Frank Merigliano did well enough in college to get the notice of scouts, just not that well on paper, his hometown Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote.
He'd picked up just one win to seven losses, and a 6.12 ERA at Pitt, The Post-Gazette wrote.
"I feel pretty good," Merigliano told The Post Gazette after getting drafted in the 16th round in June 1988. "I was 1-7 this year and I figured my chances were not that good. But talking to the scouts, they were worried about my ability, not how well the team did."
Merigliano's ability eventually took him on to a pro career that lasted six seasons. He made it to AAA, but not the bigs. He has, however, continued in the game, as a youth instructor.
Merigliano's career began that year in 1988, taken by the White Sox 405th overall out of the University of Pittsburgh.
He started with the White Sox at short-season Utica. He went 1-4 over 24 relief appearances, with a 1.60 ERA.
He moved to single-A South Bend for 1989 and turned starter. He went 11-4, with a 2.91 ERA over 19 starts. His improvement from college to the pros came through coaching, he told The Post-Gazette in June 1989.
"I never had a pitching coach at Pitt like I do here," Merigliano told The Post-Gazette. "Having a pitching coach has changed things drastically for me."
Merigliano made high-A Sarasota for 1990, and went 3-11, with a 3.76 ERA over 21 starts. He then moved to AA Birmingham for 1991 and 1992. He had a 3.89 ERA his first year there and a 3.08 mark in his second.
He made AAA Nashville for seven outings in 1993. He went 0-1, with a 6.48 ERA. He played the rest of the year at Birmingham, Sarasota and in the rookie Gulf Coast League. His 1993 campaign proved his last as a pro.
Merigliano has since returned to Pittsburgh and, in 2004, helped start Pittsburgh Diamond Dawgs, which he continues with as a coach in 2021.
- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 9, 1988: Merigliano a surprise pick by White Sox
- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 8, 1989: Shaler's Merigliano 7-1 with White Sox farm club
Made the Majors:1,282-33.7%
Never Made Majors:2,520-66.3%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors:526
10+ Seasons in the Minors:318
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