The Royals selected Pittsburgh-area native Ben Pierce in the 24th round of the 1987 draft and Royals scout told The Pittsburgh Press why.
"He's got good delivery, balance and coordination," scout Ken Gonzales, who signed Pierce, told The Press. "Like all young pitchers in pro ball, he has to tune up that delivery. He also needs to get command of his breaking stuff."
Pierce went on to see four seasons in the Royals system, the last spent also with the Tigers. However good his delivery got, he topped out at high-A.
Pierce's career began that year in 1987, taken by the Royals out of Birmingham-Southern College in Alabama.
Pierce played that first season at short-season Eugene. He saw 13 relief appearances and gave up 15 earned in 16.2 innings.
He then saw 12 outings, 11 starts between the rookie Gulf Coast League and single-A Appleton in 1988. He went 4-2 overall, with a 2.82 ERA.
In one July 1988 start for Appleton, Pierce took a no-hitter into the sixth inning, after spending the first part of the year as a reliever, The Appleton Post-Crescent wrote.
"It really doesn't matter," Pierce told The Post-Crescent of how he's used. "I like relief. As a lefty, I've got a good fastball. If I can come out and pitch when I know I'm not going to go more than three innings, I feel I can throw a lot harder."
Pierce returned to Appleton full time for 1989 and saw 31 outings, three starts. For 1990, he started at high-A Baseball City, but frustrations led him to soon asked for and received his release.
After playing in a local Pittsburgh-area semi-pro league, he finished the year in the Tigers system, at short-season Niagara Falls and single-A Fayetteville to end his career.
- Pittsburgh Press, June 25, 1987: Emerald's city first stop for Penn Hills grad
- Appleton Post-Crescent, July 18, 1988: Pierce filling the gap well for Foxes
Made the Majors:1,389-32.5%
Never Made Majors:2,887-67.5%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors:565
10+ Seasons in the Minors:347
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