1973 Pittsburgh Pirates

1973 Pittsburgh Pirates / Franchise: Pittsburgh Pirates / BR Team Page

Record: 80-82, Finished 3rd in NL Eastern Division (1973 NL)

Managed by Bill Virdon (67-69) and Danny Murtaugh (13-13)

Coaches: Don Leppert, Bill Mazeroski, Dave Ricketts and Mel Wright

Ballpark: Three Rivers Stadium

History, Comments, Contributions

After three straight division titles, the 1973 Pittsburgh Pirates found it impossible to get untracked in 1973. The death of Roberto Clemente (in a New Year's Eve plane crash) haunted the clubhouse and left a hole in right field that Gene Clines and Roberto's good friend, Manny Sanguillen, were unable to fill. Equally devastating was the sudden collapse of pitcher Steve Blass, who went from 19-game winner to unrepairable wildness seemingly overnight. Only the weakness of the NL East division kept the Pirates in the pennant race until the final week of the season. With an 80-82 record, the Bucs finished just 2 1/2 games behind the eventual NL champion, the New York Mets.

Awards and Honors

• All-Stars: Dave Giusti and Willie Stargell

Further Reading

• Michael Clair: "When a bunch of writers (briefly) became Pirates: True fantasy baseball", mlb.com, April 3, 2022. [1]
• Donald Hall et al.: Playing around: the million-dollar infield goes to Florida, Little, Brown, New York, NY, 1974. ISBN 978-0316339605