11/12: Cervy For Justin Wilson; Cutch Wins 4th Silver Slugger; Clint Manager of the Year; Danny Back; Twin Bill Blues; Japanese Tours; RIP Doc; HBD Ground Chuck & Dave

• 1916 - The Pittsburgh Press’ Ernest Lanigan wrote “No one knows who invented doubleheaders, the gentleman who did so refusing to step up...and claim the dubious honor. Jimmy Callahan, the Pirates field boss, would like to meet the person responsible...” His Pirates were swamped by bargain baseball, playing 34 twin bills during 1916, almost 45% of the schedule, with just 14 at Forbes Field, and finishing a dismal 27-39-2 playing them. “Barney’s Buccaneers” actually weren’t very good in any scheduling configuration - their record was only a smidge better at 38-50 in single games that year. 
• 1951 - It was announced that five players who were part of a 15-game American-Japanese Goodwill Baseball Tour would spend two days in Korea with the troops during the week before heading home. One of the players selected was Pirates infielder George Strickland (P Bill Werle was also part of the US team). Bo was no stranger to military life, as he had served in the South Pacific with the Navy from 1944-46. The tour, led by Lefty O’Doul, was the first of six by the MLB between 1951-58 and helped find common ground between the two WW2 foes. O’Doul had led an earlier 1949 tour, at the request of General MacArthur, with the SF Seals club of the Pacific Coast League. 
• 1964 - LHP Dave Otto was born in Chicago. He worked parts of eight seasons in the show with a stop at Pittsburgh in 1993, going 3-4/5.03 in 28 outings. Dave was 6’7,” two-sport star (hoops & baseball) at the U of Missouri and a member of the University’s Sports Hall of Fame. Since his retirement, he’s been a sports announcer in Chicago and instructor at a sports academy. 

Dave Otto - 1993 photo via Autograph Warehouse

• 1967 - Doctor Charles Jorgensen passed away. “Doc” was the Pirates trainer for 30 years until he retired in 1958, working under nine field managers (Jewel Ens, George Gibson, Pie Traynor, Frankie Frisch, Billy Herman, Bill Meyer, Fred Haney, Bobby Bragan and Danny Murtaugh) and four team presidents (Barney Dreyfuss, Bill Benswanger, Frank McKinney and John Galbreath) during his three-decade stint as the Bucs’ main medico. 
• 1970 - Danny Murtaugh, 53, announced that he would return to manage the team in 1971 after addressing some health issues and getting the OK from his family. He brought back his same staff - heir apparent Bill Virdon, Dave Ricketts, Frank Oceak, Don Leppert and Don Osborn. Murtaugh guided the club to the World Series title in 1971 before handing over the reins to The Quail in the following season. The Irishman would be back to serve one last time from 1973-76. 
• 1983 - RHP Charlie Morton was born in Flemington, New Jersey. The promising righty came to Pittsburgh in 2009 as part of Nate McLouth’s trade to Atlanta. Despite excellent stuff (he earned the nickname "Ground Chuck" for his ground ball deliveries), Morton was in-and-out of the rotation because of various injuries and spotty performances, going 41-62/4.39 over seven seasons. He was traded to the Phils, but was put out of action early in the campaign with a torn hamstring. Charlie found a boost going to the Astros in 2017, relying more with his hard stuff to become a rotation mainstay and then tossed like Mr. October of the slab set with Game Seven wins for Houston in the ALCS and WS. He moved on in 2019 and went 5-2 in the postseason with the Rays and Braves; he’s pitched in the postseason since 2017 with a line of 7-5/3.60. 
• 2013 - Clint Hurdle, who guided the Pirates to their first winning record in 21 years and to the NLDS, was named the NL Manager of the Year by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Clint was the first Pirates manager to win the award since Jim Leyland in 1992 and he did it easily by winning on 25 of the 30 ballots cast, leaving the Dodgers’ Don Mattingly and the Braves' Fredi Gonzalez in the dust. New Brighton’s Terry Francona won the AL honor. 

Justin Wilson - 2013 Topps

• 2014 - LHP Justin Wilson was traded to the New York Yankees for C Francisco Cervelli. It marked the third straight offseason that the Bucs took on a Yankee catcher, signing FA Russ Martin for the 2013-14 seasons and acquiring Chris Stewart for the 2014 campaign. Fran had a pair of strong campaigns, and the Bucs signed Cervy to a three-year, $31M extension in 2016 before releasing him to Atlanta in 2019. Wilson got a lot of work, too, appearing 527 times in 11 seasons with the Yankees (twice), Tigers, Cubs, Mets, Reds and Brewers. He’s been on ice since mid-April of ‘22 with TJ surgery followed by a lat injury and is now a FA. 
• 2014 - MLB sent a squad overseas to open a 10-day, five-game Japanese All-Star series, the first since 2006. Mark Melancon represented the Pirates, along with ex-Bucs Jose Veras, Eric Katz and Justin Morneau. The team played five games in Osaka, Tokyo and Sapporo, with exhibitions in Koshien and Okinawa. For The Shark, it was just another goodwill trip in a long string of overseas MLB camps held in South Africa, Taiwan, China, New Zealand and Australia. 
• 2015 - Andrew McCutchen became the first Bucco to win four Silver Slugger awards, breaking a logjam with Barry Bonds, Bobby Bonilla and Rick Rhoden, each of whom took home three trophies (Bonds & Rhoden consecutively). It was the fourth straight year he took the honor, hitting .292 with 23 HRs and 96 RBI in 2015 after falling below the Mendoza Line by the end of April.