Lifelong Pirates fan writes book on 1960 championship season

Wayne Stewart remembers running home from school in Donora on Oct. 13, 1960.

He was 9 years old and was hoping to make it in time to catch the end of Game 7 of the World Series between the Pirates and the New York Yankees on TV. The game was tied 9-9 in the bottom of the ninth.

“I was going by this social club, the Cro (Croatian Club) and I heard the people in the bar upstairs just erupting. I knew something had happened,” Stewart said.

What happened was Bill Mazeroski led off the inning with a home run, the only time in World Series history that a player has hit a walk-off homer in Game 7. It gave the Pirates a series victory over the heavily favored Yankees.

Little did Stewart know that he would be writing a book about it 60 years later.

Entitled “1960: When the Pittsburgh Pirates Had Them All the Way,” the book by Stewart — now a veteran sportswriter — is available exclusively on Amazon. It gives fans another way to celebrate the 60th anniversary of what may be the greatest moment in Pittsburgh’s rich sports history.

Stewart conceived the idea decades ago but just wasn’t able to get it together for the 30th or 40th anniversaries. He also wasn’t able to interview Mazeroski but did talk to Pirates catcher Hal Smith, who died last January. Smith was briefly the Game 7 hero when he hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning to give the Pirates a 9-7 lead. The Yankees rallied to tie the game in the top of the ninth, setting the stage for Mazeroski’s heroics.

Stewart also interviewed members of the heartbroken Yankees, including pitcher Ralph Terry, who gave up Maz’s game winning shot.

“You can’t just shake something like that off, but he was very cooperative with me,” said Stewart. “He didn’t make any excuses, but he did say that he felt the mound was a bit high and that he had a hard time getting the ball down. He threw two high pitches to Maz and he hit the second one out.”

The story of the 1960 Pirates is about more than just what happened in the World Series. Stewart writes about the important developments that led up to the championship, the trades and other moves that transformed the Pirates from lovable losers in the 1950s to the best team in baseball. He also shares detailed accounts of great comebacks and thrilling games during the regular season.

There are plenty of stories that explain how general managers Branch Rickey and later Joe L. Brown put together the core of the 1960 team, including acquiring players like Mazeroski, Dick Groat, Roberto Clemente, Bill Virdon, Elroy Face and Vernon Law.

Stewart interviewed contemporaries and National League opponents of the Pirates, including Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson of the St. Louis Cardinals, who provided insight into how the Buccos were able to put together such an unforgettable season.

While this is definitely a hardcore baseball fan’s book, filled with the kind of stats and facts that sports geeks love, there are also plenty of colorful stories about characters involved with the 1960 team. They include outlandish play-by-play announcer Bob Prince and Bing Crosby, the famous singer and Hollywood actor, who was also part-owner of the Pirates from 1946 until his death in 1977.

Stewart has written books on football and basketball, but baseball is clearly his thing. He’s written a biography of fellow Donora native and Hall of Famer Stan Musial called “Stan the Man: The Life and Times of Stan Musial” as well as “Wits, Flakes, and Clowns: The Colorful Characters of Baseball,” published earlier this year.

“I’ve always liked the history, tradition, statistics and records, those four things” Stewart said. “I believe baseball is the richest in that. And I also love the humor in the game. That’s what appeals to me most about baseball.”

And as Stewart documents so well, 1960 just might be the most appealing baseball season of all.