Russell Martin, this year's starting catcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates, was first drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2002. After several years in the minors, Martin was called up to the major leagues in May, 2006. In 121 games for the Dodgers that season, Martin batted .282, with 117 hits, 26 doubles, and 10 home runs. He made just six errors in 117 games in his rookie year.
Clint Hurdle, manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates since 2011, started his major league career as a player. He was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in 1975 and played with them from 1977 through 1981. He moved to the Cincinnati Reds in 1982 but stayed only one year with them. Hurdle played with the New York Mets for three seasons (1983, 1985, 1987), with a stint with the St. Louis Cardinals (1986) in between his Mets years. Hurdle played in over 60 games in only two seasons (1978, 1980) and he ended his career of 10 years having played in only 515 games with a batting average of .259. He fared better in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League when he played there from 1977 to 1979 and again in 1983.