3/5: Scott, Gravedigger Sign; WBC Bucs; Foxy HoF; HBD Sam; Teke, Erik, Al, Del, Larry, Handsome Harry & Earl

• 1911 - 1B/OF Earl Browne was born in Louisville. A noted minor league slugger, Brown began his MLB career in Pittsburgh, getting into 17 games from 1935-36 and hitting .273 before closing out with two more seasons with Philadelphia. Browne did enjoy a 22-year career in minor league baseball as a southpaw pitcher, outfielder and first baseman with a .304 lifetime BA. 
• 1915 - RHP “Handsome Harry” Shuman (guess he was a looker) was born in Philadelphia. Shuman got his big break in 1936 when the pre-law student was a pitcher for Temple U and a friend asked him to toss batting practice to the Philadelphia Athletics. A's skipper Connie Mack was impressed by his arm and signed him to a minor league contract. He cracked the majors when got into a dozen games from 1942-43 for the Pirates, going 0-0/4.88. He spent 1944 with Philadelphia and then was traded to the LA Angels, then of the PCL. Handsome Harry had a family in Philly and didn’t want to travel that far, so he retired rather than report to the left coast. He stayed in Philly and worked a series of government/political jobs. 

Al Monchak - 1980 Pittsburgh Press profile

• 1917 - Coach Al Monchak was born in Bayonne, NJ. After his playing days (he had a cup of coffee with the Phils), he was a scout, instructor and minor league manager. Then he hooked up with Chuck Tanner and coached for the White Sox, Athletics, Braves and Pirates (1977-84) as Chuck’s first base coach and infield tutor. He was named the 2009 winner of the Roland Hemond Award by Baseball America in December 2009. The award recognizes baseball figures who have made long-term contributions to scouting and player development operations. 
• 1930 - C Del Crandall was born in Ontario, California. The long-time Braves receiver made a 1965 stop in Pittsburgh late in his 16-year career after the Pirates sent Bob Burda and Bob Priddy to the Giants for his services. He was 35-years-old and got into 60 games, batting .214, before being released after the year to spend his final season in Cleveland. Del later managed the Brewers and Mariners along with a long minor league stint as a Dodger skipper, closing out his resume as a catching instructor for LA. 
• 1938 - OF Larry Elliot was born in San Diego. Elliot was signed by the Pirates as a 20-year-old out of San Diego City College and spent four years in the Bucs' farm system before getting cups of coffee with Pittsburgh in 1962-63. He went 3-for-14 with a homer (he was a minor league masher) and then spent a pair of seasons with the Mets. He played in the minors afterward, retiring after the 1969 season. 
• 1947 - RHP Kent Tekulve was born in Cincinnati. The rubber armed reliever pitched 12 years for the Pirates (1974-85) with a record of 70-61-158/2.68, and appeared in 90 games twice, making 722 Pittsburgh outings totaling 1,017-1/3 IP. He saved three of the four wins against the Orioles in the 1979 World Series, and Teke & Mike Marshall are the only pitchers to make 90 appearances three times during their career. Tekulve is a special spring instructor and heart transplant recipient, retiring from his decade-long Pirates pre-and-post game TV gig after the 2017 campaign so he can finally take a long overdue summer vacation. 

Richie Hebner - 1975 Twinkies

• 1975 - After holding out for a week, Richie Hebner struck a deal w/GM Joe Brown for approximately $75,000. The Gravedigger was ready and in camp that afternoon. But he had a miserable year, suffering through a bad back and batting a career low .246. He played in 1976 without a contract, which made him a free agent for 1977, and skipped to the Phillies. 
• 1979 - LHP Erik Bedard was born in Naval, Ontario. In 2012, the often-injured lefty signed as a free agent with the Pirates for $4.5M. Bedard stayed healthy and posted a 3.12 ERA in 10 starts over the first two months. But beginning in June, the wheels fell off and Bedard slashed 7-14/5.01 before the Pirates released him on August 28th. Houston and Tampa tried to right his ship, but he tossed no better with those clubs and retired after the 2014 season. 
• 1993 - LHP Sam Howard was born in Marietta, Georgia. He was drafted out of Georgia Southern by the Rockies in 2014 and made his debut with them in 2018. He averaged 10 K per nine innings with the Rox, along with the attendant wildness, and was waived the next year. The Pirates claimed him, and though he didn’t break camp with the big club, they added him to the MLB roster on August 2nd and Sam made his Bucco debut on the same day. 
• 1996 - “Foxy” Ned Hanlon was selected to the Hall of Fame. He played and managed for the Alleghenys, Burghers and Pirates (1889-91) but his glory years were as skipper of the Baltimore Orioles and Brooklyn Superbas. Noted as a keen tactician (hence “Foxy”), he came up with innovations still in play today such as the hit-and-run, double steal and “Baltimore chop.” Also selected was RHP Jim Bunning, who worked for the Pirates from 1968-69 toward the back end of his career and was one of five players to throw a no-hitter in both leagues along with Negro League star LHP Willie Foster, who had stops with the Homestead Grays (1931) and Pittsburgh Crawfords (1936). They were inducted on August 4th. 

Scott Sauerbeck - 2001 Topps 50 Years

• 2001 - LHP Scott Sauerbeck signed a three-year/$2.7M deal with the Pirates. He almost made it through the whole contract before being traded to Boston in late July of 2003. The setup man went 19-15-5/3.56 in his five Bucco seasons, making 341 appearances. He suffered shoulder and hammy injuries which cost him all of 2004 and only tossed 86-1/3 innings after being traded, with 2006 being his last campaign. 
• 2017 - Four of the Pirates eight starting position players skipped to their WBC teams (Starling Marte & Gregory Polanco - Dominican Republic; Andrew McCutchen & Josh Harrison - USA) with Fran Cervelli joining the exodus the next day to report to his Italian squad. Minor league reliever Jared Lakind packed his bags on the 9th to join Team Israel.

Bucs Back On Track With 6-1 Win Over Braves

 Today's Game: 

The Bucs were home at LECOM and sent Tyler Anderson, Kyle Crick, Sam Howard, David Bednar, Chasen Shreve, Clay Holmes and Blake Weiman against the Bravos. It was yet another shorty, going just seven frames. Oneill Cruz started in center, Kevin Newman at short and Erik Gonzalez at second, so Shelty isn't tipping his hand quite yet on his up-the-middle plans.

The Bucs prevailed 6-1. E-Gone and Joe Hudson went deep, Gregory doubled home a pair of Bucs and Ke'Bryan Hayes' two-out triple chased home another Pirate. The pitching held up well. Anderson gave up three hits and a run on a sac fly in two frames with three K. Every other Bucco on the hill put up a goose egg and claimed at least a whiff, with Bednar, who is from Mars HS, striking out the side during his frame and Howard fanning two of the three guys he faced.

Hayes stays hot - photo 2021 MLB Pipeline/Pirates

Notes:

• Kevin Newman and Hayes kept up their strong starts with a pair of hits each.
• The injury situation remains the same - Adam Frazier (groin), Cole Tucker (thumb) and Jared Oliva (back) are all close to returning, Anthony Alford (elbow) is still being evaluated for a return to throwing, and the relievers you haven't seen yet are victim of short games, not hors d' combat.
• The Pirates and PNC Financial announced a 10-year extension for the naming rights to PNC Park. The terms weren't disclosed, but the Bucs had been making $2M/year over the first 10 years of the original deal.

Tomorrow's Game:

The Bucs' bus rolls to Lakeland's Spectrum Field to tackle the Phils at 1 PM on a game that will webcast on pirates.com. Chad Kuhl gets his second start of the spring; the other guys haven't been announced yet.

3/4:Leyland Blowup; Arky Inked; New Vid Screen For PNC; Buc Bar Raided; HBD Rick-Rod, Fort, Rick, Bruce, Brian, Jax, Dazzy, Clyde, Mel & Jeff

• 1888 - RHP Ed “Jeff” Pfeffer was born in Seymour, Illinois. Jeff tossed for 13 years in the show, closing out his career as a 36-year-old with Pirates in 1924 after being claimed from the Cards in July. He pitched credibly, going 5-3/3.07 in 16 games (four starts) and ended his MLB career with 158 wins and a 2.77 ERA. He was called "Jeff" after his older brother, "Big Jeff" Pfeffer, who tossed a no-hitter for Boston in 1907. 
• 1889 - Oh, those rowdy North Siders! Pittsburgh Alleghenys 3B Billy Kuehne was arrested and charged with operating a gambling house at an Allegheny City billiards hall run by him and teammate Ed “Cannonball” Morris. Morris, who was out of town during the raid, told the Pittsburgh Press that “The Allegheny officers labored under a misapprehension...the boys occasionally played for cigars and soft drinks in the back room but nothing worse.” Kuehne beat the rap - when the case came to trial, the charges were dropped after the main witness failed to show. 

Billy "Who Me?" Kuehne - 1887-1890 Goodwin/Old Judge

• 1891 - RHP Charles “Dazzy” Vance was born in Orient, Iowa. The fireballing Hall of Famer (he had over 2,000 career K) made his debut in 1915 as a 24-year-old for the Pirates after his contract was purchased from St. Joseph of the Western League. His Bucco career lasted all of one wild appearance when he walked five in 2-⅔ IP. He was hampered by an obstinate achy wing until his career was resurrected years later by a card game. According to his Baseball Hall of Fame bio “A sore arm was blamed for cutting short his first cracks at the majors. That soreness became shooting pain after he banged his elbow on a poker table, causing him to have surgery. The procedure cleared up the pain, and also relieved the chronic soreness that had plagued him.” His career rejuvenated, he rejoined the show in 1922 as a 31-year-old and won an MVP and World Series along the way, pitching through his age 44 campaign. Vance was dubbed Dazzy as an Iowa teen for his dazzling fastball. Dee-lightful: The 1934 St. Louis Gashouse Gang featured Dazzy, Dizzy Dean, Daffy Dean & Ducky Medwick. 
• 1917 - C Clyde McCullough was born in Nashville. Clyde had a long MLB career, catching for Pittsburgh on a semi-regular basis from 1949-52 and batting .258. He was a Cub at heart. The Bucs got him from Chicago and he returned there later, spending 12 of his 16 campaigns in the Windy City. He coached for the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins, New York Mets & San Diego Padres and is a member of the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. 
• 1918 - RHP Mel Queen Sr. was born in Maxwell in Fayette County, south of California University of PA. After starting out with the Yankees, he worked for Pittsburgh from 1947-48, then from 1950-52. Queen’s Bucco record was 19-36 with a 5.33 ERA. His son, Mel Jr., pitched for several seasons in MLB and went on to have a long and storied career as the Toronto Blue Jays’ pitching coach. 
• 1940 - SS Arky Vaughan reported to camp and quickly signed on to a new contract after a brief discussion with club prez Bill Benswanger. He was one of the great shortstops (he had won six consecutive All Star berths and would make the AS team for the next three seasons, too), and immediately after inking his deal for an undisclosed amount, new manager Frankie Frisch appointed him captain to replace the traded Gus Suhr. That helped grease the skids for the new agreement, which had been held up over compensation; the captaincy came with a $500 bonus.

Arky Vaughan, 1939 All Star - photo Pgh Press 7-1-1939

• 1952 - Scout Jax Robertson was born in Milwaukee. After working for the Yankees, Tigers and Marlins, he became a special assistant to the GM in 2002 under Dave Littlefield, a position he still holds. In 2015, he was honored as baseball’s East Coast Scout of the Year and is also a member of the Professional Baseball Scouts Hall of Fame. 
• 1968 - 1B/OF Brian Hunter was born in Torrance, California. He was a bench guy for nine MLB campaigns, stopping off in Pittsburgh as a 26-year-old in 1994 after an off-season deal with the Braves, swapping places with Jose Delgado. The Pirates were familiar enough with him; his first inning homer in game seven of the NLCS launched the Bravos to a 4-0 win. He hit .227 with 11 homers as a Buc and then was sent to the Reds at the deadline in another minor deal for OF Micah Franklin. The FO hoped he’d be a middle-of-the-order 1B, but it wasn’t to be as seven different Buccos manned the spot in ‘94. Mark Johnson took over in ‘95 until Kevin Young was moved to first in 1997. 
• 1972 - OF Bruce Aven was born in Orange, Texas. He toiled five-years in MLB, spending part of 2000 as a Pirate after a deal with the Marlins in a swap for Brant Brown. Aven hit .250 and was sent to LA in August. His last big league game was in 2002 and now he’s the baseball skipper at American Heritage School in Florida. 
• 1973 - Pirates hitting coach Rick Eckstein was born in Sanford, Florida. Eckstein replaced Jeff Branson following the 2018 campaign as hitting coach after working for the Rays, Expos, Nats, Angels, & Twins; he also served as skipper at the University of Kentucky. He played college ball at Seminole CC and the University of Florida before an injury ended his playing career. 
• 1985 - C Mike “The Fort” McKenry was born in Knoxville, Tennessee. He was a back-up catcher for the Bucs from 2011-13 and was a popular player with several clutch hits on his resume. Overall, though, he hit just .226 as a Pirate and returned to his original team, the Colorado Rockies, as a free agent in 2014 before making the rounds as a depth player. He retired to become the Pirates pre-and-post game analyst in 2018 as a replacement for Teke and also serves as a rotating color man as part of the Steve Blass replacement project. McKenry earned his nickname because of the similarity of his name to Fort McHenry and the way he defended the plate on plays at home.

HBD Ric-Rod - photo 2021 Pirates

• 1990 - RHP Richard Rodriguez was born in Santiago, Dominican Republic. He spent nine years in the Houston and Baltimore systems, getting a brief and ineffective stint with the O’s in 2017. The Bucs brought him in as a NRI during the off-season. After a decent camp, he was stashed at Indianapolis to begin the campaign but quickly got a mid-April call to Pittsburgh when the bullpen sprung some serious mid-inning leaks. He’s gotten into 164 games since then with a line of 11-10-5/3.02 and is considered a part of the 2021 back end bullpen mix. 
• 1991 - In Pittsburgh’s most famous manager meltdown, Jim Leyland was caught on camera as he blasted Barry Bonds at camp following a media spat. The redacted version of Leyland’s message went something like “I’ve kissed your (bleep!) for three (bleeping!) years here and I’m sick of this. If you guys don’t want to be here then get the (bleep!) out!” 
• 2005 - The Pirates announced that they were replacing the Sony video board at PNC after just four years because of moisture problems that blanked out part of the display, leaving a checkerboard effect. The new board was provided by Daktronics and was expected to cost at least $1M. The Pirates said that they’d foot the bill after the Stadium Authority had ponied up for the first screen. Though the new screen worked fine, it was replaced in 2007 so the Pirates could upgrade the evolving technology and add a LED ribbon display, with the team again picking up the tab.

Rays Sting Bucs 3-1

 Today's Game:

The Bucs visited Tampa Bay and tossed Steven Brault, Miguel Yajure, Nick Mears, Carson Fulmer, James Marvel and Shea Spitzbarth against the Rays. Tuck got the start on the SS merry-go-round and Brian Goodwin was in center.

The Jays used their muscle to take a 3-1, six-inning win over the Pirates. (Don't ask; no idea what the attraction of short spring games is). Wander Castro belted a solo, two-out bomb off Miguel Yajure while old Bucco Austin Meadow iced it with a two-run shot in the fifth off James Marvel. Pittsburgh averted the shutout when Rodolfo Castro's drive to center popped out a glove, allowing Troy Stokes, who led off with a double, to score. The Pirates had just two knocks; Brian Goodwin started off the game with a single.

Tampa got a couple of more guys with Bucco ties into the game - Hunter Strickland tossed a clean inning while Tristan Gray got a quick look at second, going 0-for-1.

Steven put up a goose egg in his first outing - photo 2021/Pirates

Notes:

• Tuck was scheduled to open at short, but was replaced by Oneill Cruz. Tucker had a bruised hand to get the day off.
• The Pirates expect to be allowed 7,500-8,000 fans per game, per Travis Williams. He added that PNC Park's naming rights negotiations should wrap up soon, with PNC seemingly the favorite to retain the rights.
• The minor league seasons look to be pushed back at least a month as MLB has reinstituted alternate/April spring training camps due to Covid concerns, per Jeff Passan of ESPN.

Tomorrow's Game:

Tyler Anderson faces off against the Braves at LECOM Park, joined by Kyle Crick, Sam Howard, David Bednar, Chasen Shreve, Clay Holmes and Blake Weiman. The contest starts at 1:05 and will be on AT&T SportsNet and 1020 KDKA. 

3/3: Kip Signs; Debs Bought; Dandridge HoF; Bye Bye Bierbauer; RIP Al; HBD Matt, Trent, Ron, Neal, Jesse, Yo-Yo, Yaller & Bill

• 1879 - C Ed “Yaller” Phelps was born in Albany, NY. Phelps was on the 1902 and 1903 National League pennant-winning clubs and played in the 1903 World Series, forming the Pirates’ first WS battery w/Deacon Phillippe. He served mainly as a back-up catcher during his six year Pittsburgh career (1902-04, 1906-08), hitting .247 as a Bucco. Ed’s nickname of "Yaller" referred to his sallow complexion, according to his family. 

Ed Phelps - The Sporting Life

• 1897 - 2B Lou Bierbauer was sold to the St. Louis Browns after six seasons with Pittsburgh. His 1891 signing by the Bucs, after he was left unprotected by the Philadelphia Athletics, was denounced by the A’s as “piratical,” leading to the Alleghenys evolving into the Pirates. The “king of the second baseman” had a slow start to his Steel City days, but rallied to hit .284 over his final four Bucco campaigns and his glovework was elite throughout. After a couple of years with the Browns and some minor league touring, he retired to his hometown of Erie. 
• 1910 - C Bill Brenzel was born in Oakland, California. He spent parts of three seasons in MLB, beginning in 1932 with the Pirates when he got into nine games and went 1-for-24. He earned a reputation for his good glove, bad bat (.198 lifetime BA), and per his obit, quick wit and slow feet. He spent 18 years in pro ball (he left high school to begin his playing days at age 17), then managed in the minor leagues before becoming a long-time scout for the Los Angeles Dodgers. 
• 1912 - C Aubrey “Yo-Yo” Epps was born in Memphis, Tennessee. In the final game of the 1935 campaign, Epps caught for Pittsburgh after being bought from the Birmingham Barons, where he was hitting .301, and went 3-for-4 with three RBI (and two errors, oops). The Pirates had high hopes for Epps - they had to outbid the Indians to win him from Birmingham - but that game turned out to be his only major league appearance. He contracted a serious case of pneumonia in the off season after minor surgery and it cost him a chance at making the roster. Aubrey bounced around for another six seasons in the minor leagues and retired after the 1941 season at age 29. 
• 1940 - The Boston Braves sold OF Debs Garms to the Pirates. In 358 at bats for Pittsburgh he led the NL in hitting with a .355 average. At the time, there was no minimal at-bat requirement; league prez Ford Frick said the title was unofficial and 100 games, the unofficial cut-off line, was enough to qualify (Garms got into 103 contests), raising a hubbub. In 1950, the NL made 2.6 AB’s per game the magic number. The veteran was sold to St. Louis after the 1941 season, where he would finish his career in 1945. Debs, btw, is not a moniker but his given name. His parents christened him in honor of early twentieth century labor activist and socialist, Eugene Debs. 
• 1949 - RHP Jesse Jefferson was born in Midlothian, Virginia. In a nine-year career as a spot starter and reliever, Jesse tossed one game for the Pirates in 1980 after the Bucs claimed him in September off the waiver wire from Toronto, where he was a member of the original expansion Jays. The outing was a strong effort by Jefferson, who beat the Cubs 3-1 by going 6-⅔ IP of three-hit ball. It wasn’t enough to keep the 31-year-old in Pittsburgh, but it did get him a final contract with the Angels, where he finished out his MLB days after the 1981 season. 

Neal Heaton - 1990 Topps Wide

• 1960 - LHP Neal Heaton was born in South Ozone Park, NY. He pitched for Pittsburgh from 1989-91, making the All Star team in 1990 after a 9-1 start. Heaton, who had battled tendinitis, credited the 1990 success to a new pitch, a knuckle change. The league apparently caught on; he finished the year at 12-9. As a Pirate, his line was 21-19 with a 3.46 ERA. Heaton now coaches at the All-Pro Academy in Bellport, NY, and worked with Marcus Stroman and Steven Matz when they were in high school. 
• 1961 - IF Ron Wotus was born in Colchester, Connecticut. Ron spent his MLB career in Pittsburgh, getting into 32 games and batting .207 between 1983-84. He played in the minors afterwards, ending his playing days in the Giant organization. Wotus remained with the Giants as a minor league manager from 1991 to 1997. He became the Giants third base coach in 1998 under Dusty Baker and has served as bench coach since 1999 under Baker, Felipe Alou and Bruce Bochy before returning to the 3B box in 2017. Wotus was interviewed by the Bucs for the head honcho job in 2000, losing out to Lloyd McClendon. 
• 1964 - Coach Trent Jewett was born in Dallas. Jewett was a catcher on the Pirate farm before continuing on as a coach in the organization. He managed the Triple-A Nashville Sounds from 1998 to 2000, was the Bucs third base coach from 2000-02, then returned to managing AAA Nashville and Indy until 2008 when he skipped to the Nat system. In 2013, he joined Lloyd McClendon as bench coach for Seattle, a position that lasted until 2015. 
• 1977 - Former Post Gazette Sports Editor Al Abrams passed away at age 73 after a heart attack. He covered the sports beat for the PPG from 1926 until his death and served as its sports editor from April 1947 to March 1974, with his regular “Sidelights on Sports” column continuing on even after he gave up the editorship. Abrams founded the Post-Gazette Dapper Dan Club in 1936, now the Dapper Dan Charities, which awards an annual local Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year Award and provides the Boys and Girls Clubs of Western PA with financial support for its sports activities. 
• 1978 - OF Matt Diaz was born in Portland, Oregon. In December of 2010, he signed a two-year/$4.125M free-agent contract that could reach $5M w/bonuses with the Pirates, who were looking for some platoon punch to add to their attack. Instead, he slashed .259/.303/.324 without a dinger and the Pirates traded him back to the Braves, the club he had left after a non-tender, at the deadline for Eliecer Cardenas. Matt put 11 years in the league with a .290 lifetime BA after he hung ‘em up following the 2013 campaign. His tank was running on fumes when he came to Pittsburgh and he only got into 77 more games after he left town. 

Matt Diaz - photo Claus Andersen/Getty

• 1987 - 3B Ray Dandridge was the only player elected to the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee. He spent a handful of games with the Homestead Grays in 1937 as a 23-year-old during a career that spanned 22 campaigns. Dandridge was nicknamed “Hooks” because of his bowed legs, but like Honus Wagner, was an elite fielder and batter, considered by many to be the Negro League’s premier hot corner guy. He missed out on an MLB shot because of his age (35), but still hit .362 in the American Association, where he was Rookie of the Year in 1949 and MVP in ‘50. Ray went on to become a Giants’ scout after his playing days. 
• 1988 - RHP Bob Kipper signed a split contract, w/$125K for the bigs and $75K for the minors, as a take-it-or-leave-it tender offer from the Bucs. Neither he nor his agent was very pleased by the deal, with the agent suggesting the Pirates trade Kip someplace he would be more appreciated, at least financially. But Kipper made it through the season with an uninterrupted MLB stay, and got $105K added to his salary next season, sticking with Pittsburgh through the 1991 campaign.

Home Opener @ LECOM: Tigers Maul Pirates 6-1

Today's Game:

Home Opener and on TV, yay! Tossing were JT Brubaker, Cody Ponce, Sean Poppen, Braeden Ogle and Max Kranick (Yep, five pitchers for a five inning game as baseball continues to fix things that aren't broken.) Prob a good thing it was a shortie, though, as the Tigers ran away with a 6-1 win.

All five Pittsburgh hurlers went an inning (it should be noted that Detroit is already stretching their guys for two innings, even in the first week). JT gave up a solo homer while Poppen was bruised for four hits and three runs. Kranick walked the first two guys he faced and they both scored on ex-Bucco farmhand JaCoby Jones' double. The Toddfather banged his second long ball of the spring for the home team's point, and Ke'Bryan Hayes doubled for the Pirates only other rap.

JT Brubaker - 2020 photo (Pirates)

Notes:

• Steven Brault sang the National Anthem (via vid; it was a replay of his PNC Park rendition) to open today's game.
• Jared Oliva was supposed to start in center, but he had tightness in his back so Travis Swaggerty manned the spot. Kranick replaced Chris Stratton, who was expected to toss an inning today, no reason given.

Tomorrow's Game

Brault gets his first call of the spring  tomorrow when the Bucs visit Tampa Bay for a 1:05 tilt. He'll be joined by Miguel Yajure, Nick Mears, Carson Fulmer, James Marvel and Shea Spitzbarth. The game will be webcast on pirates.com.

3/2: Ollie & Jay Peacefully Protest; Barkley Affair; East Meets West; RIP Howie; HBD Brandon, Jim, Don, Abie, Frank, Chick, Bill & Rip

• 1879 - RHP Joe “Chick” Robitaille was born in Whitehall, New York. He spent his two year MLB career as a Pirate (1904-05), going 12-8 with a 2.56 ERA before being released in August 1905. Chick signed on with the Washington Senators the following season as a free agent, but never returned to the big leagues. 
• 1886 - The American Association met and overruled Denny McKnight, AA president and also owner of the Pittsburgh Alleghenys, over who held the rights to 2B Sam Barkley, then suspended Barkley for signing with Pittsburgh. The issue turned around St. Louis Browns owner Chris von der Ahe, who had sold Barkley’s rights to Pittsburgh in January; Baltimore had sent him $1,000 for Barkley’s contract after a verbal agreement but it arrived after the Steel City deal. The case was eventually resolved by allowing Barkley to play for the Alleghenys, sending Milt Scott from Pittsburgh to Baltimore as compensation and allowing von der Ahe to keep Baltimore’s check. After all that, Barkley hit .248 in his two years with the club, splitting time between first and second base. 

The popular Sam Barkley - 1887 Goodwin/Old Judge

• 1891 - C Bill Fischer was born in NY City. Bill spent the last two seasons of his five year career in Pittsburgh (he was traded to the Bucs by the Cubs in July 1916 as the Pirates were stockpiling catchers to spell the aging George Gibson) and hit .277 in 137 games before hangin’ the spikes up after the 1917 campaign. Fischer had a career year in 1915 playing for the pennant-winning Chicago Whales of the Federal League, hitting .329. 
• 1898 - RHP Floyd “Rip” Wheeler was born in Marion, Kentucky. After winning 23 games in the minors, the Bucs called him up in late 1921. He gave up three earned runs in three frames and opened 1922 in the minors. He got one more inning in Pittsburgh before joining the Cubs, where he yo-yoed between the show and the farm for a couple of seasons. Rip quietly concluded his career after three more minor league years. 
• 1918 - 1B/OF/PH Frank Colman was born in London, Ontario. He played for the Bucs at the start of his career (1941-46), getting just 373 PA and hitting .233. In 1947, Frank’s career ended with the Yankees when a leg injury followed by surgery finished his MLB playing days. Frank caught on as a player-manager in the minors for a while, then bought the team he started out on, the London Majors. Frank later founded the Eager Beaver baseball group for kids, and for his efforts as a ballplayer and ambassador of the sport was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999. 
• 1924 - OF Cal “Abie” Abrams was born in Philadelphia. He spent 1953 in Pittsburgh as the starting RF, hitting .286 with 15 HR, and was traded early in 1954 to Baltimore for P Dick Littlefield. Abrams hit .269 over his career, but drew 304 walks to just 290 whiffs and ended up with a .386 lifetime OBP in eight seasons with the Dodgers, Reds, Pirates, Orioles and White Sox. Abie ran a college bar after retirement and then became a celebrity host for a cruise liner. 

Don Schwall - 1966 Topps

• 1936 - RHP Don Schwall was born in Wilkes-Barre. A two-sport college star (he was All-Conference hoopster) at Oklahoma, he won the AL Rookie of the Year honors in 1961 with the Red Sox, beating out teammate Carl “Yaz” Yastrzemski. He settled into journeyman status and was converted to the bullpen later in his career by the Bucs. He was with Pittsburgh from 1963-66, going 22-23-4 with a 3.23 ERA. Don retired to Pittsburgh’s North Hills and worked as an investment broker. 
• 1960 - RHP Howie Camnitz, 78, passed away in Louisville, Kentucky. He pitched nine years (1904, 1906-13) for the Pirates, with a line of 116-84-13/2.63, went to Philly briefly and returned to toss for the Federal League Pittsburgh Rebels in 1914-15, slashing 14-19-1/3.32. Camnitz was the ace of the 1909 World Series champs, and though he didn’t have a good Fall Classic, his 25-6-3/1.62 regular season was a big reason the Bucs won the flag. He threw for 235+ innings for seven straight seasons (1908-14), won 20+ games three times, and got to be on the same staff as his brother Harry in ‘09. Howie retired after his Rebels stint with a bum wing and became a car salesman. 
• 1985 - IF Brandon Wood was born in Austin, Texas. A first round pick of the Angels in 2003 (23rd overall), he spent parts of five seasons with the Halos. The Bucs claimed him in April of 2011 off waivers and he got into 99 games that season, batting .220 with seven homers while playing all four infield positions (primarily third base). He was with four other organizations after that campaign, his last in MLB, and after being cut in camp by the Padres, he hung up his mitt and became a SD minor league manager. 
• 1985 - 2B Jim Negrych was born in Buffalo, New York. He never made it to the show but was a local story during his career. The Pirates drafted two-time All-American Negrych out of Pitt in the sixth round of the 2006 MLB Draft as the first Panther drafted since the Bucs selected P Larry Lamonde in 1981 (Dan Marino ‘79 & Ken Macha ‘72 were prior picks). In 2008, Negrych was the Pirates minor league player of the year and was a Carolina League All-Star, then with Atoona and again with Indy he was named an MiLB.com Organizational All-Star. But he topped out at AAA and bounced around several organizations, earning upper level honors but no promotions. Jim took his game east to the Chinese league for a couple of seasons, helped coach at Pitt, managed the New England College League Keene Swamp Bats and is now a regional scout for the Cards. 

Jim Negrych - 2006 Bowman Draft

• 1996 - At St. Petersburg's Al Lang Field, two Japanese umpires worked the Pirates-Cards exhibition game along with two U.S. umpires as part of an exchange program that also had American umpires working games in Japan. "I thought they (the Japanese) did a good job," said Pirates manager Jim Leyland. "And even if they didn't, you couldn't argue with them." Scott Zucker of UPI added that “(Tony) LaRussa offered that his only Japanese conversation consists of shaking his head 'yes' or 'no.' Keeping LaRussa quiet should be enough to keep any umpire, no matter what his nationality, happy.” The Bucs won the contest 11-2 behind Denny Neagle’s first spring start without igniting any international incidents. 
• 2005 - LHP Ollie Perez, 23, and OF Jason Bay, 26, refused to sign their pre-arb contracts, dissatisfied with the raises proposed by the Pirates. Perez got $381,000, a $60,000 increase and Bay received $355,000, a $50,000 bump. Ollie was coming off a 12-10/2.98 campaign while Rookie of the Year Jason hit .282 with 26 homers. Both players said there was a big gap between their pay requests and the FO offers, but said they bore no ill will toward the club.

Sisters Kissed In 2-2 Tie Between Bucs & Blue Jays

Todays Game:

The undefeated Buccos sent Mitch Keller, Kyle Crick, David Bednar, Blake Cederlind, Chasen Shreve and Blake Weiman to the hill against the Blues Jays. Tuck got his turn to start at short and Brian Goodwin got the nod in center.

Mitch had a rocky start, giving up a couple of runs as he and the strike zone went their separate ways. Anthony Alford halved the lead with a solo shot in the second and Phil Evans knotted the score an inning later with a two-out single to plate Hunter Owen, who was on second thanks to a boot. 

And that was it. The Pirates pitchers after Keller tossed no-hit ball with just one walk and four fans. Chasen Shreve had a nine-pitch inning and Blake Weiman needed just 10 tosses in his inning. Toronto gave up just three hits overall (Oneil Cruz had the other, an infield knock) with a free pass and eight K. 

Alford loses a baseball - photo 2020 Gene Puskar/Associated Press

Notes:

• Everyone is still sloppy in the field; each club committed two errors during the game.
• Another short contest; this one went 6-1/2 frames by mutual agreement. The Pirates have 72 players in camp and don't want to play nine...?
• My bad about 100% camp attendance: SS prospect Liover Peguero still has travel issues and is in the Dominican, not Florida.
• The Pirates can seat 20% of park capacity at PNC Park this season per the Governor's new, relaxed orders, which is about 7,700 people (38,496 available). Social distancing is still required, and we're unsure if that includes workers, too.

Tomorrow's Game:

The Tuesday home opener is against the Tigers with JT Brubaker getting the starting nod. Other arms in action are slated to be RHP Cody Ponce, Chris Stratton, Sean Poppen and lone lefty Braeden Ogle. First pitch is at 1:05 and the game will be aired by and KDKA 1020 AM.

3/1 Through the 1930’s: Work Begins On Forbes Field; Pirates Keep On Piratin'; First MLB Broadcasting Agreement; HBD Jumbo, Lefty, Paul & Henry

• 1855 - OF and general utilityman Paul Hines was born somewhere in Virginia. Hines played in 1,659 games in three major leagues from 1872-91, had 2,135 hits, hit .300+ 11 times and posted a career batting average of .302. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh fans, he played for the Alleghenys during part of the disastrous 1890 113-loss season and performed at their level, hitting a career low .182 in 31 games. He was 35 then and had one more season left in him, bouncing back with a more representative .282 BA in his swan song with Washington. 

Paul Hines - 1887 Buchner Gold Coin w/Washington Nationals

• 1864 - C Henry Yaik was born in Detroit. His big league career was spent with the Alleghenys when he played two games in October, 1888. Henry caught in one contest and played LF in another, with two hits, a walk, and an RBI in seven PA. His claim to fame: Henry was the catcher for Cy Young in the minors when they were battery mates for the Tri State League Canton club in 1890. 
• 1885 - LHP Cleon “Lefty” Webb was born in New Gilead, Ohio. He joined the Pirates on September 1st, 1909 via the prospect draft. In his only big league season, he split time between the Bucs and the American Association Indianapolis squad in 1910, making seven Pittsburgh appearances (three starts) with a 2-1/5.67 line. 1914 was his last pro year; the Ohio Wesleyan grad went on to a second career of teaching, coaching and eventually became a school superintendent. 
• 1891 - After earlier spiriting 2B Lou Bierbauer away from Philadelphia, the Pittsburgh Alleghenys again raided the American Association by signing OF Pete Browning and P Scott Stratton away from the Louisville Colonels, further cementing its new nickname of "Pirates." The Alleghenys were never found guilty of wrongdoing in any of the deals, and they thumbed their noses at being called piratical by rebranding themselves as the Pirates for the 1891 season, at least in the media. The nickname was finally stitched on the team's uniforms in 1912. 
• 1909 - Barney Dreyfuss began construction of a stadium near Schenley Park in Oakland, to be named Forbes Field after General John Forbes of French and Indian War fame. The steel-and-concrete ballyard was built and opened remarkably quickly on June 30th, remaining the Bucco’s playground for decades. The Pirates won three World Series there while sharing it with Pitt, the Steelers, the circus, rallies and events of all stripes before shutting down in 1970 and moving to Three Rivers Stadium. 
• 1915 - RHP Nick “Jumbo” Strincevich was born in Gary, Indiana. The Pirates sent Lloyd Waner to the Boston Braves for Nick, and he remained a Buc from 1941-48, starting about half the games he appeared in while compiling a slash of 42-40-5/4.05 before being sold to the Phils. Strincevich was selected to play on the 1945 All-Star team but unfortunately due to wartime travel restrictions, the game and his day in the sun was cancelled. Jumbo carved out a long career, pitching 16 seasons of pro ball. His nickname was lifted from his dad, who was known as Big Jumbo and Nick as Little Jumbo. 

Nick Strincevich - 1945 Press/Berger

• 1939 - The first Major League Broadcasting Agreement was signed just prior to the 1939 season. Prior to that, many MLB clubs didn’t broadcast their games over the radio for fear of losing attendance, especially the two-team cities. Afterward, they all did except for a couple of times that clubs didn’t get their asking price for the rights. The first televised game was also aired this year, and in 1953 ABC began broadcasting a national game on Saturdays. League-wide broadcasts started when Commissioner Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis orchestrated a deal in 1935 that allowed the World Series to be carried over the radio on all three major networks. In exchange, baseball was paid $400,000 for the radio rights. This marked the beginning of the end of the radio bans, and by 1939, all MLB teams were free to broadcast their games on the radio.

3/1 From 1950: Roberto Spring Woes; Pre-Arb Protest; Havana Camp; Lockout; Drug Testing; RIP Maurice; HBD Johnny

• 1953 - The Pirates opened their first and only spring camp in Havana. The Cuban government didn’t like the financial results of the experiment while the Pirates missed competing against other MLB teams based in Florida, so the original three-year deal ended up one-and-done by mutual agreement. The absence of drawing card Ralph Kiner, who was a holdout, was a raw point for both the Cuban promoters, who counted on his starpower, and the Pirates front office, who wanted him signed and on the field. 
• 1956 - Roberto Clemente held out, missing the opening of camp. The Pirates offered $7,000; he felt he deserved $10,000. The Bucs held all the cards and signed The Great One for $7,500, but Roberto quickly made up the difference by hitting .311 and doubling his paycheck to $15,000 the following campaign. Clemente quickly became noted in Pittsburgh circles for late arrivals to camp for any variety of reasons, and it didn't seem to hurt his preparation any, although it did cause a little tooth-gnashing by his managers. 

Roberto Clemente - 1956 Topps

• 1957 - 2B Johnny Ray was born in Chouteau, Oklahoma. He played seven years (1981-86) for the Bucs with a .286 BA before being moved to make room for Jose Lind. He was Rookie of the Year runner-up in 1982 to Steve Sax, playing in 162 games and hitting .318. Ray also won a Silver Slugger award in 1983. 
• 1965 - Roberto Clemente didn’t report for spring training, suffering from malaria. He made it to camp a month later and muddled along until mid-May, then rallied to win the NL batting title with a .329 BA. He did struggle all year with his power stroke, bopping just 21 doubles and 10 home runs with 65 RBI, his lowest totals since 1959. But no worries; a healthy Roberto went long 29 times with 119 RBI the following go-around and was named MVP. 
• 1965 - OF Maurice Van Robays passed away from pneumonia in his hometown of Detroit at age 50. The Pirates bought him from the minor league Montreal Royals in 1939 and called him up in September. He hit .314 and started the next two seasons, replacing Lloyd Waner in right field. He started wearing glasses in 1942, and slumped to .232. He got used to the peepers in ‘43, hitting .288 in 69 games, but then was whisked away to the Army. He returned from the service in 1946, hit .212 in 59 games as a 31-year-old bench guy and then closed out his career with Oakland of the Pacific Coast League. Maurice was credited with christening Rip Sewell’s famous blooper pitch the “eephus,” a Jewish word that meant “nothing,” which is what Van Robays thought of the pitch. 
• 1976 - The owners ordered a spring training lockout, which lasted 17 days. Unwilling to delay the start of the season, Commissioner Bowie Kuhn decreed training camps to open March 18th. Players agreed to open the 1976 season without a collective bargaining agreement in place, and no games were canceled. A new four-year CBA was hammered out in July that allowed for free agency, and it was ratified in August. 
• 1984 - The Pirates announced that their minor league players would be drug-tested when they reported to camp and then would be spot-tested during the season. Pete Peterson told Bob Hertzel of the Press that “I personally feel there should be drug testing on the major league level...” but it wasn’t permitted under the MLB CBA. 

Zach didn't sign on the dotted line - 2006 Ultra Rising Stars

• 2006 - Four Pirates who hadn’t reached arb yet - LHP’s Zach Duke & Mike Gonzalez, OF Chris Duffy and 2B Jose Castillo - refused to sign their contracts in a symbolic snit over the amount the Pirates had allotted them. GM Dave Littlefield said they had an internal salary system the club was sticking to, and the players themselves accepted their payday fate w/o much ado after the fact. Castillo got $348K, Gonzalez $347K, Duke $335K and Duffy $331K. 13 other pre-arb Buccos went with the flow and signed their deals.