Bob Robertson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bob Robertson (born Robert Eugene Robertson on October 2, 1946 in Frostburg, Maryland) is a former Major League Baseball player.
A first baseman who batted and threw right-handed, Robertson played for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1967-76), Seattle Mariners (1978) and Toronto Blue Jays (1979).
Touted as “another Ralph Kiner” after leading the minor leagues in home runs three times, Robertson broke into the Pirates’ regular lineup in 1970 playing alongside future Hall-of-Famers Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell. He batted .287 with 27 home runs and 82 runs batted in (all career highs) as the Pirates won the National League Eastern Division. However, they were defeated in the National League Championship Series by the Cincinnati Reds.
In 1971 Robertson hit .271 with 26 home runs and 72 RBIs. That year, the Pirates defeated the San Francisco Giants in the NLCS, and the Baltimore Orioles 4 games to 3 to win the World Series. Only a few years before the arrival of Reggie Jackson, Robertson had one of the finest post-seasons (playoffs and World Series combined) in Major League history. In the NLCS he hit four home runs (a record later tied by Steve Garvey in 1978 and Jeffrey Leonard in 1987), three of them in the Pirates’ Game Two victory, which was played the day after Robertson's 25th birthday. He would hit two more in the World Series; one of those came in Game Three of Baltimore starter Mike Cuellar with Clemente on second and Stargell on first, after Robertson, who had no sacrifice bunts on the season and only one the year before, had missed the bunt sign. (Television replays would show that Clemente had appeared to call time-out just before that pitch.)
In the years following the World Series title, however Robertson slumped, hitting only .193 with 12 home runs and 41 RBI in 1972, .239 with 14 home runs and 40 RBIs in 1973 and .229 with 16 home runs and 48 RBIs in 1974. After having surgery done on both knees in 1974 he was reduced to only a part-time player.
In his career, Robertson batted .242 with 115 home runs and 368 RBI in 829 games played.
- Robertson hit one of the only seven home runs ever hit into the upper deck of Three Rivers Stadium. His shot came off San Diego Padre pitcher Steve Arlin on July 16, 1971. Teammate Willie Stargell reached the upper deck four times; Bobby Bonilla and Philadelphia Phillie Greg Luzinski hit the others.