{"id":7698,"date":"2017-05-26T11:35:16","date_gmt":"2017-05-26T15:35:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/?p=7698"},"modified":"2017-05-26T11:35:16","modified_gmt":"2017-05-26T15:35:16","slug":"bill-virdon-golden-glove-and-unsung-hero","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2017\/05\/26\/bill-virdon-golden-glove-and-unsung-hero\/","title":{"rendered":"Bill Virdon, golden glove and unsung hero"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Bill <\/a>
Bill Virdon poses with his bat. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Bill <\/a>
Bill Virdon has a spirited conversation on the diamond while coaching the Houston Astros. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Even <\/a>
Even though he was not known for his hitting, Virdon still managed to round the bases on occasion. <\/div> <\/div>
\"First <\/a>
First pitch from Yankee pitcher Whitey Ford comes at Pirate center fielder Bill Virdon in the third World Series game at Yankee Stadium. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Bill <\/a>
Bill Virdon robs someone of a potential big hit. <\/div> <\/div>
\"The <\/a>
The Pirates’ Bill Virdon slides into home plate after an errant throw took the catcher out of the play. <\/div> <\/div>
\"The <\/a>
The 1960 World Series champion Pittsburgh Pirates pose for a photo. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Members <\/a>
Members of the 1960 World Series teams pose on Nov. 13, 2010, in the Byham Theatre before the showing of the full-length kinescope of Game 7 of the 1960 World Series. <\/div> <\/div>
\"Tony <\/a>
Tony Kubek clutches his throat after being hit by Bill Virdon’s grounder. <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

Defense in baseball usually doesn\u2019t result in much glory. It can lead to infamy (just ask\u00a0Bill Buckner<\/a>) and some cool highlights, but the most celebrated plays in baseball tend to involve the bat, not the glove.<\/p>\n

Maybe that\u2019s why Bill Virdon\u2019s contributions in the Pittsburgh Pirates\u2019 1960 World Series against the New York Yankees went relatively unheralded. It is hard to pay too much attention to defense, no matter how spectacular, when that series includes a moment as iconic as\u00a0Bill Mazeroski\u2019s walk-off home run<\/a> to win it all.<\/p>\n

But Maz\u2019s late-game heroics might not have been possible if not for the outstanding defense from Virdon, which\u00a0kept the Pirates in games throughout the series when it looked like the Yankees might be on the verge of opening an insurmountable lead.<\/p>\n

Virdon made a name for himself as a golden glove early in the World Series. In Game 1, he robbed Yankees great Yogi Berra of what would have been a two-run double by catching his hit at Forbes Field\u2019s 407-foot marker and holding onto the ball after colliding with teammate Roberto Clemente.<\/p>\n

The score was 3-2 at the time, and the Pirates would go on to win by a score of 6-4.<\/p>\n

Virdon\u2019s defensive prowess struck again in Game 4, when he erased another would-be two-run double by robbing Yankee Bob Cerv. The score was 3-2 at the time, and the Pirates eventually won by that margin.<\/p>\n

He also played an integral offensive role in Game 7. With the Pirates down 7-4 in the bottom of the eighth inning, Virdon hit a ground ball that took a strange bounce into Yankees shortstop Tony Kubek\u2019s throat, allowing Virdon to reach first base safely.<\/p>\n

That hit sparked a Pirates rally in the eighth, and the score was 9-4 Buccos by the time the inning ended. The Yankees tied the game going into the bottom of the ninth, when Maz ripped their hearts out.<\/p>\n

The two-inning offensive surge, culminating in the only walk-off run to win a World Series in history, arguably can be traced back to that Virdon single in the eighth.<\/p>\n