Richie Zisk Was No Gravedigger

Most likely, unless there was another mix-up

Feb 06, 2025

Quick question for you — can you tell me which one of these batting lines belongs to Richie Zisk and which belongs to Richie Hebner?

Basically, one guy “wins” in the counting stats, and one in the rate stats, with home runs being a slight outlier.

A few other facts to consider:

Hebner was born in November 1947; Zisk was born in February 1949.
Hebner played at 6’1”, 195 pounds; Zisk played at 6’1”, 200 pounds.
The two were teammates on the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1971 through 1976.
They both received MVP votes in 1974.

If you’re looking for elements of their game to differentiate them, there are these:

Hebner played the infield corners; Zisk played the outfield corners and DH’d.
Hebner hit left-handed and threw right-handed; Zisk was a righty all the way.

There’s also a difference in their hometowns: Zisk is from Brooklyn, while Hebner hails from Boston. Those two cities are about 216 miles apart, which is just a few miles more than the span between Terre Haute and Fort Wayne here in Indiana.

All of which is to say that I’ve never been able to keep Zisk and Hebner straight for long, just like I have trouble with Bob Lemon and Early Wynn (read about it here), and with Lee May and Lee Maye (read about it here).

Sure, when I put some time and thought into the thing, like I’m doing now, I can tell you that Zisk was a two-time All-Star, that Hebner won a World Series (1971), that Hebner played five years longer in the majors than Zisk did.

And, mostly thanks to Brad Balukjian’s The Wax Pack, I can tell you that Hebner’s nickname — The Gravedigger — was apt.

And, today, I can tell you that Zisk is turning 76 years old, while Hebner has been 77 for a couple of months.

Ask me again next week, though, or the week after that, and I’ll have to consult the record book, or the Baseball Reference Stathead comparison above (here’s the link), to sort them out.

Or better yet, I’ll consult my baseball cards. Both men had 1976 Topps cards showing them with the Pirates, issued during the last year they played in Pittsburgh. You see Zisk’s pasteboard up there in the leadoff position.

Here is Hebner’s (#376):

But even the cards don’t tell the whole story or really sort things out.

Both men showed up with the Pirates again in the 1977 Topps set, for example, but by then Zisk was with the White Sox, traded in the offseason with Silvio Martinez in exchange for Terry Forster and Rich Gossage. And Hebner was with the Phillies, signed as a free agent.

Hebner would also have a return engagement in Pittsburgh, spending 1982 and 1983 with the club before wrapping up his big league career with the 1984 and 1985 Cubs.

Zisk, meanwhile, finished his playing days with the Mariners in 1982 and 1983.

Maybe those closing facts can help me keep these guys straight. Most likely, though, the best I’ll ever be able to do when the feats of one or the other comes up is to say, “Oh, yeah, Richie did that.”