Pirates interview Bo Porter

By John Perrotto

Bo Porter was good enough to start in a Rose Bowl. Now the question is whether he is good enough to manage the Pirates?

Porter became the second person to interview for the Pirates’ job on Thursday, joining former Cleveland manager Eric Wedge. Ironically, both are currently out of work. Porter was fired by Arizona as its third base coach earlier this week and Wedge was axed by the Indians at the end of last season and was away from the game this year.

Porter’s lone managerial experience came in 2006 when he guided Florida’s short-season Jamestown farm club to a 33-39 record in the New York-Penn League. He was the Marlins’ major league third base coach from 2007-09.

Porter, 38, was a defensive back for Iowa as a sophomore in the 1992 Rose Bowl, playing under coach Hayden Fry. Porter also played baseball for the Hawkeyes and opted to go that route as a professional athlete after the Chicago Cubs selected him in the 40th round of the 1993 amateur draft.

An outfielder, Porter appeared in the major leagues in parts of three seasons with the Cubs (1999), Oakland (200) and Texas (2001). He hit .214 with two home runs and eight RBIs in 89 games.