Roy Face, the American baseball player best known for his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates, died on February 12, 2026.
A right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1953 to 1969, he spent almost his entire career with Pittsburgh and became known as “The Baron of the Bullpen.” Face helped make the forkball famous and was a pioneer of modern relief pitching, serving as an early model for the closer role. He also played a leading part in the Pirates’ victory over the New York Yankees in the 1960 World Series, when he became the first pitcher to save as many as three games in a Fall Classic.
ElRoy Leon Face (February 20, 1928 – February 12, 2026), nicknamed “The Baron of the Bullpen”, was an American right-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1953 to 1969, almost entirely for the Pittsburgh Pirates, with whom he made the forkball famous. A pioneer of modern relief pitching in the archetype of what came to be known as the closer, he was the standard for National League relievers at the time of his retirement and set numerous records along the way.