2/18: HBD Luis, Manny, Bob & Bruce

• 1927 - LHP Luis Arroyo was born in in Penuelas, Puerto Rico. “Tite” (a Latino nickname for Enrique, his middle name) was a screwballer who got a lot of ground outs. He tossed for the Bucs between 1956-57, with 12 starts in 72 appearances and a 6-14-2/4.69 ERA. After a year in AAA, he was converted full time to relief and spent his last four seasons in Yankee pinstripes, winning a World Series game and earning an All-Star nod in 1961.
• 1938 - OF Manny 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.

Manny Mota 1967 Dexter Press

• 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), while pitching 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 tossing in the majors in the late 1950s, and in fact was teammates with Bob G. Miller in 1962 with the Mets.
• 1950 - RHP 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.

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)

2/18-19: Manny Mota, Bob Miller, Bruce Kison, AJ...

Manny Mota, Bob Miller, Bruce Kison, AJ...

• February 18, 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. 

Topps 1967 Set Break series

• February 18, 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. 
• February 18, 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. 
• February 19, 2012 - The Pirates had AJ Burnett drop in their laps. The Yankees sent him to Pittsburgh for farm hands Diego Moreno and Exicardo Cayones and agreed to pay $20M of the $33M remaining on the last two years of his contract.