Pitt Business e-newsletter Issue 12, November 2008
When Can You Steal First Base?
When Forbes Field opened in 1909 it was an architectural marvel. With its all-steel and concrete construction it was considered the largest and finest ballpark in the United States. This beloved field stood for 63 years and hosted four World Series, two All-Star games, as well as countless games of the Homestead Grays, the Pitt Panthers, and the Pittsburgh Steelers, not to mention a political rally and a boxing match or two. It was even the place where "The Sultan of Swat," Babe Ruth, hit his last three home runs.
Today, if you go to the site of Forbes Field, you can read historical markers and see the ivy-covered rebuilt centerfield wall next to Mervis Hall—home of the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business—that marks the distances of 457 feet and 436 feet from home plate, which is preserved under glass in its original location (now the first floor hallway of Pitt's Posvar Hall.) And then there's first base. Where, you ask is first base?
First base is at the home of Katz alumnus, Nick Demao (BS '63, MBA '67), chief financial officer of Busy Beaver Building Centers, Inc., headquartered in New Kensington, Pa. Demao was a sophomore at Pitt studying chemistry when he and his dad, Alex, attended the famous seventh game of the World Series on October 13, 1960. The game was tied at the bottom of the ninth inning and Bill Mazeroski sent a ball over the wall to defeat the New York Yankees 10-9. The elder Demao was so excited by the win that he leapt from his seat onto the field and quite literally stole first base. Alex Demao and his stolen base ended up on the front page of the New Kensington Daily Dispatch the next day.
The excitement that drove the elder Demao to steal first is annually reenacted by a growing group of fans. Game seven is rebroadcast every October 13th and culminates close to the actual time of Mazeroski's winning homerun, 3:36 p.m. Saul Finkelstein unknowingly helped start this tradition when he observed the anniversary with his pocket radio and lunch in 1985.
This October 13, balloons and memorabilia dealers added to the excitement of the crowd of 300 or so outside Mervis Hall. For purchase were a Forbes Field Build-It-Yourself kit and a series of vintage postcards from ballpark historian and writer Dan Bonk and designer and ballpark illustrator Len Martin. Katz School staff, decked out in black and gold garb, cooked up baseball fare for the hungry crowd.
Pirates players from the 1960 game, including pitcher Bob Friend, shortstop Dick Groat, and relief pitcher, Elroy Face (also known as the "Baron of the Bullpen") were on hand to celebrate the anniversary. Other former Pirates celebrating the anniversary were Dave Giusti, Frank Thomas, and Nellie King, who was also a professional broadcaster. Frank Coonelly, president of the Pittsburgh Pirates was also on hand.
Dressed in their vintage Pirates best, the crowd cheered and booed at all the right places of the broadcast. They also passed along their favorite trivia from the 1960 World Series such as: it was the only World Series where the most valuable player came from the losing team; it was the only World Series with no strike outs for either team; and it was the only World Series to be won in the bottom of the ninth in the seventh game by one momentous and memorable homerun.
-Written by Lauren L. Gogal, communication manager, MBA Programs
