In 1979 all the pieces fell into place for the Pittsburgh Pirates and their tireless patriarch, first baseman Willie Stargell. The 39-year-old Stargell, playing in his 18th season, had a terrific year at the plate as he blasted 32 home runs and knocked in 82 runs. He was named National League MVP as the Pirates locked up the NL East Division flag. In the ensuing playoffs, “Pops” caught fire as he first led the Bucs to the NL pennant by batting .455 during a three-game sweep of the Cincinnati Reds in the NLCS. He then guided the “We Are Family” Pirates to their second World Series title in nine years by hitting .400 (12 hits, three home runs and seven RBI) in a four-games-to-three series victory over the AL champion Baltimore Orioles. Not only was Stargell named the league MVP, but he also earned NLCS and World Series MVP honors, a trifecta never accomplished by any other player in MLB history.
Featured here is Stargell’s game-used batting helmet from that fateful ’79 campaign. The snazzy, old-school yellow and black plastic hardhat got a ton of use in its day, spattered with scratches, marks, paint transfers, and other signs of in-game action. Made by American Baseball Cap, it has a padded headband and foam padding at the top interior. Size is unmarked but appears to be 7½. A large Pirates ‘P’ decal adorns the forehead. The ever-important black No. 8 decal denoting Pop’s jersey number is present on the rear, affixed right on top of the ABC logo which is consistent with exemplars. Includes LOA from J.T. Sports.
According to John Taube’s LOA, the original owner acquired it right after the ’79 World Series and it’s possible that this helmet saw some playoff action, maybe even the clinching series against the O’s.