Joseph Benjamin Pignatano was born on August 4, 1929, in Brooklyn, New York. He grew up less than a mile from Coney Island, where the A ball Brooklyn Cyclones now play, on West 15th Street. As a boy on the streets of Brooklyn all Piggy did was play was baseball. It was either was hard ball, stickball or softball. In 1948 he tried out for the Brooklyn Dodgers and was one of just two players who got selected. He was sent to Cairo, Illinois to play, then was given a check, released and sent home. With no money in his pockets, he slept at a Chicago train station, until a cop felt sorry for him & put him up for the night at a local hotel. When he got home, his mother called the Dodgers wanting to know why her boy was tossed out on the street. No one had an answer & as a result he was given another chance. This time he played better at the tryout, was offered a contract & he signed a deal. He played minor league ball until 1951 when he went into the military, serving
Comments