By Rick Anderson
For the Grays Harbor News Group
The handful of Harborites who are aware that I take annual baseball road trips with my friend and former co-worker Glen Potter of Eugene, Oregon, usually appear envious when we visit such iconic venues as Boston’s Fenway Park and Chicago’s Wrigley Field.
Those looks of envy turned to expressions of bewilderment upon learning that this year’s destination was Pittsburgh.
The Steel City isn’t high on most lists of elite tourist destinations. Nor do the Pittsburgh Pirates rate as a must-see team.
As it developed, however, the Pittsburgh trip was very enjoyable both inside and outside the ballpark.
From a tourist standpoint, there was plenty to do in Pittsburgh. The Heinz History Center, the Carnegie Science Museum, a three-rivers boat cruise and the Monongahela and Duquesne inclines (funicular rides up Mount Washington, which admittedly is about as mountainous as Think of Me Hill), all located fairly close to our hotel, were worth seeing.
The ballpark experience was also memorable — but not in a way the Pirates intended.
Although the Pirates possess the richer heritage, with such legendary players as Honus Wagner, Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell, there are certain similarities between baseball in Pittsburgh and Seattle.
Both are considered primarily football cities, with local baseball fans occasionally being outnumbered in their home park by their visiting counterparts.
As with the Mariners, Pirate ownership has been accused of putting finances ahead of on-field competitiveness. While the Pirates have developed their share of talented young players over the past 30 years, they haven’t enjoyed great success keeping them — often selling off their stars at the trading deadline or losing them to free agency. Barry Bonds and current Houston pitching standout Gerrit Cole are among several Pittsburgh products who have flourished elsewhere.
Coincidentally or not, the last two Pirate owners have operated newspaper chains. Let’s put it this way: If I wanted an owner to pour a lot of money into a sports franchise, a newspaper magnate wouldn’t be my first choice.
On a more positive note, the Pirates and Mariners replaced two of the worst stadiums in baseball with two of the best.
Both franchises, however, have endured extended postseason droughts.
The M’s, of course, haven’t made the playoffs since 2001 — the longest dry spell for a franchise in any of the four major professional sports. Pittsburgh’s 40-year absence from the World Series is the longest of any team that has made multiple appearances in the Fall Classic.
The latter dubious distinction has a surprising Grays Harbor connection. Daily World Lifestyle Editor Kat Bryant, who spent part of her adolescence in a Pittsburgh suburb, attended the last World Series contest played in Pittsburgh — the fifth game of the 1979 Series at now-defunct Three Rivers Stadium.
The legendary “We Are Family” Pirates led by Stargell and Dave Parker won that game and eventually rallied from a 3-1 Series deficit to upend the favored Baltimore Orioles.
Only 14 years old, Kat wasn’t into intricate ballpark comparisons at the time and retains generally fond memories of Three Rivers Stadium.
More jaded observers regarded Three Rivers as an abomination — a sterile, circular multi-purpose turf facility that was barely suitable for football and even worse for baseball.
In contrast, the Pirates’ current home is almost universally regarded as one of the best in the majors.
Opened in 2001, PNC Park is a compact (only Fenway Park is smaller among major league venues) fan-friendly stadium that offers great sight lines to the field and scenic views of the Pittsburgh skyline and the adjacent Allegheny River. The nearby Roberto Clemente Bridge is closed to vehicular traffic during certain hours on most game days, enabling fans to park on the opposite side of the Allegheny and walk across the bridge to the stadium.
On the stadium’s second level (where our seats were located for both games), spectators have access to an enclosed corridor that contains a slew of concession stands and an air-conditioned lounge.
Unlike the Mariners, the Pirates began the season actually trying to make the playoffs.
With 26-year-old All-Star slugger Josh Bell (the current National League leader in RBIs) and highly touted rookies Kevin Newman and Bryan Reynolds surrounded by such established veterans as Starling Marte and Melky Cabrera, they seemed to possess legitimate postseason hopes.
Mediocre pitching, however, kept the Pirates mired at or below the .500 mark for much of the campaign. With no dominant team emerging in the balanced National League Central, however, they remained on the fringe of contention when they hosted division rivals Philadelphia and St. Louis in a critical recent homestead.
Pitching was the least of Pittsburgh’s problems in the two games I attended.
The Pirates were confronted with the Seattle alumni association when the Phillies invaded PNC Park on a muggy Sunday afternoon.
Four ex-Mariners — infielders Jean Segura and Brad Miller and pitchers Drew Smyly and Juan Nicasio — appeared for the Phils in the contest (a fifth, outfielder Jay Bruce, was on the injured list). Never known for playing through pain during his Seattle tenure, Segura lasted only three innings of this contest before departing with an injured heel.
The left-handed Smyly, who was acquired by Seattle in a 2017 trade but never appeared in regular-season game for the M’s after blowing out his elbow prior to the campaign, continued his comeback by allowing the Pirates only four hits through six innings. But Pirate rookie Dario Agrazal was equally effective in keeping the game deadlocked at 1-1.
After the Pirates squandered golden opportunities for walk-off wins in the ninth and 10th innings, Philadelphia’s Rhys Hoskins lofted a 326-foot fly down the left-field line in the 11th. To the delight of the substantial Phillie contingent on hand, the bleachers were only 325 feet from home plate at that location. Hoskins’ homer gave the visitors a 2-1 victory.
The following night’s Pittsburgh-St. Louis game followed a similar pattern, at least until a wild 10th inning.
Red-hot slugger Paul Goldschmidt gave the Cardinals a seemingly insurmountable 6-2 lead with a grand slam in the top of the 10th.
After five consecutive hits (including a three-run homer by .179-batting Jung Ho Kang) in the bottom of the inning, the deficit was far more surmountable. The Pirates had closed the gap to 6-5 and had the potential tying and winning runs aboard with none out.
One out later, pinch-hitter Jacob Stallings laced a single to right. But reserve right fielder Jose Martinez prevented the tying run from scoring with a tremendous throw that nailed Newman at the plate. After the Pirates lost a replay challenge on the call, the final batter flied out.
St. Louis went on to sweep the four-game series and grab the division lead.
The Pirates, meanwhile, ended the week with an eight-game losing streak. Plummeting into the division cellar, they will almost certainly again become sellers at the trading deadline.
If they need a good-luck charm to reverse 40 years of bad mojo, the solution may be found on Grays Harbor.
Given the proper incentives, Kat Bryant might be willing to return to Pittsburgh to throw out a ceremonial first pitch at a future Pirate game.
