2/6 From 1990: Koehler, Sanchez, Spanky Sign; Clint, Cutch Dapper Dans; RIP Ralph; HBD Zach & Luke

• 1991 - Mike Lavalliere avoided an arb hearing by agreeing to a $950K deal with the Bucs, with at-bat incentives that could push the value to $1M+. He asked for $1.14M and Pittsburgh countered with $750K, with the Pirates eventually moving their package toward Spanky’s numbers, conceding a safety cushion if his grumpy knee acted up during the season. 

Spanky - 1991 Fleer Ultra (reverse)

• 1991 - C Luke Maile was born in Edgewood, Kentucky. Luke signed with the catching-thin club in December, 2019, for one-year/$900K ($325K minor league) after stints with the Tampa Bay Rays and Toronto Blue Jays. He came to Pittsburgh with a rep as a glove first backstop, a Pirates priority, with a DRS of +21 and a 33% throw-out rate but also with a BA of .198. He didn’t make it out of camp; a broken finger landed him on the IL shortly before the season started. The Bucs let him go after the season and he signed with the Brewers. Luke stayed in the division by agreeing to a one-year deal as the Reds backup backstop this year. 
• 1995 - C/1B Zack Collins was born in Pembroke Pines, Florida. Drafted by the White Sox in the first round of the 2016 draft out of the U of Miami, he made his big league debut in 2019. In 2022, he was traded to Toronto for ex-Buc prospect C Reese McGuire. He saw little time there and was waived in September, when he was claimed by the Pirates despite his .194 career BA. Collins went 1-for-25 in 10 games for the Bucs, playing 1B and a couple of games behind the dish. Zack’s a free agent for this campaign. 
• 2013 - Two-time All-Star Andrew McCutchen was honored with the Dapper Dan Sportsman of the Year Award. He hit .327/.400/.533 with 31 home runs in a breakout 2012 season. A total of 18 Pirates have received the Dapper Dan SOY honor, but McCutchen was only the second to be recognized in the past 20 years, and the first since Jason Kendall in 2000. 

Jonathan Sanchez - photo/MLB.com

• 2013 - The Pirates signed free agent LHP Jonathan Sanchez to a minor league deal. He broke camp as the fifth starter, but was released on May 8th after posting an 0-3/11.85 line in five outings (four starts), giving up seven homers in 13-2/3 IP. Known as “The Comeback Kid,” he was one cat who ran out of lives. He hasn’t pitched in the majors since, although he had inked minor league contracts w/the Cubs, Reds & Royals, working in the indie league and Mexico. 
• 2014 - Manager of the Year Clint Hurdle was honored as the Dapper Dan Sportsman of the Year. Hurdle joined Andrew McCutchen, Ralph Kiner, Danny Murtaugh, Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell and Dave Parker as winners of the award. Cutch was the 2013 winner, and it was the first time Pirates had won back-to-back Dapper Dans since The Cobra in 1978 and Cap’n Willie in 1979. 
• 2014 - Pirate Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner passed away at the age of 91. He was the game’s greatest home run hitter following World War II, was elected to six All-Star Games, led or tied for the NL lead in home runs in his first seven seasons in baseball and helped keep interest in Pirates baseball alive during a dismal stretch. Kiner hit .280 w/301 homers and 801 RBI in 7-1/2 Bucco campaigns (1946-53). He finished with a career line of .279 BA, 369 HRs, 1,015 RBIs and 1,451 hits while walking 100 or more times in six of his 10 MLB seasons. After his playing days, Ralph closed out his career with a 52-year gig calling New York Mets’ games. 

Tom Koehler - 2020 photo/Four Seam Images

• 2019 - The Pirates agreed on a minor league deal, including a 2020 option, with RHP Tom Koehler, 32, who spent most of the season rehabbing after having shoulder surgery last summer. The payday was $150K/$850K(MLB) w/$250K in incentives for the ‘19 season; the 2020 club option was for $1.25M + $1.25M in incentives with a $50K buyout. Koehler was a six-year vet with a 36-55/4.39 line, mostly as a starter, and last tossed in anger in 2017; he had his surgery in July of 2018 after being shut down for the season by the Dodgers. He returned to the hill in August of 2019, working four innings with five whiffs but giving up six runs while pitching the minors. Koehler came back on an NRI deal but didn’t make it out of camp, retiring in March of 2020.