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1/27 Through 1994: Elmer, Johnny, Paschal, Jack Signed; RIP Dale; HBD Zags, Steve, Al & Otis

Friday, January 27, 2023 7:33

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1876 – OF Otis Clymer was born in Pine Grove (Schuylkill County), Pennsylvania. Clymer started his career in Pittsburgh, playing from 1905-07, before the often injured OF was traded to Washington after hitting .285 during his Pirate days. He was a feisty guy, once getting into a fight with Reds 1B Cliff Blankenship during a 2-1 win at Expo Park in 1905. It started when Clymer spiked Blankenship as a payback for an event a few days prior when the Reds infielder ran into Honus Wagner. Blankenship won the battle but not the war as he was pelted with bottles (even a knife was tossed from the stands) by heated Bucco fans after the pair were ejected, per The Baseball Library. A more memorable career highlight came in 1908 when Otis hit for the cycle while a Cub.

Otis Clymer – 1905 photo Chicago Daily News/Chicago Daily News/History Museum

1888 – OF Al Wickland was born in Chicago. Wickland got his start with the Reds in 1913, then jumped to the Federal League the following year, playing for the hometown Feds/Whales. Next, he suited up for the Pittsburgh Rebels, where he appeared in 100 games and hit pretty well with a .301 BA in 1915. When the league folded, he joined the American Association’s Indianapolis Indians for a couple of seasons to earn a ticket back to the bigs. He did return, but hit just .249 for the Boston Braves and NY Yankees over two campaigns (1918-19). Al finished out his career with a three-year stay with the AA’s Toledo Mud Hens before leaving the game in 1922 at age 34.
1935 – Coach Steve Demeter was born in Homer City. Steve got a little MLB time with the Tigers (1959-60) and was the Pirates first base/bench coach in 1985. Before that, he served in the Bucco farm system as skipper of the Sherbrooke Pirates (1972), Salem Pirates (1973; 1976–77), Charleston Charlies (1974–75), Shreveport Captains (1978), and Buffalo Bisons (1979–80). He also was a roving instructor and scout for Pittsburgh. He passed away in 2013 at age 78.
1957 – RHP Jack Lamabe joined the Pirates with the signing credited to scout Ed McCarrick. It was a non-bonus deal so that the Pirates could start him in the minors instead of the big club as the rules of the day would have dictated. Jack became a Buc in a round-about way. Originally drafted by the Phils, he was declared a free agent over a college kerfuffle. The clubs weren’t supposed to sign college players during that era, and although Lamabe said he had already left the University of Vermont, the league disagreed on the timeline. That made Jack a FA and he inked his Bucco deal two months later. He had a strong Pirates rookie campaign in 1962, going 3-1/2.88 in 46 outings, and Pittsburgh leveraged that into a deal with Boston, sending Lamabe and 1B Dick Stuart to the BoSox after the season for RHP Don Schwall and C Jim Pagliaroni.

Jack Lamabe – 1963 Topps

1976 – The Bucs’ Latino scout Neftali Cruz signed 19-year-old amateur RHP Pascual Perez of the Dominican Republic. He rose quickly through the system, reaching AAA in 1978 and debuting with the Bucs in 1980. In ‘80-’81, he slashed 2-8/3.94 and was traded for Larry McWilliams. In 1983, he had an All-Star season with the Bravos and won 29 games over two years. It was the best back-to-back string he put together although he did spend 11 years tossing in the show. Perez may have been best known for his trademark quirks – he shot a finger pistol at strikeout victims and eyeballed the runner at first through his legs when holding him on. The peek-a-boo worked pretty well – his catchers had a career 35% throw-out rate against wanna-be base stealers.
1983 – Jumbo reliever LHP Mike Zagurski was born in Omaha. The Bucs signed the 6’, 240 pound southpaw to a minor league deal for 2013, and it appeared that they found a gem as he dominated in camp and struck out 37 batters in 21 IP at Indy. He earned a call to the show, but in six innings surrendered 10 runs on 10 hits with eight walks, becoming a poster boy for AAAA pitchers. Zags was released to make room for Brandon Cumpton, and the Yankees picked him up. Mike was hit hard there, too. He spent two seasons pitching in Japan, and since then has bounced around, pitching on the farm for Detroit, working for Milwaukee briefly, then signing with Chicago. He was released by the Cubs during their 2019 camp and has been a free agent since.
1984 – Two days after his DP partner Dale Berra inked a five-year deal, 2B Johnny Ray got a five-year agreement, too (the media called it “Operation Twin Killing”). His contract was worth $3.75M, including his signing bonus and incentives. He, like Berra, had been rumored as trade bait, with the chatter involving a swap with the San Francisco Giants for Will Clark. Ray was a hot property; had been runner-up to Steve Sax in 1982 for Rookie of the Year and followed that up by batting .283 in ‘83. He lasted into the 1987 season when he was sent to the Angels for Miguel Garcia and Bill Merrifield in late August to clear a starting spot for Jose Lind.

Dale Long – 1979 TCMA

1991 – 1B Dale Long passed away in Florida at age 64 after losing his battle with cancer. His 1956 home run streak of eight straight games cemented his place in Pirates history, even though he only played two full seasons (1955-56) in Pittsburgh. He was recalled as more than a slugger by his Buc teammates, but as a leader who stood up to the vets and helped create a winning vibe in the locker room. Long played 10 years of MLB, half as a starter, before retiring in the 1963 season, and even faced his old mates during the World Series in 1960 as a member of the Yankee squad.
1993 – The Pirates signed RHP Elmer Dessens. After some minor league seasoning, he debuted in 1996 and went 2-8/6.12 in parts of three campaigns. The Bucs released him and he tossed for a year in Japan. That seemed to turn the trick; he came back to the states and worked 11 more years as a back-end bullpen guy for nine different clubs, retiring after the 2010 season as a 39-year-old. He’s now a pitching coach in the Reds system.

Source: https://oldbucs.blogspot.com/2023/01/127-through-1994-elmer-johnny-paschal.html

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