The Pittsburgh Pirates will invade Butler when Pirates Winter Caravan makes an appearance for a luncheon Feb. 2 at the Butler County Community College Convocation Center.

Representatives of the Pirates organization, including general manager Dave Littlefield, manager Lloyd McClendon, players Craig Wilson, Mike Gonzalez and Tike Redman, broadcasters Lanny Frattare and Steve Blass and the Pirate Parrot, will be at the Convocation Center from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

The event is sponsored by the Butler Eagle and Butler Rotary. Tickets are $10, which includes lunch, and are available by calling Peter Richdale at 724-482-2916.

"We're making 16 stops in a 10-day period, before and after PirateFest," Pirates publicist Chris Serkoch said. "The players love being part of this.

"A lot of them ask about it every off-season, whether they're going to be included."

Littlefield, McClendon and the players will sign free autographs at the luncheon and will be available for a question-and-answer session with the fans in attendance.

Photos can be taken with the Pirates brass, players, broadcasters and the Pirate Parrot as well.

Serkoch said raffle tickets will be sold for a Pirate basket, which will be filled with Pirates memorabilia, giveaway items and an autographed baseball. Proceeds will go to the Red Cross to benefit the tsunami relief fund.

"We're giving away one of those baskets at each caravan stop," Serkoch said.

Information for 2005 season tickets and group packages, along with ways fans can line up tickets for the 2006 All-Star Game, also will be made available.

Here is some background on members of the Pirate organization coming to the Feb. 2 luncheon:

McClendon is 281-365 in four years as manager of the Pirates. He was a first baseman-outfielder for the club's National League Eastern Division championship teams from 1990-92.

Wilson, 28, led the Pirates with 29 homers and 82 RBI in 2004. He also led the National League in getting hit by pitches. He was plunked 30 times.

Wilson started games at five positions last season: right field, left field, first base, designated hitter and catcher. He struck out 169 times - second in the NL behind Cincinnati's Adam Dunn - and broke the Pirates' single-season strikeout mark of 163, set by Donn Clendenon in 1966.

Redman, 27, batted .280 with eight homers and 51 RBI while starting 134 games in center field for the Bucs. He led the team with 18 stolen bases.

Redman batted .312 in his final 99 games a year ago. He hit .330 in 56 games with the Pirates in 2003.

Gonzalez, 26, is a left-handed relief pitcher who joined the Pirates with infielder Freddy Sanchez in a deadline trade with Boston in 2003. He joined the big club for good June 2 when Brian Boehringer was placed on the disabled list.

Gonzalez was 3-1 with a 1.25 earned run average in 43

innings pitched. He allowed just 32 hits, struck out 55 and walked six.

Among NL relief pitchers, only Houston's Brad Lidge and Los Angeles' Eric Gagne averaged more strikeouts per nine innings than Gonzalez' 11.4. Only Philadelphia's Billy Wagner averaged fewer walks per nine frames than Gonzalez' 1.25.

Frattare has broadcast Pirates games for 29 seasons and has done more than 4,000 games. He has broadcast more Pirates games than anyone in the franchise's 118-year history.

Blass joined the Pirates radio broadcast crew in 1986 and has been involved with the club for 44 years. He won 103 games in 10 years as a pitcher and pitched a complete-game victory in Game 7 of the 1971 World Series.

Littlefield was hired as Pirates general manager July 13, 2001, replacing Cam Bonifay. Littlefield served previously as assistant to the general manager with the Florida Marlins.

During his first full season with the Pirates, the major league club showed a 10-game improvement in the standings and the minor league clubs combined for 399 wins, second-most among major league organizations.