Drysdale could have been a Pirate
Baseball Digest Daily found this gem, which shows a scouting report from Branch Rickey (during his short stint as a PBC executive in 1954) that touts a young Don Drysdale and urges the Pirates to sign him.
Of course, Drysdale signed with the Dodgers. Rickey hand writes, after the fact: "Signed with Brooklyn; Father is a bird dog for them".
I love this line from Rickey: "It is probable that this chap is worth whatever it takes except that Pittsburgh is in no position to make him a bonus player." Maybe Littlefield was following PBC tradition when he bypassed Wieters!
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Interesting...
I read a biography of Stan Musial a couple of years back and apparently he could have become a Pirate several times. Growing up in Donora, PA, he always wanted to play for the Buccos.
by Deaner on Apr 3, 2008 7:57 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
My guess is
Most scouts who saw Musial passed on him just because of his weird batting stance. "Guy'll never hit in the bigs." ... Besides, as I recall, he started out as a pitcher and converted to outfield after an arm injury, didn't he? Something about an off-season gymnastics workout. I need to dig out my Historical Abstract ...
by bucdaddy on Apr 4, 2008 10:30 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
You're right...
he did start out as a pitcher. There were rumors, however, of a trade to the Pirates after he was already an established major leaguer.
by Deaner on Apr 6, 2008 10:35 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Bonus
Interesting thing on Drysdale - thanks for pointing it out.
The bonus thing might be a reference to a rule in place at the team, which required that a player receiving a signing bonus over a certain value be added to a team's 25-man roster. That rule is the reason why so many players from the '50s and '60s spent a year as a teenager sitting on a team's bench.
by Vlad on Apr 4, 2008 12:14 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Interesting
I'm pretty sure that If Branch Rickey talked, I would have listened.
by bryanzane on Apr 4, 2008 3:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

















