Pittsburgh Pirates legend Bill Mazeroski dies at 89

Bill Mazeroski, the Hall of Fame second baseman who won eight Gold Glove awards for his steady work in the field has died at the age of 89.

Mazeroski will always be tied to what many call the biggest home run in baseball history, a historic walk-off blast in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series.

Mazeroski died Friday in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, the Pirates said. No cause of death was given.

Elected to the Hall by the Veterans Committee in 2001, he was, by typical offensive measures, no superstar. Mazeroski had the lowest batting average, on-base percentage and stolen base total of any second baseman in Cooperstown. He hit just .260 lifetime, with 138 homers in 17 years. He never batted .300, never approached 100 runs batted or 100 runs scored.

His Hall of Fame plaque praises him as a “defensive wizard” with “hard-nosed hustle” and a “quiet work ethic.” A 10-time All-Star, he turned a major league record 1,706 double plays, earning the nickname “No Hands” for how quickly he fielded grounders and relayed them. He led the National League nine times in assists for second basemen and has been cited by statistician Bill James as the game’s greatest defensive player at his position — by far.

“I think defense belongs in the Hall of Fame,” Mazeroski said, defensively, during his Hall of Fame induction speech. “Defense deserves as much credit as pitching and I’m proud to be going in as a defensive player.”

But Mazeroski’s signature moment took place in the batter’s box, as the square-jawed, tobacco-chewing second baseman, a coal miner’s son from West Virginia, lived out the dream of so many kids who thought of playing professional ball.

The Pirates had not reached the World Series since 1927, when they were swept by the New York Yankees, and again faced the Yankees in 1960. While New York was led by Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris, Pittsburgh had few prominent names beyond a young Roberto Clemente. They relied on hitters ranging from shortstop Dick Groat to outfielder Bob Skinner, and the starting pitchers Vernon Law and Bob Friend. 

The Yankees outscored the Pirates 55-27. Mazeroski’s counterpart on New York, Bobby Richardson, drove in a record 12 runs and was named the series’ MVP — even though he was on the losing team. Whitey Ford shut out the Pirates twice, on his way to a then-record 33 2/3 straight scoreless World Series innings for the Yankees ace.

Mazeroski hit a 2-run homer off the Yankees’ Jim Coates in Game 1, a 6-4 Pirate victory, and a 2-run double in Game 5, a 5-2 Pittsburgh win. In Game 7, he saved his big hit for the end.

Pittsburgh scored the game’s first four runs, only to fall behind as the Yankees rallied in the middle innings and went ahead 7-4 in the top of the eighth. Pittsburgh retook the lead with five runs in the bottom of the eighth, helped in part by a seeming double-play grounder that took a bad hop and struck Yankees shortstop Tony Kubek in the throat. But the Yankees came right back and tied the score at 9 in the top of the ninth.

Mazeroski, who had grounded into a double play in his previous appearance, was up first. Mazeroski belted the ball to left. It cleared the high, ivy-covered brick wall, with Yankees left fielder Yogi Berra circling under it, then turning away in defeat. Mazeroski dashed around the bases, grinning and waving his cap, joined by celebrants from the stands who had rushed onto the field and followed him to home plate, where his teammates embraced him.

It was the first time a World Series had ended on a homer, leading to enduring waves of celebration and despair. Pirates followers memorized the date, Thursday, Oct. 13, 1960, and the local time of Mazeroski’s hit, 3:36 p.m. Forbes Field was torn down in the 1970s, but a decade later fans began gathering every Oct. 13 at the park’s lone remnant, the center field wall, and listened to the original broadcast.

William Stanley Mazeroski was born in Wheeling, West Virginia, during the Great Depression. Drafted by the Pirates at age 17 in 1954. he was a leader and steady presence on the 1971 team that featured Clemente and Willie Stargell and defeated the Baltimore Orioles in the World Series.



(AP file photo Harry Harris)