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WHEREAS, on October 13, 1960, at 3:36 p.m., Pirates' second baseman Bill Mazeroski hit a Ralph Terry fastball over Yogi Berra's head and the left field wall of Forbes Field to give the Pirates a victory in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series against the New York Yankees; and
WHEREAS, at noon on October 13, 1985, some 25 years later, Saul Finkelstein, sat in front of the remaining Forbes Field wall, at the base of the flag pole, with a tape recorder to listen to the original NBC radio broadcast of that seventh game; and
WHEREAS, Saul Finkelstein came back year after year, and over the years, folks would happen by and stop to see what he was doing and, occasionally, stay and listen for a bit, but he was mostly alone, until he saw Jim O'Brien's sign at Pirate Fest, 1992 “Do you have any interesting stories about the 1960 World Series?”; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Finkelstein shared his story and Mr. O'Brien included it in his book, which came out in August, 1992, and Mr. O'Brien went out to the Wall the following October and there about a dozen others who had read the book, gathered that day, and since then attendance has grown each year, with the largest group coming out for the 40th Anniversary in 2000; and
WHEREAS, although Saul Finkelstein passed away in December, 2004, his tradition carries on today, with the nurturing and perseverance of a dedicated group of baseball fans who have come to be known as the 'Game 7 Gang'; and
WHEREAS, these dedicated men, Herb Soltman, affectionately known as the Gang Leader, Joe Landolina, Steve Neumeyer, Dan Schultz, George Skornickel, and John Urso, have organized this event for the past several years, always being mindful of its grass-roots origins, no matter how large or how significant the gathering; and
WHEREAS, although these six men have little in common that would bring them together in the 'real' world, their love of baseball and Pittsburgh has formed a strong bond that brings them together each year to ...
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