Pirates ownership has spent 13 years turning the ‘Cueto’ game from a beginning into a relic

October 1 will always mean something different in Pittsburgh.

Thirteen years ago today, PNC Park shook. It shook with 40,000-plus fans who had waited more than two decades for October baseball to return. It shook with every pitch Johnny Cueto threw. And then, for one unforgettable sequence in the second inning of the 2013 National League Wild Card Game, it felt like the crowd itself actually changed the game.

“CUETO! CUETO! CUETO!”

The chant poured down from every level of the ballpark as the Cincinnati Reds right-hander stood on the mound. Cueto smiled. He tried to compose himself.

Then he dropped the baseball. The crowd somehow got louder.

And on the very next pitch, Russell Martin sent a fastball over the left-field wall.

PNC Park erupted.

It remains one of the most perfect moments in Pirates history — the kind of sequence that almost sounds exaggerated when retold. A fan base that had suffered through 20 consecutive losing seasons finally had something to celebrate, and for one night, those fans seemed capable of willing their team to victory through sheer volume.

The Pirates had already taken the lead when Marlon Byrd homered earlier in the second inning. Martin's blast made it 2-0, and Pittsburgh never really looked back. The Pirates beat the Reds 6-2 and advanced to the National League Division Series.

Thirteen years later, the details haven't faded. The blacked-out crowd. The towels. The roar when Francisco Liriano recorded an out. The chants aimed at Cueto. Martin's swing. The camera shaking as he rounded the bases.

For anyone who experienced it, whether from inside PNC Park or from a living room somewhere in western Pennsylvania — or even from a library stairwell on a college campus in North Carolina — it was the night the Pirates finally felt relevant again. That is what makes the anniversary both wonderful and painful.

The Pirates have spent the years since chasing another night like it. They returned to the Wild Card Game in 2014 and 2015, only to run into Madison Bumgarner and Jake Arrieta. They haven't won a postseason game since that October night against Cincinnati.

Thirteen years later, Pirates fans are still waiting for another night like 'Cueto'

The Pirates finally posted a winning record again in 2026, a meaningful accomplishment after so many losing seasons. But they still missed October.

Thirteen years have passed since Pirates fans watched their team celebrate an October victory. Players have come and gone. Managers have changed. Front offices have changed. Rebuilds have been launched, abandoned and rebranded. PNC Park has hosted countless memorable regular-season moments since then. But nothing has quite felt like that.

Maybe that's because the 2013 Wild Card Game was more than just a game. It was a city finally being allowed to believe again after two decades of mostly miserable baseball. It was Andrew McCutchen's Pirates becoming something more than an entertaining young team.

For one night, Pittsburgh wasn't simply hoping its baseball team might eventually matter. It mattered right then.

That 2013 atmosphere is also a reminder of what this fan base is capable of providing when given a reason. Pirates fans are sometimes criticized for empty seats or frustration or cynicism, but October 1, 2013 remains the best rebuttal imaginable. Give Pittsburgh meaningful baseball, and PNC Park can become one of the most electric environments in the sport. Johnny Cueto found that out firsthand.

Thirteen years later, the clip of him dropping the ball still gets replayed. The chant still gives Pirates fans chills. Martin's home run still produces the same reaction.

That isn't because Pirates fans refuse to move on. It's because the organization hasn't given them anything newer.

The “Cueto” game is often remembered as proof of how incredible Pittsburgh can be when baseball matters. It should also be remembered as proof of just how much opportunity ownership has wasted since.

Bob Nutting did not have to wonder whether Pittsburgh would embrace a winner. He got the answer 13 years ago. He saw the packed ballpark, heard the chants, and watched 40,000-plus people turn one baseball game into a civic event.

And yet, more than a decade later, Pirates fans are still being asked to treasure the same postseason victory. That's the part of this anniversary that should sting most.

October 1, 2013 was magical because it felt like the end of 20 years of misery. Nobody in that ballpark could have known it would also become the beginning of another painfully long wait.

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