1/9: Dreyfuss' Folly; Burleigh Traded; Burnitz Signed; Dirt Passes Away

• 1910 - Dreyfuss’ Folly, Forbes Field, drew some raves from the local press after a busy debut season. The Pittsburg Press noted that “...from its opening to the end of football season, Forbes Field drew nearly one million fans...nothing even approaching this record was ever made at any other athletic venue.” Half the crowd was attracted by baseball; the remainder filled the seats for football, track meets, hippodrome events, police drills, and even a Communion service as the Oakland ballyard quickly become Pittsburgh’s big-event host.

Forbes Field 1909 - photo via RW Johnston

• 1918 - The Pirates traded P Burleigh Grimes to the Brooklyn Robins along with P Al Mamaux and SS Chuck Ward for 2B George Cutshall and OF Casey Stengel, who was making his second stop at Pittsburgh. Hall of Famer Grimes went on to win 158 games in nine seasons with Brooklyn. The Bucs top prize was Cutshaw, who manned second for Pittsburgh for four years, hitting .275 and providing solid up-the-middle defense.
• 2006 - 37 year old OF Jeromy Burnitz was signed to a $6M contract by the Bucs. He hit .230 for Pittsburgh during his last year in the majors; the Pirates opted not to renew his contract and the following spring, Burnitz announced his retirement after 14 seasons during which he logged 315 HR and 981 RBI while playing for seven teams.

Jeromy Burnitz - photo Jay Drowns/Getty Images

• 2014 - Steve “Dirt” DiNardo, who had been the head groundskeeper at Three Rivers Stadium after starting as a part-timer at Forbes Field in 1961 (he retired in 1994), passed away at the age of 82. Dirt was legendary for his tricks, once alleged to have lowered the bullpen mounds of heated rivals the Cincinnati Reds when they were in town along with feats of homerism on behalf of the Steelers.

1/8: HBD Augie & Bo; Goose Voted In

• 1934 - IF Gene Freese was born in Wheeling, West Virginia. Augie went to Wheeling Central HS and West Liberty State College, spending two stints (1955-58, 64-65) and six years with the Bucs. Mostly a reserve with Pittsburgh, he hit .247 as a Pirate, though while between Bucco rosters, he started at third for three years at Cincinnati, hitting 26 homers in 1961, helping the Reds to their first NL flag in 21 years. After he retired, Freese settled near New Orleans where he ran a sports bar. Freese had a history with nicknames; he claimed to have given Pete Rose his “Charlie Hustle” moniker. Gene had his nickname hung on him in 1955 thanks to Ebbets Field PA announcer Tex Ricard, who was noted for confusing names and introduced him as Augie, per former Bucco player and announcer Nellie King.

Gene Freese 1965 Topps

• 1969 - RHP Brian Boehringer was born in St. Louis, Missouri. The reliever closed out his 10 year MLB career in Pittsburgh between 2002-04, with a Bucco record of 10-9-1, 4.36 ERA. He had a sharp 2002 season, making 70 appearances and pitching to a 3.39 ERA, but couldn’t keep up the pace during his final two campaigns.
• 2008 - In his ninth year on the BBWAA's ballot, Rich “Goose” Gossage was the only player elected to the Hall of Fame. During Goose's' 22-year career, he compiled a 124-107 record, saved 310 games, and posted a 3.01 ERA. He spent 1977 as a Pirate, going 11-9-26 with a 1.62 ERA and 151 K in 133 IP. Goose was inducted on July 27th.

1/7: HBD Kitty, Ducky, Al & Ted; McClatchy Sells Out

• 1875 - 1B William “Kitty” Bransfield was born in Worcester, Massachusetts. He played four seasons for Pittsburgh (1901-04), batting .271, and started for the 1903 Pirate team that played in the first recognized World Series, losing to the Boston Americans. He played through the 1911 season and then spent time as an minor league umpire, Cubs scout and briefly as a farm team manager. Per David Anderson of the SABR Biography Project, “His original nickname was "Kid," but a reporter with bad hearing heard it as "Kitty" and the name stuck.”

Kitty - 1907 Bains New Service photo via the Library of Congress

• 1902 - C Al Todd was born in Troy, NY. Todd spent from 1936-38 as a Pirate after coming over in a deal with the Phillies. He started the last two seasons, compiling a .282 BA during that span before being traded to the Boston Bees. He hung up the spikes at age 39 after the 1943 season and worked as a minor league manager and scout for several years after his playing career ended.
• 1921 - OF Ted Beard was born in Woodsboro, Maryland. He played for the Pirates as a reserve outfielder from 1948-52, batting .203, after losing three years to WW2 as a medic. A top prospect, Ted had speed and showed some occasional flashes of power (he became the second player, after Babe Ruth, to clear the RF roof at Forbes Field), but was fated to become a AAAA player. He had great success playing for the Hollywood Stars & San Francisco Seals in the Pacific Coast League and later Indianapolis through the fifties and into the early sixties.
• 1935 - IF Dick “Ducky” (his dad’s nickname that followed Schofield around; prob a play on Dickie) Schofield was born in Springfield, Illinois. He played eight (1958-65) of his 19 big league years with the Pirates, and took over for an injured Dick Groat during the 1960 title stretch run, hitting .333 to help the Bucs take the NL title without looking back. Schofield was a regular infielder from 1963-65, but his BA (.248 as a Pirate, .227 overall) limited him to a backup role through most of his career.

Ducky - 1960 Topps

• 2009 - Selling the last of his remaining shares in the Pirates, Kevin McClatchy ended his 13-year relationship with the team. After local ownership failed to materialize in 1996, the former managing general partner guaranteed that the struggling club would stay in Pittsburgh by finding shareholders and securing the $95M financing needed to buy the franchise. Bob Nutting became the majority stockholder in 2007 and ushered in Frank Coonelly and Neal Huntington when the season ended.

Notes: Feliz Signed, Sanchez Goes; Lee, Bastardo & Plouffe Balloons; Camp Invites

The wheels keep on turning:

• Neftali Feliz signed a one year/$3.9M contract with the Bucs, according to Jeff Passan's report. He was pretty terrible last year, but is going into his age 28 season with 97 saves. The Bucs are apparently convinced that his arm woes - he came back from TJ surgery in 2014 and an old elbow issue - are behind him, and little Uncle Ray tinkering will buff him up. Feliz, a fastball/slider guy, is down in his velo a bit, but still brought it at 94-95 last year, a tick above his 2014 speed. EDIT: C Tony Sanchez was later announced as the 40-man roster loser; we thought the Bucs were holding on to see if he could be used as a trade piece, but apparently not.

Neftali Feliz - 2009 Topps Heritage

• Mike Axisa of CBS Sports thinks that the Bucs are one of a handful of clubs that are a good fit for Cliff Lee.
• ESPN's Buster Olney tweeted that "The Orioles and Mets have been among those teams involved in talks with lefty reliever Antonio Bastardo." 
• How to solve the Buccos clean-up hitter dilemma? Tim Boyle of Inning Eaters suggests benching Jordy, playing Jung-Ho at short, and trading for the Twins 3B Trevor Plouffe, who may be available because of Miguel Sano's ascent.
• It's getting closer by the minute. The Pirates first full-squad spring drills will begin on February 23rd at Pirate City. Pitchers & catchers report on the 17th to kick off camp.
• Non-roster (not on the 40-man) invitees to camp so far are P Wilfredo Boscan, P Steven Brault, IF Juan Diaz, C Ed Easley, IF Cole Figueroa, P Jim Fuller, IF Adam Frazier, IF Dan Gamache, P Chad Kuhl, P Kelvin Marte, C Reese McGuire, OF Danny Ortiz, P Curtis Parch, OF Antoan Richardson, C Jacob Stallings, P Trevor Williams and P Robert Zarate. Diaz, Easley, Fuller & Marte are recent MiLB signs with invites.

1/5-6: HBD JR, Lee; Bert Gets the Call to the Hall

• January 5, 1961 - Manager John Russell was born in Oklahoma City. While with the Rangers, he caught Nolan Ryan's 6th career no-hitter in 1990. He ended his 10 year career with a .225 batting average, 34 home runs and 129 RBI in 448 games. After hanging up the spikes, he made some coaching stops and managed the Bucs from 2008-10 during some dark seasons, with a record of 186-299. It wasn’t his first stop in Pittsburgh; JR had been Lloyd McClendon’s third base coach from 2003-05. He’s currently the Baltimore Oriole's bench coach.

John Russell (photo Associated Press)

• January 5, 2011 - After a 14 year wait, curve ball king RHP Bert Blyleven was elected to the Hall of Fame. He won 34 games for Pittsburgh between 1978-80, his stay cut short because the Dutchman publicly disagreed with Chuck Tanner, who went to his bullpen early and often rather than letting pitchers get deep in close games. In a 22 year MLB career, Blyleven claimed 287 victories and 3,701 strikeouts, and was inducted into the Hall on July 24th.

Bert Blyleven (Hall of Fame presentation)

• January 6, 1933 - OF Lee Walls was born in San Diego. He played three years in all three outfield positions for Pittsburgh (1952, 1956-57) and put up a .259 BA before being traded to the Cubs in May of 1957. Walls was a Cub starter for three years, earning an All-Star berth in 1958, but spent the back end of his career as a bench player.

Lee Walls 1957 Topps

Notes: Mark the Shark, Fran, Jaso, Masterson, & Ex/Future Buccos

Welcoming in the New Year:

• Per Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, the Pirates are one of "eight to ten" teams to show interest in Justin Masterson, who's said to be recovering nicely after shoulder surgery.No surprise; he's been on their list for a couple of off seasons.
• Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wrote of Mark the Shark: "He has been available all winter in the right deal, but as time passes, it seems more and more likely that Melancon, who led the majors with 51 saves last season, will remain a Pirate...Because the Pirates will again be playoff contenders, he may not be available at the trade deadline." So it's more than possible that the Bucs, if they remain in contention again, will keep Melancon all the way through his walk year.

The Shark & Fran (photo Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

• Adam Berry of MLB.com has a piece on Fran Cervelli. He says he loves it here, but no extension talks yet - and this is his walk year.
• We wouldn't worry too much about John Jaso's effort to become a competent first baseman. He told the MLB Radio Network that one reason he chose the Bucs is because "It's exciting to put leather on my hand."
• CSN Chicago's Dave Andracki takes a look at the Buccos' off season with a quick peek at the Cubbies winter, too.
• Jim Callis of MLB.com looks for big things from Pirate prospects 3B Ke'Bryan Hayes and CF Harold Ramirez.
• Who knew? WV Black Bear manager and cup-of-coffee Bucco catcher Wayne Torregas is a member of the Chickasaw Nation. 
• The Rangers have signed former Bucco C Michael "Fort" McKenry and LHP Donnie Veal, a Pirate Rule 5 claim from 2009, to minor league contracts. McKenry got a spring training invite.
• Dave Mackall of the Trib has a piece on Elizabeth native and Elizabeth Forward Warrior grad JJ Hoover of the Reds.

1/4: Bucs Bring In Sam, Skates, Lance & Starling

• 1886 - St. Louis owner Chris Von Der Ahe sold the rights to IF Sam Barkley to the Alleghenys, despite the fact that the infielder had already signed a contract with the Orioles; because they were late in sending Von Der Ahe their check for Barkley’s rights, he unilaterally voided the deal and shipped him to Pittsburgh instead. The American Association eventually resolved the controversial case by allowing Barkley to play for the Alleghenys, and sending Milt Scott from Pittsburgh to Baltimore as compensation. Additionally, the Browns were allowed to keep the $1,000 they received from Pittsburgh for Barkley's reserve rights. For all that, Barkley hit .248 in his two years with the club, splitting time between first and second base.

Sam Barkley 1887 Gold Coin

• 1993 - The Pirates signed OF Lonnie “Skates” (due to his somewhat awkward footwork and quirky routes while playing the outfield) Smith to a one year/$1M deal. He put up a line of .286/6/24, with a .422 OBP and nine stolen bases before he was flipped to the Orioles in September for two career minor leaguers, Terry Farrar and Stanton Cameron. The Pirates were Smith’s fifth team; he had reached the World Series with the first four (and was on the winning side for three of them) but his championship streak bottomed out as a Bucco.
• 1996 - The Pirates purchased the contract of free agent and eight-time All-Star catcher Lance Parrish from the Tigers. He had caught for the Bucs in 1993, hitting .270 in a backup role, but Father Time caught up to him - he was entering his age 40 season, and he didn’t make it out of camp with Pittsburgh, marking the end of his career. Since then, he’s been an announcer, minor league manager and MLB coach. Lance was a local boy, born in Clairton, though he was raised in California. Parrish had a scholarship offer to play football at UCLA, but made what proved to be a wise choice by focusing on baseball.

Lance Parrish 1995 Fleer

• 2007 - Rene Gayo signed Dominican OF Starling Marte for $85,000 in perhaps the best Latin signing of Dave Littlefield’s watch. Marte was sought by several teams, and his stock took off after he switched from SS to CF. The deciding factor was said to be that Gayo had a good working relationship with Marte’s buscon (agent), tilting the field toward the Buccos.

1/3: HBD, AJ, Gus & Mark; Bucs Pay Off; Clemente Fund Born

• 1906 - 1B Gus Suhr was born in San Francisco. He spent 9-1/2 seasons (1930-39) with the Pirates, hitting .279 with a .386 OPB and driving in 818 runs, earning an All-Star berth in 1936. Suhr played 1,339 games at first base for Pittsburgh, a team record, and once held the NL standard of 822 consecutive games played, which lasted until 1957. The record-snapping game he missed wasn’t due to injury; he took off to attend his mother’s funeral.
• 1961 - The Pittsburgh Press reported that the Pirate owners collected their first dividend check since buying the club off the Dreyfuss family in 1946, citing increased attendance thanks to the 1960 World Series championship. They got $4/share. John Galbreath was the main man and majority team owner from 1946-85.

John Galbreath 1967 (photo via Columbus Business Times)

• 1965 - RHP Mark Dewey was born in Grand Rapids, MI. Mark went 3-3-8/3.23 for the Bucs out of the pen from 1993-94. After retirement, he coached for the Washington Wild Things, and is now coaching in the Brewers organization.
• 1973 - President Nixon gave a $1,000 check in Roberto Clemente's memory to the Nicaraguan embassy. At the President's request, Dan Galbreath, owner of the Pirates, along with Dave Giusti and Steve Blass, met with him at the White House to discuss setting up a fund in Clemente's honor to aid the survivors of the earthquake. Thus was born the Roberto Clemente Memorial Fund to aid the earthquake victims with Richard Nixon as the first donor.
• 1977 - RHP AJ Burnett was born in North Little Rock, Arkansas. The veteran tossed for two years in Pittsburgh (2012-13) after being obtained from the Yankees in a Gotham salary dump, with a line of 26-21 with a 3.41 ERA, averaging a whiff per frame. After a rough season in Philly, he returned for his final year in 2015. He went 9-7/3.18 in 26 starts, coming back in September from an All-Star break elbow inflammation to close out his 17th season, collecting 164 wins and 2,513 whiffs for five teams over that span.

AJ (photo Justin Aller/Getty Images)

• 2006 - 3B Joe Randa was signed as a free agent for his second go-around with the Pirates. He was inked to a $4M deal, nearly double his 2005 salary at Cincinnati. Joe hit .267 in 89 games in what would be his last MLB season, losing his job to Freddy Sanchez and then announcing his retirement in November.

1/2: HBD Mad Dog, Bill; Sure Shot & Mike Williams Sign Deals

• 1888 - 2B Fred “Sure Shot” Dunlap signed with the Alleghenys following the sale of his contract by the Detroit Wolverines. He agreed to a $5‚000 salary and a $2‚000 bonus‚ making him the highest-paid player of the time. Sure Shot got his nickname because of his strong and accurate arm. The rangy defensive whiz played three years for the team, hitting just .240 (his lifetime BA was .292). Alfred Spink in “The National Game” wrote that Dunlap was ambidextrous and was able to catch and throw a baseball with the same skill and accuracy with either hand. Moreover, Dunlap reportedly never wore a glove.

  

  Sure Shot - 2014 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions

• 1894 - C Bill Wagner was born in Jessup, Iowa. The light hitting reserve (he also played 1B) was a Bucco from 1914-17, putting up a .205 BA in Pittsburgh. He was then sold to the Boston Braves, and 1918 was his last MLB season.
• 1951 - 3B Bill “Mad Dog” Madlock was born in Memphis. The third baseman played seven seasons for the Bucs (1979-85) with a line of .297/.357/.428 while leading the league in hitting in 1981 (.341) and 1983 (.323). He was a key part of the 1979 Championship team, batting .333 in the playoffs and World Series after coming from San Francisco in a June trade for Ed Whitson. The nickname? Madlock had a fiery temper, and was ejected from 18 games during his career. 

Mad Dog - 1984 Donruss Diamond Kings

• 2002 - The Pirates signed a two-year deal with RHP Mike Williams worth $5.5M. After two years and 74 saves, Williams put up another 25 saves in 2003, but with a 6.27 ERA. He was traded to the Phillies, and 2004 was his last MLB season. His saving grace in Pittsburgh was his swing-and-miss stuff - Williams whiffed 250 batters in 222-⅔ IP as a Buc.

1/1: HBD Gunner & Hammerin' Hank; Josh Gibson Breakdown

• 1855 - Manager Bill “Gunner” McGunnigle was born in Boston. After his playing career was ended by a beanball that fractured his skull, McGunnigle stayed in the game as a manager. When the 1891 Pittsburg Pirates (the first to officially use the Pirate nickname) got off to a 31–47 start on the heels of a 23–113 season, the club demoted captain/manager Ned Hanlon and hired McGunnigle, who had a prior stop at Brooklyn. He managed the club to a 24–33-2 record over the remainder of the year and was replaced by Tom Burns. The dapper Gunner was tough to miss on the field. He managed and coached the bases wearing black patent-leather shoes, a cutaway suit coat, lavender trousers, a silk tie and a derby hat. His nickname, btw, wasn't a play on his surname; he earned it in the minors because of the strength of his arm, per Gunner's SABR bio written by Ronald Shafer.

  

  Bill "Gunner" McGunnigle - 1990 Target

• 1911 - Hall of Fame OF Hank Greenberg was born in New York City. He played for the Bucs in 1948, teaming up with Ralph Kiner in the middle of the Pirate order. The original Hammerin’ Hank signed for $90-100,000 (the actual figure is in dispute), the biggest contract inked to date. Team co-owner Bing Crosby recorded a song, "Goodbye, Mr. Ball, Goodbye" with Groucho Marx and Greenberg to celebrate Greenberg's arrival. The Pirates also brought in the left field fence at Forbes Field for him, calling it "Greenberg Gardens" and keeping it intact during the Kiner era. Though he hit just .249 in Pittsburgh, he had a .408 OBP (he was walked 104 times), launched 25 HR and tutored Kiner in his final MLB season.
• 1943 - C Josh Gibson suffered a nervous breakdown and was admitted to St. Francis Hospital for rest and treatment. He was released in time to play for the Homestead Grays. The Pirates reportedly wanted to sign the future Hall of Famer that season as the first black player in baseball, but were thwarted by the commissioner, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis. The color line wouldn’t be crossed until Landis died in 1944 and Happy Chandler replaced him in 1945. Although he never got a MLB shot, Gibson was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1972. 

Josh Gibson via The Josh Gibson Foundation