The Battling Bucs of 1925

After coming close to winning the pennant on more than one occasion during the early 1920s, the Pittsburgh Pirates finally shed the stigma of being underachievers and claimed the National League flag in 1925, ending the New York Giants’ four-year reign at the top of the league. Manager Bill McKechnie’s brigade of young guns moved on to oppose the defending world champion Washington Senators in the World Series. After falling behind three games to one, Pittsburgh pulled off the greatest comeback in World Series history when they rallied to win in a thrilling seventh game. This detailed history recounts the entire 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates season, paying special attention to the team’s construction and the World Series. Appendices provide complete statistics for the 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates, box scores for all seven games of that year’s World Series, and World Series statistics for both teams.

Ronald T. Waldo, a member of the Society for American Baseball Research, lives in Pittsburgh. His articles have appeared in Pittsburgh Pride Magazine and Sports Collectors Digest, and he is the author of several books on baseball history.

Ronald T. Waldo
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 293
Bibliographic Info: 29 photos, appendices, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2012
pISBN: 978-0-7864-6459-3
eISBN: 978-0-7864-8789-9
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents


Preface 1

 1. Gaining Valuable Experience in a Tight Pennant Race 5

 2. Building a Team to End New York’s Dynasty 22

 3. Spring Training at Paso Robles 38

 4. A Sluggish Start 54

 5. Booming Bats Lead to a Turnaround 70

 6. Battling New York for the Top Spot 86

 7. The Pennant Race Tightens 102

 8. Putting a Stranglehold on First 117

 9. Clinching the National League Pennant 133

10. Game One to Washington, Game Two to Pittsburgh 149

11. Washington Grabs Control 164

12. Pittsburgh Battles Back 179

13. Carey and the Pirates Overcome Johnson and the Weather 196

14. Champions of the World 213

15. The Champions’ Troubles in ’26 228

Appendix A: 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates Statistics 245

Appendix B: 1925 World Series Box Scores 247

Appendix C: 1925 World Series Statistics 254

Chapter Notes 256

Bibliography 278

Index 279