Pirates great to speak at AAABA banquet

By JOE GORDEN
THE TRIBUNE-DEMOCRAT

ElRoy Face, the preeminent relief pitcher in Major League Baseball from the last half ‘of the 1950s through the mid-1960s, will be themain speaker for the Aug. 3 All American Amateur Baseball Association Hall of Fame Banquet at theHoliday Inn.

The banquet will accompany induction into the Hall of five people who have made outstanding contributions to the AAABA Tournament.

Chris Sabo, former Detroit Tigers player and Major League third baseman
Henry LaRocca, first sponsor of the New Orleans franchise
David Niro, AAABA national president in 2000 and 2001 and Milford, Mass., manager/representativefor 20 years
Pamela J. Mayer, publisher of The Tribune-Democrat, for her unwavering support and initiative to produce a 50th anniversary booklet in 1994 that breathed new life into the tournament
U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-Johnstown, a long-time key supporter of the tournament

Face entered Major League Baseball in 1953, when he was called up by the Pittsburgh Pirates, and left in1969 after a season with Montreal.

Along the way, he became feared by batters and endeared himself to Pirates fans for his extraordinary relief work in 802 appearances with the club. it is a major league record he shares with Walter Johnson, who pitched for theWashington Senators for 21 years starting in 1907

Face compiled an 18-1 record in relief during the 1959 season. That’s the best winning percentage (.947) in baseball and was part of a 22-game victory streak that began in 1958. He won 17 consecutive games in relief from April to September, 1959.

Face also gained notoriety for his swagger when called to the mound, a walk of superiority widely condemned by other teams as arrogance. It was credited with being as effective in lifting the spirits of his teammates during tight situations as in intimidating opposing hitters.

Face has often denied that the walk held any special significance, but he readily admits to an air of confidence.

“Confidence in yourself is basically the major thing,” he told The Tribune-Democrat on Monday in a telephone interview from his home insuburban Pittsburgh. “Have confidence in yourself to go along with your ability, and confidence to use your ability. If you don’t have confidence in what you’re doing, there’s no sense in doing it.

”Face had a right to be self-confident. Although he set the standard for modern relief pitchers, nothing he did was the product of a committee.

“I just used my ability to do what I did,” he said. “I will say that in 22 years of professional baseball, I never had one pitching coach comeup to me and say ‘Do this or do that’ or ‘You’re doing this wrong or that wrong.’ Everything I learned, I taught myself. I did it myself.”

That includes his trademark pitch, formerly known as the forkball and now masquerading as the split-finger fastball.

Face developed the pitch on his own after seeing it used by former Yankee reliever Joe Page.

“My first year in pro bali, all I had was a fast ball and curve ball - no change of speed,” Face said. “My first year I was up, I was sent back to New Orleans to develop an off-speedpitch. I worked on it during the first part of the 1954 season and started using it the last half of the season.When I was called up again, Mr.(Branch) Rickey said ‘I hear you have a good forkball now. We’ll see what happens.’ And, that’s what happened.

”Face mercilessly used the pitch to cut down batters, and credits It with both his success and the longevity of his career.

“It made my other pitches better,”he said. “It got them looking. Then, I developed a slider, too, and I had four pitches. They didn’t know what to expect. I would throw it any time. It didn’t make any difference what the count was on the batter. I would throw it any time.

”Face appeared in every game the Pirates won during their historic1960s World Series victory. It was a time before big salaries and big egos changed Major League Baseball forever.

“I think that 1960 team was all family,” Face said. “Everybody seemed to jell together and everybody had a good year at the same time. We went out to dinner together - eight or 10 guys would go out together after the game. Now, I think 10 or 20 minutes after a game, the parking lot is empty. Everybody’s gone.

”“I think that ‘60s team was family before the ‘70s team,” he said, referring to a slogan once used by the Pirates.

”In those days of low salaries, even a top relief pitcher didn’t make enough money from baseball to live year ‘round. Face followed his family’s profession and worked as a carpenter during the off-season. After his baseball career, he got a job doing carpentry work at a Pittsburgh hospital, finally calling it quits more than two decades after his final Major League appearance.

“I retired in 1990, 12 years ago,”Face said. “All I’ve been doing is playing golf when I can and fishing once in a while. We have a motor home in a campground, and we go there on weekends. I don’t do much of anything in the wintertime.”

Used with permission of The Tribune-Democrat

The Tribune-Democrat, July 25, 2002

Joe Gorden is a writer for The Tribune-Democrat.

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