HOUSTON — In the somber moments after the Pittsburgh Pirates lost Game 4 of the 1979 World Series to the Baltimore Orioles to fall behind three games to one, Willie Stargell spoke to his teammates.
Stargell, the Hall of Fame slugger, who commanded that wild, boisterous team with a well-placed glance as much as with a stern word, tried to make certain that, as much fun as the players had, they played to their capabilities. But to that point in the World Series they had not. They were on the precipice of elimination.
“Willie just told us, ‘Millions of people are watching and they have not seen the real Pirates,” said Kent Tekulve, the Pirates’ closer at the time.