Rennie Stennett, part of two World Series-winning Pittsburgh Pirates teams of the 1970s, died at age 72 of cancer in Coconut Creek, Fla., the team announced Tuesday.
“We are saddened by the loss of such a beloved member of the Pirates family. Rennie was a great player on the field, and an even better person off of it,” Pirates president Travis Williams said in a team statement. “A member of our World Series Championships in both 1971 and 1979 who remained a very active and cherished member of our Alumni Association, Rennie symbolized what it meant to be a Pittsburgh Pirate.”
Stennett played second base for the Pirates froom 1971-79, then spent two seasons with the San Francisco Giants before retiring.
Nearly 50 years ago, on Sept. 1, 1971, Stennett was part of the first all-minority lineup in Major League Baseball history, a group that included future Hall of Fame members Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell in the outfield, with Dock Ellis on the mound at the old Three Rivers Stadium.
On Sept. 16, 1975, Stennett became the first, and still only, player in the modern era to go 7-for-7 in a nine-inning game, doing it in a 22-0 win against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
In 1,079 career games with the Pirates, Stennett batted .278 and scored 458 runs with 38 home runs and 388 RBIs. He ended his career with a .274 average, hitting 41 homers and driving in 432.
–Field Level Media
