Notes: Staff Hires; Player-Centric; Mtgs; No HoF Cobra; Draft; Old Buccos on the Move

And this week's stuff:

• Don Kelly was named bench coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He had been Houston’s first base coach, a scout, and spent nine years as an MLB player. The team also announced that hitting coach Rick Eckstein and third-base coach Joey Cora will return. Assistant pitching coach Justin Meccage will return in a role to be determined. That would seem to leave Dave Jauss, Kimera Bartee, and Euclides Rojas in the cold. Shelty also has to replace Jacob Cruz (ass't hitting) and Ray Searage (pitching) on his staff.

Don Kelly - 2007 Fleer Ultra

• Gary Morgan of SI Pirate Maven explains exactly what "player-centric" means and why Derek Shelton's focus on it should be a boon to the Bucs.
• Berry also looked at some personnel questions and moves the Bucs may be considering during the Winter Meetings, which begin today.They have a 40-man opening; we'll see if they make a move to fill it this week.
• Ben Cherington and gang will have a decent position in the draft this year. The Pirates drew the 32nd overall draft pick in the Competitive Balance lottery to go with their regular first round (seventh overall) pick.
• No love for the Cobra: C Ted Simmons and MLBPA leader Marvin Miller were voted into the Hall by the Modern Era Committee; Dave Parker was among the finalists but didn't get the dozen votes needed, falling short with just seven ballots to finish fourth. Simmons was the Bucco GM for a season, but resigned following a 1993 heart attack.
• RHP Jordan Lyles signed with the Rangers for 2 years/$16M. He had a split personality last year, going 5-7/5.36 for the Bucs and then finishing 7-1/2.45 for the Brew Crew.
• The Toledo Mud Hens, the Detroit Tigers AAA affiliate, hired recent Pirates bench coach Tom Prince as their manager. He was reeled in by another guy with Bucco roots, Motown's VP of Player Development Dave Littlefield.

Tom Prince lands on his feet - photo Pgh Pirates

• OF Keon Broxton signed a MiLB w/invite deal with Milwaukee after a three-team odyssey last year. He started out with the Bucs in 2016, and a great glove and wheels have so far been offset by his MLB-career .297 OBP and 38.6% K rate.
• The Orioles announced that they've signed IF Dilson Herrera, 25, to a minor league deal. He was a hot Pirates prospect who was sent to the Mets back in 2013 as part of the Marlon Byrd swap. Herrera has played some for the Mets and Reds (2018 was his last MLB season) but a .203 career BA has dimmed his star.