The
NEVADA DUSTERS
The Story of a Major League Baseball Franchise
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Unwanted Attention
With success on the diamond came plenty of media attention for the Nevada Dusters ballclub -- and other kinds of attention as well, some of it unwanted. The Las Vegas Sun broke the story that at least one player had been approached by gamblers who expected the Dusters to be in the thick of the NL pennant race, and were testing the waters with respect to a fix if indeed the club did play in the post-season. Instead of trying to sweep the dirt under a rug, Conn Hudson held a press conference and confirmed that the report was essentially true, that the player had immediately notified him of the contact, and that he had notified the authorities. The player, said Hudson, was Billy Williams, who was "as straight an arrow as you'll find in the game," and, when the police promptly made several arrests, the story died. Still, Hudson was troubled, knowing that Commissioner Ford Frick had early on expressed concern about the possibility of the club's proximity to the "wrong element" in Vegas. Such incidents would serve only to fortify the commissioner's doubts.
 1962 Pittsburgh Pirates Yearbook
Nevada Dusters (84-51) @ Pittsburgh Pirates (85-50)
September 11-13, 1962
Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, PA
DL: Roger Repoz (CF-Montana Wolves), broken ankle, 56 days.
Pittsburgh Pirates Game 1 starting lineup:
Bob Skinner (LF), Bill Mazeroski (2B), Joe Torre (C), Roberto Clemente (RF), Dick Stuart (1B), Dick Groat (SS), Howie Goss (CF), Dick Schofield (3B), Vern Law (SP)
 [September 11, Game 1]
The baseball world was paying attention as the Dusters came calling at Forbes Field to take on the NL-leading Pirates in a game the pundits said the Bucs had to win. Joe Horlen (4-7) and Pittsburgh's Vern Law (14-13) put on a clinic in the first four innings, with both allowing two hits in that stretch. Bob Skinner tripled with two outs in the Pirates 3rd but was stranded. "Such games often come down to who makes the first mistake," said Ben Naylor afterwards -- and this time it was Law. Jerry Adair opened the Nevada 5th with a single, and then Law walked Johnny Blanchard. A wild pitch moved to second and third before Clete Boyer drove a three-run homer (his fifteenth of the year) into the left field bleachers. A moment later, Lee Maye homered to right for two more. The Pirates put two on with one out in their half of the 5th, but Horlen retired the next two batters. The Dusters loaded the bases and got another run to make it 6-0 in the top of the 9th, and the Pirates finally got on the board with Dick Groat's RBI double in the bottom of the 9th against reliever Bill Dailey. Horlen was dominating, giving up just four hits in 8.1 innings of work. He helped out with the bat, too, going 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored. The Dusters found themselves tied for first place in the National League.
Lineup: Power, Maye, Williams, Lopez, Adair, Blanchard, Boyer, Schaive, Horlen
Record: 85-51
Dusters 6, Pirates 1
[September 12, Game 2]
Southpaws Dave McNally and Harvey Haddix squared off in Game 2, and for once Ben Naylor kept Lee Maye in the lineup against a lefty -- a move that paid off as Maye hit a two-run homer in the Nevada 1st. Johnny Blanchard's RBI single in the same inning gave the Dusters a 3-0 advantage. In the 5th Maye doubled prior to a Billy William's blast over the center field fence -- his 28th home run of the year -- which made it 5-0. In the 8th Clete Boyer hit one into the right field seats for three more runs. McNally kept the Bucs at bay all the while, striking out Joe Torre with Bill Mazeroski on second base to end the Pittsburgh 3rd, fanning Dick Stuart with Torre on third in the Pirates 6th and otherwise frustrating the opposition in his 7.2 innings on the hill. Stuart finally erased the Pittsburgh goose egg in the bottom of the 9th against reliever Claude Raymond, but that was all the scoring the Pirates could manage, and the 8-1 victory put the Nevada Dusters in undisputed possession of first place in the NL, with the best record in the majors. McNally improved his record to 10-7. The one piece of bad news for the Dusters was the sprained neck suffered by Claude Raymond as he dived for a Howie Goss grounder in the bottom of the 9th -- an injury that would put the setup man on the DL for two weeks. Conn Hudson promptly called up Jim Roland from AAA Bakersfield.
Lineup: Power, Maye, Williams, Lopez, Adair, Blanchard, Boyer, Schaive, McNally
Record: 86-51
Dusters 8, Pirates 1
[September 13, Game 3]
The Dusters hoped to secure their seventh win in a row and when they scored five runs in the 1st inning -- three of them on a homer by Clete Boyer -- it looked like they were well on their way. Bob Shaw (18-3), started strongly, but Dick Stuart belted one deep against him the 4th, one of two runs scored by the home team in that frame. The Dusters got one of those runs back in the top of the 5th, and in the Pirates 7th pinch hitter Johnny Logan's solo blast made it a 6-3 ballgame. In the Nevada 8th consecutive singles by Hector Lopez, Jerry Adair, Johnny Blanchard and Clete Boyer and a sac fly by Tom Tresh (getting a start at second base) added three more to the Duster run total, and Naylor felt comfortable to relieve Shaw ( 7.0 ip, 8 h, 1 bb, 3 r, 3 er, 2 k). Jim Brewer cruised through the Pittsburgh 8th, but walked the first two batters he faced in the bottom of the 9th. Nails summoned Bob Duliba from the bullpen and Duliba struck out Howie Goss only to walk Bob Skinner, loading the bases. Larry Elliott hit a two-run double, Joe Torre singled in two more and the Duster lead was shaved to 9-7. Duliba retired the next two batters, Roberto Clemente and Dick Stuart, and the Dusters had done the unthinkable -- sweeping the Pirates and taking a two-game lead atop the National League. The middle of the order produced the offense, with Lopez going 3-for-5 with two runs and a RBI, Adair 3-for-4 with two runs and a ribbie, Blanchard 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs, and Boyer 2-for-4 with four RBIs. With ten RBI for the series, Boyer had hit a homer in each of the games against the Pirates, and now had seventeen on the year.
Lineup: Power, Maye, Williams, Lopez, Adair, Blanchard, Boyer, Tresh, Shaw
Record: 87-51
Dusters 9, Pirates 7
NL: (1) Nevada 87-51, (2) Pittsburgh 85-53, (3) San Francisco 83-56
AL: (1) Minnesota 82-56, (2) New York 82-57, (3) Baltimore 83-59
 Dick Stuart (PIT)
Nevada Dusters financial update:
Average Attendance: 13,964 ..... Revenue: $37.6M ..... Profit: $12.7M ..... Cash: $16.4M ..... Team Payroll: $21.2M
Series stats:
2Bs: Williams (2), Maye
3Bs: none
HRs: Boyer (3), Maye (2), Williams
SBs: none
Runs: Maye (3), Adair (4), Blanchard, Boyer (3), Horlen (2), Power (3), Williams (2), Lopez (3), Blanchard (2)
RBIs: Maye (4), Williams (3), Boyer (10), Blanchard (3), Lopez, Adair, Tresh
Around the leagues:
PHI--Steve Barber (P), chipped knee cap, three weeks.
Nevada Dusters at Pittsburgh Pirates
September 12, 1962
TOP OF THE FIRST
Harvey Haddix takes the mound for the Pirates.
Vic Power singled down the third base line. <--1>
Lee Maye homered over the left field fence for two RBIs. <--->
Billy Williams walked. <--1>
Hector Lopez walked. <-21>
Jerry Adair grounded to third. <32->
Johnny Blanchard grounded to the third baseman, scoring a run. <-2->
Clete Boyer grounded to second. <-2->
3 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, and 1 left on base.
In the middle of the first, Nevada leads 3 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE FIRST
Dave McNally takes the mound for the Dusters.
Bob Skinner flied out to left. <--->
Bill Mazeroski tripled to left-center. <3-->
Joe Torre walked. <3-1>
Roberto Clemente grounded to short, forcing the runner at second. <3-1>
Dick Stuart flied out to left. <3-1>
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, and 2 left on base.
At the end of the first, Pittsburgh trails 3 to 0.
TOP OF THE SECOND
Johnny Schaive lined out to right field. <--->
Dave McNally singled to center. <--1>
Vic Power grounded to second, forcing the runner at second. <--1>
Lee Maye flied out to right. <--1>
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, and 1 left on base.
In the middle of the second, Nevada leads 3 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE SECOND
Dick Groat grounded to second. <--->
Howie Goss struck out. <--->
Dick Schofield grounded to third. <--->
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, and 0 left on base.
At the end of the second, Pittsburgh trails 3 to 0.
TOP OF THE THIRD
Billy Williams doubled down the right field line. <-2->
Hector Lopez struck out. <-2->
Jerry Adair grounded to second. <-2->
Johnny Blanchard popped up to the catcher in foul ground. <-2->
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, and 1 left on base.
In the middle of the third, Nevada leads 3 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE THIRD
Harvey Haddix popped up to second. <--->
Bob Skinner flied out to center. <--->
Bill Mazeroski doubled to the wall in left. <-2->
Joe Torre struck out. <-2->
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, and 1 left on base.
At the end of the third, Pittsburgh trails 3 to 0.
TOP OF THE FOURTH
Clete Boyer singled into right field. <--1>
Johnny Schaive grounded to the second baseman for a double play (4-6-3). <--->
Dave McNally struck out. <--->
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, and 0 left on base.
In the middle of the fourth, Nevada leads 3 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE FOURTH
Roberto Clemente flied out to center. <--->
Dick Stuart flied out to right. <--->
Dick Groat grounded to the third baseman. <--->
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, and 0 left on base.
At the end of the fourth, Pittsburgh trails 3 to 0.
TOP OF THE FIFTH
Vic Power grounded to second. <--->
Lee Maye doubled to left. <-2->
Billy Williams homered over the center field fence for two RBIs. <--->
Jack Lamabe came in to pitch for the Pirates. <--->
Hector Lopez popped up to the catcher. <--->
Jerry Adair popped up to second. <--->
2 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, and 0 left on base.
In the middle of the fifth, Nevada leads 5 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE FIFTH
Howie Goss popped up to the shortstop. <--->
Dick Schofield struck out. <--->
Jack Lamabe grounded to the second baseman. <--->
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, and 0 left on base.
At the end of the fifth, Pittsburgh trails 5 to 0.
TOP OF THE SIXTH
Johnny Blanchard grounded to third. <--->
Clete Boyer struck out. <--->
Johnny Schaive was hit by a pitch. <--1>
Dave McNally grounded to third. <--1>
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, and 1 left on base.
In the middle of the sixth, Nevada leads 5 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE SIXTH
Bob Skinner grounded to first. <--->
Bill Mazeroski flied out to right field. <--->
Joe Torre walked. <--1>
Roberto Clemente singled to center, advancing the runner to third. <3-1>
Dick Stuart struck out. <3-1>
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, and 2 left on base.
At the end of the sixth, Pittsburgh trails 5 to 0.
TOP OF THE SEVENTH
Vic Power flied out to center. <--->
Lee Maye grounded to second. <--->
Billy Williams grounded to second. <--->
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, and 0 left on base.
In the middle of the seventh, Nevada leads 5 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE SEVENTH
Dick Groat flied out to right field. <--->
Howie Goss grounded to the second baseman. <--->
Dick Schofield grounded to second. <--->
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, and 0 left on base.
At the end of the seventh, Pittsburgh trails 5 to 0.
TOP OF THE EIGHTH
Hector Lopez reached first on a fielding error by the right fielder. <--1>
Jerry Adair singled through the left side. <-21>
Johnny Blanchard popped up to short. <-21>
Clete Boyer homered into the right field seats for three RBIs. <--->
Johnny Schaive grounded to the third baseman. <--->
Dave McNally walked. <--1>
Georges Maranda came in to pitch for the Pirates. <--1>
Vic Power lined out to second. <--1>
3 runs, 2 hits, 1 error, and 1 left on base.
In the middle of the eighth, Nevada leads 8 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE EIGHTH
Smoky Burgess pinch hit for Georges Maranda. <--->
Smoky Burgess grounded to the shortstop. <--->
Bob Skinner singled to left. <--1>
Bill Mazeroski struck out. <--1>
Claude Raymond came in to pitch for the Dusters. <--1>
Joe Torre singled down the right field line, advancing the runner to third. <3-1>
Roberto Clemente struck out. <3-1>
0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, and 2 left on base.
At the end of the eighth, Pittsburgh trails 8 to 0.
TOP OF THE NINTH
Bob Veale came in to pitch for the Pirates. <--->
Lee Maye grounded to second. <--->
Billy Williams grounded to second. <--->
Hector Lopez grounded to third. <--->
0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, and 0 left on base.
In the middle of the ninth, Nevada leads 8 to 0.
BOTTOM OF THE NINTH
Dick Stuart homered over the right field fence. <--->
Dick Groat lined out to the shortstop. <--->
Howie Goss grounded to the shortstop. <--->
Dick Schofield popped up to short. <--->
DUSTERS WIN: 8-1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 + R H E
Dusters (NEV) 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 3 0 8 9 0
Pirates (PIT) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 6 1
NEVADA ab h bb r hr bi k sb avg
V. Power (1B) 5 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .297
L. Maye (CF) 5 2 0 2 1 2 0 0 .294
B. Williams (RF) 4 2 1 2 1 2 0 0 .327
H. Lopez (LF) 4 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 .320
J. Adair (SS) 4 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .287
J. Blanchard (C) 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .233
C. Boyer (3B) 4 2 0 1 1 3 1 0 .278
J. Schaive (2B) 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .243
D. McNally (P) 3 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 .218
C. Raymond (P) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500
TOTALS 36 9 3 8 3 8 3 0
2B: B. Williams (36), L. Maye (19)
HR: C. Boyer (16), B. Williams (28), L. Maye (8)
NEVADA ip h bb hr r er k pit ERA
D. McNally 7.2 4 2 0 0 0 5 100 2.69
C. Raymond 1.1 2 0 1 1 1 1 21 4.27
TOTALS 9.0 6 2 1 1 1 6 121
PITTSBURGH ab h bb r hr bi k sb avg
B. Skinner (LF) 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .248
B. Mazeroski (2B) 4 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .232
J. Torre (C) 2 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 .327
R. Clemente (RF) 4 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .312
D. Stuart (1B) 4 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 .260
D. Groat (SS) 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .286
H. Goss (CF) 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .172
D. Schofield (3B) 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .246
H. Haddix (P) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .091
J. Lamabe (P) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167
G. Maranda (P) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
S. Burgess (PH) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .310
B. Veale (P) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
TOTALS 33 6 2 1 1 1 6 0
2B: B. Mazeroski (10)
3B: B. Mazeroski (6)
HR: D. Stuart (24)
PITTSBURGH ip h bb hr r er k pit ERA
H. Haddix 4.1 7 2 2 5 5 2 66 3.84
J. Lamabe 3.1 2 1 1 3 2 1 49 5.19
G. Maranda 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3.14
B. Veale 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 3.35
TOTALS 9.0 9 3 3 8 7 3 130
WP: D. McNally (10-7)
LP: H. Haddix (8-8)
Attendance: 30,623
Time: 2:23
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