On this date
July 12
1949 – Three players from Washington County – St. Louis outfielder Stan Musial (Donora), St. Louis third baseman Eddie Kazak (Muse) and Philadelphia Andy Seminick (Muse) – are in the starting lineup for the National League in baseball’s all-star game at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. Musial goes 3-for-4 with a home run and Kazak is 2-for-2, but the American League wins 11-7 as Joe DiMaggio drives in three runs.
1974 – A benches-clearing, fist-swinging brawl erupts during the fourth inning in the second game of a doubleheader between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds at Three Rivers Stadium. The brawl is triggered when the Pirates’ Bruce Kison is hit by a pitch from Cincinnati’s Jack Billingham. Pirates relief pitcher Daryl Patterson suffers a black eye during the brawl and an open wound on his left side after being bitten by Reds pitcher Pedro Borbon. Patterson had both of his arms wrapped around Borbon’s head at the time.
1976 – John Haught, an assistant football coach at Chartiers-Houston for the past seven years, is named the Bucs’ head coach.
1979 – In the most ill-fated promotion in baseball history, thousands of fans overrun the Comiskey Park playing field during “Disco Demolition Night” between games of a doubleheader and cause the Chicago White Sox to forfeit the second game to Detroit. Umpire Dave Phillips declares the field unplayable after a delay of more than an hour and postpones the game. Later, American League president Lee MacPhail ruled the game a forfeit win for the Tigers.
1987 – Pittsburgh’s Bobby Bonilla becomes the second player to hit a home run into Three Rivers Stadium’s right-field upper-deck seats, driving in two runs in the fifth inning, and the Pirates beat the San Diego Padres, 4-2.
1988 – Former Washington High School and Pitt running back Brian Davis agrees to a free-agent contract with the Cleveland Browns.
1994 – Barely a month before the season prematurely ends for the first time because of labor strife, Moises Alou’s double scores Tony Gwynn with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning and the National League defeats the American League, 8-7, in 10 innings at Three Rivers Stadium. MVP Fred McGriff homers in the bottom of the ninth off Lee Smith to send the game to extra innings.
1997 – Starter Francisco Cordova pitches nine no-hit innings, reliever Ricardo Rincon follows with one no-hit frame and pinch-hitter Mark Smith hits a two-out game-winning solo home run in the bottom of the 10th as the Pittsburgh Pirates defeat the Houston Astros, 1-0. The combined no-hitter moves the Pirates back into a first-place tie in the National League Central Division with the Astros.
1998 – Center Ron Francis leaves the Pittsburgh Penguins and signs a free-agent contract with the Carolina Hurricanes.