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Pittsburgh Pirates: Examining Some of the Worst Teams in Franchise History

By Cody Potanko

PITTSBURGH - SEPTEMBER 23: Manager John Russell #7 of the Pittsburgh Pirates jobs back to the dugout after relieving Brian Burres #71 during the game against the St Louis Cardinals on September 23, 2010 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH - SEPTEMBER 23: Manager John Russell #7 of the Pittsburgh Pirates jobs back to the dugout after relieving Brian Burres #71 during the game against the St Louis Cardinals on September 23, 2010 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images) /
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PITTSBURGH, PA – SEPTEMBER 11: A general view of PNC Park during the ceremony to commemorate September 11th, 2001 before the game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Florida Marlins on September 11, 2011 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA – SEPTEMBER 11: A general view of PNC Park during the ceremony to commemorate September 11th, 2001 before the game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Florida Marlins on September 11, 2011 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

2001 Pittsburgh Pirates 62-100 Record

One of my favorite teams to talk about is the 2001 Pittsburgh Pirates team. In Lloyd McClendon‘s first year as a skipper, I can remember as a kid imitating his famous rant where he took the first base bag after getting tossed from the game. I loved the guy, and being born in 1995, it’s my first recollection of watching baseball with my grandma. McClendon would spend five years in Pittsburgh and posted a 336-446 record.

2001 was supposed to be a big year for the franchise. Well, it was. That is because 2001 was the year that the jewel on the North Shore, PNC Park, opened its gates for the first time. Unfortunately, the product on the field would not live up to the excitement of having a new ballpark.

On a team with Jason Kendall, Brian Giles and a young Aramis Ramirez, you would think they could produce more than just 62 wins, but, well. Giles led the team in batting average at a .309 mark as well homers with 37. Ramirez, who hit his fair share with 34, led the team in RBIs with 112 along with a team-leading 181 hits.

Pitching, on the other hand, well, let’s just say they had seen better days. The only starting pitcher with a record .500 or better was Jason Schmidt with a 6-6 record, and the only pitcher with a sub 4.47 ERA was David Williams, who had a 3.71 ERA. Omar Olivares takes home the worst ERA of the day with 6.55 for those who qualify in my eyes.

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