Francisco Cervelli. Francisco Cervelli. Francisco! Cervelli!
The name rolls off the tongue with all the panache and flair of its namesake.
Will Ferrell’s Buddy the Elf got it. “Francisco! That’s fun to say!” And Pirates fans are starting to get it, too.
When the Pirates lost out in the Russell Martin sweepstakes after Martin’s fantastic run in black in gold made him the darling of free agency, it was hard to imagine anyone stepping in behind the plate that could come close to filling his cleats.
Raw power, business-like work ethic, a tendency towards the dramatic, an uncanny ability to gun down opposing runners, and a sheer physical presence in a city that thrives on such machismo, Martin was, for all intents and purposes, the heartbeat of the team’s resurrection years.