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All-Century Roster: Pirates
By Gary Brooks
SportsLine Baseball Editor
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Though the concept would have eventually been suggested by someone, it
is the Pirates and early owner Barney Dreyfuss who are responsible for the
World Series. Dreyfuss, who purchased the Pirates in 1900 after his
Louisville team was disbanded and the National League shrunk from 12 to
eight teams, brought 14 players with him, including Honus Wagner.
 | | | Bill Mazeroski provided the greatest moment in team history, winning the 1960 World Series.(AP) | |
The Pirates immediately became the strongest team in the NL and by 1903,
when the American League had been in business for three seasons, Dreyfuss
proposed a meeting between his champion Pirates and the AL champion Boston
Pilgrims to settle the true World Champion.
Pittsburgh lost five games to three but returned to win the World Series
in 1909 completing the decade as the strongest team in the National League.
The Pirates' success would be intermittent throughout the rest of the
century. In the mid-'20s with Max Carey, Pie Traynor and Kiki Cuyler
leading the way, the Pirates were strong again, winning the 1925 series and
losing to the Yankees in 1927.
It wasn't until 1960 when the success returned and the Pirates
surprisingly beat the Yankees in seven games though they were outscored
55-27. The '70s brought another full decade of success with World Series
victories in 1971 and '79, both in seven games over the Baltimore Orioles.
If the Pirates had more prominent pitching throughout the century,
they might have added more championships. No pitcher in Pirates history has
had his number retired and no pitcher who spent the majority of his career
in Pittsburgh is in the Hall of Fame. Only three Pirates pitchers in the
past 40 years have won 20 games.
Offense has rarely been a problem. No team has had as many batting
champions. Wagner's eight titles are 1/3 of the Pirates' 24.
Lineup
| Manny Sanguillen, C, 1967, '69-76, '78-80 |
| Sanguillen's free-swinging bat was a big part of five division
championships. He swung at a lot of bad balls but was a strong hitter,
twice finishing second in the NL batting race. From 1969-76, Sanguillen hit
.303 and averaged 62 RBI. He led Pittsburgh in batting in 1970 (.325) and
1975 (.328). He was selected to the All-Star Game three times. |
| Willie Stargell, 1B, 1962-82 |
| "Pops" split his career between the outfield and first base becoming one of
the most feared sluggers in the National League. He is the Pirates career
leader in home runs (475) and RBI (1,540). He was a seven-time All-Star
whose career was highlighted by the 1979 season in which we shared the NL
MVP with Keith Hernandez and won MVP honors in the NLCS and World Series.
He became the 17th player elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of
eligibility in 1988. If not for having played a significant portion of his
career in Forbes Field, which didn't give up many easy homers, Stargell
likely would have hit more than 500. His 269 homers were the most in the
'70s. He led the NL in homers in 1971 with 48 and in '73 with 44. |
| Bill Mazeroski, 2B, 1956-72 |
| Mazeroski never hit .300, and he topped out at 82 RBI and 19 homers, but he
was a crucial figure for a dozen years, playing outstanding defense. The
glove that won him eight Gold Gloves led to his No. 9 being retired by the
Pirates. Then there was probably the most popular swing in franchise
history. Mazeroski's home run to end the 1960 World Series and beat the New
York Yankees will be one of baseball's lasting images of all time. Maz was
a seven-time All-Star who holds records for second basemen in seasons
leading the league in assists (9), seasons leading the league in double
plays (8) and most single-season double plays (161 in 1966). |
| Honus Wagner, SS, 1900-17 |
| Wagner is included in the short list of greatest shortstops ever and heads
the list of the dead-ball era. Wagner won eight batting titles, second to
Ty Cobb's 12, and when he retired he was baseball's career leader in hits,
runs, total bases, RBI and stolen bases. He never hit less than .300 and
hit 101 homers in an era when the long ball hadn't become a huge part of
the game. He was one of five original inductees into the Hall of Fame. |
| Pie Traynor, 3B, 1920-35, 37 |
| Traynor hit .320 and drove in 1,273 runs over his 17 years with Pittsburgh,
good enough credentials to be one of just 11 third basemen in the Hall of
Fame. Traynor was a great contact hitter, but led the team in hitting only
once since he played at the same time as Paul Waner who hit .340 for his
career. Traynor struck out just seven times in 540 at-bats in 1930 when he
hit .366 and drove in 119 runs. He was also outstanding defensively and in
1969, when baseball celebrated its centennial, Traynor was selected the
all-time third baseman. |
| Paul Waner, OF, 1926-42 |
| The venom in "Big Poison" came from his bat. He was the NL MVP by his
second season, when he hit .380 with 131 RBI. Waner led the league in every
category expect homers and walks at some point in his career. Waner played
mostly right field and had a record eight 200-hit seasons. His .340 career
average is the best in Pirates history. He's in the Pirates career top five
in all but homers and steals. |
| Barry Bonds, OF, 1986-92 |
| After four seasons of moderate power and speed, Bonds turned into a quality
all-around hitter and one of the best players in the game in 1990. He hit
.300 for the first time and added 33 homers, 114 RBI and 52 steals. The
numbers earned the first of his three MVPs, his second as a Pirate coming
in 1992 when he had another 30-30 season with 34 home runs and 39 steals.
He nearly had an unprecedented run of three MVPs but finished second to
Terry Pendleton in 1991 voting. Bonds won Gold Gloves from '90-92 as the
Bucs won the NL East all three seasons. |
| Roberto Clemente, OF, 1955-72 |
| Clemente is the most admired Latin player ever. His outstanding bat and
cannon throwing arm made him a 12-time All-Star and 12-time Gold Glove
winner. Clemente led the NL in hitting four times and finished his career
at .317 with 3,000 hits. He was at his best in the World Series, collecting
hits in all seven games in 1960 and 1971 when he was the MVP. He was the
MVP of the National League in 1966 when he had career
bests of 29 homers and 119 RBI. After Clemente died in a plane crash on
Dec. 31, 1972, the waiting period for entry to the Hall of Fame was waived
and he was immediately inducted. |
Pitchers
| Sam Leever, SP, 1900-10 |
| Leever was the most durable arm in the Pirates strong run of the century's
first decade and finished the century with the best winning percentage of
any Pittsburgh pitcher going 195-100 (.661), the majors' seventh-best
percentage of the century. His 2.47 ERA is third best in team history and
his 39 shutouts No. 2. He pitched six consecutive shutouts during the 1903
season in which he won 25 games and led the league with a 2.06 ERA. |
| Deacon Phillippe, SP, 1900-11 |
| Phillippe pitched five complete games in the first World Series; a
best-of-nine Series won by the Boston Pilgrims. He won three games, adding
to the 20 he had won in the regular season. He won at least 20 from 1900-03
and again in 1905. His 167 wins are fifth most in team history. His 2.51
career ERA is fourth best. |
| Jack Chesbro, SP, 1900-02 |
| Chesbro went on to greater fame with the Yankees later in his career,
winning 41 games in 1904, but his three seasons in Pittsburgh to begin the
century were also very strong. He led the NL in winning percentage and
shutouts in both 1901 and '02. He went 21-10 with six shutouts in 1901 and
28-6 with eight shutouts in 1902. |
| Babe Adams, SP, 1907, '09-16, '18-26 |
| Adams, who had the fifth most wins for the Pirates as a rookie in 1909,
became a postseason star when won three games in the World Series, pitching
Pittsburgh past Ty Cobb and Detroit. Adams went on to win 20 or more twice
and 17 or more three other times. His 47 shutouts are the most in team
history. He had excellent control, allowing just 430 walks in 2,995 career
innings. Because of it, he held opponents to the lowest on-base percentage
in the NL in five seasons. Adams pitched one of the oddest games in history
in July of 1914. He went 21 innings without issuing a walk, a record. The
Pirates lost 3-1 to the Giants and the game ended when New York outfielder
Red Murray was knocked unconscious by lightning after catching a fly ball. |
| Wilbur Cooper, SP, 1912-24 |
| From 1917-24, Cooper averaged 20 wins. He led the NL with 22 wins, his
third-best season total, in 1921. His 202 wins are the most in Pirates
history. His 2.739 earned-run average is eight best. Cooper was a
quick-working lefty who was a fine hitter also, batting .346 in 1924. |
| Roy Face, RP, 1953, '55-68 |
| Face was a little right-hander with a good forkball. In 1959, he had
arguably the finest season ever by a reliever going 18-1 to set a record
for winning percentage (.947). Before the save rule becoming official in
1969, Face saved 188 games for the Pirates. He won 93 games in relief and
was an All-Star from 1959-61. |
| Bench |
| Max Carey, Ralph Kiner, Lloyd Waner, Arky Vaughn, Dave Parker, Dick
Groat, Fred Clarke, Kiki Cuyler, Tommy Leach, Al Oliver, Frank Thomas, Andy
Van Slyke, Richie Hebner, Gus Suhr, Matty Alou, Jeff King, Bob Elliott,
Frank Gustine, Jason Kendall, Smokey Burgess |
| Best season |
| Only five teams have ever won 110 games and only three of
those went on to win the World Series. The 1909 Pirates went 110-42, the
second-best winning percentage (.724) ever, and beat the Tigers in a
seven-game World Series. Honus Wagner led the NL in batting at .339 and in
RBI with 100. Howie Camnitz was the league leader with 25 wins and his 1.62
ERA was fourth in the NL. In a Series showdown between Wagner and Ty Cobb,
Wagner hit .333 with six RBI and six steals, Cobb, .231 with six RBI and
two steals. |
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| Worst season |
| The Pirates were awful on the field in 1985, losing 104
games, and off the field there was trouble as well. At the end of the
season, the team was sold, and during the season, drug use among players
was a prominent topic as many players were involved in a high-profile trial
as immune witnesses. The best point of the season was the Pirates selecting
Barry Bonds in the first round of the June draft. |
| Best individual season, player |
| For his 1992 performance which won him his
second MVP, Total Baseball gave Barry Bonds a 9.0 player rating, the
fifth-best total to that time. Babe Ruth in 1923 and '21, Nap Lajoie in
1901 and Cal Ripken in 1984 had better all-around seasons according to the
Total Baseball formula. In the '92 season, Bonds led the NL in
on-base percentage (.461), slugging percentage (.624), runs (109), walks
(127) and extra-base hits (75). He hit .311, stole 39 bases in 47 attempts
and won a Gold Glove. |
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| Best individual season, pitcher |
| Jack Chesbro's 28 wins in 1902 were the
most by a Pirate in the century, as were his eight shutouts. |
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