10/21: Danny MOTY, Giusti Deal, Pena Lure, KD Contract, All-Stars Johnny & Ralph, Frankie Comeback, Cam ExOTY, Jim Signs, AVS FA, Burwell Bumped, RIP Herb, HBD Marc, Ron & Pap

1917 - LHP Frank “Pap” Papish was born in Pueblo, Colorado. Frank worked five post-war years from 1945-49 pretty effectively for the White Sox and Indians, but his effort to squeeze out one more campaign in Pittsburgh fell flat, as he required some hospital time for a bad back. The 32-year-old southpaw retired just seven of the 19 batters he faced and compiled a 27.00 ERA. He began and ended his Pirates stay at AAA Indianapolis, where he rebounded for the remainder of 1950 but from ‘51-53 couldn’t put up an ERA south of five. Pap retired from pro ball at 35 after brief auditions with the Indians, White Sox and Senators.

1941 - OF Ron Davis was born in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina. He ended his five-year MLB run, mostly spent with Houston, with Pittsburgh in 1969, batting .234 primarily as a pinch hitter after coming over from St. Louis in the Tommie Sisk/Chris Cannizzaro deal. Davis finished out his pro days with two more seasons in AAA. His son, Ike, spent time with the Bucs in 2014. 

1947 - In its second-ever MLB All-Star team, the Associated Press named Pirates OF Ralph Kiner to the 10-man squad. Ralph had some pretty sweet company in the pasture, joining Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio while earning a spot by hitting .313 with 51 HR and 127 RBI. Oddly enough, he didn’t garner a spot on the NL All-Star team, but did begin a six-year AS run the following season.

1948 - Third base coach Bill Burwell was relieved of his major league duties by manager Billy Meyer. Burwell stayed with the organization and was reassigned as a minor league pitching coach (he notably mentored Vern Law, teaching him how to change speeds and throw the change-up) and scout. He later rejoined the big club from 1958-62 as the pitching guru for Danny Murtaugh.

Dave Giusti - 1971 Pirates Picture Pack

1969 - RHP Dave Giusti and C Dave Ricketts came over from St. Louis for 1B/OF Carl Taylor and minor league OF Frank Vanzin. Giusti spent seven years in the Buc bullpen and posted a 47-28-133/2.94 line after the Pirates converted him from a starter to the relief corps, a switch that made his trade one of the Buccos' shrewder deals. Ricketts didn’t have a lot of on-field impact (he hit .182 in his only Bucco season) as a player, but was a popular clubhouse figure. He played basketball at Duquesne with his brother Dick and coached in Pittsburgh from 1971-73 before returning to the Cards to become a long time field coach and catching mentor. Taylor spent four more years in the show as a bench player, including a brief return to Pittsburgh in September of 1971, while Vanzin never advanced past Class AAA and was done with pro ball after 1970.

1970 - Danny Murtaugh was voted as the NL Manager of the Year by the Associated Press. The sportswriters/broadcasters gave him a 146-131 margin over Sparky Anderson, skipper of the West Division titlists, the Cincy Reds. Murtaugh’s Bucs finished five games ahead of the Cubs in the NL East but Sparky had the last laugh - the Pirates were swept by the Redlegs in the NLCS, losing the opener in extra innings, then dropping the next pair of games by 3-1 and 3-2 counts.

1970 - RHP Marc Wilkins was born in Mansfield, Ohio. He spent his entire six-season MLB career (1996-2001) as a Bucco reliever (he started two games as a rookie), putting up a line of 19-14-3/4.28 while appearing in 245 outings. It was a pretty strong run for a guy who Pittsburgh selected in the 47th round of the 1992 draft. The U of Toledo product is now a financial advisor in Mansfield.

Marc Wilkins - 1997 Ultra reverse

1982 - The Los Angeles Examiner wrote that the Dodgers and Pirates were tinkering with a deal that would send 24-year-old C Tony Pena to LA for either OF Mike Marshall, 22, or 1B Greg Brock, 24. Though the talks broke off, the youngsters were all legit. Marshall lasted 11 years in the show, belting double-digit home runs for eight straight campaigns while compiling a .270  BA and landing in an AS Game. Brock spent 10 years in the league, hitting with some pop but putting up a .265+ average just twice, with a lifetime .248 BA. Pena was special. He earned five All-Star slots in an 18-year run, batting .260. Tony was eventually traded for Andy Van Slyke after the 1986 campaign. 

1983 - 2B Johnny Ray was named to the UPI NL-All Star team after batting .283; he also won a Silver Slugger award. In housekeeping news, the Pirates added AAA Hawaii prospects OF Bobby Bonilla, IF Denny Gonzalez and RHPs Mike Bielicki & Ray Krawczyk to the 40-man roster to replace free agent departees OF Dave Parker and pitchers Kent Tekulve, Mike Bibby and Dave Tomlin. 3B Richie Hebner would join the list of Buccos flying the coop a week later.

1987 - Bob Hertzel of the Pittsburgh Press reported some tire kicking: A discussed deal for OF Glenn Wilson with the Phils was at an impasse (Philly wanted young, front-line pitching, either Doug Drabek or Mike Dunne) and talks re: LA OF Mike Marshall were going on but “not serious” yet, per Thrift. It was a busy day. Manager Jim Leyland announced that his contract for 1988 was signed, Thrift and Prine were at loggerheads over Syd’s upcoming deal (it was supposedly agreed on on October 1st but not signed), banging heads on who had the final OK on personnel moves, and KDKA agreed to broadcast all 162 games on radio and 42 on TV. This agreement left the Pirates holding radio rights instead of KDKA, which allowed KD to establish a fixed fee while the Pirates became responsible for marketing, raising national advertising revenues and providing the broadcast crew. It was a two-year agreement with an option year kicker.

Mike Dunne - 1987 Donruss Rookies

1994 - Andy Van Slyke became a free agent. In his eight years (1987-94) with Pittsburgh, he slashed .283/.353/.458 and was a three-time All Star. But at 34 and with a bad back, he managed to snag just a one-year/$700K deal with the Baltimore Orioles only after a spring training audition. He played sparingly for them and was traded to Philadelphia Phillies, where he got into just 80 games and was done as a big leaguer after the 1995 campaign.

1997 - Cam Bonifay was selected as the MLB Executive of the Year by The Sporting News (the voting was taken among Front Office execs). Working on a minimal budget ($9M!), the “Freak Show” Pirates stayed in contention into September and finished the year at 79-83 and in second place in the NL Central after being projected as a 100-loss team before the season opened.

2013 - LHP Francisco Liriano (16-8, 3.02) was named The Sporting News “Comeback Player of the Year” for 2013. Frankie had posted ERA’s north of 5.00 in three of his four prior seasons but sparkled for the Bucs. The runner up was RHP Mark Melancon, the Bucs set-up/closer arm, and third place went to OF Marlon Byrd, who the Pirates picked up from the Mets during the stretch run.

2017 - Former Pirate scout Herb Raybourne passed away at his Florida home at age 82. A minor league player for the Giants, the Panamanian started his career as a bird dog for Pittsburgh, signing fellow countrymen Manny Sanguillen, Rennie Stennett and Omar Moreno. Raybourne moved on to KC and later became the Yankees' Latin American scouting director, where he landed his biggest fish, Mariano Rivera, before finishing his career as Toronto’s Director of Scouting.

10/20: Roberto Pgh HoF, Ray Miller Hired, QB's In The Draft, '70 Shuffle, Cobra & Gustine Rumors, Fireman Commits, Spaulding World Tour, HBD Jose, Jerry & Jocko

1864 - UT John “Jocko” Fields was born in Cork, Ireland. Jocko played everything on the field (mainly OF & C), hitting .265 as a member of the Alleghenys (1887-89), the Burghers of the Players’ League (1890) and the Pirates in 1891, his last major league season. Jocko played in the minors through 1896, then held jobs with the railroad and county before passing away in 1950.

1888 - In what may have been the first and surely the grandest international barnstorming tour ever undertaken, Albert Spaulding, with a team of Chicago players (including Mark “Fido” Baldwin & John Tener, both whom would later pitch in Pittsburgh) and an “All-America” team (The Allegheny’s Fred Carroll was on that nine along with future OF/manager Ned Hanlon), left Chicago and played exhibitions in the US West, then took a liner to play in Hawaii, New Zealand, Australia, Ceylon, Egypt, Italy, France, England, Scotland and Ireland before getting back home for more exhibitions, finally wrapping it up on 4/20/1889. 

1948 - RHP Hugh Casey announced that he would sign with the Pirates for the upcoming season after being released by the Brooklyn Dodgers at the end of the 1948 campaign. It was a big deal for the Bucs as Casey led the NL in saves twice, the latest being in ‘47. But “Fireman,” who was 35, had been troubled by a bad back and only lasted until August with the Bucs, going 4-1-5/4.66 before being released and claimed by the Yankees in his last big league campaign.

1948 - In his “Village Smithy” column in the Pittsburgh Press, sports editor Chet Smith shot down the Frankie Gustine-to-the-Cubs rumors that had been floating around. He wrote that the Cubs had a longtime interest in Gustine to fill its hole at third base, so they offered C Clyde McCullough and an unspecified pitcher or two for Gustine to Pirates GM Roy Hamey during trade talks dating back to the World Series. Hamey replied that McCullough would have to be joined by pitchers Hank Borowy and Cliff Chambers for him to consider a deal, and that price ended the convo. But Smith should have left the fortune-telling to Nostradamus; the Bucs sent Gustine (and Cal McLish) to the Cubs for McCullough and Chambers six weeks later. Though coming off an All-Star season and just 29-years-old, Frankie only hit .226 as a Cub in ‘49 and would last one more MLB season. McLish turned into a workmanlike hurler, twirling 11 more big league seasons and winning 89 games after the deal. Chambers pitched two plus seasons for the Bucs, going 28-28/4.33 before being traded to the Cards in 1951. McCullough put in four Pirates campaigns, starting over 300 games and hitting .258. Borowy, btw, had his contract purchased by the Bucs in 1950 and tossed poorly for two months (1-3/6.39) before he was sold to the Tigers, where he ended his career in 1952.

Frankie Gustine - 1949 Bowman

1961 - Ump Jerry Meals was born in Butler. He came up on a MLB fill-in basis in 1992 and earned a regular spot on the blue crew in 1998; he’s been a crew chief since 2015. Jerry has worked the WBC, two AS games, nine division/league championship series and a WS. Meals has had his share of controversial calls, including the missed play at the plate against the Braves in 2012 that began the Pirates spin around the drain and birthed a “Jerry Meals says he’s safe” meme. He lives in Ohio just across the PA state line and graduated from Salem HS (OH).

1970 - The Pirates did a bit of roster shuffling, selling OF Angel Mangual to the A’s to conclude the earlier Mudcat Grant deal, sending RHP Gene Garber to Columbus and placing C Milt May on the military reserve list while promoting SS Frank Taveras, UT Rimp Lanier and LHP Brad Gratz to the 40-man roster, which was filled the next day by the additions of RHP Bruce Kison and OF Mel Civil. The Mangual sale also ended the recent pow-wows with Oakland; the Bucs had already snagged Grant from Charlie Finley, and speculation that the teams were working on multiplayer swap featuring Reggie Jackson were put to rest; it ends up the Bucs did just fine in ‘71 without him. 

1970 - Dan Marino and John Elway weren’t the only pro football quarterbacks that had baseball scouts sniffing around them. UPI reported that the Pirates, along with the Yankees, Mets and Reds, had contacted Notre Dame QB Joe Theismann to gauge his interest in MLB. The college 3B was coy, saying that he’d be interested if his football career didn’t pan out. He was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 39th round of the 1971 draft, but that gridiron thing did pan out pretty well for Joe, even with time honing his craft in the CFL and that brutal leg-snapping NFL finale.

1980 - RHP Jose Veras was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Jose tossed for nine years and made 440 appearances for eight teams, stopping in Pittsburgh during the 2011 campaign where he posted a 2-4-1/3.80 line in 79 outings. The reliever last pitched in the indie leagues in 2016 followed by a short stint in the Dominican Winter League that marked the end of his pro road.

Dave Parker - 1981 Kelloggs

1981 - Dan Donovan of the Pittsburgh Press wrote that the New York Yankees, about to lose Reggie Jackson to free agency in a mutual decision and looking for a big bat replacement, had interest in Dave Parker, and for a pitcher and prospects, the Bucs were all ears. But it ended up all smoke and no fire. Jackson did leave, signing a five-year deal with the California Angels, but the Cobra stayed in Pittsburgh through 1983 until the end of his contract (it was said that the Yankees were put off by his physical condition). Parker then signed a two-year agreement with his hometown Cincinnati Reds. 

1986 - Ray Miller was hired as Jim Leyland’s pitching coach, the fourth Bucco PC in four years (Ron Schueler, Grant Jackson and Harvey Haddix preceded him). He had been the Orioles’ pitching guru for eight years (1978-85) before taking on the managing job at Minnesota. Miller was fired by the Twinkies in September, freeing him up for the Pirates job. He stopped the merry-go-round, holding the position through 1996 while coaching Doug Drabek to a Cy Young, the third pitcher under Miller’s wing to earn the honor. Ray rejoined the O’s after Leyland jumped to Florida, managing them in 1998-99. He retired from baseball in 2005 for health reasons and passed on in 2021 at the age of 76.

2025 - Roberto Clemente was part of the inaugural class of the Pittsburgh Walk of Fame, a Smallman Street bronze star sidewalk tribute recognizing Southwestern PA civic and cultural movers and groovers. The first class honored City superstars Arriba, George Benson, Nelly Bly, Rachel Carson, Andrew Carnegie, Michael Keaton, Fred Rogers, Jonas Salk, Andy Warhol and August Wilson.

Weekly Report: Brandon & Tri GG Finalists, Bucs Up For Selig, Pops On TSN Greatest Players List, G7G, Bananas Visit PNC In '27, Series Almost Set

Championship Series Season...

Pirates Stuff: 

• Per media reports, the Pirates have agreed to re-sign OF Kyler Fedko to a two-year minor league deal. Fedko, 27, is a Gibsonia guy from Vincentian Academy who made his MLB debut with Minnesota in June. He was DFA'ed by the Twins and signed with the Bucs in September after a knee injury; he hopes to be back in action by May, though that would be an optimistic time frame. Kyle hit .274 w/17 HR in 266 ABs at AAA St. Paul before Minny called him up. If the name seems familiar, he's John Fedko's son, former local sportscaster (Fedko Zone).
• Brandon Lowe (2B) and Jared Triolo (UT) are NL Golden Glove finalists. Lowe had a +15 OAA (outs above average), tied for second among second basemen after posting the worst range among 2B in 2025. Tri was the NL’s utilityman Gold Glover in 2024. This season he was mostly used at SS & 3B but also played 1B, RF and CF.

• The Pirates are one of five finalists for the Selig Award, joining the Cubs, Twins, Rays and Nationals as the teams up for the '26 charitable & philanthropic award. The Pirates were nominated for the Chill Mobile, a mental health unit on wheels created to address youth mental health. Since its 2022 beginnings, the program has reached more than 44,200 students across the region.
• The Sporting News series on Baseball's Greatest Players continued with the Most Beloved. No surprise to find out Willie Stargell made that list, along with Buck Leonard of the Homestead Grays.
• And yes, there was a nice crowd outside the Forbes Field wall for the Game Seven Gang's annual Maz Day get together; the sunny 80-degree weather couldn't have been better nor the memories.

MLB Stuff:

• The Savannah Bananas announced Thursday that they will return to Pittsburgh to play the Indianapolis Clowns on Aug. 6-7. They sold out a pair of games the last time they visited PNC Park in 2025.
• Andrew McCutchen is joining SiriusXM’s MLB Network Radio as a Postseason analyst, appearing every Wednesday and Thursday on “Power Alley” through the World Series. 

• LHP Tim Mayza, who had a brief run with the Bucs in 2025 before being released, signed with the Phils. He's been with them since the Pirates let him go, posting a 3-4/3.62 line in 68 2025-'26 outings.
• The fallout begins: The Astros announced that they will not renew manager Joe Espada’s contract, which was set to expire at the end of the month. Espada managed Houston from 2024-26. Several of his coaches were also released although ol' Bucco Dave Clark will return.

Playoff Stuff:

• Milwaukee swept the Dodgers in the NLCS while the Rays are up three-games-to-two v the Guardians. Not only will it be an interesting World Series but it's certain to fire up the small market v large market debate re: a cap when the contract talks resume. 

10/19: Kerrigan Becomes PC, Parade Day, The Hat Hired, '60 All-Stars, Movie Celebs, Cleve Series, HBD Jordan, John, James, JA, Rajai, Jose, Rimp, Don, Tom L & Tom M

1874 - OF Tom McCreery was born in Beaver. The local kid played for five MLB teams in nine seasons, and spent three campaigns (1898-1900) with the Pirates, batting .303 as a switch hitter. Tom became the only player in major league history to hit three inside-the-park homers in a single game in 1897 as a Louisville Colonel. He later became head baseball coach at Pitt for the 1912 season. Tom lived out the remainder of his days in his hometown, and stayed connected to the game with the semi-pro Rochester Athletics.

1887 - The 55-win Alleghenys of the National League and the 39-win Cleveland Blues of the American Association met in a four-game postseason exhibition series set up by their leagues. This date was the opener in Cleveland. The Alleghenys won that lidlifter 9-6 behind Pud Galvin. The teams combined for 26 hits; more telling were the 11 errors. The second game went the Blues' way as George Hays suffered an 11-8 defeat. Cleveland scored six unearned runs thanks to Pittsburgh committing seven more errors. When the Alleghenys returned to Recreation Park, they took the next two games handily, 6-3 behind Galvin and 16-7 with Ad Gumbert on the hill. This was before the World Series concept was accepted, but the NL and AA did have a championship series to battle for the short-lived Dauvray Cup. The two league champs, the Detroit Wolverines (NL) and St. Louis Browns (AA), played a 15-game set that was easily taken by Motown w/10 wins.

1897 - OF Tom Lovelace was born in Wolfe City, Texas. Tom was a minor league vet, who played on the farm from 1920-1932, and he got one at-bat in the majors, with the Pirates in September of 1922, resulting in a ninth-inning lineout. He and a handful of other youngsters who were on the roster didn’t get to see much time; though the Pirates faded from the pennant chase, they were involved in a three-way battle for second-place money. They might as well have played the kids; they finished third with St. Louis, a game behind second-place Cincinnati.

1931 - C/coach Don Leppert was born in Indianapolis. Don made his MLB debut with the Bucs in 1961-62, appearing in 65 games and hitting .266 before he was traded to Washington where he spent two more years (he was a 1963 All-Star) to play out his big league time. After he retired in 1966, Leppert managed a year in the minors for Pittsburgh and then was a Pirates MLB coach for nine more years. He also worked for Toronto, Houston and Minnesota. Don retired to Florida in 1996 after a couple of knee replacements (a catcher’s hazard) and passed away in 2023 Fun fact: On June 18th, 1961, Leppert homered in the second inning of his MLB debut against the Cards’ Curt Simmons on the first pitch he saw as an MLB'er.

Don Leppert - 1962 Topps

1948 - OF/3B Lorenzo “Rimp” Lanier was born in Tuskegee, Alabama. The Pirates drafted him out of high school in the 37th round of 1967 and sent him to Salem. He hit well for the next three seasons, albeit without much power, and got a September look for the powerhouse 1971 Bucs, going 0-for-4 in six games. His star dimmed after that; he was sent down in 1972, had trouble with AAA pitching & his fielding, and he left baseball after the 1973 campaign at age 24.

1949 - Donora’s Stan Musial was honored as a Pennsylvania Ambassador for promoting the state with a ceremony at his hometown St. Dominic’s Hall. 400 fans filled the venue with speakers from business and government honoring “The Man,” including Bucco broadcaster Rosey Rowswell.

1951 - The original “Angels in the Outfield” movie was released. The film was shot primarily at Forbes Field (with Pitt’s Cathedral of Learning getting its fair share of love) and featured cameos by Bing Crosby (part owner), Ralph Kiner, George Strickland, Ed Fitz Gerald, George Metkovich, Sam Narron, Lenny Levy and Pie Traynor. Ty Cobb and Joe DiMaggio also made bit appearances. 

1960 - Four Pirates were named to the United Press All-Star team: RHP Vern Law, SS Dick Groat, 2B Bill Mazeroski and RF Roberto Clemente. It capped a huge campaign for Groat, who won the batting title by hitting .325 and was the NL’s MVP. Law was a 20-game and Cy Young winner, Maz was a World Series hero and Roberto hit .314 with 16 HR in his breakout campaign. All four had been regular season All-Stars, with Maz and Arriba eventually elected into the HoF. The next day, the AP picked their team - Law was named to the first team while Clemente and Groat made the second squad. Maz missed out, losing the voting horse race to Pete Runnels & Nellie Fox. 

1964 - Harry “The Hat” Walker was named manager of the Pirates, replacing Danny Murtaugh after an 80-82 season and sixth place finish in the National League (the Whistlin’ Irishman left because of health, not record, and became GM Joe Brown’s chief player evaluator). On the same day, Walker added his first coach when Hal Smith announced he’d come out of retirement to coach. Brown had discussed the job with ex-Cards manager Johnny Keane but it never was a serious courtship as Keane had the Yankee position lined up and instead recommended Walker. After a couple of competitive seasons (the Pirates came in third with 90+ wins both years and finished second and then first in NL team BA), The Hat was let go in 1967 after a 42-42 start and replaced by...Danny Murtaugh.

Post Gazette 10/20/1979

1979 - The World Champion Pirates had their moment of glory in downtown’s Market Square when 29 members of the team & their families were cheered by 15-35,000 fans (take your pick; crowd estimates were all over the place); by any measure, the noontime celebration was packed. Tom Hritz of the Post Gazette wrote that “Market Square was so crowded you couldn’t get an X-ray through it.” Sister Sledge’s “We are Fam-a-lee” blared over the loudspeakers on the sunny day as Milo Hamilton and Lanny Frattare MC’ed the event. The local politicos got first crack at the mic, causing disgruntled chants of “We want the Bucs” that were finally answered when Tim Foli led off the Pirates lineup. The biggest cheer was for Willie Stargell, who wore a stetson with a gold star and told the fans that “You are as responsible for winning the World Series as we are.” The afternoon’s comic relief was provided by a hot air balloon that refused to fly right, alternating between dropping on the fans below it and snagging on buildings until it tore.

1980 - 3B/OF Jose Bautista was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He played for the Bucs from 2004-08, and hit .241 with 43 HR in that span before being traded to Toronto in 2008 for Robinzon Diaz. Joey Bats blossomed after becoming a Blue Jay, leading the AL in home runs and RBI twice before becoming a 37-year-old nomad in 2018, ending his MLB stay with Philly. He played for the Dominican Republic’s Olympic team in 2020, helping the club to earn the bronze medal. Diaz didn’t leave much of a mark. He didn’t crack the majors again after his Pittsburgh stop, and last played in 2016-17 in the Dominican Winter League.

1980 - OF Rajai Davis was born in Norwich, Connecticut. Raj was a late round pick in 2001 by the Bucs. He showed speed and a pretty good stick in the minors, but was always one step behind guys like Chris Duffy, Nyjer Morgan and Nate McLouth. He got parts of two years with the Pirates, seeing action in 44 games and hitting .242 before being traded for Giants’ P Matt Morris in 2007 in a last-straw deal that greased the skids for Dave Littlefield. Davis played for eight teams over 14 big-league years through 2019 with a .262 lifetime BA and 415 stolen bases. Morris was released by the Bucs in late April of 2008 after going 3-8/7.02 to end his big league days on the slab after 11 seasons.

1982 - RHP James Anthony “JA” Happ was born in Peru, Illinois. JA debuted with the Phils in 2007 and has been in the majors ever since. He played a key role in the Pirates’ 2015 playoff run when the Bucs sent RHP Adrian Sampson to Seattle for Happ, who went 7-2/1.85 down the stretch to help Pittsburgh to a wildcard finish. The Pirates let him walk after the campaign. JA worked through 2021 before retiring, with 18 years in the show, tossing for eight teams.

JA Happ - 2015 Topps Insert

1984 - RHP James McDonald was born in Long Beach, California. The righty came to Pittsburgh in 2010 as part of the Octavio Dotel deal, and was an up-and-down member of the rotation until 2013, going 27-24/4.21 in his four Pirate years. J-Mac had a breakout campaign in 2012 (9-3/2.37) until after the All-Star break when the wheels fell off, and he never found his groove again. He lost the 2014 season to a shoulder injury and that ended his career.

1987 - RHP John Holdzkom was born in Pasadena, California. After extreme control issues cost him his gig in the Mets system, Holdzkom was pitching indy ball when scout Mal Fichman signed him to a contract with the Pirates in 2014. Big John zipped through the minors and got a September call-up, striking out the side in his first outing and finishing the year with a line of 1-0/2.00 with 14 K in nine innings. He was sent back to the minor leagues to start the 2015 season, where nagging injuries and inconsistency with control, mixed with him being on the gray side at age 28, kept him on the farm. He had a rough offseason; his brother Lincoln died in a car crash in December and he was DFA’ed in April of 2016. The White Sox signed him to a minor league deal but released him after six games and he’s been on the outside since then. He ended his exile by signing up to pitch in New Zealand during the 2018-19 season, and that was his last post.

1990 - RHP Jordan Lyles was born in Hartsville, South Carolina. Lyles, picked 38th overall in the 2008 draft by the Astro’s, worked his way up to their top pitching prospect and a spot in the 2010 Futures game. But his eight-year career didn’t exactly follow the script; he slashed 31-52/5.28 for four clubs, starting out as a rotation arm and being bumped to the bullpen. The Pirates signed him to a one-year/$2.05M free agent deal at the 2018 winter meeting after he had looked sharp from the pen the prior year for San Diego and Milwaukee. He got off to a hot start then cooled off; he was sent to Milwaukee and was re-energized. After stops with the Rangers, Orioles and Royals, Lyles last work from a pro mound was as part of the Dodgers system in 2024.

2008 - Joe Kerrigan was named the Pirates pitching coach, replacing Jeff Andrews, who only lasted a season after being promoted from the Bucco minor league system. Joe had 18 years experience at the job with four other organizations and wanted the pitchers to work inside and throw strikes, a familiar recipe. But like Andrews ahead of him, he lasted just a year before he walked the plank along with John Russell and his staff after the 99-loss 2009 campaign.

10/18: Cash-Brett, DC Cashin' In, Dominican Tour, Groat Day, Elbows Blowin' Up, RIP Anne, HBD Osvaldo, Garrett, Andy, Joggin' George, Phil, Frenchy, Hans & Cliff

1859 - OF Cliff Carroll was born in Clay Grove, Iowa. Cliff closed out the first half of his career in 1888 with Pittsburgh, playing in five games and going 0-for-20. He was playing through some health issues and missed a season after a brief retirement to his farm. He played for four more campaigns, three quite solidly, before retiring with 11 years in the show. Cliff also influenced the design of baseball jerseys. In his day, the shirts had a pocket, and he had a ball that took a bad hop and got stuck in his. It caused him a bit of embarrassment on the field and his owner fined him over the misplay, leading to some bitterness between the club and Carroll. The quirky incident led his squad, the St. Louis Browns, to eliminate the pocket from their uniforms and the rest of the league followed suit. It wasn’t his only moment - earlier in his career, Carroll had been shot at by a fan he had squirted with a hose during pregame warmups (apparently a case of heckling repaid with horseplay). The retaliatory bullet missed him and grazed SS Joe Mulvey, who was fortunately just scratched by the slug. 

1881 - IF John “Hans” Lobert was born in Wilmington, Delaware. His family moved to Pittsburgh (Lobert went to Carnegie Tech) and he played for the semi-pro Pittsburgh Athletic Association nine, but went unnoticed until the PAA was playing in Atlantic City at the same time Pirates owner Barney Dreyfuss was vacationing there. He signed Lobert for a September 1903 audition when the team was running away with the pennant. He played everywhere, but the biggest impression he made was on Honus Wagner, who dubbed Lobert “Hans Number Two” with the pair remaining tight friends throughout their lives. Lobert went to the minors for a year of seasoning, then spent the next 13 campaigns in the show with four different clubs, hitting .274 with 361 stolen bases. He was especially noted for his fleet feet; he once defeated Jim Thorpe in a 100-yard dash. Hans #2 retired at the age of 35 in 1917, led West Point baseball for eight years, coached & managed the Phils for a season and then scouted until he passed away at 86.

1886 - RHP George “Frenchy” LeClaire was born in Milton, Vermont. He spent his career largely with the Pittsburgh Rebels of the outlaw Federal League from 1914-15, posting a line of 6-4/3.81 in 36 games, 10 as a starter. After starting 1915 with the Rebels, he finished the campaign pitching for Buffalo and Baltimore. When the league folded, Frenchy’s major league career came to an end. He died young at the age of 31, a victim of the 1918 flu pandemic.

1894 - RHP Phil Morrison was born in Rockport, Indiana. His MLB career consisted of one appearance lasting two-thirds of an inning (it was scoreless) for the Pirates in 1921, but with that outing he became one of the early Pirate family acts, joining his brother, pitcher “Jughandle Johnny” Morrison, on that season’s stat sheet. Phil was considered a top prospect with a good curve like his brother, but the Buc staff was loaded and he was an odd man out though he posted some strong minor league numbers. Suffering from rheumatism for several years, he retired after a comeback of sorts in 1926 and with his wife and family lived in Kentucky while tossing semi-pro ball. 

Sports Headline - Pgh Commercial Gazette 10/19/1900

1900 - The Brooklyn Superbas won the best-of-five Chronicle-Telegraph Cup three games to one with a 4-1 victory at Exposition Park as Iron Joe McGinnity bested Sam Leever. The series was a challenge match sponsored by the Pittsburgh Chronicle-Telegraph (bought by the Pittsburgh Press in 1924) between the top two National League teams in an era before post-season games. It was a fruitful learning experience for the runner-up Pirates, which went on to win the next three Senior Circuit pennants and played in the first World Series in 1903. The Brooklyn club couldn’t build off its ‘00 success - they didn't win another playoff set until 1955, when they claimed the World Series title as the Dodgers.

1946 - The Pirates bought 40-year-old righty reliever/spot starter Art Herring from the Brooklyn Dodgers for an undisclosed cash amount. Manager Billy Herman, who had played alongside him, thought the vet would help solidify the bullpen after slashing 17-10-8/3.43 from 1944-46. Alas, age and the return to action of WW2’s soldier ballplayers limited him to 10-1/3 innings of work and an 8.44 ERA, earning Art a June release that ended his big league career.

1949 - OF George Hendrick was born in Los Angeles. The Pirates got him as part of the John Tudor deal with the St. Louis Cardinals during the 1984 off season, but Hendrick hit just .230 with two homers in ‘85 and was sent to the California Angels at the deadline. He was nicknamed "Silent George" because he rarely spoke to the media and “Jogging George” for his sometimes  leisurely outfield play. After his 18-year, six teams career ended, he landed coaching gigs with the Saint Louis Cards, LA Dodgers, AnaheimAngels and Tampa Bay Rays, where he worked as a coach/advisor to the GM before retiring in 2015.

1951 - LHP Andy Hassler was born in Texas City, Texas. The veteran Hassler signed a six-year/$750K contract with the Bucs in 1979. Andy lasted for six outings and a 3.86 ERA before he was sold to California in June, where he strung together three solid campaigns with the Haloes. He mostly struggled his last final seasons with the Angels and Cards, retiring after his agreement expired after the 1985 campaign to end a 14-year career and he became a rancher in Arizona.

Andy Hassler - 1980 Topps Update

1960 - Cause and effect: a little blowback from Maz’s home run took place when New York let go of manager Casey Stengel, supposedly because he had passed the newly mandated Yankee mandatory retirement age of 65. He was replaced by Ralph Houk. The Ol’ Perfesser, who amassed a 1149-696 (.623) record while capturing 10 AL pennants and seven World Series Championships in his 12 years at the Big Apple helm, said "Resigned, fired, quit, discharged, use whatever you damn please. I'll never make the mistake of being seventy again." His Fall Classic counterpart, Danny Murtaugh (The Whistling Irishman was just 42 years old), still had 11 seasons to go as bossman (with a couple of service breaks) and another World Series title yet to be added to his Pirates resume.

1967 - The Pirates began a five-game goodwill tour of the Dominican Republic against a team of barnstorming major leaguers, with youth baseball clinics scheduled between the matches. And it was purely a goodwill tour - the players received daily expenses but no salary, and all the game proceeds went to the Dominican Development Foundation, which were matched by the Pan-American Foundation, to help fund building projects like schools in the DR.

1973 - The Pirates shipped 2B Dave Cash to Philadelphia in exchange for LHP Ken Brett. Cash was being phased out for Rennie Stennett, but still had seven years and three All-Star games left in him. Brett went 22-14/3.32 for Pittsburgh in two seasons and made an All-Star team before an elbow injury slowed him down, and like Cash, Ken still had a long shelf life. He pitched for seven more seasons after leaving the Pirates, although he wasn’t really effective again after 1976.

1979 - Chuck Tanner returned to hometown New Castle 12 hours after the Pirates had won the World Series in Baltimore to bury his mom. She had passed away before Game 5 with the Pirates down three games to one, and Chuck told his players in the hushed locker room before the contest that "My mother is a great Pirates fan. She knows we're in trouble, so she went upstairs to get some help." Tanner was close to his mom, but he insisted on managing through the series because he knew she would have wanted him to see it through. 

Post Gazette/AP article 10-19-1979

1979 - Congressman Doug Walgren ate high off the hog thanks to the Pirates World Series win. Maryland congresswoman Barbara Mikulski paid off her losing Baltimore bet with crabs, sausage and pastries while Ohio rep Tom Luken brought in some Cincinnati chili dogs after being dunned for the Reds NLCS defeat. Walgren sported a Pirates cap all day, and his phone’s background music played “We Are Fam-A-Lee.” Senator Richard Schweiker also got in on the gambling action and his winning bet was rewarded with a regional delicacy, Maryland beaten biscuits, by Terp lawmaker Charles Mathias.

1983 - LHP Garrett Olson was born in Fresno, California. He tossed for Pittsburgh in 2011 after being claimed from Seattle and in 4-1/3 IP allowed just a run. It wasn’t enough to help his cause; he was sent down to Indy, where they stretched him back into a starter (he was in the rotation for Baltimore, his original club before being sent to the pen by the Mariners). Garrett got one more MLB appearance with the Mets in 2012, spent the following year in Korea and hung ‘em up at 29. He’s now a mechanical engineer, his major at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo. 

1995 - RHP Osvaldo Bido was born in Los Hidalgos, Dominican Republic. He was signed in 2017 and was a solid starter in the lower levels, but took his lumps in Altoona and Indy. Bido pitched for the 2021 Dominican national team in the Olympic qualifiers, but didn’t go to the games, instead returning to the minors. He was called up in 2023 when injuries thinned the Pirates staff. Osvaldo was a starter/bulk innings arm, posting a 2-5/5.86 line (w/a 4.10 FIP) in 16 outings. He went to Oakland as a free agent in ‘24, starting out in AAA before getting a June callup and breaking into the rotation before an injury laid him up in September. He’s pitched for the A’s and White Sox since and finished ‘26 in Japan.

Osvaldo Bido - Topps 2024

2001 - Bad news for Bucco pitchers continued to pile up as RHP Bobby Bradley, the Pirates #1 pick (8th overall) in the 1999 draft, had surgery for a torn elbow ligament. He joined big league hurlers Kris Benson, Ryan Vogelsong and Francisco Cordova on the DL as guys who needed reconstructive elbow surgeries. Bradley missed the 2002 season and never tossed in the majors while Benson returned in May, and though he lasted six more big league seasons, he never posted an ERA under 4.00. Vogelsong sat out 2002, then pitched four more years with Pittsburgh, posting a 5.87 ERA before going to Japan and later, the Giants. Francisco never appeared in the major leagues again.

2009 - IF coach Perry Hill and the Pirates couldn’t reach a contract deal, and the respected infield tutor left, reappearing in 2011 with Miami and then coaching Seattle’s basemen through 2026. On the same day, longtime Pirates minor league pitching coach Ray Searage was promoted to assistant pitching coach of the big team, working in tandem with main man Joe Kerrigan. He was named to Kerrigan’s position in 2010 when Clint Hurdle replaced John Russell. Searage lasted through 2019, when he was given the heave-ho along with skipper Hurdle and replaced by Derek Shelton’s choice, Oscar Marin from the Texas Rangers staff; Searage then moved on to Seattle.

2019 - The Westmoreland County Commissioners declared it “Dick Groat Day.” They celebrated at Totteridge Golf Club in Hempfield, following the round with the proclamation presentation and then a feed of the Pitt-Syracuse football game to incorporate two of the 88-year-old’s favorites, Pitt (w/Pitt-Greensburg as a prominent sponsor of the event) and golf.

10/17: Starg, Blass & Bucs Top O's In '71 & '79, Cup Win, Pud Party, Jim, Cam & Waners Sign, Banny Goes, RIP Skeeter, HBD Scoops, Chris, Mark, Ravelo, Pete, Mike, Red, Bert, Pop & Kid

1870 - LHP George “Kid” Nicol was born in Barry, Illinois. George was called up from the semi-pro ranks to pitch for St Louis (he was 19 years old at the time, hence “Kid”) of the American Association, and he began his career with a no-hitter (seven innings, nine walks) in his first outing and a one-hitter over five frames in the next. With the demise of the Player’s League that season, there were more players than roster spots around baseball so the Kid went to the minors despite his hot start. He got a couple of more shots in the majors, with Pittsburgh giving him the ball eight times (five starts) in 1894, but Nicol didn’t impress, going 3-4/6.50 and giving up 57 hits and 33 walks in 44-1/3 IP. Control issues bit him, as he issued eight free passes every nine innings. To boot, it was suspected that his performance with the Pirates was the opening round of arm problems; the Kid returned to the minors and converted to the outfield. He played on farm clubs until 1906, retiring to the life of a hubby, father and machinist in Milwaukee.

1873 - 1B Frank “Pop” Dillon was born in Normal (now North Bloomington), Illinois. Pop spent the first two campaigns of his five-year MLB career in Pittsburgh (1899-1900) and he hit .237 as a bench guy. He lost out the following year after the franchise was reinforced when Barney Dreyfuss’ bought in the Louisville roster, but found a new home on the coast.  He became a player and manager for the Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League from 1902-15, taking the LAA to PCL pennants four times. It was also there that he earned his nickname; after his decade plus of service with the Angels, his hair had gone gray and so he became “Pop.” He went on to work for the Association of Professional Ball Players of America (a charity that assisted pro ball players, including minor leaguers) after the Angels gig and was inducted into the PCL Hall of Fame.

1886 - RHP James ”Bert” (his middle name was Albert) Maxwell was born in Texarkana, Texas. Bert worked 21 games over four MLB seasons, with his debut being one start for the Pirates in 1906. He gave up six runs (five earned) in eight innings. He spent seven years tossing baseballs, mostly in the Sally League, and went on to manage in the minors afterward.

1892 - After 35-year-old Pud Galvin retired following the ‘92 season, which was split between Pittsburgh and St. Louis after the Cards had traded for him in June, he returned home, and the Pittsburgh club and some local pro players got together for a benefit exhibition at Exposition Park to raise a few bucks for Galvin. Some of the Pirates and a squad called the “Picked Nine” of Pittsburgh-area players met, with the NL club taking a 7-6 decision in a mound battle between “Papa” (the newspaper’s nickname) Galvin and Ed “Cannonball” Morris, who had retired a couple of years earlier. The game drew about 1,200 fans who came to say goodbye to the popular Galvin and raised an estimated $3,000 as a going-away gift, a pretty hefty sum for back in the day. 

Pud Galvin - 2012 Upper Deck Goodwin Champion

1892 - C Frank “Red” Madden was born in Pittsburgh. He got a sip of the bigs by getting into two games for the 1914 Pittsburgh Rebels of the Federal League, going one-for-two. Not much info on Mr. Madden; he was apparently brought in for depth from the Class D Ohio State League, where he played minor league ball, but there’s no baseball trail after his stint with the Rebels. Red passed away in the ‘Burgh in 1952 and was buried in Hazelwood’s Calvary Cemetery.

1900 - Pittsburgh avoided being swept in the Chronicle-Telegraph Cup series by nickel-and-diming Brooklyn Superba hurler Harry Howell for 13 singles and a 10-0 victory. Tommy Leach reached base five times and scored four runs. Ginger Beaumont had three hits, and Claude Ritchey, Honus Wagner and Bones Ely added a pair. Deacon Phillippe threw a six-hit shutout for the win at Exposition Park, although the Pirates still trailed the best-of-five series two games to one.

1915 - C Mike Sandlock was born in Old Greenwich, Connecticut. He played for parts of five years in the majors, with his last campaign as a Bucco in 1953, getting into 64 games with a .231 BA as a 37-year-old. He had a six-year hiatus between MLB gigs; the Pirates brought him up with knuckleballer Johnny Lindell from the PCL Hollywood Stars as Sandlock was used to catching the floater. Nevertheless, Mike allowed 15 passed balls and Lindell tossed 11 wild pitches, both league-leading numbers. Even more embarrassing, Johnny outhit Sandlock with a .286 BA. Mike ended his career in the Phils system after 16 pro years.

1929 - Pirate catcher and GM Harding “Pete” Peterson was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. He appeared in 65 games over four seasons (1955; 1957–59) for Pittsburgh and batted .273 in limited service, due to a two-year stint in Korea. His playing career was effectively ended as the result of a broken arm suffered in a home plate collision at Wrigley Field in early 1959. Pete coached and headed the scouting department for the Bucs afterward, and took Joe L. Brown’s spot as GM in 1976. He fielded strong teams in the late seventies with a championship club in 1979. Peterson lasted until 1985 before he was done in by some poor veteran acquisitions, the cocaine trials and ownership churn. He then worked for the New York Yankees front office and served as the club's general manager in 1990. Pete was let go after that gig and spent the rest of his career as a consultant/major league scout for the Padres and Blue Jays before retiring in 1995.

Pete Peterson - 5-24-1985 Press article

1929 - After being pre-season holdouts the year before, the Waner brothers were among the first to submit signed contracts for the 1930 season per team Treasurer Sam Dreyfuss. Neither salary agreement was released, but Paul (who was rumored to be on the trade market) probably inked a deal in the ballpark of $13K while lil’ bro’ Lloyd likely settled for a grand less.

1963 - LHP Ravelo Manzanillo was born in San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic. Ravello tossed for three years in the show, spending two campaigns with Pittsburgh (4-2-1/4.19 in 51 outings between 1994-95). He also tossed pro ball from 1981–2005, with stints in the minors, Korea, Taiwan, Mexico and indie baseball while also playing winter ball in the Venezuelan and Dominican Leagues. His younger brother, Josias, pitched for Pittsburgh, too, from 2000-02.

1964 - OF Carson “Skeeter” Bigbee passed away in Portland, Oregon, dying in his sleep at the age of 69. He spent his 11-year MLB career entirely with the Bucs (1916-26), hitting .287 lifetime, with a personal best .350 BA in 1922 to finish fourth in the NL (Rogers Hornsby hit .401). He even got to play a year (1921) with his brother Lyle. Skeeter left the team after the “ABC” affair (he was the “B”) when he, Babe Adams and Max Carey staged a short-lived protest over management overkill. After a couple of seasons in the PCL, he worked as a salesman, farmer and shipyard worker, while squeezing in a couple of campaigns managing in the All-American Girls Pro League.

1967 - 1B Mark Johnson was born in Worcester, Massachusetts. Mark was a good glove, power-hitting guy who made his MLB debut at the advanced age of 27. His .239 BA in three years (1995-97) with the Pirates didn’t cut it as he lost his job to Kevin Young. Johnson was an effective pinch hitter and closed out his career with the New York Mets, playing until 2002. He did pretty well after baseball, using his Dartmouth degree to become a Wall Street trader.

1969 - C Chris Tremie was born in Houston. Chris got four wham-bams in the majors; his stop in Pittsburgh was in 1999 when he got into nine games and went 1-for-14 in a year that the Pirates rostered six different catchers (Tremie, Jason Kendall, Keith Osik, Joe Oliver, Tim Laker and Yamid Haad). Baseball has been Chris’ career - he spent 14 seasons in the minors and was a manager in the Indians system before becoming the Reds Minor League Field Coordinator. He put together a pretty shiny resume for a kid who was drafted by the White Sox in the 39th round (#1,100 overall) in 1992.

Roberto Clemente - 1972 Fleer

1971 - Steve Blass hurled a four-hitter and Roberto Clemente homered as the Pirates won Game Seven of the World Series 2-1 at Baltimore, earning Pittsburgh its fourth World Championship. The winning run scored in the eighth inning, when Jose Pagan doubled home Willie Stargell. Clemente hit safely in all seven games of the series, a feat he also accomplished in 1960 against the Yankees, extending his consecutive Fall Classic hitting streak to 14 contests. He also became the first Latino player to earn World Series MVP honors after batting .414. It wasn’t the day’s only big event: Bruce Kison and his best man Bob Moose were taken from Memorial Stadium by helicopter to a waiting Lear Jet to get to his wedding at Pittsburgh’s Churchill Valley CC (even so, the groom arrived 33 minutes late). And though it was a bright moment for the club, it wasn’t for some rowdy partiers. After the game, 40‚000 people ran wild in downtown Pittsburgh; many were arrested and at least 100 were hurt in one of the City’s not-so-shining moments.
 
1979  - In Game Seven at Baltimore, President Jimmy Carter opened the game with a ceremonial pitch (his only opening pitch while prez) and Willie Stargell finished it by going 3-for-4 with his third World Series homer, lifting the Pirates to a 4-1 win and their fifth World Championship. Captain Willie gave the Bucs a 2-1 lead in the sixth with his two-run blast. Kent Tekulve worked out of a bases loaded jam in the eighth and Pittsburgh tacked on a pair of ninth inning insurance runs to take a 4-1 victory, with Grant Jackson earning the win. Pops was named Series MVP after the Pirates erased a three-games-to-one deficit to rally past the Orioles to become the first player ever to win the regular-season, LCS and World Series MVP awards in the same year. 60,000 fans greeted the team at the airport when they arrived home at 3AM, with thousands more lining the parkway. Baltimore, which planned a victory parade two games prior, still held one the next day and drew 125,000 for their beloved but bedraggled Birds. The game attracted an estimated 80 million people, then the largest TV audience in the history of the World Series, to tune in.

1991 - In Game Seven of the NLCS, the Bravos jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning off John Smiley, keyed by Brian Hunter's two-run shot, and it was all John Smoltz needed as he tossed a 4-0, six-hit whitewash against the Bucs at Three Rivers Stadium. Atlanta won their first National League pennant since their move from Milwaukee in 1966 as the Pirates failed to score in the last 22 innings of the series. The Braves lost the World Series to the Minnesota Twins four games to three in one of the most dramatic championships in the MLB annals, with four games going into extra innings. The Fall Classic was a match up of two teams that had finished last in their respective divisions the season before, proving the “wait til next year” theory carried some weight.

Jim Leyland - 1995 Kodak

1995 - The Pirates signed manager Jim Leyland and GM Cam Bonifay to contract extensions. Leyland’s deal was for five years/$5M, running through 2000, while Bonifay’s was a two-year/$600K agreement carrying him through 1998. Leyland bailed out after the 1996 season, unwilling to go through another rebuild, and jumped to the Florida Marlins, with Gene Lamont taking over as the Bucs’ field general. Bonifay won the Executive of the Year Award in 1997 and kept his position until 2001 when team owner Kevin McClatchy let him go. He was replaced in the front office by Dave Littlefield.

1996 - OF Al Martin signed a two-year extension valued at $5.3M per Baseball Reference to carry him through the 1999 season with performance bonuses to sweeten his $2.4M salary in 1997. He hit .260 with 36 HR in those two years before being traded to the San Diego Padres as a part of the John Vander Wal deal. Al played through the 2003 campaign.

2014 - After a 29-year affiliation with the Pirates, starting as a player and spending the last five as the Bucs bench coach, Jeff “Banny” Banister left the organization to become the 18th manager of the Texas Rangers. It was, in a way, a delayed PTBNL deal involving coaches turned skippers; the Pirates took their manager, Clint Hurdle, from Texas in 2011. The Rangers won the AL West title during Banny’s first two seasons but lost to the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALDS both times. His next two campaigns finished south of .500 and he was let go with a year remaining on his contract, returning to Pittsburgh as a special assistant. The job didn’t last very long; he was released in June, 2020, as part of a FO staff reduction. He’s now the Arizona D-Backs bench coach.

2025 - Pirates ace Paul Skenes and gymnast/podcaster Livvy Dunne made their first USO tour aboard the Mediterranean-based USS Gerald R. Ford and the USS Mahan, roaming the ships and having-meet-and-greet sessions with 1,300 sailors during their two-day visit. Skenes spent two years at the Air Force Academy before transferring to LSU and is a strong supporter of military support groups.