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Success? Yes And Maybe
Oct 8 1963
The Pittsburgh Post Gazette Editorial Board
Most experts had the Pirates figured to fall from second place last year to middle of the pack this year after trading center fielder Bill Virdon and losing shortstop Dick Groat to free agency. Yet when the dust on the diamonds settled, the Pirates had repeated last years second place finish and set their franchise attendance record.
Comparing center fielders, in Houston, Virdon didn't play any better than Bobby Del Greco did in Pittsburgh. But shortstop was a different story. While Groat played 158 games and hit .299 in Boston, the Pirates held tryouts at shortstop all year. In aggregate the Trio Of Applicants hit a mere .195, somewhat under a Line to be Named Later.
Keeping Groat may have been enough to get the five extra wins the Bucs needed to finish first. But the price to do that - Boston is paying him $194,000 a year until he's 37 years old - should choke even an unreasonable Pirate fan.
Still the Pirates need to do something to push over the top. The team has five second place finishes and one third place finish in the last six years. During that span the Redlegs have won three pennants, the Dodgers two, and the Braves one. And yet the Pirates lead them all with 550 wins in those six years.
The last few years must seem like a miracle to the fans who followed the team in the early 50s. But now, its to the point second place isn't enough.
Dick Groat, Bill Virdon, Bobby Del Greco
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