You can’t call yourself a true Pittsburgher if you don’t know who Bill Mazeroski was.
Or what he did on Oct. 13, 1960, to become legendary.
It was on that day that the Pirates second baseman, who was known for his incredible defense, hit the most iconic home run in Pirates history. His line drive shot over the left field wall of Forbes Field in Oakland broke a 9-9 tie game in the bottom of the ninth inning, sending the Pirates to a victory over the New York Yankees.
It was the first time a walk-off home run decided a World Series. (It would be repeated by Joe Carter in 1993, but that was a Game 6.)
Mazeroski died Friday at 89.
Take a look back at notable coverage from the Trib of Maz and his memorable home run.
‘It gives me a thrill’: 1960 World Series hero Bill Mazeroski returns for Pirates-Yankees opener
Thirty minutes before throwing out the ceremonial first pitch before the Pittsburgh Pirates played the New York Yankees at PNC Park, Bill Mazeroski started windmilling his arm, reminding that he’s now 86.
The Hall of Fame second baseman reminisced about the greatest play in Pirates history, his historic Game 7 walk-off home run at Forbes Field to beat the Yankees and win the 1960 World Series.
Almost 62 years later, it still stirs emotions in Maz.
Long-awaited Bucs-Yankees matchup defined by epic 1960 homer
Even as he approaches the age of 72, Bill Mazeroski can still see the ball flying over Yogi Berra’s head toward the left-field fence. He can still hear the crowd at Forbes Field roaring as he rounded first. And he can still feel like he was floating around the bases with hat in hand over the excitement of beating the New York Yankees.
Never did the man known as “Maz” imagine that his leadoff home run in the ninth inning of Game 7 leading the Pirates to the 1960 World Series championship — at 3:36 p.m. on Oct. 13, to be precise — would last a lifetime.
Former Point Breeze teen still wonders about lost Mazeroski ball
Andy Jerpe didn’t see Bill Mazeroski’s World Series home run — at least the part where Maz connected with Ralph Terry’s second pitch in the bottom of the ninth inning of a tied Game 7 at Forbes Field.
What he did see over 65 years ago was the ball materialize from the sky like a UFO and plunk down about 15 feet to his left from where he stood amid some cherry trees outside the ballpark, adjacent to Schenley Park.
“I picked up the ball and thought, ‘Huh. Somebody hit a home run,’” Jerpe recalled over the phone from his home in Greenbelt, Md.
Kevin Gorman: Maz’s moment was doubly magical
TribLive sports writer Kevin Gorman recalls the tale of his cousin Mary Jean Gorman’s birth just hours after Bill Mazeroski’s legendary Game 7 home run on Oct. 13, 1960. She became forever linked to one of Pittsburgh’s most iconic sports moments.
Tributes heaped on humble hero Bill Mazeroski
While Pirates second baseman Bill Mazeroski is best known for his 1960 World Series winning home run, his humble persona helped endear him to Pittsburghers.
William Stanley Mazeroski was born in Wheeling, W.Va., and grew up in a one-room house in Ohio with his mother and sister, living on about $10 a week. He was signed by the Pirates in 1954 at age 17 and spent his whole career with the Pirates organization.
“Maz is a sort of personification of Pittsburgh, even though he’s not from here. He’s the son of a coal miner … and somebody who let his acts speak more than his words,” said University of Pittsburgh sports historian Rob Ruck.
Mazeroski immortalized with bronze statue
Playing second base for the Pirates en route to the Hall of Fame, Bill Mazeroski could field just about anything hit in his general direction. What tied him up, and still does, are the accolades and the attention, trying to explain how he hit the most famous home run in World Series history or what it’s like to have a statue created in your likeness.
“I’d rather strike out with the bases loaded,” he joked.
His former teammate, Bob Friend, said Mazeroski “always played under the radar,” which is exactly how he wanted it.
50 years of a-Maz-ing memories
Baseball Hall of Famer Bill Mazeroski was a seven-time All-Star, won a Gold Glove eight times and has a career total of 1,706 double plays — including 161 double plays in a season. But he’ll always be remembered for a home run in game seven that won the Pittsburgh Pirates the 1960 World Series.
Here’s an interview with Mazeroski, just before a bronze statue was dedicated to him near the PNC Park Right Field Gate on Mazeroski Way.
Mazeroski’s homer still resonates 50 years later
In his final year in office, President Dwight Eisenhower threw out the first pitch of the 1960 baseball season. Bill Mazeroski handled the last one.
The conquest of the mighty New York Yankees rocked the sports world. The underdog Pirates won their first world championship since 1925 while a Yankees dynasty of more than 30 years suffered a shocking (yet brief) setback. But at the same time, in politics and in our culture; in Pittsburgh, in the nation, in the world and in baseball, life as we knew it was quickly changing on a scale that superseded even a momentous sporting event.
1960 World Series Game 7 a ‘life-changing experience’ for players
The 1960 Pirates took an unconventional route to Game 7 of the World Series against the powerful New York Yankees.
When they won, the games were close. When they didn’t, the contests were laughers: The Pirates’ losses were by scores of 16-3, 10-0 and 12-0.
But manager Danny Murtaugh’s club also had a short memory.
“There’s no second-guessing when you get your (butt) kicked,” team captain Dick Groat said. “We were just beaten badly.”