ThePittsburgh Pirates are aMajor League Baseball (MLB)franchise based inPittsburgh, Pennsylvania . They play in theNational League Central division. Originally known as the Alleghenys, they played in theAmerican Association from 1882 through 1886, and have played in theNational League since 1887. The first game of the new baseball season for a team is played on Opening Day, and being named the Opening Day starter is an honor, which is often given to the player who is expected to lead the pitching staff that season,[ 1] though there are various strategic reasons why a team's best pitcher might not start on Opening Day.[ 2] The Pirates have used 71Opening Day starting pitchers since they began to play as a Major League team in 1882. The Pirates have a record of 69 wins and 60 losses in their Opening Day games.[ 3] [ 4] [ 5]
The Pirates have played in several different homeball parks . Between 1882 and 1909 they played in two parks calledExposition Park and inRecreation Park . They played inForbes Field from 1909 to 1970 andThree Rivers Stadium from 1970 to 2000 and they have played in their current stadium,PNC Park , since 2001. They had a record of no wins and one loss in the first Exposition Park, four wins and no losses in Recreation Park and no wins and two losses in the second Exposition Park. They had a record of four wins and two losses at Forbes Field and a record of five wins and eight losses at Three Rivers Stadium. Through 2010, they have a record of two wins and one loss at PNC Park. That gives the Pirates an overall Opening Day record of 15 wins and 14 losses at home. They have a record of 54 wins and 46 losses in Opening Day games on the road.[ 3] [ 4] [ 5]
Bob Friend has made the most Opening Day starts for the Pirates, with seven.Babe Adams andFrank Killen each made five Opening Day starts for the Pirates, andDeacon Phillippe ,Howie Camnitz ,Cy Blanton andBob Veale each made four Opening Day starts.Ed Morris ,Pud Galvin ,Wilbur Cooper ,Ray Kremer ,Rip Sewell ,Steve Blass ,Dock Ellis ,Rick Rhoden ,Doug Drabek andFrancisco Liriano all made three Opening Day starts for the Pirates.[ 3] Several Pittsburgh Pirates Opening Day starting pitchers have been elected to theBaseball Hall of Fame , including Galvin,Burleigh Grimes ,Waite Hoyt ,Jim Bunning , andBert Blyleven .[ 6] Bunning was elected as both aUnited States congressman andsenator fromKentucky after retiring from baseball.[ 7] [ 8]
The Pirates have won nine National League titles, in 1901, 1902, 1903, 1909, 1925, 1927, 1960, 1971 and 1979.[ 9] They went on to win theWorld Series in 1909, 1925, 1960, 1971 and 1979 (the modern World Series began in 1903).[ 9] Sam Leever was the Pirates Opening Day starting pitcher in 1901, Phillippe was the Opening Day starting pitcher in both 1902 and 1903, Camnitz was the Opening Day starting pitcher in 1909,Emil Yde in 1925, Kremer in 1927, Friend in 1960, Ellis in 1971 and Blyleven in 1979.
Season Each year is linked to an article about that particular Pirates season. Pitcher(#) Number of appearances as Opening Day starter with the Pirates W Win L Loss T Tie ND (W) No decision by starting pitcher; Pirates won gameND (L) No decision by starting pitcher; Pirates lost game (W) Pirates won game; no information on starting pitcher's decision (L) Pirates lost game; no information on starting pitcher's decision * Advanced to thepost-season ** NL Champions ⁂ World Series Champions
U.S. SenatorJim Bunning was the Pirates' Opening Day starting pitcher in 1968. Hall of FamerPud Galvin made three Opening Day starts for the Pirates. Ed Morris made three Opening Day starts for the Pirates.Howie Camnitz made four Opening Day starts for the Pirates.^ Bastian, Jordan (March 22, 2010)."Marcum tapped for Jays' Opening Day" .MLB.com . RetrievedSeptember 26, 2010 . ^ Dilbeck, Steve (February 24, 2014)."Dodgers may not start Clayton Kershaw in Sydney" .Los Angeles Times . RetrievedFebruary 25, 2014 . ^a b c "Pittsburgh Pirates Opening Day Starters and Results" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 27, 2009 .^a b c "Pittsburgh 6, St. Louis 4" .Yahoo! . RetrievedApril 7, 2009 .^a b c "Pirates 11, Dodgers 5" .MLB . Archived fromthe original on June 15, 2011. RetrievedApril 5, 2010 .^ "List of Hall of Famers" . National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived fromthe original on April 6, 2009. RetrievedMay 13, 2009 .^ "Jim Bunning U.S. Senator for Kentucky" . Archived fromthe original on February 26, 2009. RetrievedAugust 27, 2009 .^ "BUNNING, James Paul David" . U.S. Congress. RetrievedAugust 27, 2009 .^a b "Pittsburgh Pirates Franchise Encyclopedia" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 27, 2009 .^ "The 1882 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedApril 7, 2009 .^ "The 1883 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .[dead link ] ^ "The 1884 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .[dead link ] ^ "The 1885 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .[dead link ] ^ "The 1886 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .[dead link ] ^ "The 1887 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1888 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1889 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1890 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1891 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1892 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1893 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1894 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1895 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1896 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1897 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1898 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1899 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1900 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1901 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1902 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1903 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1904 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1905 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1906 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1907 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1908 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1909 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1910 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1911" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1912 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1913 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1914 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1915 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1916 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1917 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1918 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1919 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1920" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1921" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1922" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1923" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1924" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1925" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1926" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1927" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1928" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1929" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1930" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1931 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1932 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1933 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1934 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1935 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1936 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1937 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1938 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1939 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 23, 2009 .^ "The 1940 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1941 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1942 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1943 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1944 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1945 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1946 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1947 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1948 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1949 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1950 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "The 1951 Pittsburgh Pirates Regular Season Game Log" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1952" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1953" .Retrosheet . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1954" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1955" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1956" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1957" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1958" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1959" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1960" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1961" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1962" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1963" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1964" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1965" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1966" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1967" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1968" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1969" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1970" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1971" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1972" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1973" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1974" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1975" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1976" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1977" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1978" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1979" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1980" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1981" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1982" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1983" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1984" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1985" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1986" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1987" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1988" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1989" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1990" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1991" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1992" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1993" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1994" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1995" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1996" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1997" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1998" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 1999" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2000" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 22, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2001" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 21, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2002" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 21, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2003" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 21, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2004" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 21, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2005" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 21, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2006" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 21, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2007" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 21, 2009 .^ "Opening Day 2008" .Baseball-Reference.com . RetrievedAugust 21, 2009 .^ "Pirates 6, Dodgers 3" .MLB . RetrievedApril 8, 2011 .^ EndPlay (April 5, 2012)."Philles beat Pirates 1-0 in 2012 season home opener" .wpxi.com . Archived fromthe original on April 12, 2013. ^ "Jeff Samardzija strikes out nine as Cubs hold on to beat Pirates" . ESPN. April 1, 2013. RetrievedMay 28, 2013 .^ "Walker's homer lifts Pirates over Cubs 1-0" . ESPN. March 31, 2014. RetrievedApril 6, 2014 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Cincinnati Reds Box Score, April 6, 2015" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedApril 9, 2021 .^ "St. Louis Cardinals at Pittsburgh Pirates Box Score, April 3, 2016" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedApril 9, 2021 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Boston Red Sox Box Score, April 3, 2017" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedApril 9, 2021 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Detroit Tigers Box Score, March 30, 2018" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedApril 9, 2021 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Cincinnati Reds Box Score, March 28, 2019" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedApril 9, 2021 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at St. Louis Cardinals Box Score, July 24, 2020" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedApril 9, 2021 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Chicago Cubs Box Score, April 1, 2021" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedApril 9, 2021 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at St. Louis Cardinals Box Score, April 7, 2022" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedMay 29, 2022 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Cincinnati Reds Box Score, March 30, 2023" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedMarch 30, 2023 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Miami Marlins Box Score, March 28, 2024" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedMarch 28, 2024 .^ "Pittsburgh Pirates at Miami Marlins Box Score, March 27, 2025" .Baseball Reference . RetrievedMarch 27, 2025 .
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