Top 10 Best Pittsburgh Pirates Players of All Time

Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Pirates are five-time World Series Champions. Sometimes referred to as the Bucs, this baseball organization won the World Series in 1909, 1925, 1960, 1971, and most recently, in 1979. Established in 1881, the Pirates are one of the oldest clubs in Major League Baseball. With such a long history in the MLB, you can bet the Pirates have seen their fair share of great baseball talent. Read on to learn more about the ten best players in Pirates history.

Who Are the Best Pittsburgh Pirates Baseball Players of All Time?

1. Roberto Clemente
2. Honus Wagner
3. Willie Stargell
4. Arky Vaughan
5. Barry Bonds
6. Paul Waner
7. Ralph Kiner
8. Andrew McCutchen
9. Babe Adams
10. Pie Traynor

1. Roberto Clemente

• 12-time Golden Glove winner
• 15-time All-Star
• 1973 Hall of Fame inductee

Roberto Clemente played his whole career in right field for the Pittsburgh Pirates, starting in 1955 and concluding in 1972. Clemente is often remembered as an excellent batter, claiming the League Title on four separate occasions. Clemente was the first Latino and the only Pittsburgh Pirate to reach 3,000 career hits. Clemente accomplished this feat in his last MLB season, before a tragic plane crash claimed the rightfielder’s life.

More than being remembered as a star hitter, Roberto Clemente is honored as one of the best people to play the game of baseball. In his honor, the Roberto Clemente Award is given to an MLB player each year who exemplifies the spirit of Clemente through philanthropy, excellent character, and giving back to the community. Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente is one of those rare athletes who not only impressed on the field, but should be remembered off the field, too.

2. Honus Wagner

• Eight-time National League Batting Title winner
• 1936 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee
• 1909 World Series Champion

In 1900, Honus Wagner joined the Pittsburgh Pirates as starting shortstop, and remains one of the best Pirate shortstops of all time. He dominated the MLB in multiple statistics during his career, leading in stolen bases, doubles, RBIs, and more in at least three seasons. Not only did Honus Wagner assist the Pirates in winning their first World Series, he also led the team to four National League pennants. In the 1909 World Series, Wagner stole six bases and averaged .333 batting, instrumental to the Pirates’ success in the game.

Wagner’s Cooperstown Hall of Fame induction was in 1936, making him among the first class of baseball players to receive this honor. Honus Wagner is one of those historical players, one of the first to be the best at a well-loved sport.

3. Willie Stargell

• Most all-time home runs of a Pittsburgh Pirate (475)
• 1979 National League MVP
• 1979 Fall Classic MVP

Willie Stargell is, almost undoubtedly, the best Pittsburgh Pirate batter of all time. He holds the franchise record in three career categories: runs batted in (RBIs), home runs, and walks, 1,540, 475, and 937, respectively. His 2,232 all-time hits also rank him seventh on the list of all-time Pirates.

Stargell is perhaps best remembered for his outstanding performance in the 1979 World Series. The Pirates’ win in 1979 secured their fifth and most recent World Series title. In the seven championship games that year, Pittsburgh came out on top, 4-3. Stargell hit seven RBIs, three home runs, and scored seven runs in this series. The Pirates retired jersey #8 in Stargell’s honor, and when the new PNC Park opened up in Pittsburgh in 2001, it was Willie Stargell’s statue that was chosen to be erected in front of the Left Field Entrance.

4. Arky Vaughan

• 1935 National League Batting Title
• Nine-time All-Star
• 1985 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee

Arky Vaughan played shortstop for the Pirates during the early 1930s to early 1940s, while batting a .300. Vaughan continued his career with the Dodgers, retiring in 1948. Vaughan won the Batting Title in 1935, due to leading the NL in on-base percentage, slugging percentage, runs scored, walks, and more. This Pirates shortstop’s career walk-to-strikeout ratio was 3-1. 

Only a few years after his Major League Baseball retirement, in 1952, Vaughan became another Pirate to meet an early and tragic death, drowning while attempting to save a friend. Years after his passing, in 1985, Vaughan was inducted into the Cooperstown Hall of Fame.

5. Barry Bonds

• Seven-time National League MVP
• 14-time All-Star
• Holds the MLB record of 762 career home runs

Barry Bonds is one of the best known more contemporary names in Major League Baseball. More widely known as a San Francisco Giant, Bonds began his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1985. While a Pirate, he won the Golden Glove and Silver Slugger awards three times each. He also collected two out of his seven MVPs in Pittsburgh. Bonds only played seven seasons with the Pirates, while those seasons were fantastic, most of his accomplishments were completed as a Giant, including the MLB home run record, when he passed Hank Aaron’s 755 home runs with 762, in 2007. He also hit 73 home runs in a single season as a Giant, meaning he holds the two most important MLB home run statistics. 

Barry Bonds is not, however, a Cooperstown Hall of Famer. Much doubt is cast at both of his home run records, as Bonds was caught up in the wave of performance enhancing drugs in the late 1980s to early 2000s. Due to his use of steroids, no Hall of Fame committee has elected Bonds to receive the honor of induction, and his home run statistics, while fantastic, are taken with a grain of salt. 

6. Paul Waner

• 1927 MVP
• Four-time All-Star
• 1952 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee

Paul Waner’s second season of baseball was probably his best. The right fielder played in the MLB from 1926-1940, playing his second season in 1927. With 237 hits that year, he won the Batting Title and the National League MVP. 42 of those 2237 hits were doubles, 18 were triples, and 131 were RBIs. 

Throughout Waner’s career, he managed a .333 batting average, batting at or surpassing a .350 in six seasons. During Waner’s career with the Pirates, his brother Lloyd Waner was also a Pirate, and also an outfielder. The duo led the team in hits and were nicknamed “Big Poison” (Paul) and “Little Poison” (Lloyd).

7. Ralph Kiner

• Led the NL in home runs for seven straight seasons
• Six-time All-Star
• 1975 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee

Ralph Kiner played for the Pirates from 1946 to 1953, seven seasons out of his relatively short ten-year career. While with the Pirates, Kiner managed an astonishing and unheard of home run rate of 1 per every 13 at-bats. His 54 home runs are a Pittsburgh record while wearing a Bucs jersey.

Despite the limits of career length, Kiner falls number 2 on the list of all time Pirates’ home runs, (excluding Barry Bonds,) with 301 homers to Willie Stargell’s 475. It is reasonable to assume that, with a longer career, Kiner could have been even higher up on this list due to his ability at the plate. Even with such a short career, Kiner stats speak for themselves, and he was inducted into the Cooperstown Hall of Fame in 1975.

8. Andrew McCutchen

• Golden Glove winner
• 2013 MVP
• Five-time All-Star

Besides being a defensive weapon (Golden Glove winner 2012), McCutchen is a successful Pirate batter as well. With four Silver Sluggers under his belt, McCutchen has only won one NL MVP award, but has been a contender in five different seasons. McCutchen also received the Roberto Clemente Award in 2015. 

McCutchen played for the Pirates for his first 13 seasons, before signing with the San Francisco Giants. After some time away from Pittsburgh, McCutchen is returning to the Pirates to continue his legacy in the 2023 season. As a Pirate, McCutchen has driven in 725 RBIs and knocked out 203 home runs, stats that fans hope to see continue.

9. Babe Adams

• Three wins in the 1909 World Series
• 1909 World Series Champion
• Threw over 250 innings while walking less than 20 batters

The only spot reserved for a pitcher on this top 10 list well-deservedly falls to Babe Adams. Largely responsible for the Pirates first World Series win in 1909, Adams pitched three games, winning all three. In total, Adams collected 194 wins pitching for Pittsburgh.

In 1914, Babe Adams pitched a game in which he didn’t allow a single walk. Impressive enough, especially since the game lasted for 21 innings. This record by Adams has yet to be broken by an MLB pitcher. Adams played almost exclusively for the Pirates, from 1907-1926, despite his first year being spent as a St. Louis Cardinal in 1906.

10. Pie Traynor

• Most MLB triples in 1923
• 1948 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee
• Over .300 batting average in 10 seasons

A triple in baseball is a feat that requires not only a good bat, but typically speed on the bases as well, and Pie Traynor was something of a king at them. Traynor holds the number four spot in most triples hit in Pirates’ history at 164. Traynor was instrumental in the Pirates’ second World Series win, in 1925. He also was selected for the very first two MLB All-Star games. Traynor played Major League Baseball from 1920-1937, spending all 17 years of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Honorable Mentions

• Brian Giles
• Dave Parker
• Wilbur Cooper
• Fred Clarke
• Bob Friend
• Sam Leever
• Tommy Leach
• Bill Mazeroski
• Vern Law
• Andy Van Slyke
• John Candelaria
• Starling Marte
• Elbie Fletcher

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