The Pirates announced tonight the former All-Star Elroy Face he died at the age of 97. He logged parts of 16 seasons in the big leagues, all but the finals in Pittsburgh.
“It is with heavy hearts and great sadness that we mourn the passing of Elroy Face, a beloved member of the Pirates family,” chairman Bob Nutting said in a statement. “I had the good fortune to know Elroy personally, and I will always be proud that we had the opportunity to honor him with his induction into the Pirates Hall of Fame. Elroy was the pioneer of the modern relief pitcher – the ‘Baron of the Bullpen’ – and played a key role in our 1960 World Series championship, leading the league in appearances and recording three hits. Yankele and his children. Jr. — and his sister Jacqueline.”
A native of upstate New York, Face began his career in the Phillies organization in 1949. The 5’8″ righty, a forkball special, emerged as a favorite of Hall of Fame executive Branch Rickey, who discovered him when he was the Dodgers’ GM during the frozen 1950-51 season. Rickey took the same position with the Pirates the following year and added Buso in the winter of 1952-53, at which time the pitcher was in Double-A.
Face did not fare well as a rookie and was sent back to Double-A for the ’54 season. He returned to the majors the following year, working in a pinch-hitting role before turning to the bullpen full-time in 1956. Face would lead the majors with 68 appearances that season, throwing 135 1/3 innings of 3.52 ERA ball. Pirates used him a lot in the back of games when most teams didn’t put neighbors. The faces led the National League in games played in four of five seasons between 1958-62.
Savings statistics were not implemented until 1969. Face was credited as the NL saves leader in three of those seasons, including MLB-high marks in 1958 (20) and ’62 (28). He posted an earned run average below 3.00 in four of those years, including a career-low mark of 1.88 over 91 innings during the ’62 campaign.
Even if conservation did not exist at the time, Face’s success was appreciated during his career. He appeared in MVP votes each season between 1958-60. He was an All-Star every year between 1959-61 and was technically selected to six All-Star games, as MLB had a midseason game and a postseason All-Star Game for a short time during the Face’s heyday.
The 1960 season is etched in baseball history. Face threw 114 2/3 innings of ball for a 2.90 ERA and 61 shutouts on a 95-59-1 team that won the pennant. The best regular season teams in each league go to the World Series on those days. Pittsburgh went up against the Yankees club they had Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris again Whitey Ford in their circumstances.
The Pirates would go on to win the most historic series in league history. Face earned the save in each of the first three wins: Games 1, 4, and 5. He sat out the sixth through eighth innings of Game 7. That wasn’t his sharpest outing, as he gave up a home run Yogi Berrabut Pittsburgh would come back to take the lead in the bottom of the eighth. After the Yankees tied it in the top of the ninth, Bill Mazeroski tied for what remains the only Game 7 walk-off game in history.
That World Series was the only time Face would play in the postseason, but he remained in Pittsburgh for most of the 60s. He added four seasons with an ERA under 3.00 in his 30s and had short stints in Detroit and the Expos to finish his career.
The Pirates have lasted more than 140 seasons. Face remains the franchise’s all-time leader in pitching appearances (802), games completed (547) and saves (186). He pitched nearly 1400 innings with a 3.48 ERA and recorded 877 strikeouts. The Faces racked up 100 wins — including an impressive 18-1 record in the bullpen in 1959 — and totaled 200 saves, adding five more in his final season in Montreal. Face was inducted into the Pirates Hall of Fame three years ago. MLBTR sends its condolences to family, friends and loved ones.
Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette first reported the news.
