Pitchers and catchers report to spring training: Sunday, February 13th
Full squad reports to Bradenton: Friday, February 18th
First spring exhibition: vs. Manatee CC, Friday, February 25th
First spring training game: at Tampa Bay, Saturday, February 26th
First home spring training game: vs. Tampa Bay, Sunday, February 27th
Opening Day: at Chicago Cubs, Tuesday, April 1st
Home opener: vs. Colorado, Thursday, April 7th
For better or worse, it's almost time to play ball. The eight players on the field look stronger, but the pitching is still a work in progress. One step at a time, hey?
Monday, February 7, 2011
Woodie Fryman RIP
Woodie Fryman, a two-time All-Star who began his career with the Pirates, died Friday night in Lexington, Kentucky. He was 70.
The portly left-hander pitched in the show for eighteen seasons, taking the hill for the Pirates, Phillies, Tigers, Expos, Cubs and Reds in a career that spanned from 1966-83.
Fryman was a tobacco farmer in Ewing, Kentucky before signing his first pro contract for $6,000 with the Pittsburgh Pirates at the age of 25 in 1965 (he returned to the farm every off-season.) Locals knew him as the "Fleming Flame" from his fireballing days at Fleming County HS; MLB fans sometimes called him Farmer Fryman.
Originally, Fryman knocked a few years of his birthday, believing that the Pirates wouldn't be interested in a prospect who was already in his mid-twenties. That little white lie led to a long and solid major league career.
After pitching a dozen games in the minors at Batavia and Columbus in 1965, he broke camp with the Bucs and made his big league debut in April of 1966, never playing another game on the farm. Now that's fast-tracked!
He joined the team's rotation in May, and in late June and early July tossed three straight shutouts, including an oh-so-close one-hitter against the Mets. He allowed a leadoff single to Ron Hunt; Hunt was caught stealing, and Fryman retired the next 26 batters.
Overall, he ended his rookie campaign with a 12-9 mark and 3.81 ERA, and was named to the Topps All-Star Rookie Team.
The next year, Fryman struck out 15 in a game against the Phillies, but after going just 3-8 with a 4.01 ERA, he was dealt to the Phillies after the season.
It was a fairly significant deal for a veteran arm; the Bucs sent him, Harold Clem, Bill Laxton, and Don Money across state to land Jim Bunning. The Bucs weren't nearly as patient with young talent like Fryman and Money back in the day as they are now.
He won 12 games and posted a 2.78 ERA in 32 starts for the Phils on the way to his first All-Star selection that season. Bunning, by comparison, won 13 games that year and was traded away before the season ended. Fryman lasted until 1972 in the City of Brotherly Love, going 46-52.
Fryman later earned some Motown love in 1972 after he was plucked off waivers by Detroit from the Phillies in early August, going 10-3 with a 2.06 ERA in sixteen outings down the stretch to lead the Tigers to the postseason. The streak included the pennant-clinching win over the Red Sox and Luis Tiant in the next-to-last game of the season.
But the fairytale story had a sour ending. He lost both of his starts against the A's in the ALCS, dropping the decisive game five 2-1. Fryman tossed a four hitter, but was outdueled by the Oakland tandem of Blue Moon Odom and Vida Blue.
He then pitched two more years in Detroit before joining the Expos in a trade for Terry Humphrey and Tom Walker, Neil's dad, and was named an All-Star again in 1976 when he won 13 games with a 3.37 ERA in 34 appearances.
Fryman finished his career as a reliever with Montreal after brief stops with the Reds and the Cubbies after trades, earning 46 saves over his last five seasons as an Expo before retiring in 1983 at the age of 43.
He said he felt his arm pop, and the truth was that he pitched much of his career with severe arthritis in his elbow. By the early-to-mid seventies, he needed an extra day of rest between starts, and it eventually drove him to the bullpen.
Fryman finished his career with 141 wins and 58 saves to go with a 3.77 ERA and tossed four one-hitters. He threw 2,411-1/3 innings over 625 games, including 322 starts, and pitched over 200 innings four times. Fryman was inducted into the Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame in 2005 and is a member of the Expos Hall of Fame.
The portly left-hander pitched in the show for eighteen seasons, taking the hill for the Pirates, Phillies, Tigers, Expos, Cubs and Reds in a career that spanned from 1966-83.
Fryman was a tobacco farmer in Ewing, Kentucky before signing his first pro contract for $6,000 with the Pittsburgh Pirates at the age of 25 in 1965 (he returned to the farm every off-season.) Locals knew him as the "Fleming Flame" from his fireballing days at Fleming County HS; MLB fans sometimes called him Farmer Fryman.
Originally, Fryman knocked a few years of his birthday, believing that the Pirates wouldn't be interested in a prospect who was already in his mid-twenties. That little white lie led to a long and solid major league career.
After pitching a dozen games in the minors at Batavia and Columbus in 1965, he broke camp with the Bucs and made his big league debut in April of 1966, never playing another game on the farm. Now that's fast-tracked!
He joined the team's rotation in May, and in late June and early July tossed three straight shutouts, including an oh-so-close one-hitter against the Mets. He allowed a leadoff single to Ron Hunt; Hunt was caught stealing, and Fryman retired the next 26 batters.
Overall, he ended his rookie campaign with a 12-9 mark and 3.81 ERA, and was named to the Topps All-Star Rookie Team.
The next year, Fryman struck out 15 in a game against the Phillies, but after going just 3-8 with a 4.01 ERA, he was dealt to the Phillies after the season.
It was a fairly significant deal for a veteran arm; the Bucs sent him, Harold Clem, Bill Laxton, and Don Money across state to land Jim Bunning. The Bucs weren't nearly as patient with young talent like Fryman and Money back in the day as they are now.
He won 12 games and posted a 2.78 ERA in 32 starts for the Phils on the way to his first All-Star selection that season. Bunning, by comparison, won 13 games that year and was traded away before the season ended. Fryman lasted until 1972 in the City of Brotherly Love, going 46-52.
Fryman later earned some Motown love in 1972 after he was plucked off waivers by Detroit from the Phillies in early August, going 10-3 with a 2.06 ERA in sixteen outings down the stretch to lead the Tigers to the postseason. The streak included the pennant-clinching win over the Red Sox and Luis Tiant in the next-to-last game of the season.
But the fairytale story had a sour ending. He lost both of his starts against the A's in the ALCS, dropping the decisive game five 2-1. Fryman tossed a four hitter, but was outdueled by the Oakland tandem of Blue Moon Odom and Vida Blue.
He then pitched two more years in Detroit before joining the Expos in a trade for Terry Humphrey and Tom Walker, Neil's dad, and was named an All-Star again in 1976 when he won 13 games with a 3.37 ERA in 34 appearances.
Fryman finished his career as a reliever with Montreal after brief stops with the Reds and the Cubbies after trades, earning 46 saves over his last five seasons as an Expo before retiring in 1983 at the age of 43.
He said he felt his arm pop, and the truth was that he pitched much of his career with severe arthritis in his elbow. By the early-to-mid seventies, he needed an extra day of rest between starts, and it eventually drove him to the bullpen.
Fryman finished his career with 141 wins and 58 saves to go with a 3.77 ERA and tossed four one-hitters. He threw 2,411-1/3 innings over 625 games, including 322 starts, and pitched over 200 innings four times. Fryman was inducted into the Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame in 2005 and is a member of the Expos Hall of Fame.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
City of Champions
GW was reading Dejan Kocacevic's piece in the Post Gazette today about championships, MVPs, and all the glory of Pittsburgh sports in the past 40 years.
GW is 61 (no, that's not in dog years!) and has raised his mug for six Steeler Super Bowl wins (and hopefully seven by tonight), three Stanley Cup championships for the Pens, Pitt's college football crown, and three World Series winning Bucco teams.
In fact, Pittsburgh first became known as the "City of Champions" when the Pirates, Pitt Panthers, and Steelers took home trophies in the seventies.
Thinking back, they all had one thing in common - the titles all came on the heels of some truly miserable stretches of losses.
Pitt in the Dave Hart/Carl DePasqua era was thinking about deemphasizing football, until Johnny Majors and the Hawk came along. The Steeler's Chuck Noll went 1-13 in 1969, his first season. The Penguins had to be terrible twice, once to draft Mario Lemieux and later to select Sidney Crosby. As recently as 2005, they had finished last for three straight seasons, followed by a lockout. They were an inch away from moving a couple of times.
And the Bucs? They rallied from their dark days of being the "Rickey-dinks" in the fifties to humble the mighty Yankees, and stayed fairly strong until the nineties.
The moral: what the Pirates are attempting to do, making chicken salad out of chicken feathers, is no sure thing. But it has been done by every team in this City. They eventually blend together the right recipe of talent, management and luck to break the losing mold.
So don't give up hope yet. As you watch the Steelers climb the stairway to seven, remember that they too were accused of being cheap and putting out their "Same old Steelers" team year after year by the fans and media. Look where they're at now.
They're at the heights the Pirates want to reach again. And if local sports history teaches us anything, it's that they'll eventually get there.
GW is 61 (no, that's not in dog years!) and has raised his mug for six Steeler Super Bowl wins (and hopefully seven by tonight), three Stanley Cup championships for the Pens, Pitt's college football crown, and three World Series winning Bucco teams.
In fact, Pittsburgh first became known as the "City of Champions" when the Pirates, Pitt Panthers, and Steelers took home trophies in the seventies.
Thinking back, they all had one thing in common - the titles all came on the heels of some truly miserable stretches of losses.
Pitt in the Dave Hart/Carl DePasqua era was thinking about deemphasizing football, until Johnny Majors and the Hawk came along. The Steeler's Chuck Noll went 1-13 in 1969, his first season. The Penguins had to be terrible twice, once to draft Mario Lemieux and later to select Sidney Crosby. As recently as 2005, they had finished last for three straight seasons, followed by a lockout. They were an inch away from moving a couple of times.
And the Bucs? They rallied from their dark days of being the "Rickey-dinks" in the fifties to humble the mighty Yankees, and stayed fairly strong until the nineties.
The moral: what the Pirates are attempting to do, making chicken salad out of chicken feathers, is no sure thing. But it has been done by every team in this City. They eventually blend together the right recipe of talent, management and luck to break the losing mold.
So don't give up hope yet. As you watch the Steelers climb the stairway to seven, remember that they too were accused of being cheap and putting out their "Same old Steelers" team year after year by the fans and media. Look where they're at now.
They're at the heights the Pirates want to reach again. And if local sports history teaches us anything, it's that they'll eventually get there.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Bus Trips
There are two important bus trips taking place this weekend for Pittsburgh sports fans. First, there's the bus leaving the North Shore on its way to Bradenton. It holds all the stuff to set up spring training; pitchers and catchers report in nine days.
Tomorrow, another bus will pull out of Fort Worth with 44 Steelers on it, heading to Dallas. It holds a team going after its seventh world championship.
Best of luck to both teams; GW and the City hopes you both end up winners.
Tomorrow, another bus will pull out of Fort Worth with 44 Steelers on it, heading to Dallas. It holds a team going after its seventh world championship.
Best of luck to both teams; GW and the City hopes you both end up winners.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Pirate Draft - Bucs To More Or Less Miss A Round
The Pirates have that coveted #1 pick in the 2011 draft for the first time since 2002 when they selected Bryan Bullington. So far the betting line is that 3B Anthony Rendon from Rice will don a Pirate cap. Goodness knows another bat in the lineup would be a most welcome sight.
Then again, college pitchers Gerrit Cole and Matthew Purke may be the apples of the FO's eyes. One of those two could be the finishing touch to a dynamite staff in, oh, 2014 or so: Jameson Taillon, James McDonald, Ross Ohlendorf, Rudy Owens, and 2011's choice, with Brad Lincoln, Justin Wilson, Bryan Morris and company also in the mix.
But we'll deal with the who-to-pick issue later. This is just to alert the loyal Pirate fandom that thanks to compensation, the Pirates pick first - and then don't have another selection until #58. They miss virtually an entire round.
There are three teams that were awarded extra first round picks in 2011 because they didn't sign their top pick in 2010. And the sandwich round, where compensation for free agent signings is given, stretches from #34-57. The Pirates even shot themselves in the foot somewhat; San Diego got pick #56 as compensation for Kevin Correia's Bucco deal.
It's jumped a few slots this year; the sandwich round ended at pick #50 last year and #49 in 2009, when the Pirates drafted Tanner Scheppers and Victor Black in the sandwich round.
Now its no surprise that Pittsburgh isn't in the compensation round - you have to lose talent to free agency to get there, and the Pirates dumped all their veteran pieces long ago. It's sorta self-regulating; the lesser teams get the higher impact players, while the more loaded teams make up in quantity what they lose in quality.
Still, having 56 picks fall between Pittsburgh's first and second selection makes it awfully hard to load up on difference makers.
Then again, college pitchers Gerrit Cole and Matthew Purke may be the apples of the FO's eyes. One of those two could be the finishing touch to a dynamite staff in, oh, 2014 or so: Jameson Taillon, James McDonald, Ross Ohlendorf, Rudy Owens, and 2011's choice, with Brad Lincoln, Justin Wilson, Bryan Morris and company also in the mix.
But we'll deal with the who-to-pick issue later. This is just to alert the loyal Pirate fandom that thanks to compensation, the Pirates pick first - and then don't have another selection until #58. They miss virtually an entire round.
There are three teams that were awarded extra first round picks in 2011 because they didn't sign their top pick in 2010. And the sandwich round, where compensation for free agent signings is given, stretches from #34-57. The Pirates even shot themselves in the foot somewhat; San Diego got pick #56 as compensation for Kevin Correia's Bucco deal.
It's jumped a few slots this year; the sandwich round ended at pick #50 last year and #49 in 2009, when the Pirates drafted Tanner Scheppers and Victor Black in the sandwich round.
Now its no surprise that Pittsburgh isn't in the compensation round - you have to lose talent to free agency to get there, and the Pirates dumped all their veteran pieces long ago. It's sorta self-regulating; the lesser teams get the higher impact players, while the more loaded teams make up in quantity what they lose in quality.
Still, having 56 picks fall between Pittsburgh's first and second selection makes it awfully hard to load up on difference makers.
Bucco Top Ten
Mark Hulet of Fangraphs has added his Bucco top ten prospect list to the fire; as usual Jameson Taillon, who has yet to throw a professional pitch but is everyone's favorite son, tops the chart.
Tony Sanchez sneaks in at the #2 spot, but as with most rankings created after the great minor league migration of Walker, Alvarez and Tabata to the show last season, it's pitcher heavy. Only Starling Marte joins Sanchez as position players on Hulet's list.
Tony Sanchez sneaks in at the #2 spot, but as with most rankings created after the great minor league migration of Walker, Alvarez and Tabata to the show last season, it's pitcher heavy. Only Starling Marte joins Sanchez as position players on Hulet's list.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Lastings Milledge Signed by White Sox
The Chicago White Sox tweeted that they signed Lastings Milledge to a minor-league contract today which includes an invite to spring training. He's looking to replace Andruw Jones as the Sox fourth OFer.
Milledge is a low risk acquisition by Chitown. As tweeted by Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, his deal is for $500K if he makes the 25-man with no incentives.
Pittsburgh picked him up in 2009 along with Joel Hanrahan in exchange for Nyjer Morgan and Sean Burnett. The former first-round pick put up a slash line of .277/4/34 in 379 at-bats for the Bucs in 2010, and wasn't offered arbitration by the Pirates this year, making him a free agent.
He did do several things right in Pittsburgh, but his erratic OF play, lack of discipline on the bases and at the plate (6% BB rate lifetime) along with his inability to go yard wrote him out of the Buccos' future plans. The Matt Diaz/Garrett Jones duo in right offer more defensive stability and a lot more pop and run production than LM could ever project to muster.
His career line over five seasons and three teams is .269/33/167 in 1,655 plate appearances with a .328 OBP.
Milledge is a low risk acquisition by Chitown. As tweeted by Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, his deal is for $500K if he makes the 25-man with no incentives.
Pittsburgh picked him up in 2009 along with Joel Hanrahan in exchange for Nyjer Morgan and Sean Burnett. The former first-round pick put up a slash line of .277/4/34 in 379 at-bats for the Bucs in 2010, and wasn't offered arbitration by the Pirates this year, making him a free agent.
He did do several things right in Pittsburgh, but his erratic OF play, lack of discipline on the bases and at the plate (6% BB rate lifetime) along with his inability to go yard wrote him out of the Buccos' future plans. The Matt Diaz/Garrett Jones duo in right offer more defensive stability and a lot more pop and run production than LM could ever project to muster.
His career line over five seasons and three teams is .269/33/167 in 1,655 plate appearances with a .328 OBP.
Neil Walker - Top Ten Second Sacker
Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune Review leaked tonight's MLB Network's local storyline: Neil Walker, 25, earned a spot on their "Top 10 Right Now: Second Basemen." He's the youngest of the players ranked.
Walker was #10, below Brian Roberts, Rickie Weeks, Kelly Johnson and Ian Kinsler, but ahead of Freddy Sanchez (#15). The ratings were based on offense, defense, upside and leadership.
Last month, MLB Network named Andrew McCutchen as the top center fielder in the game.
The show will be on tonight at 8 p.m.
Walker was #10, below Brian Roberts, Rickie Weeks, Kelly Johnson and Ian Kinsler, but ahead of Freddy Sanchez (#15). The ratings were based on offense, defense, upside and leadership.
Last month, MLB Network named Andrew McCutchen as the top center fielder in the game.
The show will be on tonight at 8 p.m.
Ryan Doumit
Mark Polishuk of MLB Trade Rumors has a post today on Ryan Doumit called "Make or Break Year."
These two lines sum it up pretty well: "It's hard to imagine a scenario that would keep Ryan Doumit in a Pirates uniform past the 2011 season...The challenge for Doumit is to both stay healthy and to play well enough to impress his next team."
These two lines sum it up pretty well: "It's hard to imagine a scenario that would keep Ryan Doumit in a Pirates uniform past the 2011 season...The challenge for Doumit is to both stay healthy and to play well enough to impress his next team."
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Talkin' Pitchin'
Frank Coonelly had his monthly MLB.com chat today, and he was talking young pitching. Here's what he had to say about where the Pirate prospects are likely to start 2011:
-- "If Rudy (Owens) is one of the top three starters coming out of Spring Training, Rudy will break camp with the Pittsburgh Pirates. A jump from Double-A to the Majors is unusual but would not be unheard of, and I certainly would not put it past Owens."
Now the question did specifically ask if Owens would join the big club if he were one of the 2-3 top starters in the spring, and he could conceivably slot at #3 with this rotation. But the prez seems to be saying that the team would rather polish him at Indy than throw him to the wolves as a back-ender this season. And make no mistake, the brass are high on Owens after being kinda meh in 2009, his breakout year.
-- He does like the 2010 Altoona staff, and a lot. "Decisions as to where Owens, Bryan Morris, Justin Wilson, Jeff Locke and Tony Watson will begin the 2011 season will be answered during Spring Training. As I mentioned above, it would be unusual but not unheard of for any of them to make the jump directly from Double-A to the Majors. A far more likely scenario would be for them to begin the 2011 season in Indianapolis and have the opportunity to earn a promotion to Pittsburgh at some point in 2011."
The FO, at least publicly, is saying the boys aren't that far away from the show. That, of course, would explain why they only signed Kevin Correia and Scott Olsen this year, so that the kids wouldn't be blocked from Pittsburgh and perhaps more importantly, from meaningful innings at Indy by AAAA arms. They'll need the work; Watson is the only one that's not a starter, and he was just converted to the pen last year.
-- On the 2010 pitching trifecta, FC says: "I would expect that Jameson (Taillon) will begin in Charleston, West Virginia, with the Power." He also hinted that Stetson Allie would start at State College, and last week, it was announced that Luis Heredia will start his days in the GCL. Each player was assigned aggressively, beginning his pro career a level higher than the usual prospect and hopefully will stay in the fast lane to the show.
And the heralded pitching class of 2009 should be spread over the two Class A clubs, with everyone on schedule so far, though no one is fast tracked yet, either.
-- "If Rudy (Owens) is one of the top three starters coming out of Spring Training, Rudy will break camp with the Pittsburgh Pirates. A jump from Double-A to the Majors is unusual but would not be unheard of, and I certainly would not put it past Owens."
Now the question did specifically ask if Owens would join the big club if he were one of the 2-3 top starters in the spring, and he could conceivably slot at #3 with this rotation. But the prez seems to be saying that the team would rather polish him at Indy than throw him to the wolves as a back-ender this season. And make no mistake, the brass are high on Owens after being kinda meh in 2009, his breakout year.
-- He does like the 2010 Altoona staff, and a lot. "Decisions as to where Owens, Bryan Morris, Justin Wilson, Jeff Locke and Tony Watson will begin the 2011 season will be answered during Spring Training. As I mentioned above, it would be unusual but not unheard of for any of them to make the jump directly from Double-A to the Majors. A far more likely scenario would be for them to begin the 2011 season in Indianapolis and have the opportunity to earn a promotion to Pittsburgh at some point in 2011."
The FO, at least publicly, is saying the boys aren't that far away from the show. That, of course, would explain why they only signed Kevin Correia and Scott Olsen this year, so that the kids wouldn't be blocked from Pittsburgh and perhaps more importantly, from meaningful innings at Indy by AAAA arms. They'll need the work; Watson is the only one that's not a starter, and he was just converted to the pen last year.
-- On the 2010 pitching trifecta, FC says: "I would expect that Jameson (Taillon) will begin in Charleston, West Virginia, with the Power." He also hinted that Stetson Allie would start at State College, and last week, it was announced that Luis Heredia will start his days in the GCL. Each player was assigned aggressively, beginning his pro career a level higher than the usual prospect and hopefully will stay in the fast lane to the show.
And the heralded pitching class of 2009 should be spread over the two Class A clubs, with everyone on schedule so far, though no one is fast tracked yet, either.
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