Pirate Mania

John Bush was raised in Martinsburg and graduated from Central High in 1961. He spent most of his adult life in the Pacific Northwest. He has many memories as a boy in the 1950s that give some insight to the people and culture of Martinsburg in the 1950s. John likes to tell stories and over the years he has repeated the stories of his youth many times. His belief is that those years in Martinsburg influenced him all of his life. Some of the stories are historical in nature, some are colorful, and some are personal. He wishes that you enjoy them.

In the 1950s, baseball was America’s sport, and most people in the Martinsburg area were Pittsburgh Pirates fans with the exception of a few friends: Dave Lehman was a Phillies fan, Richard Bice a Yankees fan and Bob Davis a Dodgers fan. The Pirates in the early fifties were an awful team. Ralph Kiner was the only ray of light and hit about as many home runs as the team won games. Ralph was traded and Frank Thomas became the next slugger of note. He was traded to Cincinnati during the winter of 1957–1958 for Harvey Haddix, Don Hoak and Smoky Burgess. I could not believe that they had traded their best players, but all three became consistent contributors to the Pirates team which had become a contender for the National League representative to the World Series.

Several players had been in the Pirates system and really came into their own in 1958; they included Roberto Clemente, Bill Virdon, Dick Groat, Elroy Face, Bob Skinner, Vern Law, and Bill Mazeroski. And there was Bob Friend who had been a starting pitcher and steady workhouse since the early 1950s. In 1958, the team came from behind so many times that Face won 18 straight games as a relief pitcher. Dick Stuart, a newcomer who had hit 66 home runs one season in the minors, hit deep and high home runs. Dick played first base, but was not the best fielder, and was later in his career nicknamed “Dr. Strangeglove.” I was at Forbes Field for a Sunday doubleheader when Dick hit two home runs, three doubles, drove in six, struck out 4 times and made 3 errors. Clemente in right field and Mazeroski at second began to play at very high levels, showing their skills that would later carry them into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Both backed up Stuart whenever possible. I recall once when the ball went between Dick’s legs and Mazeroski backed him up and threw to the pitcher covering first to get the out.

Bob Prince, the team’s radio announcer and a cultural icon in Pittsburgh, with his sidekick Jim Woods, were listened to on a regular basis and became western Pennsylvania celebrities. One of Prince’s lines after a comeback victory was, “We had them all the way.” I had listened to games with my cousin Kenny and his Uncle Bill in front of an old wooden radio at my Great Aunt Ida Shubert’s home on North Market Street. In 1958, I became one of the many who stayed glued to the radio for most Pirates games. Transistor radios had become common and I carried mine that I had gotten for Christmas around everywhere. People often hung around cars with the game on. One of my classmates told me his date was mad because they listened to a game instead of going to a movie.

In 1959, the Pirates struggled a bit but there were still several highlights. One was the night Harvey “The Kitten” Haddix pitched what some said was the greatest baseball performance of all time. He pitched 12 perfect innings only to lose to Milwaukee 1-0 in the 13th inning. I listened to that game late into the evening; my mom came to my room and wondered why I was still up.

Bob Prince, using nicknames and visual descriptions, brought each game to life. The lineups were consistent; Danny Murtaugh was at the helm and each player’s abilities were known to all who listened. One of Pittsburgh’s Sunday newspapers printed all batting averages and pitchers’ win-loss records, and fans would go over the fine-printed lists to see how each Pirates player stood with respect to those in the rest of the National League. If you missed a game, the box scores were read in the Altoona Mirror to keep you up with the details. I became a complete baseball nerd and could cite stats and roster moves for not only the Pirates but also most of the other teams. Once at school, a couple of classmates challenged me that I could not name 20 players on each major league team. I had earlier bragged that I knew the names of most of the players and what team they played on. I bet $5 that I could do it. One of the boys had a cutout of the teams’ players from a Sunday newspaper. The American League teams were a challenge but I named over twenty for each team and they had to empty their pockets to pay me. Five bucks was a lot of money in those days for a teenager.

It was clear in the early part of the 1960 season that the Pirates team had come together as they began the long march to the National League Championship. “Vinegar Bend” Mizell, a lefty pitcher, was added in a trade with St. Louis in midseason to fix one of the few weaknesses on the team. Vern Law and Bob Friend were the primary winning pitchers and Clemente, Groat and Mazeroski were playing at a high level. Baseball fever in Pittsburgh and in Martinsburg increased as the season extended into the summer. Robert Davis, a classmate and an avid Dodger fan, began to listen to most of the Bucs’ radio broadcasts and we often discussed individual games. He understood the game of baseball and with excitement, could reenact important plays from the previous game. A day did not go by that the Pirates were not a topic of discussion for both kids and adults in Martinsburg.

The Pirates won the National League Division Series and were set to play the New York Yankees, composed of well-known stars who had played in several previous World Series games. For several years, Leidy’s had provided televisions that were set up in the gym at Morrison Cove High to watch the World Series, so the Yankees were well-known to even the casual fan. Players such as Yogi Bera, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, “Whitey” Ford, Bob Turley, “Moose” Skowron and Elston Howard were like household names. Although the Pirates fans loved their team, many were skeptical about their chances against the Bronx Bombers.

In the fall of 1960, Morrison Cove and Roaring Spring high schools consolidated and it was our first year at Central. I do not remember if televisions were set up in the new school for the World Series, but the games were broadcast over the intercom if the teacher requested it. The seventh game of the series was in late innings when we went to band practice. Mr. Shaffer did not allow us to listen on the intercom, and we all went outside for marching practice. He did, however, allow a couple of students to listen in on their own radios and inform the others of the game’s progress. When Mazeroski hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth, even Shaffer jumped around. The Bucs had done it! They beat the Yankees! My classmate Glenn Drake had wanted to go to Pittsburgh and be outside Forbes Field if Pittsburgh won. He lamented the fact several times that we did not go, because some women had gone swimming in the fountain outside Forbes Field in their birthday suits. That was a big deal to a young man in the 1950s. Pittsburg has not celebrated a World Series or a Super Bowl win with a victory at home since.

The Yankees were stunned; Mantle cried and other players stood around in disbelief. They had scored 55 runs to the Pirates’ 27 in the seven-game series. Mazeroski’s home run was the first time in history that the World Series had ended in a walk-off homer, and it would not happen again for 33 years. The games, in particular Game 7, were discussed for many years, some thinking it was the greatest World Series ever played. Sometimes I wish Glenn and I had played hooky, not just to see the women jump in the water fountain, but just to have been there for the celebration.