Long time ago Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Bob Veale, who helped the franchise win a World Series championship in 1971, died this weekend at the age of 89.
The Pirates released a statement about Veale, who spent 11 of his 13 seasons with Pittsburgh.
“Bob was an integral member of the Pirates and helped our team capture consecutive division titles, as well as the 1971 World Series” team owner Bob Nutting said in a statement. “He was one of the most dominant left-handed pitchers in all of Major League Baseball during his distinguished big league career, most of which he proudly spent as a member of the Pirates. He was a great man who will be missed.”
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Bob Veale poses in a pirate uniform. (Bettmann Archive/Getty Images)
Veale played the last two and a half seasons with the Boston RedSox from 1972-74.
According to AL.comVeale died this weekend “in his beloved hometown with his family by his side,” although no details were released.
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Veale earned back-to-back All-Star nominations in 1965 and 1966 during his Pirates career, which began in 1962 as a 26-year-old lefty.
Veale appeared in just 11 games that year and earned a 3.74 ERA before making his name known with a 1.04 ERA over 34 games (seven starts) during the 1963 season. It yielded just 77.2 innings of work, but the Pirates saw a starter that they could use for years to come.
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Bob Veale, 39, poses for a portrait at Forbes Field. (Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports)
In 1964, Veale was given an even heavier workload on the mound, pitching 279.2 innings (40 games) against an ERA of 2.74. He went 18-12 that season and struck out 250 batters to lead the league.
Veale would record 1,703 strikeouts in 1,926 innings in his career. And during the 1971 World Series, Veale helped his Pirates defeat the Baltimore Orioles to win the title.
Veale was traded to Boston midway through the 1972 season, but not before making MLB history as part of the Pirates lineup that became the first-ever all-black or Afro-Latino lineup, according to AL.com.
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Bob Veale, 39, poses for a portrait at Forbes Field. (Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports)
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When Veale’s playing days were over, he eventually moved to the scouting department of the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees. He would be inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2006, while also helping to launch the Negro Southern League Museum in his hometown of Birmingham in 2015.
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