MVP
There is some good, young talent on this club, but Andrew McCutchen is easily the most polished and best overall player at this junction. The speedy center fielder is only 24, but he already has 262 major-league games under his belt. Last season, he hit .286 with 35 doubles, five triples, 16 home runs, 56 RBI, 94 runs and 33 stolen bases. Most importantly, his walk rate rose and strikeout rate fell. If those trends continue, he's only going to get better and better on his way to superstardom. He's a great defender, too. Better hold onto this one with the jaws of life, Pirates. PLAYER ORACLE - Honus Wagner to Pedro Alvarez
Honus Wagner played with Carson Bigbee on the 1917 Pittsburgh Pirates
Carson Bigbee played with Joe Cronin on the 1926 Pittsburgh Pirates
Joe Cronin played with Jim Wilson on the 1945 Boston Red Sox
Jim Wilson played with Brooks Robinson on the 1956 Baltimore Orioles
Brooks Robinson played with Eddie Murray on the 1977 Baltimore Orioles
Eddie Murray played with Chan Ho Park on the 1997 Los Angeles Dodgers
Chan Ho Park played with Pedro Alvarez on the 2010 Pittsburgh Pirates
POP CULTURE
There are three really good ones here. First of all, the most famous baseball card in history. Honus Wagner's T206 baseball card was designed and released by the American Tobacco Company in 1909. It's estimated that between 60 and 200 of the cards were ever issued. Early last decade, one of the few known remaining cards was sold for over $2 million.
Next up, the "We are Family" 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates. They won the World Series and Sister Sledge's hit song blared from the stadium's P.A. system.
Finally, in what is really just an excuse to embed one of the greatest parts in the history of movies, Roy Hobbs' final home run in "The Natural" came against Pittsburgh. Enjoy:
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