Pittsburgh Pirates: Top Five Center Fielders in Franchise History

The Pittsburgh Pirates outfield history is in general very deep. Last time, we went over left fielders, so let’s  move over to center field.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have an all-around deep, rich history of talented outfielders in general. The last outfield position we looked at was left field. It was so deep that Hall of Fame slugger Ralph Kiner was only number four. The Pirates all time wRC+ leader, Brian Giles, was 5th.

Seemingly ever great era of Pittsburgh Pirates baseball included a great center fielder. This was true in the 1970s, early 1990s and the 2010s. It really is remarkable the amount of talent the Pirates have had in center field over the years.

We might have a situation like that in center field today. Like with all these lists, I will be using the era adjusted numbers like OPS+ and wRC+. I will also take into consideration time played with the team. So with that all being said, let’s go over the top five center fielders in the long, storied history of the Pittsburgh Pirates. In fact, the list will be kicking off with a Hall of Famer, which, once again, goes to show how deep the franchise’s talent pool has been in center field.

Number Five – Lloyd Waner

Lloyd Waner played nearly his entire career with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Of his 8,337 career plate appearances, Warner stepped to the plate as a Pittsburgh Pirate for 7,777 of those plate appearances.

Warner was the team’s primary center field defender from 1927 to 1939. In that 13 season span, Warner hit .321/.358/.402 with a 101 OPS+. He did appear with the Pirates in 1940, 1941, 1944, and 1945, but in total he had just 214 plate appearances across those four seasons.

Overall, Waner hit .319/.356/.399 with a 101 wRC+ and 100 OPS+. While those numbers do not look too good today, remember the era he played in. Low walk rates, low power numbers and slap hitters were pretty common then, so Warner wasn’t all that bad for the era. Plus considering that he struck out just 2.1% of the time, Warner was really good at putting the ball in play.

Defensively, Waner was pretty good with +17 across his entire career. He was also a decent base runner with +9.5 base running runs above average.

During his time in Pittsburgh Waner was fondly known as “Little Poison.” This was due to his older brother, and fellow Hall of Fame member, Paul “Big Poison” Waner joining him in the Pittsburgh outfield.

Number Four – Ginger Beaumont

Clarence “Ginger” Beaumont was the Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder from 1899 to 1906. In all but two of those seasons, he was a well above average contributor at the plate. Beaumont hit .321/.369/.404 with a 124 OPS+ and 123 wRC+. His wRC+ is the 3rd highest among all Pirate center fielders with at least 2,500 plate appearances.

Although Beaumont was not the greatest defender in center field with -9 total zone runs above average, he was a great base runner. Beaumont had +4.5 base running runs above average, and averaged about +6.7 speed score a season. Overall, stole 200 bags including seven straight seasons where he stole at least 20 and stole at least 25 in five of those seasons.

Beaumont was also a member of the 1903 Pittsburgh Pirates team that played in the first ever World Series. In the inaugural Fall Classic, Beaumont had nine hits in 34 at bats in eight games played. He also drew a pair of walks and stole two bags. Due to being the team’s lead off hitter, he is the first player to ever bat in a World Series Game.

After leaving Pittsburgh, Beaumont played four more seasons. He was with the Boston Doves from 1907 – 1909. He then played for the Chicago Cubs in 1910 before calling it a career.

Number Three – Andy Van Slyke

Andy Van Slyke was acquired by the Pittsburgh Pirates from the St. Louis Cardinals right before the start of the 1987 season. Not only did the Pirates acquire Van Slyke, who is now one of the Pirates’ best outfielders in their history, but they also got a solid catcher in Mike LaValliere for All-Star catcher Tony Pena.

Like Beaumont, Van Slyke was mostly known for his bat. From 1987 to 1994, Andy hit .283/.353/.458 with 117 home runs and a 124 OPS+ and 125 wRC+. Van Slyke ranks just above Beaumont at the number spot in Bucco center fielder wRC+. Van Slyke showed both power and speed as he averaged 18 home runs and 21 stolen bases per 162 games. In total, Van Slyke had +12.3 base running runs above average and 134 stolen bags.

Van Slyke was also a pretty good defender. Unlike some position players during the late 1980’s and 1990’s, Van Slyke earned his five Gold Glove Awards. In total, the outfielder had +9 total zone runs above average, and a +2.5 defensive WAR mark. In 1987 and 1989, Van Slyke posted double digits in TZ at +11 and +13. Overall, he had a 31.1 fWAR, or the 4th highest among Bucco center fielders.

Number Two – Max Carey

Max Carey comes in at number two, and for a good reason. Carey was with the Pittsburgh Pirates for 17 of the 20 seasons he played in the MLB. Overall, Carey racked up 9,656 plate appearances in a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform. In those 17 seasons, Carey posted a .287/.363/.391 line, and 111 OPS+/113 wRC+.

Carey was a defensive wizard with the Pittsburgh Pirates. From 1910 to 1926, the speedy outfielder had a grand total of +79 total zone runs above average. He also had a great arm, racking up 312 outfield assists.

Like I said, Carey was fast, and that might be an understatement. Max led the league in stolen bases eight different times with the Pirates. All told, he stole 688 total bags during his 17 year tenure with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Carey was also a member of the 1925 World Series Champion Pirates. In 1961, he was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame.