Our All-Time Top 50 Pittsburgh Pirates Have been revised to reflect the 2023 Season
Yes, we know that this is taking a while!
As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the top 50 of each major North American sports team. That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out, and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity. As such, we are very happy to present our post-2023 revision of our top 50 Pittsburgh Pirates.
As for all of our top 50 players in baseball, we look at the following:
1. Advanced Statistics.
2. Traditional statistics and how they finished in Major League Baseball.
3. Playoff accomplishments.
4. Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles that are not reflected in a stat sheet.
Last year, the Pirates got off to a good start but were unable to hold that momentum, and they again missed the playoffs. There were no new entrants but one small elevation.
As always, we present our top five, which saw no changes:
1. Honus Wagner
3. Paul Waner
4. Arky Vaughan
You can find the entire list here.
The only change was the returning Andrew McCutchen, who went up one spot to #11.
We thank you for your continued support of our lists on Notinhalloffame.com.
11. Andrew McCutchen
Andrew McCutchen was a former First Round Pick (11h Overall in 2005), and four years later, after tearing it up at every Minor League level, he took over in Centerfield for the Pirates.
McCutchen finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting, and two years later, he went to the first of five consecutive All-Star Games. Growing into the top Centerfielders in the National League, McCutchen showed power, with seven straight 20-Home Run years, speed with five consecutive 20-Stolen Base seasons, and he hit over .300 three times, including winning an On Base Percentage in 2014 (.410).
A four-time Silver Slugger, McCutchen had four top-five finishes in MVP voting and won the MVP in 2013 when he had a 24-HR year with a Slash Line of .314/.404/.508.
McCutchen's stats slipped after 2015, but he was still a very good player and the heart and soul of the Pirates. Fans were stunned when he was traded to San Francisco before the 2018 Season, ending the popular player's stay in Pittsburgh, at least for a while. The Pirates brought McCutchen back as a veteran in 2023, where he remains today, adding to his legacy.