Huyke, Lum have great stories
Jordan took a lot of abuse for trying baseball, but he improved. He never stopped working.
“I think there were instincts he didn’t have because he didn’t grow up playing the game, but he gave you everything,” Lum said. “And the thing about Michael, he was great with his teammates. He didn’t put himself above anyone.”
I love stories like that. Old baseball stories. Buried treasure. And man, did I hit the motherlode this week in the form of Lum and Woody Huyke, the Pirates’ senior advisors of player development.
They aren’t called “senior” advisors for nothing. Both have been around the game nearly as long as Louisville-Sluggers — although both look about 20 years younger than their listed age, too. Huyke, 80, signed with the San Francisco Giantsin 1959 (he never played in the majors).
Lum, 72, began his major league career with the Atlanta Braves in 1967.
Huyke once roomed with Pete Rose in a Venezuelan league (”Played the same way he did in the states,” Huyke said).
Lum is the only man who pinch hit for Hank Aaron (Aaron tapped him on the shoulder late in a blowout win May 22, 1969, against the Mets, and Lum responded with a basesloaded double).
Lum played for Sparky Anderson and Cincinnati’s “Big Red Machine.” He also hit three home runs in a game for the Braves.
Huyke kept the Pirates from cutting first-baseman-turned-knuckleballer Tim Wakefield. He also managed Barry Bonds and just about every other significant homegrown Pirate for several decades as manager of their Gulf Coast League team.
“I had Barry for 10 days just to get him in shape,” Huyke said. “He was skinny.”
See how long Huyke’s been around?
A Puerto Rico native, Huyke is a fixture around the Pirates offices at LECOM Park. He talks to everyone. At least until it’s time for bed — which for him is 7:30 every night. He wakes up at 3 a.m. Been following that routine for years.
It’s no wonder the Pirates want both these men around. They’re born teachers. Team players. Totally unselfish.
Lum, a Honolulu native adopted by Chinese parents, received the first Chuck Tanner Award in 2011, given tothe minor league staff person who best exemplifies Tanner’s “optimism, work ethic and leadership.”
Huyke saw the clubhouse at Pirates City in Bradenton named in his honor in 1999. He has been with the Pirates for 49 years, managing their GCL from 1974-2004.
Pirates assistant general manager Kyle Stark offered Lumany hitting instructor job he wanted below the majors back in 2010. Lum responded by saying he wanted to work “at the lowest of the low” levels, which isthe Gulf Coast League.
He’d worked for years as a major league hitting coach, earning the respect of stars such as George Brett. He figured the organization could use an experienced hand to help build a base for newbies.
His tenure did not get off to a smooth start. In his first year, he was hit by a line drive in the skull in batting practice and had to be flown by helicopter to a trauma center in St. Petersburg. The next year he survived throat cancer (caused, he says, by years of chewing tobacco use).
“I’m lucky I’m not dead,” he said.
We’re lucky, too, and so are Pirates players such as Josh Bell, who worked extensively with Lum at the beginning of his career.
“He kind of laid that foundation for an overall approach,” Bell said. “He always talks about four things: balance, rhythm, vision and timing. If you have that, you have everything working for you. If you’re missing one of those, that’s where you find your slumps.”
I had to ask Lum and Huyke these questions ...
• Most intimidating pitcher you ever faced?
Lum: “Juan Marichal, with the high leg kick, with his screwball. He never gave you a fastball to hit.”
Huyke: “Bob Gibson. You were taking your life in your hands (laughs). You don’t want to face him. Trust me. Five times I did. Struck out three times, and at that time I could hit.”
• Which player would you choose first in a game to save the world?
Huyke: “Joe DiMaggio. My idol. My first uniform was No. 5.”
Lum: “Pete Rose. He’ll scrap and fight to win a ballgame.”
I’ll finish with Bell’s answer when I asked if he knew Lum was the only man to pinch hit for Aaron.
“Of course,” he said. “We all know that. We all know Lummer. And the legend continues.”