1940
Born March 6, 1940
Earlsboro, OK, USA
Willie Stargell Marquee Hall of Fame 1988
b. March 6, 1940 · Pittsburgh Pirates 1962–1982
He led the National League in home runs twice, with 48 in 1971 and 44 in 1973. In that second season he also led in runs batted in with 119 and in doubles with 43. He played 1,229 games in left field and 847 at first base, and hit .282 across his career.
The 1979 team called itself a family and made him its center at thirty-nine. He shared the Most Valuable Player award with Keith Hernandez, then won the championship series award and the World Series award, and Pittsburgh took the title. He handed out cloth stars for his teammates to stick on their caps.
Injuries closed it out slowly: 38 games in 1981, 74 in 1982. The writers elected him in 1988 the first time they could, with 352 votes of 427. He died on April 9, 2001, the day the Pirates played the first regular-season game in their new ballpark, where a statue of him stands.
Honors
| Award | Times | Years |
|---|---|---|
| All-Star selection | 7 | 1964, 1965, 1966, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1978 |
| The Sporting News All-Star | 4 | 1965, 1966, 1971, 1972 |
| Player of the Week | 2 | 1973, 1977 |
| Babe Ruth Award | 1 | 1979 |
| Hutch Award | 1 | 1978 |
| Lou Gehrig Memorial Award | 1 | 1974 |
| Most Valuable Player | 1 | 1979 |
| NLCS MVP | 1 | 1979 |
| Roberto Clemente Award | 1 | 1974 |
| The Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year | 1 | 1978 |
| The Sporting News Major League Player of the Year | 1 | 1979 |
| World Series MVP | 1 | 1979 |
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | PIT | 10 | 31 | 1 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 10 | 0 | .290 |
| 1963 | PIT | 108 | 304 | 34 | 74 | 11 | 6 | 11 | 47 | 19 | 85 | 0 | .243 |
| 1964 | PIT | 117 | 421 | 53 | 115 | 19 | 7 | 21 | 78 | 17 | 92 | 1 | .273 |
| 1965 | PIT | 144 | 533 | 68 | 145 | 25 | 8 | 27 | 107 | 39 | 127 | 1 | .272 |
| 1966 | PIT | 140 | 485 | 84 | 153 | 30 | 0 | 33 | 102 | 48 | 109 | 2 | .315 |
| 1967 | PIT | 134 | 462 | 54 | 125 | 18 | 6 | 20 | 73 | 67 | 103 | 1 | .271 |
| 1968 | PIT | 128 | 435 | 57 | 103 | 15 | 1 | 24 | 67 | 47 | 105 | 5 | .237 |
| 1969 | PIT | 145 | 522 | 89 | 160 | 31 | 6 | 29 | 92 | 61 | 120 | 1 | .307 |
| 1970 | PIT | 136 | 474 | 70 | 125 | 18 | 3 | 31 | 85 | 44 | 119 | 0 | .264 |
| 1971 | PIT | 141 | 511 | 104 | 151 | 26 | 0 | 48 | 125 | 83 | 154 | 0 | .295 |
| 1972 | PIT | 138 | 495 | 74 | 145 | 28 | 2 | 33 | 112 | 65 | 129 | 1 | .293 |
| 1973 | PIT | 148 | 522 | 106 | 156 | 43 | 3 | 44 | 119 | 80 | 129 | 0 | .299 |
| 1974 | PIT | 140 | 508 | 90 | 153 | 37 | 4 | 25 | 96 | 87 | 106 | 0 | .301 |
| 1975 | PIT | 124 | 461 | 71 | 136 | 32 | 2 | 22 | 90 | 58 | 109 | 0 | .295 |
| 1976 | PIT | 117 | 428 | 54 | 110 | 20 | 3 | 20 | 65 | 50 | 101 | 2 | .257 |
| 1977 | PIT | 63 | 186 | 29 | 51 | 12 | 0 | 13 | 35 | 31 | 55 | 0 | .274 |
| 1978 | PIT | 122 | 390 | 60 | 115 | 18 | 2 | 28 | 97 | 50 | 93 | 3 | .295 |
| 1979 | PIT | 126 | 424 | 60 | 119 | 19 | 0 | 32 | 82 | 47 | 105 | 0 | .281 |
| 1980 | PIT | 67 | 202 | 28 | 53 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 38 | 26 | 52 | 0 | .262 |
| 1981 | PIT | 38 | 60 | 2 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 5 | 9 | 0 | .283 |
| 1982 | PIT | 74 | 73 | 6 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 17 | 10 | 24 | 0 | .233 |
| Career | — | 2360 | 7927 | 1194 | 2232 | 423 | 55 | 475 | 1540 | 937 | 1936 | 17 | .282 |
On this day & linked events
2001
Died April 9, 2001
1962
Major-league debut: Willie Stargell
Willie Stargell made a major-league debut on September 16, 1962.
1964
Willie Stargell Hits for the Cycle, 1964
Willie Stargell hit for the cycle for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the St. Louis Cardinals on July 22, 1964.
1965
Willie Stargell's Three-Home-Run Game, 1965
Willie Stargell hit three home runs for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 24, 1965.
1968
Willie Stargell's Three-Home-Run Game, 1968
Willie Stargell hit three home runs for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Chicago Cubs on May 22, 1968.
1971
Willie Stargell's Three-Home-Run Game, 1971
Willie Stargell hit three home runs for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Atlanta Braves on April 10, 1971.
1971
Willie Stargell's Three-Home-Run Game, 1971
Willie Stargell hit three home runs for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Atlanta Braves on April 21, 1971.
1982
Final major-league game: Willie Stargell
Willie Stargell played a final major-league game on October 3, 1982.
Image: Unknown author Unknown, public domain