John Dreker
@JohnDreker
Writer of baseball history. I gave myself the nickname Moonlight Grammar. My five books on Pittsburgh Pirates history are linked below
I'm pleased to announce that my fifth solo book has been published. From the team that won their last championship while singing We Are Family, the book They Are Family covers 27 families that have played for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1890 until today amazon.com/dp/B0FDG8NPDK

The Florida Complex League season ended for the Pirates today with a 6-2 loss, dropping them to 27-32. No playoffs, so it will be interesting to see who they move up to Low-A Bradenton, where they still have six weeks left
Sorry for the horrific quality, but this is the play Esmerlyn Valdez was injured - Been a joy to watch this year. Hoping this isnt serious. Amazing guy Hoping for the best 🤞
As a Pirates fan who wasn’t around for their last World Series title, I always felt a strong bond with the fans of the GCL/FCL Blue Jays. I’m glad that they finally got to celebrate
“This group of guys never quits, they keep going until the last out is made.” The #BlueJays took home the Florida Complex League crown for the first time in the affiliate's 44-year history: atmlb.com/4m9uVHI
#OTD in 1985, Joseph “Arky” Vaughan was inducted into the @baseballhall. Along with Joe Cronin, he was THE shortstop of his era and one of the best all-time at the plate. Here’s my painting of him with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1935, based on the photography of Charles Conlon.
The Pirates released pitcher Burch Smith yesterday. The veteran pitcher who spent almost all of 2024 in the majors was with AAA Indianapolis this year when healthy. He had two trips to the injured list. He posted a 7.08 ERA and a 1.67 WHIP in 20.1 IP for Indianapolis this year
18-year-old @Pirates prospect Edward Florentino homers for the third straight game! That's 7 homers in 28 games with the @The_Marauders.
Solo HR by DH Edward Florentino (6) @The_Marauders #LetsGoBucs
I swear when I said “at least there will be one hit tonight” I was talking about the uniforms
This uniform combo >>>
Mike Burrows just surpassed 50 IP, so he officially graduates from all prospect lists. Find out who joins our Top 30 prospects in the Pirates system with his graduation. bucsondeck.substack.com/p/bucs-on-deck…
The Pittsburgh Pirates traded HOF 1B Jake Beckley on this date in 1896, believing that he was slowing down. He put up 30.7 WAR after the trade. Beckley has a wild fun fact that never gets mentioned. His triples totals from 1891-95: 1891: 19 1892: 19 1893: 19 1894: 19 1895: 19

I own a uniform that was on the field when the Pittsburgh Pirates won their first World Series title.
Share a piece of baseball lore about yourself!
Baseball has a new No. 1 prospect ... Meet 19-year-old Konnor Griffin, the @Pirates' 2024 first-rounder who has made an unprecedented rise to the top spot: atmlb.com/3Ut851P
While he doesn't have enough plate appearances to lead the league because he was promoted, Pirates prospect Edward Florentino was the only player in the Florida Complex League with 100+ plate appearances and an OPS over 1.000. He finished with a 1.084 OPS in 113 plate appearances
There are multiple reports from Puerto Rico that say Pirates 4th round pick Gustavo Melendez signed for full slot $674,300
It is official! Dylan Palmer is a baseball player of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization @fcat27 @ChrisRojas30
Jeff Banister played his only MLB game for the Pittsburgh Pirates 34 years ago today. He’s one of 20 Moonlight Graham players in Pirates history I covered in my book Moment in the Sun. It includes John Bormann, Gary Hargis & 17 other players you don’t know amazon.com/Moment-Sun-One…
OTD 7/23/1991: Jeff Banister makes his MLB debut for the #Pittsburgh #Pirates and goes 1-for-1 in his only big league plate appearance! #LetsGoBucs #MoonlightGraham
Good news: The Pirates Dominican Summer League team known as the Pirates Gold scored 23 runs today! Bad news: The Pirates Gold were playing the other DSL Pirates affiliate :( Worse news: The two clubs combined for 27 walks, four hits batters, five errors & six wild pitches 🤯