2/16 From 1990: Tyler, Ron & Leo Sign, Bo Loses Arb, Deal Hatchin', Sandt Back, David Diatribe, Wheaties Champs; HBD Marco
- 1991 – OF Bobby Bonilla lost his arbitration hearing, settling for the Pirates $2.4M offer rather than his $3.475 request. He and his agent had earlier turned down a Bucco package for four years/$15.5M; their meter began running at $19M. Bobby Bo, whose asking price was the highest ever presented in an arb session, was philosophical about it. He told the Post Gazette’s Paul Meyer “Who am I to cry? I’m getting $2.4M. That’s more than anybody I grew up with is making.”
- 1992 – LHP Marco Gonzales was born in Fort Collins, Colorado. A first round pick (#19 overall) of the Cards in 2013 out of Gonzaga, the Bucs traded with Atlanta for him in December of 2023, after the Bravos had acquired him from Seattle just two days before. The Braves sent Pittsburgh cash ($9.25M – Gonzales was due $12M in ‘24 with a $15M team option/no buyout in 2025) and will get a PTBNL in return. He had a weak 2023 (5.22 ERA in 10 starts), but was dealing with a nerve issue that eventually required surgery. In the five prior seasons as a Mariner, Marco averaged 175 IP with a 46-30 record/3.94 ERA, and the Bucs were banking on his recovery and a return to workhorse status to help fill out a paper thin rotation. He wasn’t much help – an elbow injury led to surgery, limiting him to just seven outings and his release. He’s now in the Padres system.
- 1996 – General Mills put out a Wheaties cereal box commemorating Negro League stars Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson and Cool Papa Bell to celebrate the league’s 75th anniversary. All three legendary figures played for Pittsburgh and/or Homestead at some point in their Hall of Fame careers.
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| Wheatie Champs Josh, Satch & Cool Papa – 1996 |
- 1999 – Paul Meyer of the Post Gazette published a rumor that the Pirates were ready to send Al Martin and Tony Womack to Arizona for Bernard Gilkey and a prospect if they could work out some financial wrinkles in Gilkey’s contract (mainly big deferred money), while also looking into signing free agent Pat Meares to solidify the infield. They did land Meares, but the Gilkey deal eventually fell through, and probably a good thing it did – he had a very nice 1999, but still never got more than 241 plate appearances/94 games as age caught up to the 33-year-old. The Bucs eventually sent Womack to the Diamondbacks (his salary and Meare’s basically were a wash) for hurlers Jason Boyd and Paul Weichard in a good deal for the Snakes, which got five years/.269 BA out of Tony and a World Series title during his run in the desert.
- 2000 – The Pirates signed RHP Leo Nunez out of the Dominican Republic. He never twirled for the Bucs, being traded to Kansas City in 2004 and made the news in 2011 when he admitted to being Juan Carlos Oviedo, not Leo Nunez, using a fake ID to shave a year off his age. He pitched through 2011, served a lengthy suspension to start 2012 and then blew out his elbow during rehab, requiring TJ surgery. Juan/Leo returned to the show in 2014 in a final MLB hurrah with Tampa Bay, then finishing his career in the Dominican Winter League in 2017.
- 2000 – Tommy Sandt, a popular field coach during Jim Leyland’s tenure from 1987-96 who left the team with Leyland, rejoined the club as a minor league roving instructor. The reunion didn’t last very long; Sandt stayed through the 2002 campaign and then left again after a housecleaning to coach in the San Diego Padres organization. He passed away in 2020.
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| Tommy Sandt – 2002 Pirates Promo |
- 2002 – RHP Ron Villone signed a one-year/$900K FA contract with the Bucs, making Pittsburgh one of his 12 MLB stops during a 15-year career. He went 4-6 with a 5.81 ERA for the Pirates and was released at the end of the year, but hung around through the 2009 season before retiring. Villone became a pitching coach in the Cubs’ organization in 2012, moving on to the Angels in 2024.
- 2018 – In one of the Pirates more memorable camp outbursts (maybe only second to Jim Leyland’s f-bomb scold of Barry Bonds in 1991), David Freese threw some darts at the “environment” in Pittsburgh. He tossed out zingers like “This is a different organization, where if you get drafted, you look at a guy like Jameson Taillon. It sucks that if you pan out, you have your future written for you in an organization like this. You either fold and sign a team friendly deal, or you’re bounced,” and “You look at the Steelers, Penguins and you’ve got the Pirates. If I’m kind of handling this situation, I’d be losing sleep trying to compete with those other two teams. To have all three teams in a city like Pittsburgh be on top of each league, that would be incredible.” He explained that he thought the FO and his teammates had the desire to win, but had to move beyond analytics and focus more on culture to provide that winning environment for the Pirates. “You’ve got to have urgency. You’ve got to have accountability…I’ve been here for two years, and we just kind of lacked in that department a little bit. We’ve got to pick that up.”
- 2021 – Pittsburgh signed former first round pick LHP Tyler Anderson to an MLB deal worth $2.5M, pending his physical (the deal became official the next day). The lefty back-ender was 4-3/4.37 for the Giants in 2020 after starting his career in Colorado. In his four years as a Rox, he slashed 18-24/4.69. After a workmanlike start for the Pirates (5-8/4.35), Tyler was sent to Seattle, then the Dodgers and now is a free agent. To make room on the 40-man roster, Rule 5 pick RHP Jose Soriano, who was recovering from TJ surgery, went on the 60-day injured list; the Rule 5 pick was released after the year and returned to the Angels.
Source: https://oldbucs.blogspot.com/2026/02/216-from-1990-tyler-ron-leo-sign-bo.html
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