Before Jay Buhner became a 'Seinfeld' storyline, the Pirates traded him to the Yankees

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Before Jay Buhner became a 'Seinfeld' storyline, the Pirates traded him to the Yankees

Kevin Gorman | Tuesday, May 12, 2020 6:01 a.m.

In this Nov. 7, 2013, file photo, actor Jerry Stiller arrives at the special screening of HBO’s Documentary “Whoopi Goldberg presents Moms Mabley” at The Apollo Theater on in New York. Comedian veteran Stiller, who launched his career opposite wife Anne Meara in the 1950s and reemerged four decades later as the hysterically high-strung Frank Costanza on the smash television show “Seinfeld,” died at 92, his son Ben Stiller announced Monday.

If you think Frank Costanza was livid with New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner for trading Jay Buhner, he would have had a lot of problems with the Pittsburgh Pirates, too.

Not to, you know, air any grievances.

The death of actor Jerry Stiller on Monday brought back memories of his character’s infamous moments on “Seinfeld.” For sports fans, Frank Costanza’s outburst directed at Larry David-as-Steinbrenner was a baseball beauty, a Festivus for the rest of us.

In The Caddy episode, when Steinbrenner personally notifies George Costanza’s parents that he is presumed dead, Frank boils before screaming, “What the hell did you trade Jay Buhner for? He had 30 home runs and over 100 RBIs

last year. He’s got a rocket for an arm. You don’t know what the hell you’re doing!”

Neither did the the Pirates.

They drafted the 19-year-old outfielder in the second round in 1984, and Buhner hit nine home runs and had 58 RBIs in 65 games for Watertown in the New York-Penn League.

But Pirates general manager Harding Peterson traded Buhner, shortstop Dale Berra and left-handed pitcher Alfonso Pulido to the Yankees that December for left fielder Steve Kemp, shortstop Tim Foli and cash.

With the Pirates, some things never change.

The deal was a disaster, as the Pirates lost 104 games in 1985. Foli, a starter on their 1979 World Series champions, batted .189 in 19 games. Kemp, a former All-Star with the Detroit Tigers, hit .246 with three homers and 22 RBIs in 105 games over two seasons with the Pirates.

Berra didn’t fare much better. Dale was reunited with his father, Yogi, who was fired as Yankees manager only 16 games into the 1985 season. Berra batted .230 in 90 games over two seasons with the Yankees. Pulido was 1-1 with a 4.70 ERA in three starts in ‘86, his last season in the majors.

Buhner was dealt to the Seattle Mariners in 1988 for Ken Phelps — the Yankees’ baseball people loved his bat, you know — where he hit 307 home runs in 14 seasons. Buhner hit 20 or more home runs seven times, including three consecutive seasons with 40-plus home runs and 100-plus RBIs from 1995-97.

Actually, Frank Costanza shortchanged Buhner, who had 44 homers and 138 RBIs in an All-Star and Gold Glove season in 1996. And to think Buhner’s nickname as Bone — short for Bonehead, a moniker that applies to both the Yankees and Pirates for trading the slugger.

For baseball fans, Jay Buhner represents a trade that will leave us forever infuriated and a tirade that makes us laugh so hard that we’re in tears. We know what Frank Costanza would say about that: Stop crying and fight your father.

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