Advanced metrics don’t always tell the story.

Doug Drabek was the ace of the Pirates staff during the years they went to three consecutive NLCS (1990-92), though his bWAR does not reflect this.  Still, Drabek WAS the ace, won a lot, and generated confidence in teammates and fans alike.

Drabek began his career with the New York Yankees and was traded to the Pirates after only one year.  Inserted into Pittsburgh starting rotation immediately, Drabek slowly became a workhorse for the team, first breaking the sub-3 ERA in 1989 (2.80), and he reduced that to 2,76 in 1990.  That was the year he led the NL in Wins (22), had a WHIP of 1.063, and won the Cy Young.  Drabek then took the Pirates to the playoff three straight years, winning 30 Games combined in 1991 and 1992, with a fifth-place Cy Young finish in the latter year.

The Pirates imploded after the 1992 Season, essentially disbanding due to cost-cutting.  Drabek joined Houston as a Free Agent.  With the Pirates, Drabek won 92 Games against 62 Losses with a 3.20 ERA, a 1.148 WHIP, and 820 Strikeouts.

Bob Elliott had one of the best nicknames in all of sports; “Mr. Team.”

Elliott came up in 1939, first playing in the Outfield before he moved to Third Base.  An All-Star four times with the Pirates, Elliott batted over .290 five times, with three of those seasons gaining over 100 RBIs.  He earned a reputation as the consummate teammate, an honor that he took the next level with his second MLB team.

After the 1946 Season, Elliott was traded to the Boston Braves, immediately proving the Pirates wrong by winning the MVP in his first year there.  With the Pirates, Elliott collected 1,142 Hits and batted .292.

Elbie Fletcher was traded to Pittsburgh from Boston during the 1939 Season, where in Western Pennsylvania, he developed one of the keenest batting eyes of the game.

Fletcher finished the year strong, batting .303 for Pittsburgh, and though he would not bat over .300 again, he learned how to take pitches and would top the NL leaderboard in Walks twice (1940 & 1941) and On Base Percentage three straight years (1940-42).  He went into the U.S. Navy for two years, missing two seasons, but was not the same player when he returned and was traded after the 1947 Season.

Fletcher had 875 Hits for the Pirates along with a .403 OBP.

Ginger Beaumont was one of the better contact hitters in the 1900s, making history as the first National League player to lead the league in Hits three years in a row (1902-04).

Beaumont debuted for Pittsburgh in 1899, batting .352 as a rookie and exceeding .300 five consecutive seasons (1901-05), winning the Batting Title (.357) in 1902.  While he did not look fast, he was, swiping at least 20 Bases seven times with Pittsburgh.

The Pirates traded Beaumont to Boston after his disappointing 1906 Season, but Beaumont proved them wrong by finishing first in Hits in 1907.  Beaumont, overall as a Pirate, batted .321 with 1,292 Hits and 200 Stolen Bases.

From Panama, Manny Sanguillen played much of his career in shadows, a shame considering how good he was.

The Catcher debuted in 1967 for the Pirates but established himself in 1969 as their starter, a role he held until he was traded to Oakland in 1976.  On the loaded Pirates team, he was often forgotten behind stars like Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, and later Dave Parker, but he played his role in Pittsburgh’s 1971 World Series win.  A three-time All-Star, Sanguillen, was never going to be considered the best Catcher of his time, not because he wasn’t good, but because Johnny Bench dominated the position in the National League in the 1970s.  Nevertheless, Senguilen had four .300 years for the Pirates, an atypical amount of hitting for a Catcher in the 70s.

Senguillen was traded to Oakland after the 1976 season but was back a year later, albeit in a reserve capacity.  He was a member of the "We Are Family" Pirates team that won the 1979 World Series, making Senguillen one of the few players to win a ring on both 70s Pirates Championship Teams.  He retired soon after.

With the Pirates, Senguillen batted .299 with 1,343 Hits.

Dick Groat was a two-sport star at Duke, playing both Baseball and Basketball, and was so good that he became the first man to be inducted to both the College Basketball and College Baseball Hall of Fame.  Groat even played a year in the NBA, but thankfully for the Pittsburgh Pirates, he made Baseball his main career choice.

Groat signed with the Pirates in 1952 and was third in Rookie of the Year voting but could not immediately capitalize as he was in the Military the next two years.  Returning in 1955, the Shortstop would patrol the infield for the Pirates until 1962, where he was an All-Star in three seasons, winning the Batting Title in 1960 (.325), leading the National League in Defensive bWAR (2.6) and the MVP.  Groat capped the season perfectly by leading Pittsburgh to a World Series win, completing one of the most successful years ever by a Pirate.

Groat was traded to St. Louis after the 1962 campaign, leaving Pittsburgh with 1,435 Hits and a .290 Batting Average.

The son of 12-year veteran Catcher Fred Kendall, Jason Kendall naturally came by his trade behind the plate and would eclipse his father in Major League accomplishments.

Kendall was a First Round Pick in 1992, and after slowly being groomed by Pittsburgh, he would make his Pirates debut as their starting Catcher in 1996.  The rookie year of Kendall was strong, as he was an All-Star, a third-place finisher for the Rookie of the Year, and he batted an even .300.  Kendall remained a good hitter over his duration with Pittsburgh, batting .300 five more times with the team, with an overall.306 Batting Average for the team.  Defensively, the three-time All-Star was competent, and though he was not a Gold Glove winner, this was not a deficiency in his game.  

Kendall was traded to Pittsburgh in 2007, and with the team, he had 1,409 Hits.

Signing as an Amateur Free Agent in 1964, Al Oliver first made the Pirates in 1968 and became their starting Centerfielder the year after.  

Oliver tied for second in Rookie of the Year voting and would help the Pirates win the World Series in 1971.  An All-Star the following season, Oliver developed his hitting stroke, batting at least .300 four times, and from 1969 to 1977, always at least 11 Home Runs, peaking with 20 in 1973.  Finishing seventh in MVP voting twice (1972 & 1974), Oliver added two more All-Stars (1975 & 1976), and by the mid-70s, he was regarded as one of the better hitters in the National League.

Despite his success, the Pirates were looking to shake things up, and Oliver was sent to Texas as part of a four-team trade.  Oliver batted .296 with 1,490 Hits and 135 Home Runs with Pittsburgh.

Truett "Rip" Sewell is not just known for his long run with the Pittsburgh Pirates, as it is Sewell who gave the world the "Eephus."

Sewell first made the Majors with the Detroit Tigers for five Games in 1932, but it was mostly known for Hank Greenberg beating him up.  He finally made it back to the big league with Pittsburgh in 1938, but as Sewell was now in his early 30s, he had to learn how to use every bit of guile and trickery to get outs.

Making the Pirates starting rotation in 1940, Sewell had an occasional pitch called the “Eephus," which was so off-speed that it just blooped over home plate, confusing batters who had years of conditioning to hit a baseball at much faster speeds.  He was named to four All-Star Teams and led the NL in Wins (21) in 1943, duplicating that number the season after.  Sewell’s best seasons were during the talented-depleted World War II, but that should not penalize him, as it was a factor beyond his control.

Overall, Sewell had 143 Wins against 97 Losses with a 3.43 ERA.

Jesse Tannehill had a cup of coffee with Cincinnati in 1894 but returned to the National League in 1897 with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Tannehill's first full year was non-descript (9-9, 4.25 ERA), but he emerged as a top hurler for the squad over the next five seasons.  The lefthander won at least 18 Games every year, with four of them exceeding 20.  Tannehill had an ERA under 3.00 all of those years, with an ERA Title in 1901 (2.18), the same season he led the NL in FIP (2.59).  

He jumped to the New York Highlanders of the American League in 1903, thus ending his run with Pittsburgh, leaving the team with a stellar 116-58 record with an ERA of 2.75.  Tannehill was also a competent fielder, sometimes playing in the Outfield, which the Pirates were fine with considering he was a decent batter.  Over 865 At Bats with Pittsburgh, Tannehill batted .277 with 96 RBI, a more than respectable metric considering he was primarily a Pitcher.

Andy Van Slyke began his career with the St. Louis Cardinals, where after four years, he was dealt to the Pirates.  It was a great move for Van Slyke, as his career took off at Three Rivers.

Van Slyke mostly in Centerfield, and in 1988, his second year with Pittsburgh, Van Slyke went to his first All-Star Game, led the NL in Triples (14), and set career-highs in Home Runs (25) and RBIs (100).  He won both the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger and was fourth in MVP voting.  

Van Slyke would struggle offensively the following year, but his defense remained an asset, and he continued to accumulate Gold Gloves in his trophy case, gaining five in total.  The Outfielder went to two more All-Star Games (1992 & 1993), and in 1992, he had his best season in Baseball when he led the league in Hits (199), Doubles (45), and batted a career-high .324.  Van Slyke again won the Silver Slugger, and as he did in 1988, he was fourth in MVP voting.  The Pirates went to three consecutive National League Championship Series (1990-92), and Van Slyke can take a lot of the credit.

Van Slyke left the Pirates for the Orioles as a Free Agent before the 1995 Season, but he was no longer an All-Star contender by this time.  He accrued 1,108 Hits, batted .284 with 127 Home Runs for Pittsburgh.

One of the most underrated Pitchers in Pirates history, John Candelaria, was on many good Pittsburgh teams, though most fans were focused on the offensive stars of the team.

Candelaria was in the Pirates organization for sixteen years, beginning as a Second Round Pick in 1972 until he was traded to the Angels during the 1985 Season.  First making the Pirates in 1975, the "Candy Man" was a regular starter the following year, throwing a no-hitter as a sophomore.  Statistically, his best season was 1977, where the southpaw led the NL in ERA (2.34) and BB/9 (2.0), won 20 Games, was fifth in Cy Young voting and was an All-Star.

Candelaria had a lot more good moments with Pittsburgh, helping them win the 1979 World Series, and having six more seasons where he had at least 11 Wins.  After he was traded in 1985, he returned briefly to close out his career in the 1993 season.

With the Pirates, Candelaria had a 124-87 Record, a 3.17 ERA, and fanned 1,159 batters.

Hoyt Wilhelm generally receives credit for being the game's first great reliever.  History may eventually show that Wilhelm was not the only prototype for relievers, asRoy Facedeserves to be considered in that discussion too.

Roy Face was the first pitcher to record twenty saves in a season (1958).  He would lead the senior circuit in that category three times.  Roy Face still holds the record for the highest winning percentage in a season with a whopping .947 (18 wins to 1 loss in 1959).  Face used his forkball to get Pirate teams out of jam after jam and racked up multiple wins, and saves all in a relieving role.  

Face was easily the top relief pitcher for over a decade, helping Pittsburgh win the 1960 World Series and finishing 547 Games with 186 Saves as a Pirate.  He might be one of the most influential hurlers ever.

Vern Law played all of his sixteen seasons in the Majors with the Pittsburgh Pirates, where the right-handed Pitcher performed as one of their top hurlers.

Law debuted for Pittsburgh in 1950, and after a few Games, was obligated to go to the American Military.  The Pitcher returned to the Pirates in 1954 and to their staff, where he moved up and down their rotation for years.  Law had his breakout year 1959, with a 2.98 ERA and 18 Wins.  The Pirates were ready to advance to the postseason in 1960, with Law winning 20 Games with a 3.08 ERA, and he was the Cy Young Award winner.  He won two Games in the World Series, and Pittsburgh won the Title with Law as their ace.

Law continued his career with Pittsburgh, playing until 1967 and posting nine 10-Win years.  Over his career, Law had a sweet record of 162 Wins and 147 Losses with an ERA of 3.77.

Ray Kremer was a Pirate for the duration of his ten-year career, beginning in 1924 when he got off to a good start with an 18-10 Record and an ERA of 3.19.

For the rest of the decade, Kremer was a top starter for Pittsburgh, anchoring the team to a World Series win in 1925 and another Pennant in 1927.  Kremer won 20 Games twice (1926 & 1930), leading the NL in that stat both times, and he was also a two-time ERA Champion (1926 & 1927), where he finished third and ninth in MVP voting, respectively.

Kremer, who did not make it to the Majors until he was 28, would begin to age out in 1931 and was done two years later. He had a record of 143-85 with a 3.76 ERA.

Lloyd Waner was one of the most consistent slap hitters of his day, and though he was not a flashy player, you know what you were going to get, which was pretty damned good.

Waner debuted in 1927, and had there been a Rookie of the Year; he likely would have won it.  He batted a career-high .355, collected 223 Hits, and led the NL in Runs Scored (133).  Waner did not beat that Batting Average again, but he cracked .300 nine more times, had four 200-Hit years, and was the league-leader in Triples (20) in 1929.  

After his skills declined in the late 30s, he was traded to the Boston Braves in 1941 but returned in 1944 in a reserve capacity to close off his career.  Waner had 2,317 of his 2,459 Hits with Pittsburgh and batted .319 for the club.  Despite his great hitting, his lack of power and speed hamper his rank somewhat.

Waner entered the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1967 via the Veteran’s Committee.

We have to go back to the 1880s for this one, Pitcher Ed Morris, who was one of the many players purchased by Pittsburgh from the folding Columbus Buckeyes after the 1884 Season.

Morris went off to have a brief but explosive career on the mound for the Alleghenys/Pirates, winning 80 Games in his first two years and throwing well over 1,100 Innings.  Morris led the American Association in Shutouts in both 1885 and 1886, with both seasons keeping his ERA under 2.50.  The workhorse also led the league in WHIP in both years, and he also was the league leader in Strikeouts (298) in 1885.

As the team migrated to the National League and became the Pirates, Morris struggled in 1887 (14-22, 4.31 ERA) but bounced back in 1888 with 480 Innings logged, a 28-23 record a 2.31 ERA.  The comeback was a one-year-only affair, as his arm gave out the following year, and he jumped to Pittsburgh Burghers of the Players League in 1890.  He was a bust there and retired from the game shortly after.

With Pittsburgh, Morris went 129-102 with a 2.81 ERA and 890 Strikeouts.

A Louisville Colonel for the first season of his career (1899), Deacon Phillippe was one of many players to be transferred to the Pittsburgh Pirates when the Colonels folded before the century's turn.  In Western Pennsylvania, Phillipe played the rest of his professional career, which turned out to be a pretty good one.

Phillippe won 21 Games with Louisville, and he would be a 20 Game winner in his first four seasons with Pittsburgh.  The Virginian's calling card was his control, leading the National League in BB/9 five times, SO/BB four times, and FIP twice.  He was a huge reason that the Pirates won the Pennant in 1903.

Late in his career, Phillippe was part of Pittsburgh's 1909 World Series win.  Retiring in 1911, he went 189-109 with a 2.59 ERA, 1.105 WHIP, and his BB/9 of 1.253 is in the top-twenty all-time.

How often is an athlete described as "small in stature but big in heart"?  This analogy has been used more times than we can determine but far too often, but it was an accurate assessment when describing the turn of the century ballplayerTommy Leach.

"Wee" Tommy Leach was a triples machine and one of the fastest ballplayers in his day.  Leach hit a few Home Runs in the Dead Ball era, though most were of the inside-the-park variety.  Leach was a power hitter for this time and often cleared the bases, or would himself get on base for the legendary Honus Wagner who batted behind him during his heyday in Pittsburgh.  It was fitting that it was Tommy Leach who would get the first hit and first run in World Series history.  Injuries would catch up to him by 1910, and he wasn't the same player, but Leach is a forgotten star in the first century of the 1900s.

With the Pirates, Leach had 1,603 Hits and stole 271 Bases.

When the name Bill Mazeroski comes up, the automatic response is "World Series-winning Game 7 Home Run".   Maz was a lot more than that.

Mazeroski played his entire MLB career with Pittsburgh, debuting in 1956 and staying until 1972.  Playing at Second Base, Mazeroski would be an All-Star in seven different years, collecting 2,016 Hits with 138 Home Runs.  Mazeroski never batted .300, but his lifetime Batting Average of .260 was respectable, though his .299 career OBP did hamper him, and did reflect on this list.  Still, nothing he ever did with his bat will be remembered as much as the walk-off Home Run that won Game 7 in 1960 over the favored New York Yankees, which is the only of its kind to date.

Defensively, Mazeroski stakes a claim as the best defensive player of the 1960s.  Mazeroski was an eight-time Gold Glove winner who also had eight years where he had a Defensive bWAR over 1.5.  He is currently the all-time franchise leader in Double Pays turned and Total Zone Runs.

Mazeroski declined in the 1970s, but he would help Pittsburgh win the 1971 World Series, making him and Roberto Clemente the only two players on the 1960 and 1971 Championship rosters.

The Veteran’s Committee inducted Mazeroski to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Pirates retired his number 9 in 1987.