1953 Pittsburgh Pirates season

1953 Pittsburgh Pirates
Major League affiliations
National League (since 1887)
Location
Forbes Field (since 1909)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania^[1] (since 1907)
Other information
Owner(s)	John W. Galbreath (majority shareholder); Bing Crosby, Thomas Johnson, Branch Rickey (minority shareholders)
General manager(s)	Branch Rickey
Manager(s)	Fred Haney
Local television	none
Local radio	WWSW Rosey Rowswell, Bob Prince
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The 1953 Pittsburgh Pirates season was the 72nd in franchise history. In April 1953, the New York Yankees visited Forbes Field and played two preseason games against the Pirates. Mickey Mantle hit a 500-foot home run that landed on the roof.^[2]

Offseason

October 14, 1952: Gus Bell was traded by the Pirates to the Cincinnati Reds for Cal Abrams, Joe Rossi, and Gail Henley.^[3]
Prior to 1953 season: Don Williams was signed as an amateur free agent by the Pirates.^[4]
March 19, 1953: Johnny O'Brien was signed by the Pirates as an amateur free agent (bonus baby).^[5]
March 19, 1953: Eddie O'Brien was signed by the Pirates as an amateur free agent (bonus baby).^[6]

Regular season

Season standings

National League	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Brooklyn Dodgers	105	49	0.682	—	60–17	45–32
Milwaukee Braves	92	62	0.597	13	45–31	47–31
Philadelphia Phillies	83	71	0.539	22	48–29	35–42
St. Louis Cardinals	83	71	0.539	22	48–30	35–41
New York Giants	70	84	0.455	35	38–39	32–45
Cincinnati Redlegs	68	86	0.442	37	38–39	30–47
Chicago Cubs	65	89	0.422	40	43–34	22–55
Pittsburgh Pirates	50	104	0.325	55	26–51	24–53

Record vs. opponents

1953 National League Records Sources:
Team	BR	CHC	CIN	MIL	NYG	PHI	PIT	STL
Brooklyn	—	13–9–1	15–7	13–9	15–7	14–8	20–2	15–7
Chicago	9–13–1	—	12–10	8–14	9–13	5–17	11–11	11–11
Cincinnati	7–15	10–12	—	8–14	9–13	12–10	15–7	7–15–1
Milwaukee	9–13	14–8	14–8	—	14–8–1	13–9–1	15–7	13–9–1
New York	7–15	13–9	13–9	8–14–1	—	9–13	11–11	9–13
Philadelphia	8–14	17–5	10–12	9–13–1	13–9	—	15–7	11–11–1
Pittsburgh	2–20	11–11	7–15	7–15	11–11	7–15	—	5–17
St. Louis	7–15	11–11	15–7–1	9–13–1	13–9	11–11–1	17–5	—

Game log

1953 Game Log: 50–104 (Home: 26–51; Away: 24–53)

April: 5–9 (Home: 5–3; Away: 0–6)

May: 8–19 (Home: 6–8; Away: 2–11)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record
15	May 1	Reds	8–3	Pettit (1–0)	Perkowski	Dickson (1)	14,826	6–9
16	May 2	Reds	12–4	LaPalme (1–2)	Podbielan	—	7,437	7–9
17	May 3	Cardinals	8–2	Lindell (1–2)	Haddix	—	26,001	8–9
18	May 4	Cardinals	0–5	Mizell	Dickson (2–3)	—	18,778	8–10
19	May 9	@ Giants	2–0	Lindell (2–2)	Jansen	—		9–10
20	May 9	@ Giants	4–6	Wilhelm	Pettit (1–1)	—	9,889	9–11
21	May 10	@ Giants	0–4	Maglie	Dickson (2–4)	—		9–12
22	May 10	@ Giants	2–3	Hiller	Pollet (1–1)	—	17,940	9–13
23	May 14	@ Braves	2–3	Wilson	Lindell (2–3)	—	15,438	9–14
24	May 15	@ Braves	3–4	Surkont	Friend (1–2)	—	8,744	9–15
25	May 16	@ Cubs	3–2	Dickson (3–4)	Rush	Hetki (2)	9,728	10–15
26	May 17	@ Cubs	2–6	Minner	LaPalme (1–3)	—		10–16
27	May 17	@ Cubs	3–7 (7)	Klippstein	Pettit (1–2)	Hacker	7,745	10–17
28	May 19	@ Cardinals	1–2	Staley	Lindell (2–4)	Miller	7,607	10–18
29	May 20	@ Cardinals	6–11	Presko	Friend (1–3)	Brazle	5,715	10–19
30	May 21	Phillies	7–2	Dickson (4–4)	Drews	—	7,507	11–19
31	May 23	Giants	8–4	LaPalme (2–3)	Gomez	—	7,444	12–19
32	May 24	Giants	3–11	Jansen	Lindell (2–5)	Wilhelm	20,966	12–20
33	May 25	Giants	3–6	Hiller	Friend (1–4)	—	2,369	12–21
34	May 27	Phillies	2–14	Roberts	Dickson (4–5)	—		12–22
35	May 27	Phillies	8–6	Face (2–0)	Drews	Dickson (2)	16,935	13–22
36	May 28	Phillies	8–9	Konstanty	LaPalme (2–4)	—	2,437	13–23
37	May 29	Dodgers	4–7	Meyer	Lindell (2–6)	Hughes	3,902	13–24
38	May 30	Dodgers	4–7	Wade	Dickson (4–6)	—		13–25
39	May 30	Dodgers	1–4	Podres	Friend (1–5)	Erskine	31,029	13–26
40	May 31	@ Dodgers	3–4	Loes	LaPalme (2–5)	Hughes	25,277	13–27
41	May 31	@ Dodgers	1–4 (7)	Milliken	Hetki (0–1)	—	25,277	13–28

June: 12–22 (Home: 6–11; Away: 6–11)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record
42	June 2	Cubs	4–3 (11)	Hetki (1–1)	Klippstein	—	8,158	14–28
43	June 3	Cubs	1–0	LaPalme (3–5)	Hacker	—	8,165	15–28
44	June 4	Cubs	6–1	Hall (1–1)	Minner	—	3,182	16–28
45	June 5	Reds	4–7	Wehmeier	Bowman (0–1)	—	12,229	16–29
46	June 6	Reds	7–15	Smith	Friend (1–6)	Collum	6,685	16–30
47	June 7	Reds	1–6	Podbielan	Schultz (0–1)	—		16–31
48	June 7	Reds	6–11	Nuxhall	Lindell (2–7)	Perkowski	9,021	16–32
49	June 8	Cardinals	3–5 (12)	Brazle	Hetki (1–2)	Miller	7,643	16–33
50	June 9	Cardinals	7–4	Hall (2–1)	Haddix	—	1,894	17–33
51	June 10	Cardinals	1–5	Presko	Friend (1–7)	White	8,937	17–34
52	June 11	Cardinals	3–5	Miller	Lindell (2–8)	White	2,178	17–35
53	June 12	Braves	4–2	Dickson (5–6)	Antonelli	—		18–35
54	June 12	Braves	2–11	Surkont	Schultz (0–2)	—	17,344	18–36
55	June 13	Braves	4–5	Burdette	LaPalme (3–6)	—	5,134	18–37
56	June 14	Braves	3–7	Liddle	Hall (2–2)	—		18–38
57	June 14	Braves	0–8	Buhl	Bowman (0–2)	—	15,083	18–39
58	June 15	Braves	3–2 (10)	Friend (2–7)	Wilson	—	6,548	19–39
59	June 16	@ Cubs	6–5	Lindell (3–8)	Minner	—		20–39
60	June 16	@ Cubs	2–3	Pollet	Dickson (5–7)	Klippstein	11,427	20–40
61	June 17	@ Cubs	4–5 (16)	Lown	Hetki (1–3)	—	5,422	20–41
62	June 18	@ Cubs	4–8	Rush	Hall (2–3)	Leonard	3,969	20–42
63	June 19	@ Cardinals	2–10	Mizell	LaPalme (3–7)	—	7,552	20–43
64	June 20	@ Cardinals	1–2	Presko	Friend (2–8)	—	9,019	20–44
65	June 21	@ Cardinals	5–2	Dickson (6–7)	Miller	—	10,451	21–44
66	June 22	@ Cardinals	3–6	Staley	Lindell (3–9)	—	5,625	21–45
67	June 23	@ Braves	1–0	Hall (3–3)	Spahn	—	26,299	22–45
68	June 24	@ Braves	10–1	Face (3–0)	Bickford	—	21,438	23–45
69	June 25	@ Braves	6–4 (12)	Hetki (2–3)	Buhl	—	14,841	24–45
70	June 26	@ Reds	4–8	Nuxhall	Dickson (6–8)	King		24–46
71	June 26	@ Reds	1–4	Collum	LaPalme (3–8)	—	7,758	24–47
72	June 27	@ Reds	5–15	Perkowski	Face (3–1)	—	2,599	24–48
73	June 28	@ Reds	1–4	Baczewski	Hall (3–4)	—		24–49
74	June 28	@ Reds	2–9	Raffensberger	Bowman (0–3)	—	10,432	24–50
75	June 30	@ Giants	3–1	Dickson (7–8)	Gomez	—	13,805	25–50

July: 8–23 (Home: 5–15; Away: 3–8)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record
76	July 1	@ Giants	5–3 (11)	Hetki (3–3)	Wilhelm	—	4,429	26–50
77	July 4	@ Dodgers	5–6	Hughes	Hall (3–5)	Wade	30,029	26–51
78	July 4	@ Dodgers	5–2	Friend (3–8)	Loes	—	30,029	27–51
79	July 5	Phillies	0–2 (10)	Roberts	Dickson (7–9)	—		27–52
80	July 5	Phillies	7–4	Waugh (1–0)	Ridzik	LaPalme (1)	11,404	28–52
81	July 6	Dodgers	2–14	Meyer	LaPalme (3–9)	Hughes	13,497	28–53
82	July 7	Dodgers	4–5	Erskine	Lindell (3–10)	Wade		28–54
83	July 7	Dodgers	5–9	Roe	Hall (3–6)	Milliken	9,687	28–55
84	July 8	Giants	7–10 (11)	Jansen	Hetki (3–4)	Koslo	7,095	28–56
85	July 9	Giants	0–4	Gomez	Face (3–2)	—	3,391	28–57
86	July 10	@ Phillies	3–13	Simmons	Dickson (7–10)	—	6,466	28–58
87	July 11	@ Phillies	4–8	Ridzik	Dickson (7–11)	—	3,608	28–59
88	July 12	@ Phillies	4–6	Roberts	Face (3–3)	—		28–60
89	July 12	@ Phillies	5–6	Ridzik	LaPalme (3–10)	—	10,806	28–61
90	July 16	Braves	5–2	Friend (4–8)	Antonelli	—	11,775	29–61
91	July 17	Braves	2–8	Spahn	Hall (3–7)	—	11,565	29–62
92	July 18	Braves	3–4	Liddle	Waugh (1–1)	Burdette	4,674	29–63
93	July 19	Cardinals	2–8	Haddix	Dickson (7–12)	—		29–64
94	July 19	Cardinals	6–4	LaPalme (4–10)	Mizell	—	9,045	30–64
95	July 20	Cardinals	4–9	Chambers	Friend (4–9)	White	9,045	30–65
96	July 21	Reds	2–7	Raffensberger	Waugh (1–2)	—	7,594	30–66
97	July 22	Reds	3–2	LaPalme (5–10)	Collum	—	1,567	31–66
98	July 23	Reds	0–7	Perkowski	Dickson (7–13)	—	1,807	31–67
99	July 24	Cubs	1–7	Minner	Hall (3–8)	—	10,406	31–68
100	July 25	Cubs	4–5	Lown	Lindell (3–11)	Leonard	4,217	31–69
101	July 26	Cubs	3–2	Face (4–3)	Leonard	—		32–69
102	July 26	Cubs	3–7	Hacker	Waugh (1–3)	Klippstein	11,358	32–70
103	July 28	@ Cardinals	4–6	Chambers	LaPalme (5–11)	Presko	7,973	32–71
104	July 29	@ Cardinals	2–8	Haddix	Lindell (3–12)	—	7,418	32–72
105	July 30	@ Cardinals	4–10	Erautt	Hetki (3–5)	—	3,402	32–73
106	July 31	@ Cubs	4–0	Dickson (8–13)	Minner	—	5,412	33–73

August: 8–22 (Home: 2–11; Away: 6–11)

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Record
107	August 1	@ Cubs	10–3	Lindell (4–12)	Pollet	—	8,017	34–73
108	August 2	@ Cubs	6–7 (11)	Lown	Dickson (8–14)	—	14,110	34–74
109	August 3	@ Reds	0–5	Nuxhall	LaPalme (5–12)	—	3,499	34–75
110	August 4	@ Reds	2–1	Face (5–3)	Collum	Dickson (3)	4,463	35–75
111	August 5	@ Reds	6–4	Waugh (2–3)	Podbielan	Hetki (3)	1,797	36–75
112	August 6	@ Reds	4–3	Lindell (5–12)	King	LaPalme (2)	2,054	37–75
113	August 7	@ Braves	2–9	Bickford	Dickson (8–15)	—	26,902	37–76
114	August 8	@ Braves	4–7	Burdette	Hall (3–9)	—	17,163	37–77
115	August 9	@ Braves	4–7	Johnson	LaPalme (5–13)	Liddle		37–78
116	August 9	@ Braves	3–10	Wilson	Face (5–4)	—	33,376	37–79
117	August 11	Phillies	0–3	Simmons	Dickson (8–16)	—	8,985	37–80
118	August 12	Phillies	4–8	Roberts	Lindell (5–13)	—	6,505	37–81
119	August 13	Phillies	4–3	LaPalme (6–13)	Miller	—	2,373	38–81
120	August 15	@ Dodgers	6–14	Wade	Face (5–5)	—	12,842	38–82
121	August 16	@ Dodgers	1–3	Roe	Hall (3–10)	—	18,550	38–83
122	August 16	@ Dodgers	5–9	Erskine	Dickson (8–17)	Labine	18,550	38–84
123	August 17	@ Dodgers	2–5 (11)	Labine	Lindell (5–14)	—	9,943	38–85
124	August 18	@ Phillies	0–1	Ridzik	LaPalme (6–14)	Roberts	3,945	38–86
125	August 19	@ Phillies	5–3	Face (6–5)	Simmons	—	4,554	39–86
126	August 20	@ Phillies	5–2	Waugh (3–3)	Roberts	—	4,376	40–86
127	August 21	Dodgers	7–1	Dickson (9–17)	Podres	—	12,459	41–86
128	August 22	Dodgers	3–5	Roe	Hall (3–11)	Labine	7,033	41–87
129	August 23	Dodgers	4–10	Meyer	Lindell (5–15)	—	1,848	41–88
130	August 23	Dodgers	7–9	Labine	Friend (4–10)	—	1,848	41–89
131	August 25	Reds	6–8	Collum	Hetki (3–6)	Kelly		41–90
132	August 25	Reds	8–9	Baczewski	Bowman (0–4)	—	8,370	41–91
133	August 28	Cardinals	9–10	White	Hall (3–12)	Staley	7,021	41–92
134	August 29	Cardinals	4–5	Mizell	Dickson (9–18)	Brazle	3,145	41–93
135	August 30	Braves	4–19	Antonelli	Lindell (5–16)	—		41–94
136	August 30	Braves	5–11	Liddle	LaPalme (6–15)	—	9,458	41–95

September: 9–9 (Home: 2–3; Away: 7–6)

Legend: = Win = Loss
Bold = Pirates team member

Notable transactions

June 4, 1953: Ralph Kiner, Joe Garagiola, Catfish Metkovich, and Howie Pollet were traded by the Pirates to the Chicago Cubs for Toby Atwell, Bob Schultz, Preston Ward, George Freese, Bob Addis, Gene Hermanski, and $150,000.^[7]
June 14, 1953: Pete Castiglione was traded by the Pirates to the St. Louis Cardinals for Hal Rice.^[8]

Roster

1953 Pittsburgh Pirates

Roster

Pitchers

32 Roger Bowman

22 Murry Dickson

26 Roy Face

19 Bob Friend

36 Bob Hall

29 Johnny Hetki

32 Cal Hogue

24 Paul LaPalme

28 Johnny Lindell

25 Bill Macdonald

35 Woody Main

20 Paul Pettit

11 Howie Pollet

37 Bob Schultz

23 Jim Waugh

Catchers

11 Toby Atwell

9 Ed Fitz Gerald

3 Joe Garagiola

31 Vic Janowicz

9 Nick Koback

14 Pete Naton

6 Mike Sandlock

10 Jack Shepard

Infielders

16 Pete Castiglione

12 Dick Cole

5 Dick Hall

44 Catfish Metkovich

27 Eddie O'Brien

30 Johnny O'Brien

10 Danny O'Connell

13 Eddie Pellagrini

7 Dick Smith

21 Paul Smith

5 Preston Ward

Outfielders

18 Cal Abrams

17 Carlos Bernier

16 Brandy Davis

7 Gene Hermanski

4 Ralph Kiner

14 Felipe Montemayor

44 Hal Rice

15 Frank Thomas

Other batters

39 Bob Addis

37 Clem Koshorek

Manager

2 Fred Haney

Coaches

40 John Fitzpatrick

43 Sam Narron

42 Bill Posedel

41 Clyde Sukeforth

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
2B	O'Brien, JohnnyJohnny O'Brien	89	279	69	.247	2	22
SS	O'Brien, EddieEddie O'Brien	89	261	62	.238	0	14
OF	Abrams, CalCal Abrams	119	448	128	.286	15	43
OF	Thomas, FrankFrank Thomas	128	455	116	.255	30	102

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
Rice, HalHal Rice	78	286	89	.311	4	42
Kiner, RalphRalph Kiner	41	148	40	.270	7	29
Garagiola, JoeJoe Garagiola	27	73	17	.233	2	14
Smith, DickDick Smith	13	43	7	.163	0	2
Metkovich, CatfishCatfish Metkovich	26	41	6	.146	1	7

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Friend, BobBob Friend	32	170.2	8	11	4.90	66

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Dickson, MurryMurry Dickson	45	200.2	10	19	4.53	88
Face, RoyRoy Face	41	119	6	8	6.58	56
Pollet, HowieHowie Pollet	5	12.2	1	1	10.66	8

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Bowman, RogerRoger Bowman	30	0	4	0	4.82	36

Farm system

Level	Team	League	Manager
AA	New Orleans Pelicans	Southern Association	Danny Murtaugh
A	Charleston Rebels	Sally League	Frank Oceak, Norm Shope and Larry Shepard
A	Denver Bears	Western League	Andy Cohen
B	Waco/Longview Pirates	Big State League	Buster Chatham
B	Burlington-Graham Pirates	Carolina League	Stan Wentzel
C	Billings Mustangs	Pioneer League	Cliff Dapper
C	St. Jean Canadiens	Provincial League	George Genovese
C	Hutchinson Elks	Western Association	Wes Griffin
D	Bristol Twins	Appalachian League	George Detore
D	Dublin Irish	Georgia State League	John George and Frank Oceak
D	Brunswick Pirates	Georgia–Florida League	Jack Paepke
D	Batavia Clippers	PONY League	George Kinnamon

Notes

↑ From 1882–1906, the team played in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, which became annexed by Pittsburgh as the North Shore in 1907.
↑ The Best Game Ever, Prologue, p. xx, Jim Reisler, Carroll & Graf Publishers, New York, 2007, ISBN 978-0-7867-1943-3
↑ Gus Bell page at Baseball Reference
↑ Don Williams page at Baseball Reference
↑ Johnny O'Brien page at Baseball Reference
↑ Eddie O'Brien page at Baseball Reference
↑ Ralph Kiner page at Baseball Reference
↑ Hal Rice page at Baseball Reference

References

1953 Pittsburgh Pirates team page at Baseball Reference
1953 Pittsburgh Pirates Page at Baseball Almanac
Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (3rd ed.). Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America. ISBN 978-1-932391-17-6.

1953 MLB season by team

American League	Boston Chicago Cleveland Detroit New York Philadelphia St. Louis Washington

National League	Brooklyn Chicago Cincinnati Milwaukee New York Philadelphia Pittsburgh St. Louis

1953 All-Star Game 1953 World Series

Pittsburgh Pirates

Formerly the Pittsburgh Alleghenys
Founded in 1882
Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Franchise

Ballparks

Spring training: Whittington Park; Riverside Park; Fogel Field; Barrs Field; Rickwood Field; Whittington Park; Perris Hill Park; Tech Field; Perris Hill Park; McCulloch Park; Perris Hill Park; Flamingo Field; Gilmore Field; Gran Stadium; Jaycee Park; Terry Park; Pirate City/McKechnie Field

Culture

Lore

Pittsburgh Allegheny
Pirates' lore
Wagner donates uniforms
Lou Bierbauer
Temple Cup
Chronicle-Telegraph Cup
Pittsburgh Stars
Homer in the Gloamin'
1960 Game 7
1985 drug trials
Francisco Cabrera game
National League Wild Card Games
- 2013
- 2014
- 2015

Rivalries

Philadelphia Phillies

Minors

AAA: Indianapolis Indians
AA: Altoona Curve
A Adv.: Bradenton Marauders
A: West Virginia Power
Short A: West Virginia Black Bears
Rookie Adv.: Bristol Pirates
Rookie: GCL Pirates; DSL Pirates
All-time: Minor league affiliate history

World Series
Championships (5)

1909
1925
1960
1971
1979

League pennants (9)

American Association: none
National League: 1901; 1902; 1903; 1909; 1925; 1927; 1960; 1971; 1979

Division titles (9)

East: 1970; 1971; 1972; 1974; 1975; 1979; 1990; 1991; 1992
Central: none

Wild Card berths (3)

Media

Seasons (136)

1880s	1880 · 1881 · 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889

1890s	1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899

1900s	1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909

1910s	1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919

1920s	1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929

1930s	1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939

1940s	1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949

1950s	1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959

1960s	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969

1970s	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979

1980s	1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989

1990s	1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

2000s	2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

2010s	2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

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