OnlyBucs

7C4F535251596F5249554E495854533D0 wrote: Abe Nunez is listed first as a pinch hitter on Baseball-Reference. It has to be one of the stranger bits of information on the site, but Nunez pinch hit 301 times in his career, which was more times than he appeared at any one defensive position. Lloyd pushed him out there 185 times in four years. I remember wondering why they didn't just send up yesterday's starting pitcher, tell him to close his eyes and swing hard.
And Nuñez was very good defensively. Therefore, Lloyd usually made him the first guy off the bench to PH and then removed him so he could not use his skill as a late inning defensive replacement. Brilliant!

0B262B3A3D2C3B7B78490 wrote: Abe Nunez is listed first as a pinch hitter on Baseball-Reference. It has to be one of the stranger bits of information on the site, but Nunez pinch hit 301 times in his career, which was more times than he appeared at any one defensive position. Lloyd pushed him out there 185 times in four years. I remember wondering why they didn't just send up yesterday's starting pitcher, tell him to close his eyes and swing hard.
And Nuñez was very good defensively. Therefore, Lloyd usually made him the first guy off the bench to PH and then removed him so he could not use his skill as a late inning defensive replacement. Brilliant!
And yet another guy who was one of Doc's favorites and who I'm sure will disappoint him in not being selected. Especially one who was used so brilliantly by one of his favorite managers!

093A2627242C1A273C203B3C2D2126480 wrote: Abe Nunez is listed first as a pinch hitter on Baseball-Reference. It has to be one of the stranger bits of information on the site, but Nunez pinch hit 301 times in his career, which was more times than he appeared at any one defensive position. Lloyd pushed him out there 185 times in four years. I remember wondering why they didn't just send up yesterday's starting pitcher, tell him to close his eyes and swing hard.


McClendon’s use of Nunez was one of the most perplexing, hair-pulling things I’ve ever seen in baseball. Absolutely unexplainable.

Nine days until the first Spring Training game. Here are the illustrious Pirates who have worn number 9:



Debs Garms, Vince DiMaggio, Burgess Whitehead, Pete Castiglione, Ed Fitz Gerald, Ray Mueller, Nick Coback, Curt Roberts, Bill Mazeroski.



Best player to wear number 9: Bill Mazeroski. Honorable mention: Vince DiMaggio.



Number 9 was retired in honor of Mazeroski in 1987, 15 years removed from his retirement from baseball. 42 players, managers, and executives are in the HOF with Pittsburgh Pirates ties, 13 of them are in primarily as a Pirate. Mazeroski is the only living one of that group of 13.

123433262F2334222A410 wrote: Nine days until the first Spring Training game. Here are the illustrious Pirates who have worn number 9:



Debs Garms, Vince DiMaggio, Burgess Whitehead, Pete Castiglione, Ed Fitz Gerald, Ray Mueller, Nick Coback, Curt Roberts, Bill Mazeroski.



Best player to wear number 9: Bill Mazeroski.  Honorable mention: Vince DiMaggio.



Number 9 was retired in honor of Mazeroski in 1987, 15 years removed from his retirement from baseball. 42 players, managers, and executives are in the HOF with Pittsburgh Pirates ties, 13 of them are in primarily as a Pirate. Mazeroski is the only living one of that group of 13.




With it being Black History Month, I’ll add a shout-out to Curt Roberts, the first African-American to wear a Pirates uniform in a major league game.

0D5B4D59564C5C575A4D7F58525E5653115C3F0 wrote: Nine days until the first Spring Training game. Here are the illustrious Pirates who have worn number 9:



Debs Garms, Vince DiMaggio, Burgess Whitehead, Pete Castiglione, Ed Fitz Gerald, Ray Mueller, Nick Coback, Curt Roberts, Bill Mazeroski.



Best player to wear number 9: Bill Mazeroski.  Honorable mention: Vince DiMaggio.



Number 9 was retired in honor of Mazeroski in 1987, 15 years removed from his retirement from baseball. 42 players, managers, and executives are in the HOF with Pittsburgh Pirates ties, 13 of them are in primarily as a Pirate. Mazeroski is the only living one of that group of 13.




With it being Black History Month, I’ll add a shout-out to Curt Roberts, the first African-American to wear a Pirates uniform in a major league game.


Nice catch.

306670646B71616A677042656F636B6E2C61020 wrote: Nine days until the first Spring Training game. Here are the illustrious Pirates who have worn number 9:



Debs Garms, Vince DiMaggio, Burgess Whitehead, Pete Castiglione, Ed Fitz Gerald, Ray Mueller, Nick Coback, Curt Roberts, Bill Mazeroski.



Best player to wear number 9: Bill Mazeroski.  Honorable mention: Vince DiMaggio.



Number 9 was retired in honor of Mazeroski in 1987, 15 years removed from his retirement from baseball. 42 players, managers, and executives are in the HOF with Pittsburgh Pirates ties, 13 of them are in primarily as a Pirate. Mazeroski is the only living one of that group of 13.




With it being Black History Month, I’ll add a shout-out to Curt Roberts, the first African-American to wear a Pirates uniform in a major league game.


Actually, the first was Carlos Bernier in 1953. Roberts made his debut in 1954. The Pirates don't count Bernier because he was from Puerto Rico.

5E737E6F68796E2E2D1C0 wrote: Nine days until the first Spring Training game. Here are the illustrious Pirates who have worn number 9:



Debs Garms, Vince DiMaggio, Burgess Whitehead, Pete Castiglione, Ed Fitz Gerald, Ray Mueller, Nick Coback, Curt Roberts, Bill Mazeroski.



Best player to wear number 9: Bill Mazeroski.  Honorable mention: Vince DiMaggio.



Number 9 was retired in honor of Mazeroski in 1987, 15 years removed from his retirement from baseball. 42 players, managers, and executives are in the HOF with Pittsburgh Pirates ties, 13 of them are in primarily as a Pirate. Mazeroski is the only living one of that group of 13.




With it being Black History Month, I’ll add a shout-out to Curt Roberts, the first African-American to wear a Pirates uniform in a major league game.


Actually, the first was Carlos Bernier in 1953. Roberts made his debut in 1954. The Pirates don't count Bernier because he was from Puerto Rico.


Correct. That's why I used the term "African-American", signifying that he was born here in the good old US of A.

Thanks for this information. All these years I though Gene Baker was the first African-American to play for the Bucs.



Learn something new everyday!

7F293F2B243E2E25283F0D2A202C2421632E4D0 wrote: Nine days until the first Spring Training game. Here are the illustrious Pirates who have worn number 9:



Debs Garms, Vince DiMaggio, Burgess Whitehead, Pete Castiglione, Ed Fitz Gerald, Ray Mueller, Nick Coback, Curt Roberts, Bill Mazeroski.



Best player to wear number 9: Bill Mazeroski.  Honorable mention: Vince DiMaggio.



Number 9 was retired in honor of Mazeroski in 1987, 15 years removed from his retirement from baseball. 42 players, managers, and executives are in the HOF with Pittsburgh Pirates ties, 13 of them are in primarily as a Pirate. Mazeroski is the only living one of that group of 13.




With it being Black History Month, I’ll add a shout-out to Curt Roberts, the first African-American to wear a Pirates uniform in a major league game.


Actually, the first was Carlos Bernier in 1953. Roberts made his debut in 1954. The Pirates don't count Bernier because he was from Puerto Rico.


Correct.  That's why I used the term "African-American", signifying that he was born here in the good old US of A.
It's a shame that Bernier is mostly forgotten. Regardless of where he was from, he was the first player of color for the Pirates and the first to encounter the racial injustices occurring to players at that time. He didn't make the team in 1954 but was in spring training and no doubt helped prepare Curt Roberts for the issues he would face. In Pirates history Bernier rarely gets mentioned and most people think of Roberts as their first black player.