think people started to believe that we do have a chance to beat Baltimore the Orioles really wanted to make sure the bumper wasn't a dope they loved and was really the the spark that made them come out of themselves and play for somebody else not just to get to the World Series and the next afternoon Scott McGregor took his center fielder off the hook with a masterful complete game shutout to clinch it [Music] the World Series would be a rematch of the 1971 fall classic that year Stargell and company had gotten the best of Weaver's Club in seven games now another epic battle awaited the 76th World Series matching the Pirates of the Orioles in the Fall Classic storied history only once before had a series opener been postponed 1979 would be the second time last night there was a game that should have been played but the weather outside was frightful the weather was abysmal people waiting for the rain to stop but it never did stop it was very very cold this morning they woke up to snow remember waking up that morning to a snowstorm thinking I had missed the whole world series when the weather finally cleared the Orioles and pirates steeled themselves for an October rematch these two teams last met 1971 the Pirates won in seven games 71 was my first one that's just a real special niche that I can always cherish seventy-nine I knew that if we did certain things we can do it these guys have a desire for more for the four games go in to where the knife is and I fall flat [Applause] and as the action got underway at a frenzied Memorial Stadium the Orioles immediately loaded the bases and the first I just threw it away I could about ten feet over his head into left field the error opened the floodgates for the Baltimore bats like ember hitting a home run in my first up bat in the World Series [Applause] with 23 game winner Mike Flanagan on the mound of five-run Reid appeared insurmountable the Pirates however had thrived on overcoming odds the entire season after that homer in the e storage L had a chance to even it in the ninth with two out and the tying run on third [Applause] [Music] Mike didn't show any signs of fatigue at that point and they let him go ahead and pitch and with his 137 pitch of the evening Flanagan in the Orioles survived Game one [Applause] you really can't see enough I don't think with a good II performance of Mike Flanagan it wouldn't be any easier for the Pirates in Game two as Baltimore sat a future Hall of Famer to the mound Jim Bob but against Palmer Bill Madlock and Pittsburgh broke through early a sacrifice fly made it to two nothing pirates but then the Orioles young star first baseman went to bark [Music] with two big swings Annamarie single-handedly tied the game [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] the game stayed tied into the knife runners on first and second Chuck Tanner pinch-hit third stream Catrin and Sandy a who driven in just four runs all season [Applause] from a said single to black shirt right field [Applause] and when Kentico the seal that this series was tied [Applause] dear you felt like you've won the series when you split when you go out of town you come back to Pittsburgh you're in our ballpark we all thought that we were coming home to win the series and as game 3 got underway the Pirates road that covenants to a fast start with one in the first of two of the second the Bucks led three nothing but the Orioles had 102 regular season games by accident and Weaver's mastery of the platoon showed when part-time starters bene Iowa and Kiko Garcia had big hits to key Baltimore's comeback [Applause] [Music] [Applause] she comes into score [Applause] we passed the look of a genius at the moment Earl Weaver knew exactly what he could get out of his players he knew how to put tune him he knew how to use them paella and Garcia drove in six of the eight Oriole runs giving Baltimore a 2-1 series lead Game four was pivotal for the Pirates and in the first Willie Stargell once again displayed his uncanny offensive time [Applause] what Willie did in the 1979 World Series was basically no different than what he had done for us all year long [Music] but leading by three in the eighth the pirate ship sank as the Oriole bats once again came to life [Applause] look at them there is joy there we're jumping up and down we were very excited we jumped ahead three games to one I think we acted a little prematurely and thought that the World Series was already over as Game five of the 1979 World Series approached the Pirates were trailing three games to one and dealing with a loss and the family that morning I had learned Chuck Taylor's mother had died while that just kind of put a shadow over the clip of us the team loved him and his mother was a huge fan we knew it was hurting you know the fact that she was sick and then to find out that she passed you know where this man's heart will be so if he doesn't even show up we can clearly understand and I hear this Chuck Tanner normal voice come in five house had to be tearing him down but you would never know it and makes the statement you know my mother was a huge pirate fan and she knew we needed some help so she went to get herself and that sent a chill through all of us this is Tanner Chuck's mother passing away this morning his ball club down three games to one there we go in five the Pirates need a few miracles beginning today and beginning with what appeared to be a pitching mismatch between SIA winner Mike Flanagan and a Pirates pitcher with one just four games all season long [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] Rooker all of a sudden is pitching like Mike Flanagan and just face it he pitched the best game of his career for a man to give you any more at a better time I was wrong Jim Rooker pitched an absolute brilliant game five innings and kept us in the ball game gave us an opportunity to win and the Bucks offense took care of the rest [Applause] [Music] the way Chuck Cantor's mother passed away and I still believe that his team rallied around him and I think that gave them a big boost in a strange way the tragic death of Chuck Town is has affected this piece two nights later the Pirates hope the momentum followed them back to Baltimore for a marquis pitching matchup between John Candelaria and Jim Palmer just had two of baseball's best pitchers going at it and on the biggest platform that you can go at it on it's gonna be something a Candelaria if he can contain Baltimore we go to number seven Palmer wins it's all of John Candelaria and had some major back problems going on and he was in a lot of pain just one of the gutsiest performances I think I've ever seen from a guy under adverse conditions like that John and in the seventh the Pirates finally broke through for two runs off of Palmer and then you follow with two more in the a for a commanding lead that game goes on the enemies are starting to pass by and you're not putting any runs on and you don't get a very good feeling [Applause] [Music] to make it all sex game the Pirates may have had the momentum but only three times in series history had a team come all the way back from a 3-1 deficit they had the momentum and it was going to be tough to beat him at that point we know we couldn't make any mistakes trailing one nothing heading to the 6th the pirates needed to once again in a strike late this time though their leader already had had a vision of what was to come I saw the seventh game in its entirety the night after the 16 even though I was very sick I have a very high temperature you can tell it Willie's struggling with a cold but I knew that we will be victorious I knew that I was going to play a major role [Applause] singleton to the Lord [Music] [Applause] and - enough with the gang been on the line it was renfa willing to be the star and he was with the chips on he's having quite a closing night and he oh he's the spirit the soul of the not humbled in this game you're about to be as we all know [Applause] [Music] and we got humbled and it's stinkin pirate family team beaters [Music] [Applause] three-two-one deficit how can you quit with guys like Willie Stargell around I think if he was to retire one of these days I think we'd all go with him because he's just something special to us 79 will always be number one in my heart because I did it with a guy that was like a brother and a father to me we've overcome a lot of things we never gave up we refused to be denied I'm just so proud of each and every one of our individuals into the private organization this is a city of Champions and they're very proud of it 1979 was simply the crowning achievement winning the World Series in the Super Bowl in the same year and doing it in such dramatic fashion this song is the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates even to this day they are remembered as the family with Willie Stargell and the last World Series championship for the city was remarkable while the Orioles came up short in the 1979 World Series they get their championship four years later [Music] albian without the man who led them throughout the 1970s Earl Weaver retired in 1982 as did at last Willie Stargell Bose Stargell died in 2001 at the age of 61 his spirit still indoors black-and-gold uniform with his stars on his hat and then leaping in there we both walk that's the way I always remember them and hold that in my heart no pirates team has won a World Series title since but the legacy of pops and the 1979-80 remains etched in the consciousness of the city of Pittsburgh and the game of baseball to this day not just as champions but his family [Music] you

Channel: cacable7

Views: 34,864

Rating: 4.8120804 out of 5

Keywords:

Id: 7yFkQIGlrJI

Length: 47min 59sec (2879 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 11 2019