12/21 Through the 1930s: Hughey for Hart; HBD Josh, Danny, Bill, Pete & Doc

• 1878 - 1B Warren “Doc” Gill was born in Ladoga, Indiana. He played in the majors for one year as a 30-year-old on the pretty powerful 1908 Bucco club, hitting .224 in 27 games during a month’s audition. Although he played 12 seasons of pro ball, Gill is best known for failing to touch second base in a game against the Chicago Cubs on September 4th, 1908. With the score tied in the bottom of the 10th, Chief Wilson’s single plated the winning run. But Johnny Evers saw that Gill, who was on first, didn’t run the play out to second and stepped on the sack for a force-out; it was somewhat commonplace if careless for the players to head straight to the clubhouse after a game ended. Doc got away with the gaffe because Ump Hank O'Day, back in the day of one-man crews, didn’t see it. Three weeks later, the New York Giants Fred Merkle duplicated Gill's bit of lazy-bones running during a game against the Cubs; Chicago again completed the force play and this time, O’Day did see the action. Known to this day as “Merkle’s boner,” the call overturned a Giant victory and helped the Cubs to the 1908 title. Gill was nicknamed "Doc” as he was working on his dentistry degree at Washington University (St. Louis), and when he retired he started a 35-year dental practice. 

Doc Gill 1908 (via Snipview)

• 1897 - RHP Jim Hughey was traded by the Pirates with $1,800 to the St. Louis Browns for RHP Bill Hart. Hughey had three not very good years with two terrible teams, St. Louis and Cleveland, with a line of 16-61/4.76 that included a 4-30 slate in 1898 which is still the record for most losses in a season. Hart went 5-9/4.82 for the Bucs in his penultimate campaign. 
• 1897 - OF Floyd “Pete” Scott was born in Woodland, California. Pete spent three years in the majors as a good stick guy (.303 lifetime BA) off the bench who could play corner OF/IF; his final campaign was in 1928 when he hit .311 in 60 games for the Pirates. During a 14-year pro career, he hit under .300 just twice with .286 being his lowest single-season BA. 
• 1911 - Hall of Fame catcher Josh Gibson was born in Buena Vista, Georgia. Considered the top HR hitter (the “Black Babe Ruth”) of the Negro Leagues, he played for the Grays and Crawfords. His power was legendary; he hit moonshots in Forbes Field and Yankee Stadium that are still considered among the longest blasts ever launched. Gibson was the second ballplayer, behind Satchel Paige, to be elected to the Hall of Fame because of their exceptional Negro League careers. 
• 1920 - LHP Bill Werle was born in Oakland, California. Werle earned the nickname “Bugs” honestly as he was an amateur entomologist (a bug collector). He spent from 1949-1952 with the Bucs, going 29-39-15 and working everything from starts to closing. Bugs got into some hot water with the Bucco suits in 1952 after coming in late one night. He was fined, suspended, and traded soon thereafter. 

Bill Werle 1952 Topps

• 1930 - C Danny Kravitz was born in Lopez, near Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The reserve catcher played five years (1956-60) for Pittsburgh, hitting .236, but missed out on the ‘60 Series when he was traded in June to KC for Hank Foiles. His first homer was memorable: it happened on May 11th, 1956 in the bottom of the ninth inning with the bases loaded and the Pirates trailing the Phillies 5-2 to give the Pirates a 6-5 win.

12/21 From 1950: Pass on Roger for Gino; Frankie Signs; '05 Tenders; HBD AVS, Freddy & John

• 1959 - Deals made and not made: After Pirates manager Danny Murtaugh nixed an A's offer to deal Roger Maris for SS Dick Groat earlier in the month (GM Joe Brown was shopping for an outfielder with some punch), Pittsburgh instead took OF Gino Cimoli along with RHP Tom Cheney from the Cardinals for RHP Ronnie Kline. Maris was then dealt to the Yankees and had the first of his two consecutive MVP years in New York, while Groat was named the NL MVP in 1960. As for the deal that did happen, Kline, who had beefed about not being used enough in ‘59, pitched 11 more seasons in the show, including a 1968-69 return to the Bucs. Cheney worked 22 games for the Pirates before being traded, winning 17 games for the Senators over the next five years. Cimoli hit .272 in a pair of Pirate seasons before being shipped to Milwaukee. 

Gino Cimoli with a kinda confused 1960 Topps

• 1960 - OF Andy Van Slyke was born in Utica, New York. AVS played eight years (1987-94) for the Bucs, hitting .283, earning three All-Star spots, winning five Gold Gloves and two Silver Sluggers during his tour. He was a mainstay of the Jimmy Leyland teams of the early nineties after coming over from the Cards in the Tony Pena deal. 
• 1970 - RHP John Hope was born in Fort Lauderdale. The high schooler was a second round draft pick in 1989, signing for an $85K bonus, but never panned out. He went through elbow and shoulder surgery, and in part of four seasons (1993-96) with the Pirates, the righty went 1-5 with a 5.99 ERA. 
• 1977 - 2B Freddy Sanchez was born in Hollywood. In six years (2004-09) as a Pirate, he hit .301, winning the batting crown in 2006 with a .344 BA and appearing in three All-Star games. It was a dark day in the City when fan favorite Steady Freddy was traded to the Giants, where injuries derailed his career. He hit .292 for the G-Men in the 2010 World Series season, but shoulder and back surgeries followed in 2011-12. 
• 2005 - The Pirates extended tenders to arb-eligible LHP Ollie Perez, RHPs Kip Wells & Ryan Vogelsong, OF Jody Gerut and SS Jack Wilson while passing on RHP Josh Fogg. He signed with the Rockies; GM Dave Littlefield said his spot in the rotation would be taken by one of Ian Snell, Sean Burnett or Victor Santos as the Bucs were going young to retool their staff. Earlier in the offseason, they traded away hurlers Dave Williams and Mark Redman. 

Frankie Liriano MLB Poster

• 2012 - LHP Francisco Liriano reached an agreement to sign with the Bucs for two years/$14M, pending his physical. He broke his right arm over the holidays, but he and the Pirates worked out an alternate deal that was worth $7M over two years with performance bonuses that would allow him to recapture much of the lost money. The Cisco Kid won 16 games in 2013 and was the “Comeback Player of the Year.” After the 2014 season, he returned after testing the free agent market, inking a three-year contract worth $39M. He didn’t get to finish out the contract in Pittsburgh, being shipped to Toronto at the 2016 deadline.

12/20 Through the 1960’s: Kitty for Del; HBD Jimmy, Branch, Joe, Spud, Paul & Jose

• 1876 - 2B Jimmy Williams was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He only played two years in Pittsburgh, but made quite a splash. In his first year, 1899, Williams hit in 27 straight games, setting an MLB rookie record that wasn’t broken until 1987, and his mark is still a Pirates team standard. His 27 triples are also an MLB rookie record, and he ended the campaign with a .354 BA. But the next year he returned to reality, hitting .264, and then jumped leagues in 1901, joining the AL Baltimore Orioles and opening the door for Tommy Leach to take control of the hot corner. 

Jimmy Williams 1902 Sporting Life

• 1881 - Branch Rickey was born in Stockdale, Ohio. An innovator of things as diverse as the breaking the color line, a feeder minor league system and batting helmets, Rickey was the Pirate GM from 1950-55. His Pittsburgh teams were notoriously poor (“The Rickey-Dinks”), but his player development pipeline helped to form the core of the 1960 World Championship club. New York sportswriter Tom Meany gave him the nickname “Mahatma,” per Lee Lowenfish in “Baseball’s Ferocious Gentleman,” because he reminded him of Gandhi with his combination of almost religious fervor and Tammany Hall backroom tactics. He was also called “The Brain” for his innovative work & eye for players, and “El Cheapo” for his contract dealings. 
• 1885 - OF Joe Wilhoit was born in Hiawatha, Kansas (although SABR’s Bob Rives notes that “Wilhoit's age appears to have been more closely guarded than the Coca-Cola formula In various publications, his date of birth ranges from 1885 to 1891 and his birthplace varies from Los Angeles to Illinois to Kansas.” Our place and DOB are consensus but uncertain.) He played for four MLB seasons, and made three separate stops in 1917 with the middle stay in Pittsburgh where he went 2-for-10 before joining the NY Giants. Joe’s claim to fame: As a member of the Western League’s Wichita Jobbers’, he put together pro baseball’s longest hit streak of 69 games and ended the season with a .422 average. Per baseball lore, he was given a gift hit to reach 63 games when a third baseman ate his bunt rather than make a play (thought to be due to Wilhoit’s popularity among the players). When his streak ended at home, the fans passed a hat and filled it with $600 to reward Joe’s feat. 
• 1904 - The Pirates traded 1B Kitty Bransfield, IF Otto Krueger and OF Moose McCormick to the Phillies for 1B Del Howard and RF Otis Clymer. In his first MLB season, Howard hit .292 for the Pirates and was then part of the deal for P Vic Willis the following year. Clymer was a reserve for three years, hitting .284, before he was sold to the Senators in 1907. Kitty, a member of the Pirates first World Series club, stayed on for seven campaigns in Philadelphia, with a .269 BA. Moose, one of baseball’s earliest full-time pinch-hitters, didn’t play again until 1908 after leaving the game to become a salesman. Krueger hung around for one more year before leaving baseball. 

Kitty Bransfield 1909 Pittsburgh Press

• 1904 - C Virgil “Spud” Davis was born in Birmingham, Alabama. He spent his last four seasons (1940-41, 1944-45) as a back-up catcher who hit .301 as a Bucco. From 1943-44 he coached before returning for a couple of seasons during the war years. He continued as a coach and a scout for the Pirates and briefly managed the team when manager Frankie Frisch resigned in September of 1946. Spud left baseball for good in 1950. Davis hit over .300 ten times in 16 MLB seasons, and as of his retirement, his .308 career BA was second only to Mickey Cochrane all-time among major league catchers. At last peek, it’s still in the Top Five. Per Andy Sturgill of SABR: The nickname was given to Davis by an uncle in his childhood. “I liked potatoes so much early in life that I was nicknamed Spud,” Davis explained. “But I loved baseball more than potatoes, so I cut them out.” 
• 1953 - RHP Paul Moskau was born in St. Joseph, Missouri. After five years with the Reds, he joined the Bucs in 1983, getting into 13 games (five starts). Paul went 1-3/4.37 and finished his MLB tour the following year as a Cub. 
• 1960 - RHP Jose DeLeon was born in Rancho Viejo, Dominican Republic. After being taken in the third round of the 1979 draft, he reached Pittsburgh in 1983. He went 17-38 with a 4.02 ERA as a Buc before being traded to the White Sox in 1986. DeLeon lasted 13 seasons in the MLB, winning 86 games behind a workmanlike 3.76 ERA.

12/20 From 1980: Foli/Kemp, Silva, Young Deals; Elster, Loiselle, Peters, Igarashi, Clements Sign; Class of '04 Stays Together; Ka-Ching

• 1984 - SS Tim Foli, OF Steve Kemp and cash were sent to the Pirates by the NY Yankees in exchange for SS Dale Berra, OF Jay Buhner and LHP Alfonso Pulido. Buhner went on to have a 15 year career with 310 homers, mostly with Seattle, while not much else was gotten out of the other guys involved in the deal. 
• 1988 - Big day for the Bucco bank account - the team announced that the Pirates posted an operating profit of $2,850,660 during the 1988 season, the first time since 1971 the Bucs ended the year in the black. The team set a club home attendance record of 1,866,713, an increase of more than 700,000 over the previous year. Pittsburgh had an operating loss of $1,756,838 in 1987. 

Kevin Elster 1997 Circa Thunder

• 1996 - Pittsburgh signed 32-year-old free agent SS Kevin Elster to a one-year/$1.65M deal. The veteran infielder was coming off a career season in Texas, hitting .252 with 24 HR and 99 RBI. But he never got a chance to carry that mojo forward. Elster hit .225 for the Bucs with seven homers, getting into just 39 games after breaking his wrist in mid-May. He never returned to duty and was released at the end of the campaign. His injury put a big dent in the “Freak Show” attack, with the 1997 club still managing to compete into September before finishing five games off the pace. 
• 1999 - The Pirates signed RHP Rich Loiselle and LHP Chris Peters to one year deals; both were arb-eligible and had missed the previous season with arm woes. Loiselle agreed to $400K while Peters took home $550K. Rich got into 40 games and went 2-3/5.10; he would pitch 18 big league games in 2001, which would be his last of six campaigns in the show. Peters worked 18 games, going 1-0/2.18, then closed out his MLB stay in Montreal the following season after six years of service. They also added a couple of depth catchers via minor league contracts, Tim Laker and Randy Knorr. 
• 2001 - In a minor deal, the Bucs sent RHP Jose Silva (one day after his birthday) to the Reds for minor league RHP Ben Shaffar. Silva pitched one more year in the big leagues while Shaffar never made it to the show. 

Chris Young 2002 Upper Deck minor league (Hickory)

• 2002 - RHP Chris Young and minor leaguer Jon Searles were traded to the Montreal Expos for RHP Matt Herges. The 6’10” Young, a third round pick of the Bucs in 2000 who was given a $1.65M bonus to lure him from basketball, went on to win 32 games between 2005-07 and landed an All-Star berth before injuries threw a series of speed bumps at his career, while the Pirates cut Herges in spring training and he was claimed by the Padres. He went on to make over 350 more appearances in the next six years as a journeyman middle reliever. 
• 2004 - The Pirates tendered all seven of their arb-eligible players: SS Jack Wilson, OF/1B Craig Wilson, 1B Daryle Ward, UT Rob Mackowiak, and P’s Josh Fogg, Kip Wells and Brian Meadows. All seven played for the Bucs throughout 2005. They had signed RHP Salomon Torres earlier in the off season to a two year/$2.6M deal to avoid arbitration. 
• 2011 - The Bucs took a chance with RHP Ryota Igarashi, the fastest pitcher in Japan with a 98-MPH heater with two years as a Met under his belt, by signing him to a minor league deal with an invite to camp. He was sent to the minors in March and told the media he was “shocked” by the demotion (even though he had surrendered nine runs in 9-⅓ spring innings). The Bucs sold their disgruntled reliever to the Toronto Blue Jays the next day; he eventually returned to Japan. The Pirates also inked Jeff Clements to the non-roster invitee list. He started at Indy and made it to Pittsburgh in late August, but hit just .136 to end his Buccaneer days.

12/19 Through the 1930’s: Sad Violin in '38; HBD Obie, Ray, Eddie, Lou & Artie

• 1887 - IF Artie Butler (Bouthillier) was born in Fall River, Massachusetts. Art hit .277 in two Bucco seasons (1912-13) before moving along to the Cards. His claim to fame is a bit on the macabre side - he was the last living teammate of legendary pitcher Cy Young before passing on in 1984. 

Artie Butler 1914 as a Giant (photo Bain/Library of Congress)

• 1898 - RHP Lou Koupal was born in San Gabriel, California. He began his MLB odyssey with the Pirates in 1925-26 and slashed 0-2/5.02. He was shipped back to the farm, came back and worked three more years in the league, then took a seven year hiatus before closing out his career in 1937. Fun fact from Baseball Junk Drawer: He was one of six 1929 Brooklyn Robins who had been members of the championship 1925 Pirates team, along with Max Carey, Johnny Gooch, Eddie Moore, Johnny Morrison and Glenn Wright. 
• 1915 - OF Eddie Yount was born in Newton, North Carolina. Eddie was a Wake Forest grad and minor league lifer, starting in 1937 and hanging in there until 1951 when he was 35. He got seven at-bats with the Philadelphia A’s in 1937 with two knocks and two more cuts for the Pirates in 1939 (he struck out both times). He then spent the rest of his time on the farm with a three-year break during WW2, serving with the Hellcats of the 12th Armored Division. 
• 1917 - RHP Ray Poat was born in Chicago. Mainly a reliever, Ray spent six campaigns in the show around a couple of years in the military during the war. He finished his career in 1949 at Pittsburgh, making 11 appearances with a line of 0-1, 6.25, after arriving in June as part of the Kirby Higbe deal. He was pitching with a bum wing and had surgery after the season, but it was a recurring woe and he retired to the life of a chemist (he was an Illinois grad). Fun fact: In 1947, Poat became the first MLB player to swat a season cycle, which is collecting just four hits in a year but with one of each flavor - single, double, triple and home run. 
• 1918 - OF/3B Tommy “Obie” O’Brien was born in Anniston, Alabama. O’Brien was a three-time All State football player and enrolled at the University of Tennessee, but opted for baseball. He started his MLB career as a Pirate, hitting .301 between 1942-45, toiled in the minors from 1946-48 and returned to the show in 1949-50 with Boston and Washington. His shining moment came in 1943 when he had seven consecutive hits in a doubleheader against the NY Giants. 

Bad News Bucs 1938 (image via Ron Waldo)

• 1938 - In a poll of writers by the Associated Press, the Pirates were selected as the biggest disappointment in sports for the year, edging out the Rice Owls football team. The Pirates had a seven game edge on September 1st and were up 3-½ games after September 22nd, but dropped six of their final seven games to finish the season two games behind the Cubs after losing the famous “homer in the gloaming” game. The Bucs went 28-26 in the final two months of the season while the Cubs rampaged through September, winning 21 of their last 26 games.

12/19 From 1960: Bucs Sign Huddy, Corey, Brian, Sluggo & Amos; Ump Russ Gets Call; RIP Dock; HBD Mike & Jose

• 1964 - RHP Mike Fetters was born in Van Nuys, California. The veteran reliever tossed 16 major league seasons for eight clubs, spending 2001-02 with the Pirates and slashing 2-1-8/3.75. He’s often remembered for his odd motion; before he delivered the ball, he took a deep breath and turned his head 90 degrees, a move he came up with to counter the stress of pitching. 

Mike Fetters 2002 Topps Total

• 1967 - Russ Goetz got his call to the bigs. The McKeesport native’s dream wasn’t to play but umpire MLB games, and at age 37, he finally got his chance. He took full advantage, too - he wore the blue for the AL from 1968 to 1983, arbitrating 2,384 games in a 16-year career. Russ worked two World Series (1973, 1979), two All-Star Games (1970, 1975) and four ALCS (1970, 1974, 1977, 1981). He was one of the last handful of umps still using the old school exterior chest protector when he retired. 
• 1973 - RHP Jose Silva was born in Tijuana, Mexico. Jose worked five years (1997-2001) for the Bucs, starting 53 of his 140 Pirate games. He finished 25-28-4 with a 5.41 ERA in his Pittsburgh years. He worked one more MLB campaign, and moved on to the Mexican League. 
• 1983 - The Pirates signed 37-year-old OF Amos Otis. A five-time All-Star with the Kansas City Royals, Otis hit .165 in 40 games for the Bucs. He was released in August and never played in the majors again. Ironically, the Royals had agreed to a deal sending him and Cookie Rojas to the Pirates for Al Oliver after the 1976 season, but Rojas voided the transaction by exercising his 10-and-5 year veto rights; Pittsburgh was that close to landing Otis in his heyday. 
• 1990 - 32-year-old C Don Slaught signed a three-year/$3M contract with the Pirates after coming over the year before from the New York Yankees and hitting .300 in a platoon role. Sluggo played six seasons in Pittsburgh and batted .305 between 1990-95 in 475 games as a platoon guy - he played in over 87 games in a season just once as a Buc.

Brian Meadows 2005 Fleer Tradition

• 2002 - RHP Brian Meadows avoided arbitration by signing a one year/$800K deal, with a split time provision paying him $150K if he was in the minors. And that’s where he started, but after going 7-0 at Nashville, he was called up to collect his big league fee and stayed on the active roster through 2005. 
• 2008 - One of the most colorful guys to put on a Bucco uniform, Dock Ellis, passed away in Los Angeles at the age of 63 of cirrhosis. Ellis tossed the first eight and then the final season of his 12-year big league career with Pittsburgh. His Pirates line was 96-80/3.16 with a no-hitter (while on LSD, per his retelling), All-Star appearance and World Series ring to his credit. The Docktor also left behind enough stories to fill a 2014 movie, "No No: A Dockumentary" and collaborated with Donald Hall on a 1976 book, “Dock Ellis in the Country of Baseball.” Ellis cleaned himself up after he left baseball following the 1979 campaign and became a drug counselor, working with prisoners and minor leaguers among others struggling with his old demon.
• 2014 - The Pirates signed free agent 1B/OF Corey Hart to a one year, $2.5M contract with another $2.5M available in bonuses based on at-bats. Hart had microfracture knee surgery in 2013, missing that year, and hit just .203 with Seattle in 2014, but prior to that was a career .271 hitter and two-time All-Star playing for Milwaukee, swatting 30 homers twice. Hart got just 57 at bats with the Bucs before his knees gave out again, and he retired after the 2015 campaign. 
• 2016 - Free agent RHP Daniel Hudson, 29, signed a two-year/$11M (w/$1.5M more possible in annual bonuses based on games finished) deal with the Pirates, adding to a bullpen in transition. The flamethrower (96 MPH fastball) came from Arizona, where his days as a starter ended after a pair of TJ surgeries. Pittsburgh planned to plug him into the back end of the bullpen, which was in need of a righty arm. The deal was made official two days later when Brady Dragmire was DFA’ed to clear a roster spot for Hudson.

Jordan Lyles Officially Signs, Will Join Fifth Starter Dance Card

The Bucs signed RHP Jordan Lyles in Vegas, with the deal becoming official yesterday after he passed his physical (he missed some time last year with elbow inflammation). Lyles, 28, had worked for Houston, Colorado, San Diego and briefly Milwaukee during his eight-year career. The Brew Crew passed on his $3.5M option; the Pirates swooped in and inked him to a one-year/$2.05M deal.

Originally a starter, he made the transition to the pen w/a spot-start role in 2016. Lyles is a ground ball guy without a discernible split, something the Bucs look for in a reliever, and that's likely why they took a flyer on him rather than the expected southpaw. They now have a long lefty-righty combo with him and Steven Brault, along with Nick Kingham whose future is yet TBD.

Jordan Lyles (photo via Rawlings)

The bad news is that he's never posted a full season ERA under four, and in fact has topped five runs per game in six of his eight campaigns. The good news is that last year, he went 3-4/4.11, his best personal showing in ERA and second best in FIP (4.08). He was quite solid from the pen, going 1-0/3.32 with 44 K in 41 IP while relying on a fastball/curve combo last season.

Neil Huntington said he will be considered for the 2019 rotation and mentioned in passing that the Pirates would be open to some bullpenning next year; he's be a likely suspect to start if that indeed is the case.

That begs the question of how the Pirates intend to address the fifth starter question and overall, the thin depth of the starting pitching. The club has only been peripherally involved in checking out adding to the staff, with no more than due diligence being noted so far. That's understandable; they moved Ivan Nova to clear out an eventual slot for Mitch Keller, who if all goes to plan will join the big team in the summer. They also have Chad Kuhl coming back in 2020.

Jamo, Chris Archer, Willy & Big Joe (who had surgery, so knock on wood for him to be ready) are etched in stone for 2019's staff. That leaves Lyles (who has the "inside track" per Neal), Nick Kingham, and Steven Brault as the likely fifth-man suspects, with JT Brubaker and less probably, Clay Holmes/Tyler Eppler, as the depth behind Keller at Indy. NH said that he hopes one of the bullpen trio will claim the job. But that's also why he mentioned bullpenning as an option (although one he doesn't seem very enthused over); he does have a glut of once-around-the-order guys on hand.

The focus this week seems to be on shortstop, and that is a red flag right now. But watch how the pitching falls into place in the spring. Nova was a league-average arm, and there's value in having that sort of twirler holding down the back end of the rotation. We'll see if that's a replaceable asset.

12/18: Neverett Hired; Lopez, Vogey, Herrera & Kuwata Signed; HBD Joker, Gino, Jack & Josh

• 1915 - OF Jack Barrett was born in Lowell, Massachusetts. He played from 1942-46 and hit .251. His best seasons were 1944-45, when he stole 53 bases (he led the NL in steals in 1944 with 28) and scored 196 runs. But when WW2 ended and the players returned, Barrett’s career came to an end; he hit .193 in 1946, his last big league campaign. 

Gino Cimoli 2002 Topps Refractor

• 1929 - OF Gino Cimoli was born in San Francisco. He only played a season and some change (1960-61) for the Bucs, but was their fourth outfielder for the 1960 Series champs, hitting .267 as a Pirate and .250 in the series. He scored the first tally in Pittsburgh’s five-run eighth inning in the deciding game seven and started several games in place of the injured Bob Skinner. He was one of Bob Prince’s favorites - everytime Cimoli came through on the field, The Gunner would, in his best faux Italian accent, gush “Thatsa my boy, Gino!” 
• 1969 - IF Joe “The Joker” Randa was born in Milwaukee. Joe played early and late with the Pirates - he spent his third big league season, 1997, and his MLB finale in 2006 in Pittsburgh, hitting a solid .291. Tony Muser, Joe’s skipper in KC, gave him his nickname because he reminded him of “The Joker” character, always with a smile on his face. 
• 1984 - IF Josh Rodriguez was born in Houston, Texas. His MLB career was short; he went 1-for-12 in six games for the Bucs in 2011. The Pirates took him from the Indians as a Rule 5 selection and he beat out Pedro Ciriaco for the middle infield bench spot in camp. It was a short-lived victory; the Bucs returned him to the Tribe in late April as he was replaced on the roster by Brandon Wood. Josh returned in June in a cash deal with Cleveland and he played for Indy & Altoona. He’s been in the minor league systems of the Mets (three times), Oakland and Miami since then and is currently a FA. 
• 2006 - Cuban RHP Yoslan Herrera, 25, agreed to a three-year/$1.92M contract with the Pirates. He defected in July of 2005 and was signed by scouts Rene Gayo and Louie Eljaua after posting a combined record of 18-7/3.27 during his Island career as a member of the Youth Cuban National Team for two years (1999-2000) and four seasons with the big boy Cuban National Team (2001-2004). His numbers didn’t translate in the US, and he won just one game for the Bucs. In a nice bounce-back tale, Herrera was signed to a minor league deal by the LA Angels in 2013 after last pitching in the majors in 2008, put together a nice run at the end of 2014 (1-1/2.70 in 20 outings) for the Halos, then moved across the Pacific to toss in the Nippon League in 2015. He was the Pirates first Cuban signing of the Castro era.

Yoslan Herrera (photo Doug Pensinger/Getty)

• 2006 - On the same day they signed Herrera, the Bucs announced another dip into the international market by inking 38-year-old Japanese RHP Masumi Kuwata to a one year/$500K minor-league contract. He chose the Pirates over the Red Sox and Dodgers because he thought he had a better shot at making the club, but an ankle injury in the spring delayed his MLB call until June. He was 39 then, the oldest rookie to appear since Diomedes Olivo and Satchel Paige and the first Japanese player to suit up for the Bucs. After 19 games, his ERA was 9.43. He was sent down, signed again for camp in 2008, but returned to Japan after failing to make the final roster cut and rejecting an offer by the Bucs to remain as a coach. 
• 2008 - Tim Neverett was hired as the Pirate play-by-play man. Prior to joining the Pirates, Neverett spent four years working for FSN Rocky Mountain, where he spent the 2008 campaign serving as both the pre and post-game studio host for Colorado Rockies games along with calling many other sports. Neverett began his baseball on-air career in 1985 at the age of 19 with Pittsburgh's Class AA affiliate in the Eastern League, the Nashua Pirates. The New England native left to man the booth in Boston after the 2015 campaign, leaving the post after the 2018 Sox season in a beef with management. He rebounded quickly and is now part of the LA Dodgers’ broadcast squad.
• 2009 - The Pirates signed LHP Javier Lopez to a one-year/$775K contract. The LOOGY reestablished his credentials in Pittsburgh and then was traded to the Giants at the deadline for OF John Bowker & P Joe Martinez. The southpaw was the only active player to have played on four or more World Series championship teams, winning three times with the G-Men and once with Boston. He retired after the 2016 campaign and caught on as part of the SF broadcast team. 
• 2015 - The Pirates and RHP Ryan Vogelsong agreed to a one-year/$2M contract, bringing him back home after he had been gone for a decade following stints in Japan and San Francisco. In what would prove to be be his final MLB season, he went 3-7/4.81 as a starter/long man.

After the Meeting Notes: SS Search Heats Up; Pitching Adds; Other Signings & Final Payrolls 2018

The afterglow of the winter soiree...

• The signing of RHP Jordan Lyles, announced on the 11th to kick off the winter meeting, was made official today after he passed his physical. he seems most likely to be a bullpen piece, but NH said "...he will have a legitimate opportunity to earn a spot in our rotation in 2019," so we'll see how that works out in camp.
• The Padres sold RHP Cristofer Melendez to the Pirates. He's a 21-year-old starter who had a lights-out 2018 Dominican season, doing 4-4/1.54 with 93 K in 70-1/3 IP after three meh prior seasons. The Friars had just claimed Melendez from the White Sox during the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft; they had an early pick, so perchance this handover was pre-arranged. One thing for sure - the Pirates are into some serious refurbishing of their lowel level pitching.

Anyone seen a shortstop? (Panda clipart)

• George A King III of the NY Post wrote that the Bucs have "big interest" in Freddy Galvis, ex of the Phils and Padres. Meanwhile, Susan Slusser of the SF Chronicle speculates that the Bucs could be kicking Tulo's tires; there are six unidentified clubs sniffing around. We guessing the Nick Ahmed talks have hit a speedbump. Shortstop could get interesting for a season or two.
• Per the Washington Post's Thomas Boswell, J-Hay is in the hunt for a second base gig for the Nats, though the market and options are glutted. Boswell opines that "The safest option, and maybe wisest, too, could be (Marwin) Gonzalez, whom the Nats seem to prefer over Harrison, who has similar utility skills."
• Chase d'Arnaud, soon-to-be 32-years-old, signed a minor league deal with an invite to camp with the Rangers. The Bucs 2008 draft pick has suited up for six teams in parts of seven seasons with a .222 BA and has played every position on the field except for catcher.
• The AP has an article on 2018 payrolls and the team rankings. Pittsburgh is 27th, slotted between Miami and Oakland.

On a final note, Jordy Mercer tweeted his farewell to the fans after signing with Detroit:

12/17 Through the 1950’s: Big Easy; AA Folds; HBD Cy, Rebel, Jim, Charlie & Marvell

• 1879 - RHP Fred “Cy” Falkenberg was born in Chicago. He worked his 1903 rookie campaign for the Pirates, going 1-5 with a 3.86 ERA. It would be the fewest wins and highest ERA compiled in a single season for ol’ Cy, who tossed 12 big league years, winning 130 games (20+ victories twice) with a 2.68 lifetime ERA. Those 20-win tallies in 1913-14 were sparked by a new pitch that he came up with - a scuffed “emery” ball. The delivery was declared illegal after the 1914 season, and Cy was out of MLB two years later (in justice, hitting the age of 38 probably had as much with his descent as did the rulebook). So far as the Cy moniker, SABR’s Eric Enders speculates that it was another Cy Young knock-off, the old-timey ace whom many promising youngsters were likened to. 

Rebel Oakes 1915 Cracker Jack

• 1883 - CF Ennis “Rebel” Oakes was born in Lisbon, Louisiana. He played five years for the Reds and Cards, then jumped to the Federal League when it was established in 1914. After two seasons as the player-manager for the Pittsburgh Rebels, perhaps named in his honor, the league folded and Oakes never returned to MLB despite his .295 BA. SABR writer Phil Williams believes “Rebel Oakes was effectively blacklisted” after the Federal League’s demise. Btw, he didn’t earn his nickname by being particularly iconoclastic. When he was in the minors, an Iowa sportswriter dubbed him Rebel because of his Deep South birthplace. 
• 1891 - The American Association, the home of the Pittsburgh Alleghenys through 1886, ceased as a major league after a ten-year run when a settlement was reached with the National League for a semi-merger. Four AA clubs (St. Louis, Louisville, Washington, and Baltimore) joined the NL to form a twelve-club league. The other four AA clubs were bought out for about $130,000. 
• 1896 - C Jim Mattox was born in Leesville, Virginia. Jim was a back-up in 1922-23 for the Pirates, hitting .253 off the bench. He was released after the year and retired rather than report to the minors again. Jim may have missed his true calling - in 1919, he was an All-Conference quarterback at Washington and Lee. 
• 1947 - C/PH Charlie Sands was born in Newport News, Virginia. Charlie played for the Bucs in 1971-72, going 5-for-33 (.192) and was on the ‘71 WS roster. He hung around the league for three more seasons, but only got into 63 more games. Fun fact: Sands caught all 29 innings of what at the time was the longest game in professional baseball. Playing for the Class A, Florida State League Miami Marlins on June 15th, 1966, Sands held the fort as Miami beat the St. Petersburg Cardinals (coached by Sparky Anderson), 4-3. 

Charlies Sands 1972 Topps

• 1947 - The Pirates bought the AA New Orleans Pelicans, including 37 players (none of which ever made the Bucco roster), for an estimated $200K. In an era when farm systems were deep, The Big Easy became the Pirates 19th farm club in 1948. Oddly, in 1947 the club didn't field a AA team, so NOLA was a needed addition to fill the gap between AAA Indy and Single A Albany. 
• 1959 - CF Marvell Wynne was born in Chicago. He started his career with the Pirates, playing from 1983-85. Projected as a leadoff hitter, he stole 46 sacks but batted just .245 with an OBP of .297 before being traded to San Diego for Bob Patterson, and there he put together a solid four-year run. Marvell’s last season was 1991, played in Japan. His son, also named Marvell, became a pro jock, too, but as a MSL soccer player.