In my most recent blogs I’ve mainly been focusing on Pittsburgh’s sports teams and their fans, but for this blog I’d like to talk more about the current heroes of Pittsburgh sports. There are many athletes that have come through Pittsburgh over the years, many of which have retired in Pittsburgh, such as Mario Lemieux of the Penguins, Jack Lambert, Terry Bradshaw and Jerome Bettis of the Steelers, and Willie Stargell of the Pirates, but unfortunately many players are either traded or sign with other teams
.
The Pirates just lost one of the most gifted athletes and greatest players in franchise history to a trade with the San Francisco Giants. Andrew McCutchen made his debut with the Pirates on June 4, 2009. Over his career in Pittsburgh, he was selected to five All-Star games and was elected the National League MVP in 2013. Over his nine year career, he has obtained a .291 career batting average, 1,463 hits, 203 home runs, 725 RBIs, and 171 stolen bases. While these stats might seem impressive, nothing is more astonishing than his play in center field. It seemed like every game McCutchen would make a new ESPN Top 10 play in center field, featuring him accelerating for considerable distances to make an unreal diving catch, and robbing the batter of a seemingly sure extra base hit.
The Fort Meade product came to the Pirates when they were most dire. The Pirates hadn’t made the playoffs in over a decade and became the new record holder of the longest playoff drought in North American sports history. However, the play of the Pirates led by Andrew McCutchen ignited a last play team, propelling them into their first playoff birth in over twenty years. They finished 94-68 in 2013, awarding them second place in the division, and a wild card matchup with the Cincinnati Reds. That same year was the year in which McCutchen achieved NL MVP, a season which he batted .317, hit 21 home runs, knocked in 84 RBIs, and stole 28 bases. It is obvious that, without the help of their MVP, the Pirates would not have done nearly as well that season.
The wild card game that featured the Pirates and the Reds saw a sell out crowd cloaked in black at PNC Park that helped lift the Pirates to a 5-2 victory. Though the Pirates would lose to the Cardinals in the final game of a five game series, they would make the playoffs two more seasons until the Pittsburgh organization decided to trade number twenty-two to the San Francisco Giants. I can attest to the pain and grief that would follow this trade. McCutchen was the reason I started following the Pirates heavily, even when they still had sub-par seasons. My father bought me his jersey, my mom bought me the number twenty-two to put on my necklace, and I watched every game I could to see my hero excel at the sport that is referred to as America’s past time. Andrew McCutchen… you will be missed.
