The great baseball players live on in fans’ memories for generations. Other players get forgotten, but their legacies echo in different ways. The total purists (and long-time Pittsburgh Pirate fans) might remember Rennie Stennett, while other fans may say, “Oh yeah, he rings a bell.” Sadly, many baseball fans don’t remember him at all.
Stennett was born in Panama in 1949, although there’s a little controversy about his actual birth year. RIP Baseball puts it this way:
Renaldo Antonio Stennett was born in Colon, Panama. For years, it was thought that his birth date was April 5, 1951, but his family confirmed that he actually was born in 1949. According to Stennett’s SABR biography, he grew up in the Canal Zone of Panama, and his father worked on tugboats there. Stennett was a pitcher growing up, and his catcher his future Pirate teammate, Manny Sanguillen. However, Stennett spoke no Spanish, having grown up in the Canal Zone, and Sanguillen didn’t yet speak English. So whenever there was a meeting on the mound, the third baseman would have to translate for the two countrymen.
Stennett signed with the Pirates right out of school and worked his way up through the minor leagues. He made his major league debut on July 10, 1971, against the Atlanta Braves. Later that summer, Stennett racked up an 18-game hitting streak, and on Sept. 1, 1971, he was part of the first all-minority starting lineup.
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But it was Sept. 16, 1975, that cemented Stennett as a legend. In that game against the Chicago Cubs, Stennett went an astonishing 7-for-7, hitting (double, single, single, double, single, single, triple). Here’s how the Baseball Hall of Fame recounts that record-setting at-bat:
Prior to Stennett, 43 players in modern baseball history had recorded a 6-for-6 game, including Hall of Famers Ty Cobb and Paul Waner.
However no batter in the modern era had been able to go 7-for-7 in a nine-inning game.
As he stepped to the plate with two outs in the top of the eighth, Stennett sought to join a club of his own, and he would make history in style.
Stennett slashed a triple to right field for his seventh and final hit of the game. He was removed for pinch-runner Willie Randolph, ending his day a perfect 7-for-7.
No batter has yet to replicate that feat. A 1977 ankle injury hindered the rest of his career, which ended in 1981, but some of his teammates believe that Stennett would be in the Hall of Fame if he hadn’t sustained that injury.
In 11 seasons — nine with the Pirates and two with the San Francisco Giants — Stennett racked up 1,239 hits in 1,237 games, including 41 home runs and 432 RBI. He had a .274 lifetime batting average. He passed away in 2021.
Stennett’s legacy lives on in this year’s college baseball postseason. His grandson, Rylan Lujo, is a sophomore infielder with the Georgia Bulldogs, who are headed for the NCAA Super Regionals this coming weekend.
Lujo has been clutch in the field and at the plate all season long. He has 72 hits, 42 RBI, and 11 home runs as of the end of the NCAA Regionals, and he boasts a batting average of .373 through the end of the Regionals.
He’s popular with the fans, too. When he comes up to bat or makes a great play on the field, you can hear the fans chant, “Lu- Lu- Lu- Lu-JOOOOOOOO!” It’s fun to hear.
More importantly, Lujo is aware of the legacy he carries. He remembers his grandfather often — it’s a shame Stennett couldn’t live to see Lujo’s electrifying play — and he writes “7 for 7” on the inside of the bill of his cap.
Baseball is about legacy, and Lujo is the consummate example of how the sport binds generations. He’s already a standout on this extremely special team, and learning about his connection to his grandfather endears him to me even more. Go Dawgs, and Lu- Lu- Lu- Lu-JOOOOOOOO!
Baseball is one of those beautiful sports where the past never really stays in the past. A record-setting day in 1975 can still echo through a grandson’s college postseason run in 2026. That’s the kind of story we love telling at PJ Media: history, family, legacy, and a little “Go Dawgs” for good measure (at least from Chris).
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