1979 Pittsburgh Pirates | ||
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World Series Champions National League Champions National League East Champions | ||
League | National League | |
Division | East | |
Ballpark | Three Rivers Stadium | |
City | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania [1] | |
Record | 98–64 (.605) | |
Divisional place | 1st | |
Owners | John W. Galbreath (majority shareholder); Thomas P. Johnson (minority shareholder) | |
General managers | Harding "Pete" Peterson | |
Managers | Chuck Tanner | |
Television | KDKA-TV 2 (Milo Hamilton, Lanny Frattare, Nelson Briles) | |
Radio | KDKA–AM 1020 (Milo Hamilton, Lanny Frattare) | |
Stats | ESPN.com BB-reference | |
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The 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates had a record of 98 wins and 64 losses and captured the National League East Division title by two games over the Montreal Expos. The Pirates beat the Cincinnati Reds to win their ninth National League pennant, and the Baltimore Orioles to win their fifth World Series title – and also their last playoff series victory to date. The disco hit "We Are Family" by Sister Sledge was used as the team's theme song that season. [2]
NL East | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
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Pittsburgh Pirates | 98 | 64 | 0.605 | — | 48–33 | 50–31 |
Montreal Expos | 95 | 65 | 0.594 | 2 | 56–25 | 39–40 |
St. Louis Cardinals | 86 | 76 | 0.531 | 12 | 42–39 | 44–37 |
Philadelphia Phillies | 84 | 78 | 0.519 | 14 | 43–38 | 41–40 |
Chicago Cubs | 80 | 82 | 0.494 | 18 | 45–36 | 35–46 |
New York Mets | 63 | 99 | 0.389 | 35 | 28–53 | 35–46 |
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Team | ATL | CHC | CIN | HOU | LAD | MON | NYM | PHI | PIT | SD | SF | STL | |||||
Atlanta | — | 4–8 | 6–12 | 7–11 | 12–6 | 1–9 | 4–8 | 7–5 | 4–8 | 6–12 | 11–7 | 4–8 | |||||
Chicago | 8–4 | — | 7–5 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 6–12 | 8–10 | 9–9 | 6–12 | 9–3 | 8–4 | 8–10 | |||||
Cincinnati | 12–6 | 5–7 | — | 8–10 | 11–7 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 8–4 | 8–4 | 10–7 | 6–12 | 8–4 | |||||
Houston | 11–7 | 6–6 | 10–8 | — | 10–8 | 7–5 | 9–3 | 5–7 | 4–8 | 14–4 | 7–11 | 6–6 | |||||
Los Angeles | 6–12 | 7–5 | 7–11 | 8–10 | — | 6–6 | 9–3 | 3–9 | 4–8 | 9–9 | 14–4 | 6–6 | |||||
Montreal | 9–1 | 12–6 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 6–6 | — | 15–3 | 11–7 | 7–11 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 10–8 | |||||
New York | 8–4 | 10–8 | 4–8 | 3–9 | 3–9 | 3–15 | — | 5–13 | 8–10–1 | 4–8 | 8–4 | 7–11 | |||||
Philadelphia | 5-7 | 9–9 | 4–8 | 7–5 | 9–3 | 7–11 | 13–5 | — | 8–10 | 9–3 | 6–6 | 7–11–1 | |||||
Pittsburgh | 8–4 | 12–6 | 4–8 | 8–4 | 8–4 | 11–7 | 10–8–1 | 10–8 | — | 7–5 | 9–3 | 11–7 | |||||
San Diego | 12–6 | 3–9 | 7–10 | 4–14 | 9–9 | 5–7 | 8–4 | 3–9 | 5–7 | — | 8–10 | 4–8 | |||||
San Francisco | 7–11 | 4–8 | 12–6 | 11–7 | 4–14 | 5–7 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 3–9 | 10–8 | — | 5–7 | |||||
St. Louis | 8–4 | 10–8 | 4–8 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 8–10 | 11–7 | 11–7–1 | 7–11 | 8–4 | 7–5 | — |
1979 Game Log (98–64 (Home: 48–33; Away: 50–31)) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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April: 7–11 (Home: 5–6; Away: 2–5)
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May: 16–10 (Home: 7–4; Away: 9–6)
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June: 14–13 (Home: 7–9; Away: 7–4)
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July: 20–11 (Home: 8–5; Away: 12–6)
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August: 21–9 (Home: 12–4; Away: 9–5)
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September: 20–10 (Home: 9–5; Away: 11–5)
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Legend: = Win = Loss = Tie Bold = Pirates team member Source: baseball-reference.com [6] |
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates | |||||||||
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Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
| Catchers
Infielders
| Outfielders
Other batters
| Manager Coaches
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Opening Day Starters | ||
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# | Name | Position |
10 | Frank Taveras | SS |
18 | Omar Moreno | CF |
39 | Dave Parker | RF |
8 | Willie Stargell | 1B |
28 | Bill Robinson | LF |
6 | Rennie Stennett | 2B |
14 | Ed Ott | C |
3 | Phil Garner | 3B |
22 | Bert Blyleven | P |
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | R | H | E |
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Opponents | 81 | 77 | 81 | 69 | 56 | 82 | 67 | 67 | 48 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 643 | 1,424 | 145 |
Pittsburgh | 104 | 73 | 87 | 71 | 99 | 67 | 86 | 98 | 76 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 775 | 1,541 | 134 |
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
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Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
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1979 Postseason Game Log (7–3) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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1979 World Series: vs. Baltimore Orioles (4–3) [15]
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Legend: = Win = Loss = Postponement Bold = Pirates team member |
October 2, Riverfront Stadium
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | R | H | E | |
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Pittsburgh | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 0 | |
Cincinnati | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 0 | |
W: Grant Jackson (1-0) L: Tom Hume (0-1) SV: Don Robinson (1) | |||||||||||||||
HRs: PIT – Phil Garner (1) Willie Stargell (1) CIN – George Foster (1) |
October 3, Riverfront Stadium
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||
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Pittsburgh | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 0 | ||
Cincinnati | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 0 | ||
W: Don Robinson (1-0) L: Doug Bair (0-1) SV: None | |||||||||||||||
HRs: PIT – None CIN – None |
October 5, Three Rivers Stadium
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
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Cincinnati | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 1 | |
Pittsburgh | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | X | 7 | 7 | 0 | |
W: Bert Blyleven (1-0) L: Mike LaCoss (0-1) SV: None | |||||||||||||
HRs: CIN – Johnny Bench (1) PIT – Willie Stargell (2) Bill Madlock (1) |
The Pirates became one of only six teams in the 20th century to have won a World Series after trailing three games to one. Two of those teams were the Pirates, in 1925 and 1979. The others were the 1903 Boston Red Sox (in a best-of-nine series), 1958 New York Yankees, 1968 Detroit Tigers, and 1985 Kansas City Royals. Five Pirates had 10 or more hits in this series, a World Series record.
Chuck Tanner's mother died the morning of Game 5 (this was mentioned during the telecast by announcer Howard Cosell). 1960 World Series hero Bill Mazeroski threw out the first ball in Game 5. The Pittsburgh Pirates were the last team in the 20th Century to win Game 7 of the World Series on the road. U.S. President Jimmy Carter made an appearance in Game 7, he threw out the first ball, and after the game made a visit to the victorious Pittsburgh locker room.
Willie Stargell at 39 was the oldest player to win MVP honors for both the National League and the World Series. In the World Series, he hit .400 with a record seven extra-base hits and matched Reggie Jackson's record of 25 total bases, set in 1977. Stargell, pitcher Bruce Kison, infielder Rennie Stennett, and catcher Manny Sanguillén were the only players left over from the 1971 World Series, when the Pirates faced the Orioles. Orioles' pitcher Jim Palmer, Mark Belanger, and manager Earl Weaver were the only ones who were still with the team that faced the Pirates in 1971.
As was the case when the same two teams played in the 1971 World Series, a game in Baltimore was rained out. Game 1 of this series was postponed, while Game 2 of the 1971 series had to be moved back a day. In this Series, it was the American League team's "turn" to play by National League rules, meaning that there was no designated hitter and the Orioles' pitchers would have to bat. While this resulted in pitcher Tim Stoddard getting his first major league hit and RBI in Game 4. Overall, it hurt the Orioles because Lee May, their designated hitter for much of the season and a key part of their offense, was only able to bat three times in the whole series. The Pirates wore four different uniform combinations during the series: gold cap, black jersey and gold pants for Games 1 & 5, black cap, gold jersey and black pants for Games 2, 6 & 7, black cap and solid white pinstriped uniform for Game 3 and a black cap and solid gold uniform for Game 4.
October 10, 1979, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Attendance: 53,735
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
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Pittsburgh | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 3 |
Baltimore | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 3 |
W: Mike Flanagan (1-0) L: Bruce Kison (0-1) | ||||||||||||
HR: PIT – Willie Stargell (1); BAL – Doug Decinces (1) |
October 11, 1979, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Attendance: 53,739
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
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Pittsburgh | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 2 |
Baltimore | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 1 |
W: Don Robinson (1-0) L: Don Stanhouse (0-1) S: Kent Tekulve (1) | ||||||||||||
HR: PIT – none; BAL – Eddie Murray (1) |
October 12, 1979, at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Attendance: 50,848
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
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Baltimore | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 13 | 0 |
Pittsburgh | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 2 |
W: Scott McGregor (1-0) L: John Candelaria (0-1) | ||||||||||||
HR: BAL – Benny Ayala (1); PIT – none |
October 13, 1979, at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Attendance: 50,883
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Baltimore | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 9 | 12 | 0 |
Pittsburgh | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 17 | 1 |
W: Tim Stoddard (1-0) L: Kent Tekulve (0-1) | ||||||||||||
HR: BAL – none; PIT – Willie Stargell (2) |
October 14, 1979, at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Attendance: 50,920
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Baltimore | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 |
Pittsburgh | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | x | 7 | 13 | 1 |
W: Bert Blyleven (1-0) L: Mike Flanagan (1-1) | ||||||||||||
HR: BAL – none; PIT – none |
October 16, 1979, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Attendance: 53,739
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pittsburgh | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 0 |
Baltimore | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
W: John Candelaria (1-1) L: Jim Palmer (0-1) S: Kent Tekulve (2) | ||||||||||||
HR: PIT – none; BAL – none |
October 17, 1979, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Attendance: 53,733
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pittsburgh | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 10 | 0 |
Baltimore | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
W: Grant Jackson (1-0) L: Scott McGregor (1-1) S: Kent Tekulve (3) | ||||||||||||
HR: PIT – Willie Stargell (3); BAL – Rich Dauer (1) |
1979 World Series (4-3): Pittsburgh Pirates (N.L.) over Baltimore Orioles (A.L.)
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pittsburgh Pirates | 1 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 32 | 81 | 9 | |
Baltimore Orioles | 5 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 26 | 54 | 9 | |
Total Attendance: 367,597 Average Attendance: 52,514 | |||||||||||||
Winning Player's Share: – $28,264, Losing Player's Share – $22,114 * Includes Playoffs and World Series |
1979 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
Wilver Dornell Stargell, nicknamed "Pops" later in his career, was an American professional baseball left fielder and first baseman who spent all of his 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1962–1982) with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Among the most feared power hitters in baseball history, Stargell had the most home runs (296) of any player in the 1970s decade. During his career, he batted .282 with 2,232 hits, 1,194 runs, 423 doubles, 475 home runs, and 1,540 runs batted in, helping his team win six National League (NL) East division titles, two NL pennants, and two World Series championships in 1971 and 1979, both over the Baltimore Orioles. Stargell was a seven-time All-Star and two-time NL home run leader. In 1979, he became the first and currently only player to win the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award, the NL Championship Series MVP Award and the World Series MVP Award in one season. In 1982, the Pirates retired his uniform number 8. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988.
The 1979 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1979 season. The 76th edition of the World Series was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Pittsburgh Pirates (98–64) and the American League (AL) champion Baltimore Orioles (102–57). The Pirates won in seven games, becoming the fourth team in World Series history to come back from a three games to one deficit to win the Series. This marked the second time in the 1970s the Pirates won a World Series Game 7 on the road against the Orioles, the previous time being in the 1971 World Series. The Pirates were famous for adopting Sister Sledge's hit song "We Are Family" as their theme song during the 1979 season.
The 1971 World Series was the championship round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1971 season and featured the first night game in its history. The 68th edition of the Fall Classic was a best-of-seven playoff between the defending World Series and American League (AL) champion Baltimore Orioles and the National League (NL) champion Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates won the World Series in seven games, in large part because of superstar right fielder Roberto Clemente, whose all-around brilliance was on full display on a national stage. Game 4 in Pittsburgh was the first World Series game played at night.
David Cash Jr. is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a second baseman from 1969 to 1980, most prominently as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates where, he was a member of the 1971 World Series winning team and, with the Philadelphia Phillies where he became a three-time All-Star player. He also played for the Montreal Expos and the San Diego Padres. After his playing career, Cash spent several years as a minor league hitting coach and manager for several major league organizations.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1979 throughout the world.
Robert Eugene Robertson is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman between 1967 and 1979, most notably as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates teams that won five National League Eastern Division titles in six years between 1970 and 1975 and, won the World Series in 1971. He also played for the Seattle Mariners (1978) and the Toronto Blue Jays (1979). He missed the entire 1968 season due to a kidney obstruction.
The 1997 Major League Baseball season was the inaugural season for Interleague play, as well as the final season in the American League for the Milwaukee Brewers before moving to the NL the following season. The California Angels changed their name to the Anaheim Angels. The Florida Marlins ended the season as the World Champions defeating the Cleveland Indians in a seven-game World Series, four games to three.
The 1996 Major League Baseball season was the final season of league-only play before the beginning of interleague play the following season. The season ended with the New York Yankees defeating the defending champion Atlanta Braves in six games for the World Series title, the Yankees' first championship since 1978. The record for most home runs hit in an MLB regular season, set at 4,458 in 1987, was broken, as the AL and NL combined to hit 4,962 home runs. Only 196 shutouts were recorded in the 2,266 MLB regular-season games. This was the first season in the Divisional Series era to be played to the full 162 games, as the 1994–95 player's strike caused the first two seasons of the era to be abbreviated.
The 1988 Major League Baseball season ended with the underdog Los Angeles Dodgers shocking the Oakland Athletics, who had won 104 games during the regular season, in the World Series. The most memorable moment of the series came in Game 1, when injured Dodger Kirk Gibson hit a dramatic pinch-hit walk-off home run off Athletics closer Dennis Eckersley to win the game for Los Angeles. The Dodgers went on to win the Series in five games.
The 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates season was the 90th season for the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise; their 85th in the National League. It involved the Pirates finishing first in the National League East with a record of 97 wins and 65 losses. They defeated the San Francisco Giants three games to one in the National League Championship Series and beat the Baltimore Orioles four games to three in the World Series. The Pirates were managed by Danny Murtaugh, and played their first full season at Three Rivers Stadium, which had opened in July the year before.
The 1989 Major League Baseball season saw the Oakland Athletics win their first World Series title since 1974.
The 1979 Major League Baseball season. None of the post-season teams of 1977 or 1978 returned to this year's postseason. In a rematch of the 1971 World Series, the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Baltimore Orioles in seven games in the 1979 World Series.
The 1977 Major League Baseball season saw the American League (AL) having its third expansion, as the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays began play, with Seattle returning to the MLB fold after a seven-year absence when the Pilots relocated to Milwaukee to become the Brewers. However, the National League (NL) did not expand, remaining at 12 teams compared to the AL's 14, until the Colorado Rockies and Florida Marlins joined the NL in 1993.
The 1970 Major League Baseball season: The Seattle Pilots relocated to Milwaukee and became the Brewers, thus returning Major League Baseball to Wisconsin for the first time since the relocation of the Milwaukee Braves to Atlanta following the 1965 season. Major League Baseball returned to Seattle in 1977, when the Mariners began play.
The 1963 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 8 to October 6, 1963. The American League and National League both featured ten teams, with each team playing a 162-game schedule.
The 1965 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 12 to October 14, 1965. The Los Angeles Dodgers and Minnesota Twins were the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The Dodgers then defeated the Twins in the World Series, four games to three.
The 1966 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 11 to October 9, 1966. The Braves played their inaugural season in Atlanta, following their relocation from Milwaukee. Three teams played the 1966 season in new stadiums. On April 12, the Braves ushered in Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium with the Pittsburgh Pirates taking a 3–2 win in 13 innings. One week later, Anaheim Stadium opened with the California Angels losing to the Chicago White Sox, 3–1 in the Angels' debut following their move from Los Angeles to nearby Orange County. On May 8, the St. Louis Cardinals closed out old Sportsman's Park/Busch Stadium I with a 10–5 loss to the San Francisco Giants before opening the new Busch Memorial Stadium four days later with a 4–3 win in 12 innings over the Atlanta Braves.
The 1971 Major League Baseball season was the final season for the Senators in Washington, D.C., before the team's relocation to the Dallas-Fort Worth suburb Arlington for the following season, as the Texas Rangers, leaving the nation's capital without a baseball team of its own until 2005.
The 1958 Major League Baseball season was played from April 14 to October 15, 1958. It was the first season of play in California for both the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants ; in turn, this marked the first teams to ever play on the West Coast. Three teams had relocated earlier in the decade: the Milwaukee Braves, Baltimore Orioles, and Kansas City Athletics. New York went without a National League team for four seasons, until the expansion New York Mets began play in 1962.
The 1979 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 1979 season. The winners of each division advance to the postseason and face each other in a League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.