9/9 From 1970: Robby Rakin'; Promised Land!; 21's Day; Ollie K; I-BB; DL Daze; Cutch Cover; Bye Freddy; Rules Tweaks; Game Tales; HBD Wil & Dan

• 1970 - RHP Dan Miceli was born in Newark. The reliever spent the first four years (1993-96) of his 14-season career in Pittsburgh, going 8-15-24/5.41 during that span. He was known for a power arm and shaky control throughout his MLB journey. In 2003, he gained entry into a club with just a handful of members, that of players who appeared for four different teams during the same season. 
• 1987 - The Bucs nipped the Cubs, 4-3, when an unlikely suspect, reliever Jeff Robinson, went yard on ace Chicago closer Lee Smith with two out in the ninth at Wrigley Field, smashing the first pitch into the bleachers. Coach Rick Donnelly told Paul Meyer of the Post Gazette that “Jeff Robinson and Lee Smith could stand out there the rest of their lives and not have that happen again.” Robinson agreed - “It was pretty much of a fluke,” he admitted. Still, a great series for Jeff; not only did he go deep for his first Pirates win, but two days prior, he tossed an immaculate inning against Chicago to post his first Bucco save. Jim Leyland told the media that he let Robinson bat because he thought he had the best shot at retiring the Cubs in the ninth and getting the game to Jim Gott. Robby did get the closer Gott on the mound an inning sooner than expected, and he struck out two for the save. RJ Reynolds led the attack with two hits and two RBI. 
• 1991 - Jay Bell went 4-for-4 with a homer in Pittsburgh’s 12-10 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. The Pirates trailed, 10-8, in the ninth inning after blowing an early 6-0 lead before rookie Orlando Merced connected for a three-run, pinch-hit homer to trigger Pittsburgh’s game-winning four-run frame. As the score indicated, the wind was blowing out - each team homered three times, doubled three times and together banged out 29 hits while burning through 12 pitchers. Stan Belinda claimed the win while Rosario Rodriguez nailed the save. 

Jay Bell - 1991 Bowman

• 1992 - With the score tied in the bottom of the sixth with two on, one out and first base open, the Cubs intentionally walked Barry Bonds. It was his 28th IBB of the year, breaking the Bucs' single season record that was set in 1968 by Roberto Clemente (Bonds finished up with 32 by year’s end). The seemingly sound stratagem backfired, though, when Jeff King hit the first pitch he saw from Ken Patterson over the left field wall for his second career grand slam, a response to Ryne Sandburg’s granny in the top half of the frame that had briefly put the Cubbies ahead. Gary Varsho and Jay Bell also went long (Varsho’s was the first Pirates pinch-hit homer of the year) as Pittsburgh prevailed, 13-8, at TRS, with Danny Cox getting the blown save/win combo. 
• 1994 - RHP Wil Crowe was born in Kingston, Tennessee. He fought back from TJ surgery in college to become a second-round pick of the Nationals in 2017. Crowe debuted in 2020 and was traded in the off season to the Pirates as part of the Josh Bell deal. Despite a shaky start with Washington, he pitched solidly in the spring and went north with the big team and joined the rotation in late April. He was converted to the pen in 2022 and found a home there, slashing 6-10-4/4.38 while making a team-leading 60 outings and tossing a bullpen-leading 76 innings. He was injured late in the year and he started 2023 slowly. Crowe was put on the IL in April with a bum shoulder and DFA’ed in July. He went unclaimed and was outrighted to Indy, where he hasn’t impressed. 
• 1999 - The Pirates gave up on 3B Freddy Garcia, trading the 27-year-old Rule 5 pick (1995) to the Atlanta Braves for RHP Greg Dukeman. Garcia, who had hit .221 in his four-year Bucco career, got three at bats with the Bravos to end his MLB career. Dukeman worked in the minors before hangin’ ‘em up after the 2003 campaign, never advancing past High Class A. 

Freddy Garcia - 1999 Fleer Ultra

• 2001 - Ryan Vogelsong had to leave the game with a sore elbow in a 5-3 loss to the Reds at PNC Park. The rookie righty, who had just been dealt for on July 30th, needed TJ surgery and was lost for the entire 2002 campaign. He joined Jason Schmidt (11 months missed), Kris Benson (missed all of 2001) and Francisco Cordova (never returned after 2000) as Bucco hurlers who had reconstructive surgery in the past 14 months. The other piece of trade that brought Vogey to Pittsburgh, Armando Rios, tore his ACL after playing just two games for the Bucs. Though not injury related, other than shooting oneself in the foot, the Pirates stranded 15 runners in the loss. The only bright spot was Humberto Cota, who spanked a pinch hit single for his first MLB hit and RBI. 
• 2004 - It was a good day for Ollie Perez, who ended the Astro’s 13-game winning streak with a 14-strikeout performance at PNC Park. He gave up three hits and an unearned run in eight frames to become the second Pirates pitcher - Bob Veale was the other - in history to crack the 200-K mark (Ed “Cannonball” Morris fanned 328 in 1886, but the team doesn’t recognize that as the Pittsburgh Alleghenys were in the American Association then) while winning his 10th game of the year, 3-1. The Bucs only had six hits themselves (Jose Castillo had three), but RBIs by Jason Kendall, Tony Alvarez and Ty Wigginton were enough to carry the day, with Jose Mesa nailing it down for the save in the ninth. It was the opener of a twilight twin bill; Houston avenged the defeat by romping, 9-2, in the nightcap. Perez ended the year with 239 whiffs; the Pirates modern single-season record belongs to Veale, who fanned 276 batters in 1965. 
• 2007 - Sparked by a dazzling catch by Nyjer Morgan and an almost inside-the-park granny by Freddy Sanchez, the Bucs beat the Cubs, 10-5, at PNC Park. The Bucs had an early 6-2 lead thanks to Steady Freddy’s bases-juiced triple (he was thrown out at home on a bang-bang call). The following inning, Aramis Ramirez spanked a ball the opposite way and Nyjer, who had played him to pull, made a diving catch at the corner of the Clemente Wall in right center to rob A-Ram, while barely avoiding right fielder Steve Pearce, who had to hurdle Morgan. Matt Morris went six innings for the win, followed by three relievers who held down the fort. 

Nyjer Morgan - 2008 Topps Rookie Stars

• 2013 - The Pirates clinched their first winning season since 1992 with a 1-0 win over Yu Darvish and the Texas Rangers at the Ballpark in Arlington. Rookie Gerrit Cole went seven innings of three-hit ball, walking a pair and striking out nine, with Tony Watson and Mark Melancon pitching two innings of one-hit ball to seal the deal. The game was scoreless until two outs in the seventh when Marlon Byrd and Pedro Alvarez hit back-to-back doubles to produce the game’s only run. The win broke a four-game losing streak and moved the Pirates within a game of first place St. Louis, though the Cards held on to win the Central by three games. 
• 2013 - Andrew McCutchen was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated as part of Lee Jenkins story “The Bucs Start Here.” Cutch won the National League MVP that year with a .317/.404/.508 slash. 
• 2016 - The Pirates were in a bad way, having lost four in a row and 12 of 14, and it looked like more of the same at Citizens Park against the Phils. Despite 11 K and stellar pitching by Ivan Nova, some sloppy fielding and an eighth inning wild spree by reliever Felipe Rivero had them in a 3-2 hole going into the ninth. Fran Cervelli led off with a walk against former Pirate Jeanmar Gomez, and Jordy Mercer, after fouling off a bunt, doubled him to third. Sean Rodriguez came off the bench, got a 2-2 fastball and lined it over the RF wall to lead Pittsburgh to a 5-3 win. It was the first time in 140 games that the Bucs had rallied from a ninth inning deficit. It was also the first ninth-inning or later pinch hit dinger to give the Bucs a come-from-behind lead since Rob Mackowiak’s blast in 2003. 
• 2016 - It was a busy day for Bucco trainers. Gerrit Cole was shut down with elbow inflammation, Josh Harrison’s year was done after a groin injury, catcher Chris Stewart took a trip to see Dr. Andrews with a knee injury that would require off-season surgery and minor league C Elias Diaz, a 2017 roster candidate, was out with cellulitis. In addition, relievers Neftali Feliz (arm) and AJ Schugel were also hors d’ combat and inactive, requiring the Bucs to call up minor league catcher Jacob Stallings and hurler Zach Phillips, then deal for pitcher Wade LeBlanc to fill the roster, even with the original wave of September call-ups on hand. 

Gerrit Cole - 2016 Topps Opening Day

• 2020 - On MLB’s Roberto Clemente Day, all the Pittsburgh Pirates and every MLB Puerto Rican ballplayer wore #21 during their game. Joey Cora became the first Bucco Puerto Rican to wear the retired 21 since Clemente. None of it helped as the Bucs were trounced, 8-1, by the White Sox at PNC Park. 
• 2022 - The MLB Joint Competition Committee, in a split decision, voted to restrict defensive shifts, use a pitch clock, limit pickoffs/step-offs, and increase the size of the bases (from 15-to-18”) to address pace of play and player safety issues. The changes were first unveiled and tested in minor league play and took effect in 2023. Robo umps didn’t make the cut in this round.