It's difficult to read or write a current sports story without the word “coronavirus” or the phrase “COVID-19” these days.

The pandemic (there's another word we're sick of) has taken a firm grip on athletics at every level and we have been robbed of so many of the games that we used to look to as a way to get a break from reality.

Though, let's be honest, the sports world seems too willing to be its own gauge on current political and social issues. But that's a subject for another column.

I figured a dose of baseball trivia can take us back to the days when sports were actually played and when they were not the equivalent of watching a national news broadcast for three hours.

Here's 11 questions for the Pittsburgh baseball faithful:

1. In Pittsburgh's World Series title season of 1979, Omar Moreno led the team with 77 stolen bases. Name the other two Pirates to reach 20 stolen bases that year.

2. Who batted .338 for Pittsburgh in 1980 (with 445 plate appearances)?

3. What pitcher compiled a dismal 3-22 record for Pittsburgh during the 1985 and 1986 seasons?

4. Name the five Pirate managers to lead the franchise to its seven World Series appearances?

5. Who was Pittsburgh's first starting pitcher to earn a win at PNC Park?

6. Willie Stargell led the Pirates to the 1979 World Series title by hitting 32 home runs and earning co-MVP honors in the National League. How many more home runs did he hit before retiring following the 1982 season?

7. In a September 1971 game against the Phillies, Pittsburgh became the first Major League team to start an all-minority lineup. Who was the Pirates' centerfielder that day?

8. The 1960 World Series is famous for Bill Mazeroski's Game 7 home run. The Pirates received three other home runs in the series. Name the three players who hit them.

9. Who led the Pirates in RBI in 1941 with 100? Hint: His Hall-of-Fame brother set a record that season that still stands.

10. Andrew McCutchen helped the Pirates end two decades of losing with a team-leading .317 batting average in 2013. Who was second on the team with a .280 average (with a minimum of 500 plate appearances)?

11. What Pirate second baseman finished third in the NL Rookie of the Year voting in 1999?

Answers

1. Bill Madlock (21) and Dave Parker (20)

2. Mike Easler

3. Jose DeLeon

4. Fred Clarke, Bill McKechnie, Donie Bush, Danny Murtaugh, Chuck Tanner

5. Jimmy Anderson

6. 14

7. Gene Clines

8. Rocky Nelson, Hal Smith, Bill Mazeroski

9. Vince DiMaggio (Joe DiMaggio had a 56-game hitting streak that season)

10. Starling Marte

11. Warren Morris

Derek Pyda is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle