Pittsburgh Pirates
2012 Pittsburgh Pirates season
Established	1882
100px Team logo Cap insignia
Major league affiliations
National League (1887–present) East Division (1969–1993) Central Division (1994–present)
Current uniform
275px
Retired numbers	1, 4, 8, 9, 11, 20, 21, 33, 40, 42
Colors
Black, gold, white
Name
Pittsburgh Pirates (1912–present)
Pittsburg Pirates (1891–1911) Pittsburg Innocents (1890) Pittsburgh Alleghenys (1887–1889) Allegheny (1882–1886)
Other nicknames
The Bucs, The Buccos
Ballpark
PNC Park (2001–present) Three Rivers Stadium (1970–2000) Forbes Field (1909–1970) Exposition Park (II) (1891–1909) Recreation Park (1884–1890) Exposition Park (I) (1882–1883)
Major league titles
World Series titles (5)	1979 • 1971 • 1960 • 1925 1909
NL Pennants (9)	1979 • 1971 • 1960 • 1927 1925 • 1909 • 1903 • 1902 1901
Central Division titles (0)	None
East Division titles (9)	1992 • 1991 • 1990 • 1979 1975 • 1974 • 1972 • 1971 1970
Wild card berths (0)	None
Front office
Owner(s)	Robert Nutting, others
Manager	Clint Hurdle
General Manager	Neal Huntington

The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series champions. The Pirates are also often referred to as the "Bucs" or sometimes the "Buccos" (derived from buccaneer, a synonym for pirate).

The franchise joined the National League in its sixth season in 1887 and was competitive from its early years, winning three National League titles from 1901 to 1903, playing in the very first World Series in 1903 and winning their first World Series in 1909 behind Honus Wagner. The Pirates have had many ups and downs during their long history, most famously winning the 1960 World Series on a walk-off home run by Bill Mazeroski, the only time that Game 7 of the World Series has ever ended with a home run. They also won the 1971 World Series behind Roberto Clemente and the 1979 World Series under the slogan "We Are Family", led by "Pops" Willie Stargell. Overall the Pirates have won five World Series and lost two. The five that the Pirates won were all seven-game Series. After a run of regular-season success in the early 1990s (making the NLCS three straight years), the Pirates have struggled more recently, with 19 consecutive losing seasons to date, the longest in North American professional sports history.

Franchise history[link]

19th century[link]

Professional baseball has been played in the Pittsburgh area since 1876. The teams of the era were "independents", barnstorming throughout the region and not affiliated with any organized league, though they did have salaries and were run as business organizations.^[1] In 1882 the strongest team in the area joined the American Association as a founding member. Their various home fields in the 19th century were in a then-separate city called Allegheny City, across the Allegheny River from Pittsburgh. The team was listed as "Allegheny" in the standings, and was sometimes called the "Alleghenys" (not the "Alleghenies") in the same generic way that teams from Boston, New York, and Chicago were sometimes called the "Bostons", the "New Yorks", and the "Chicagos", in the sportswriting style of that era. After five mediocre seasons in the A.A., Pittsburgh became the first A.A. team to switch to the older National League in 1887. At this time, the team renamed itself the Pittsburgh Alleghenys,^[2] although Allegheny remained a separate city until it was annexed by Pittsburgh in 1907. At that time, owner-manager Horace B. Phillips sold the team to Dennis McKnight; Phillips stayed on as manager.^[3]

In those early days, the club benefited three times from mergers with defunct clubs. The A.A. club picked up a number of players from a defunct Columbus, Ohio, team in 1885.

The Alleghenys were severely crippled during the 1890 season, when nearly all of their stars jumped to the Pittsburgh Burghers of the Players' League. With a decimated roster, the team experienced what is still the worst season in franchise history, going 23–113.^[4] The battle nearly ruined McKnight, and he was forced to return his franchise to the league. However, almost immediately after this, McKnight joined the backers of the Burghers as a minority owner, which then repurchased the Pittsburgh National League franchise and rechartered it under a different corporate name. They were thus able to legally recover the services of most of the players who had jumped to the upstart league a year earlier.^[3]

The new owners also signed several players from American Association teams. One of them was highly regarded second baseman Lou Bierbauer, who had previously played with the A.A.'s Philadelphia Athletics. The Athletics failed to include him on their reserve list, and the Alleghenys picked him up. This led to loud protests by the Athletics, and in an official complaint, an AA official claimed the Alleghenys' actions were "piratical".^[5] This incident (which is discussed at some length in The Beer and Whisky League, by David Nemec, 1994) quickly accelerated into a schism between the leagues that contributed to the demise of the A.A. Although the Alleghenys were never found guilty of wrongdoing, they made sport of being denounced for being "piratical" by renaming themselves "the Pirates" for the 1891 season.^[2] The nickname was first acknowledged on the team's uniforms in 1912. Around the time the team adopted the Pirates nickname, the United States Board on Geographic Names forced the city of Pittsburgh to undergo a controversial name change by having them drop the "h" at the end of the name, making the team's official name the "Pittsburg Pirates" from the adoption of the Pirates nickname until Pittsburgh was able to get the "h" restored to its name in 1911.

After the 1899 season, the Pirates made what is arguably the best player transaction in franchise history when they picked up nearly all of the star players from the Louisville Colonels. Louisville owner Barney Dreyfuss had been told that the Colonels were slated for elimination when the N.L. contracted from 12 to 8 teams. He secretly purchased a half-interest in the Pirates, then after the season sent nearly all of the Colonels' stars up the Ohio River to Pittsburgh. Since the transaction occurred before the Colonels officially folded, it was structured as a trade; the Pirates sent four relatively unknown players to Louisville.^[3] Despite their nickname, the Pirates at least waited until after the season to pull off this blockbuster trade. This is unlike what happened in 1899 to the Cleveland Spiders and, to a lesser extent, the Baltimore Orioles, who were also part of two-team ownerships. Dreyfuss later bought full control of the team and kept it until his death in 1932.

1901–1945[link]

Bolstered by former Colonels shortstop Honus Wagner (who was born and raised in the Pittsburgh area) and player/manager Fred Clarke, the Pirates completely dominated the National League, in part because they lost few star players to the rival American League. However, owing to injuries to their starting pitchers, they lost the first modern World Series ever played, in 1903, to Boston. Deacon Phillippe pitched five complete games, winning three of them, but it was not enough. With largely the same star players, the Pirates would continue to be a strong team over the next few years, and won their first World Series title in 1909, defeating the Detroit Tigers in seven games. The same year, the club opened Forbes Field, which would be its home stadium for the next 61 years.

The 1909 Pirates in a poster celebrating their National League pennant. Frank Chance of the Chicago Cubs and John McGraw of the New York Giants, two teams the Pirates beat for the pennant, are being made to walk the plank.

The Pirates originally played in Recreation, Union and Exposition Parks, all in what was then Allegheny City. Allegheny City was annexed by Pittsburgh in December 1907. Accordingly, the Pirates did not play their first major league game in Pittsburgh until 1908 – over 25 years after their founding.^[6]

The decline of Honus Wagner, considered by many to be the greatest shortstop ever, led to a number of losing seasons, culminating in a disastrous 51–103 record in 1917; however, veteran outfielder Max Carey and young players Pie Traynor and Kiki Cuyler, along with a remarkably deep pitching staff, brought the Pirates back into the spotlight. The Pirates recovered from a 3–1 deficit to win the 1925 World Series over the Washington Senators, and reached the 1927 World Series before being swept by the New York Yankees, who at that time had built the most dominant team in baseball. The 1927 season was the first for the sharp-hitting combination of brothers Lloyd Waner and Paul Waner, who along with shortstop Arky Vaughan ensured that the Pirates had plenty of Hall of Fame-caliber position players through 1941. However, the Pirates' crushing defeats in 1927 and 1938 (when they lost the pennant to the Chicago Cubs in the final days of the season) were tremendous setbacks.

1946–1969[link]

The post-World War II years were not kind to the Pirates, despite the presence of a genuine star in Ralph Kiner, who led the National League in home runs for seven consecutive seasons (1946 through 1952). While attendance at Forbes Field rose to among the top in the NL, the team built around Kiner placed in the first division only once – in 1948 – and in 1952 compiled one of the worst records in major league history, winning 42 and losing 112 games (.273) and finishing 54½ games out of first place. In 1946, the long era of ownership by the Barney Dreyfuss family came to an end when it sold the team to a syndicate headed by Indianapolis businessman Frank McKinney that included entertainer Bing Crosby. By 1950, Columbus, Ohio-based real estate tycoon John W. Galbreath emerged as majority owner, and his family would run the team for another 35 years and supervise its rise to the top of the NL.

Galbreath's first major move, the hiring of Branch Rickey as general manager after the 1950 campaign, was initially a great disappointment to Pittsburgh fans. Rickey had invented the farm system with the Cardinals and broken the baseball color line with the Dodgers, building dynasties with each club. In Pittsburgh, though, he purged the roster of its higher-salaried veterans (including Kiner in 1953) and flooded the team with young players. Many of those youngsters faltered, but those who fulfilled Rickey's faith in them – pitchers Vern Law, Bob Friend, and Elroy Face, shortstop Dick Groat, second baseman Bill Mazeroski, and especially outfielder Roberto Clemente, drafted from Brooklyn after his only minor league season (1954) – would form the nucleus of the Pirates' 1960 championship club. Moreover, as in St. Louis and Brooklyn, Rickey put into place one of baseball's most successful farm and scouting systems, keeping the Pirates competitive into the late 1970s. However, all this was not evident when Rickey retired due to ill health in 1955, with the Pirates still struggling to escape the NL basement.

The 1948 team was the only postwar Pirates squad with a winning record until 1958, Danny Murtaugh's first full season as manager. Murtaugh is widely credited with inventing the concept of the closer by frequently playing Elroy Face late in close games. The 1960 team featured eight All-Stars, but was widely predicted to lose the World Series to a powerful New York Yankees team. In one of the most memorable World Series in history, the Pirates were defeated by ten or more runs in three games, won three close games, then recovered from a 7–4 deficit late in Game 7 to eventually win on a walk-off home run by Mazeroski, a second baseman better known for defensive wizardry. The 1960 Pirates were the only team between 1945 and 2001 to have not succumbed to the so-called "Ex-Cubs Factor" in the postseason. They also became the first team to win a World Series on a home run, a feat later achieved by the Toronto Blue Jays in 1993, although Joe Carter's home run came in Game 6 of the 1993 Series. Mazeroski's homer remains the only walk-off home run in Game 7 of a World Series.

The 1960s would continue with extremely solid defensive play by Bill Mazeroski and the great offensive and defensive abilities of Clemente, baseball's first Puerto Rican superstar. Clemente was regarded as one of the game's best all-time hitters, and possessed a tremendous arm in right field. Although not the first black-Hispanic baseball player (an honor belonging to Minnie Miñoso), Clemente's charisma and leadership in humanitarian causes made him an icon across the continent. During his playing career, Clemente was often overlooked, but today many consider him to have been one of the greatest right fielders in baseball history.

Even with Roberto Clemente, however, the Pirates struggled to post winning marks from 1961 to 1964, and Murtaugh was replaced by Harry Walker in 1965. With Walker, a renowned batting coach, at the helm, and the hitting of Clemente, Matty Alou, Manny Mota and others, the Bucs fielded contending, 90-plus win teams in both 1965 and 1966, with Clemente claiming the National League MVP Award in the latter year. However, Pittsburgh had no answer for the pitching of the Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants, and finished third both seasons. In 1967, they fell back to .500, and did not contend through the rest of the 1960s.

1970–1979 and "The Family"[link]

Aerial view of Three Rivers Stadium.

1970–73[link]

Slugger Willie Stargell became a fixture in the Pittsburgh lineup in the late 1960s, and the Pirates returned to prominence in 1970. Murtaugh returned as manager and the Pirates' home field, Forbes Field, was demolished in favor of the multi-purpose Three Rivers Stadium. In 1970, the Pirates won their first of five National League East division titles over the next seven years, and won their fourth World Series in 1971 behind a .414 Series batting average by Clemente. They also thought they had a genuine superstar pitcher (historically rare for the Pirates) in Steve Blass, who pitched two masterful games in the World Series against Baltimore and had excellent seasons in 1968 and 1972.^[7] That lineup, on September 1, was Rennie Stennett, Gene Clines, Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, Manny Sanguillen, Dave Cash, Al Oliver, Jackie Hernández, and Dock Ellis.^[8]

Clemente died in a plane crash on December 31, 1972 while accompanying a shipment of relief supplies to the victims of an earthquake in Nicaragua. He had reached a milestone by rapping his 3,000th career hit, a stand-up double off Jon Matlack of the New York Mets on September 30, 1972, in what would prove to be his last regular-season at-bat. The Baseball Hall of Fame waived its usual waiting requirement and inducted Clemente immediately. Pittsburgh would erect a statue and name a bridge and park near the stadium after him, as well as a street in the Oakland neighborhood near the former site of Forbes Field.

In 1973, Blass suffered a mysterious decline in his pitching abilities, posting a 9.85 ERA. To this day, pitchers who suddenly lose the ability to throw strikes are said to have "Steve Blass disease."^[9] Blass retired soon after; he has since, for almost two decades, been one of the Pirates' radio and TV announcers.

1974–78[link]

The Pirates made the playoffs in 1974 and 1975, but lost the National League Championship Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Cincinnati Reds, respectively. The speedy Omar Moreno and the power-hitting Dave Parker joined Stargell in the lineup during this period. After the 1976 season, in which the Bucs finished in second place behind the cross-state Philadelphia Phillies, Danny Murtaugh died. The Pirates struck a trade with the Oakland Athletics in which catcher Manny Sanguillen was sent to Oakland for manager Chuck Tanner. The Pirates would finish second to the Phillies once again in 1977, with Parker winning a batting title. It was also in 1977 that the Pirates began wearing yellow and black uniforms with pillbox caps. Stargell would award teammates with "Stargell Stars" on their caps for excellent plays on the field. The following year, the Pirates turned the end of the 1978 season into an impromptu race for the NL East, as they tried to chase down the collapsing Phillies, who ultimately won the division, only to fall short during the final home stand of the season (ironically against the Phillies). Despite this, Parker won another batting title and was named National League MVP to go with it.

1979[link]

Adopting the popular song "We Are Family" by the Philadelphia disco group Sister Sledge as their theme song, the 1979 Pirates held off the Montreal Expos to claim the pennant. "We Are Family" was elevated from theme song to anthem status (and is still nearly synonymous with the '79 Pirates), with fans chanting "Fam-a-lee!" from the stands. The Pirates faced the Baltimore Orioles again in the World Series, which (like 1971) they won in seven games, on October 17, 1979. During the 1979 championship season, a Pirate player was designated as Most Valuable Player in every available category: All-Star Game MVP (Dave Parker), NL Championship Series MVP (Willie Stargell), World Series MVP (Willie Stargell), and National League MVP (Willie Stargell, shared with Keith Hernandez of the Cardinals).

1986–1996: The Leyland era[link]

After the 1979 World Series, the Pirates entered a period of decline, steadily declining until they were regarded as the worst team in baseball during the mid-1980s. Jim Leyland took over as manager in 1986, and under his guidance the Pirates gradually climbed out of the cellar. They featured young and exciting players such as the "outfield of dreams" Bobby Bonilla, Barry Bonds, and Andy Van Slyke; infielders Jay Bell, Steve Buechele, Sid Bream, and José Lind; catcher Mike LaValliere, and pitchers Doug Drabek, John Smiley, and Stan Belinda.

As a rookie in 1982, Johnny Ray played in every game and was named the Rookie of the Year by the Sporting News.

In 1988, the young team finished 85–75 and seemed ready to compete for a pennant. However, the 1989 season was a major setback, with injuries depleting the squad and leading to a fifth-place finish. Among the low points of the season was a game against rival Philadelphia Phillies in Philadelphia on June 8, 1989, where the Pirates became the first team in major-league history to score 10 runs in the first inning and nevertheless lose the game.^[10] Pirates broadcaster (and former pitcher) Jim Rooker famously vowed that if the team blew the lead, he would walk home from Philadelphia—a vow he fulfilled after the season while raising money for charity.^[11]

The Pirates would win the first three NL East titles of the 1990s, but failed to advance to the World Series each time. In both 1991 and 1992, they lost closely contested League Championship Series to the Atlanta Braves.

1996–Present: A prolonged struggle[link]

After the 1992 season, the front office set out to rebuild the team, giving up several high-payroll players in favor of a younger crew. The Pirates have been unable to produce a winning season since, accumulating a 19-year losing streak – the longest in any of the four major professional North American sports leagues.^[12] The closest the Pirates have come to fielding a winning team during this period was the 1997 team, which finished second in the NL Central despite having a losing record and a payroll of $9 million. The 1997 team was eliminated from playoff contention during the season's final week.

2001-07: A new ballpark[link]

PNC Park opened in 2001.

In 2001, the Pirates opened a new stadium, PNC Park. Due to its simple concept and strategic usage of the Pittsburgh skyline, it is frequently regarded as the best park in baseball.^[13]

General manager Dave Littlefield was installed July 13, 2001, midway through the 2001 season, and began overhauling the team to comply with owner Kevin McClatchy's dictum to drastically reduce the payroll. Enigmatic but talented third baseman Aramis Ramírez was traded to the Chicago Cubs in 2003 for a fairly minimal return under pressure to dump his $6 million salary for 2004, and he proceeded to become a star for the Cubs. Brian Giles was one of the National League's best hitters for several years, but he and his $9 million salary were also traded in 2003 to the San Diego Padres for youngsters Oliver Pérez, Jason Bay, and Cory Stewart. Pirate fans found this trade much more palatable in the short run, as Pérez led the majors in strikeouts per inning and Bay won the Rookie of the Year Award award in 2004, while Giles put up a subpar season by his standards. After the 2004 season, Jason Kendall went to the Oakland Athletics in a cross-exchange of high-salary players.

Illustrating the Pirates' rebuilding efforts, at the close of the 2005 season, the team fielded the youngest roster in baseball, with an average age of 26.6. During the course of the season, 14 players were called up from its Triple-A affiliate. On September 6, manager Lloyd McClendon was fired after 5 losing seasons. On October 11, Jim Tracy was hired as the new manager. The 2006 season got off to a slow start with the Pirates losing their first six games. The Pirates hosted the All Star Game at PNC Park. The Pirates went into the game with a disastrous 30–60 record. During the second half of the season, the Pirates made a successful turn around and finished the second half with a 37–35 record. This is the first time the Pirates have finished the second half of the season with a winning record since 1992. Third baseman Freddy Sanchez won the National League batting title for the 2006 season with an average of .344.

2007 was a year of transition for the Pirates. Robert Nutting replaced McClatchy as majority owner, becoming the sixth majority owner in Pirates history. On July 6, Kevin McClatchy announced he was stepping down as the Pirates CEO at the end of the 2007 season.^[14] On September 7, Nutting fired general manager Dave Littlefield.^[15]

2008–2010: Nutting/Huntington era[link]

The Pittsburgh Pirates began to shape their organizational management team late in the 2007 season. On September 13, Frank Coonelly, chief labor counsel for Major League Baseball, was introduced as the team's new president.^[16] On September 25, 2007, the Pirates announced the hiring of Neal Huntington, formerly a scout in the Cleveland Indians organization, as the team's new general manager.^[17] On October 5, 2007, Jim Tracy was fired by the Pirates, leaving them with another search for a manager. Torey Lovullo had originally been named as a leading candidate for the position,^[18] but his name was gradually replaced by others in the minor league ranks, one being Ottawa Lynx manager John Russell, who eventually was named the new manager November 5, 2007. He had originally been the third base coach under previous manager Lloyd McClendon from 2003 to 2005 until he was fired by the previous General Manager Dave Littlefield.^[19]

As the Pirates once again failed to produce a winning record, the team began another round of rebuilding. Prior to the trade deadline, the Pirates made several deals that sent several accomplished veterans to other franchises. On July 26, the Pirates traded left fielder Xavier Nady and pitcher Dámaso Marté to the New York Yankees in return for Jose Tabata, Ross Ohlendorf, Dan McCutchen, and Jeff Karstens. Karstens began his career with the Pirates at 2–0 and came within 4 outs of pitching the first perfect game in franchise history on August 6, 2008.^[20] On July 31, Jason Bay was traded to the Boston Red Sox in a three-team deal that sent Manny Ramírez to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Andy LaRoche and Bryan Morris to the Pirates from the Dodgers and Brandon Moss and Craig Hansen to the Pirates from the Red Sox. On November 24, the Pirates signed Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel as undrafted free agents, making them the first Indian citizens to sign a contract with any American professional sports team.^[21] Both men are pitchers, who were first spotted in the "Million Dollar Arm" contest organized in India by J.B. Bernstein earlier in 2008. Trading away players for prospects continued in 2009, as the team's only 2008 All-Star Nate McLouth was traded to the Atlanta Braves for prospects Jeff Locke, Charlie Morton and Gorkys Hernández.^[22] On June 30, the team dealt Nyjer Morgan and Sean Burnett to the Washington Nationals, as well as sending utility player Eric Hinske to the New York Yankees. This upset some Pirates players, including Adam LaRoche and Jack Wilson, who questioned the direction of the team.^[23] LaRoche was later traded to the Red Sox in exchange for minor leaguers Hunter Strickland and Argenis Díaz.^[24] On July 29, Wilson was traded to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for shortstop Ronny Cedeño and Minor League players Jeff Clement, Aaron Pribanic, Brett Lorin, and Nathan Adcock. The same day, the Pirates traded Sanchez to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for Tim Alderson.^[25] On September 7, the Pittsburgh Pirates were defeated by the Chicago Cubs 4–2. The loss was the Pirates' 82nd of the year, and it clinched for them the longest streak of consecutive losing seasons in any North American professional sport.^[12]

2011–present: Huntington/Hurdle era[link]

On November 14, 2010, after a disasterous 2010 season which saw 105 losses, the Pirates hired a new manager in Clint Hurdle. Hurdle was a part of the Colorado Rockies 2007 NL Pennant and was the hitting coach for the American League Champion Texas Rangers during the 2010 season. The 2011 season had a promising start, as the Pirates were above .500 at the All-Star Break for the first time since 1992. The Pirates also sent three players to the 2011 Major League Baseball All-Star Game with the selections of starting pitcher Kevin Correia, closer Joel Hanrahan and center fielder Andrew McCutchen.^[26] On July 15, and again on July 18, the Pirates moved into first place of the NL Central. This marked the first two times that the Pirates were in first place this late in the season since 1997.^[27] Starting in late July rumblings of "America's Team" began to surface, with ESPN television picking up 2 of their games for their nightly baseball telecast. The Pirates acquired two former all-stars through the trade market during the Trade Deadline on July 31: First baseman Derrek Lee from the Orioles and outfielder Ryan Ludwick from the Padres.^[28] On July 26, a questionable call at home plate led to a 19-inning loss against the Atlanta Braves. The Pirates then won only one game from that point to and August 8, including a season-high 10 game losing streak in that span. Despite a promising season, with a loss to the St Louis Cardinals on September 14, 2011, the team lost its 82nd game of the season, ensuring a 19 year losing-season streak.

Historical rivalries[link]

Philadelphia Phillies[link]

The rivalry between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pirates was considered by some to be one of the best rivalries in the National League.^[29][30][31] The rivalry started when the Pittsburgh Pirates entered play in 1887, four years after the Phillies.^[32]

The Phillies and the Pirates had remained together after the National League split into two divisions in 1969. During the period of two-division play (1969 to 1993), the two National League East division rivals won the two highest numbers of division championships, reigning almost exclusively as NL East champions in the 1970s and again in the early 1990s.^[31][33][34] the Pirates nine, the Phillies six; together, the two teams' 15 championships accounted for more than half of the 25 NL East championships during that span.^[33]

After the Pirates moved to the National League Central in 1994, the teams face each other only in two series each year and the rivalry has diminished.^[30][31] However, many fans, especially older ones, retain their dislike for the other team and regional differences between Eastern and Western Pennsylvania still fuel the rivalry.^[35]

Current roster[link]

Players[link]

Baseball Hall of Fame[link]

Ford C. Frick Award recipients[link]

Retired numbers[link]

Billy Meyer, Manager, 1948–1952	Ralph Kiner, OF, 1946–1953	Willie Stargell, OF-1B, 1962–1982; Coach, 1985
Bill Mazeroski, 2B, 1956–1972; Coach, 1973	Danny Murtaugh, IF, 1948–1951; Coach, 1956–1957; Manager, 1957–1964, 1967, 1970–1973, 1973–1976	Pie Traynor, 3B, 1920–1934; Manager, 1934–1939
Roberto Clemente, OF, 1955–1972	Honus Wagner, SS, 1900–1917; Manager, 1917; Coach, 1933–1951 (This was his number only as a coach)	Paul Waner, OF, 1926–1940
	Jackie Robinson* *retired throughout all Major League Baseball

Franchise records[link]

Won-loss records[link]

• 100 Wins in a Season
  • 1902 (103–36), Fred Clarke
  • 1909 (110–42), Fred Clarke
• 100 Losses in a Season
  • 1890 (23–113), Guy Hecker
  • 1917 (51–103), Jim Callahan, Honus Wagner, and Hugo Bezdek
  • 1952 (41–113), Billy Meyer
  • 1953 (50–104), Fred Haney
  • 1954 (53–101), Fred Haney
  • 1985 (57–104), Chuck Tanner
  • 2001 (62–100), Lloyd McClendon
  • 2010 (57–105), John Russell

First-in-MLB accomplishments[link]

• First ever Major League Baseball game broadcast on the radio, a game between the Pirates and the host Philadelphia Phillies aired August 5, 1921, on KDKA (AM) Pittsburgh. The Pirates won the game 8–5.
• In 1925, the Pirates became the first MLB team to recover from a 3-games-to-1 deficit in winning a best-of-seven World Series; they then became the first MLB team to repeat that feat, in 1979.^{[36][37][38][39]}
• During the 1953 season, the Pirates became the first team to permanently adopt batting helmets on both offense and defense. These helmets resembled a primitive fiberglass “miner’s cap”. This was the mandate of general manager Branch Rickey, who also owned stock in the company producing the helmets. Under Rickey’s orders, all Pirate players had to wear the helmets both at bat and in the field. The helmets became a permanent feature for all Pirate hitters, but within a few weeks the team began to abandon their use of helmets in the field, partly because of their awkwardly heavy feel. Once the Pirates discarded the helmets on defense, the trend disappeared from the game.^[40]
• First franchise to win a World Series on a home run (1960 World Series) in the decisive 7th game. The only other team to meet this feat is the Toronto Blue Jays in 1993, though they accomplished it in game 6.
• The first all-minority lineup in MLB history took the field on September 1, 1971.^[41] The lineup was Rennie Stennett, Gene Clines, Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, Manny Sanguillen, Dave Cash, Al Oliver, Jackie Hernandez, and Dock Ellis.^[8]
• The first World Series night game was played in Three Rivers Stadium on October 13, 1971 — eleven years to the day since Mazeroski's walk-off homer brought the Pirates their last World Series title in 1960. In this case, however, it was Game 4 between the Pirates and the Baltimore Orioles, rather than a decisive Game 7. Apparently, good things happen for the Pirates on this date, as they knotted the '71 Series at two games apiece on their way to their fourth title.
• The first MLB scout to win the "Scout of the Year Award", Howie Haak, in 1984, three additional scouts from the organization have subsequently won the award.
• The first combined extra inning no-hitter in MLB history took place at Three Rivers Stadium on July 12, 1997. Francisco Cordova (9 innings) and Ricardo Rincon (1 inning) combined to no-hit the Houston Astros, 3–0 in 10 innings. Pinch-hitter Mark Smith's three-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning sealed the victory and the no-hitter for the Pirates. It remains the only such no-hitter to date.^[42]
• In November 2008, the Pirates became the first MLB team to sign Indian players when they acquired the non-draft free agents of Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel.^[21][43] This was also seen by Pirates General Manager, Neal Huntington, as "not only add[ing] two prospects to our system but also hope to open a pathway to an untapped market."^[44]
• The Pirates became the first team in MLB history (as well as all professional sports) to have 19 consecutive losing seasons with a record of 72–90 in 2011.

Minor league affiliations[link]

Fanbase[link]

Despite having some notable fans including former part-owner Bing Crosby and more recently Regis Philbin,^[45] the Pirates are considered by most to be a distant third in Pittsburgh behind the Pittsburgh Steelers and Pittsburgh Penguins in popularity among Pittsburgh's three major professional sports teams. Many surveys have backed up this finding as well.^[46] However, due to their long history in Pittsburgh dating back to 1882, the team has retained a strong loyal following in the Pittsburgh region.

While the team's recent struggles compared to Pittsburgh's other two teams can be partly to blame (since the Pirates last World Series championship in 1979, the Steelers have won the Super Bowl and the Penguins the Stanley Cup three times each, including both in 2009), distractions off the field have also caused the team's popularity to slip in the city. While the team was ranked first in Pittsburgh as recent as the late 1970s,^[47] the Pittsburgh drug trials in 1985 and two relocation threats since are believed to have also seen the team's popularity dipped.^[48] The team's standing among fans has, however, improved since PNC Park opened in 2001.^[49]

Community activities[link]

Each year, the Pirates recognize six “Community Champions” during a special pregame ceremony.^[50]

Piratefest is a yearly event that is held by the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball club in January. The event is a baseball carnival for the whole family. It features autograph sessions from current and former Pirates players, live events and games, carnival booths such as dart throwing, baseball clinics, "Ask Pirates Management", and much more. Piratefest is held yearly at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in downtown Pittsburgh.^[51]

Radio and television[link]

In 2007, the Pirates chose to end the longest relationship between a team and a radio station in American professional sports. KDKA first broadcast the Pirates on August 5, 1921; with Westinghouse foreman Harold Arlin behind the mic. Broadcasts ended in 1924, but returned in 1936. Except for a few years on WWSW in the late 1940s and early 1950s, the Pirates were on KDKA for 61 years. KDKA's 50,000-watt clear channel enabled Pirates fans across the eastern half of North America at night to hear the games.