2/18: Manny Mota, Bob Miller & Bruce Kison...

Manny Mota (1967 Dexter Press series)

• 1938 - OF Manny “Geronimo” Mota was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The pinch hitter supreme spent six season (1963-68) with Pittsburgh as a fourth outfielder early in his career, hitting .297 during that span. It wasn’t until 1974 that the Dodgers used him solely as a bench bat and he came through in spades, smacking 150 career pinch hits. 

Bob Miller (1973 Topps)

•  1939 - RHP Bob Miller was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Miller spent 18 years in the show, tossing for the Bucs in 1971-72 (6-4-6, 2.19), and pitched in two NLCS sets and a World Series. He later managed in the Padres organization and was pitching coach for the Blue Jays and Giants.Miller pitched at a era that featured three Bob Millers, all pitching in the majors in the late 1950s, and in fact was teammates with Bob G. Miller in 1962 with the Mets. 

• 1950 - P Bruce Kison was born in Pasco, Washington. The righty pitched nine years (1971-79) for the Bucs, and his career bookended Pittsburgh World series titles; he was 4-1 in the post-season, including a memorable 6-1/3 shutout innings stint against the Orioles in game #4 of the 1971 Fall Classic. He was part of the rotation for three years, but was used mostly as a spot starter and long guy, putting up a Pirate pitching line of 81-63/3.49.

 Bruce Kison & Mike Schmidt 1977 (Associated Press photo)