As the final out was recorded on Sunday afternoon at PNC Park, the loss sealed history being made in the worst possible way for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
With their 7-2 loss to the Chicago White Sox yesterday, the Pirates officially fell under .500 as a franchise. Their all-time record now has more losses than wins, something that has not happened in over 120 years.
Despite their eventual turnaround and the story of how they got their moniker and reputation, the organization actually has rather humble beginnings. Founded in 1882 as the Alleghenys of the American Association, then considered the little brother to the more established National League, the team finished their inaugural season at exactly .500 with a 39-39-1 record.
But they would plummet below the .500 mark for nearly 20 years after that. Seven losing seasons in their first ten years as an team dug quite a hole for the club, one that they would not be able to claw their way out of until midway through the 1903 season.
It would take a change in both league and team name before the “Pirates” would finally climb the mountain all the way back to a winning record.
The Pirates entered 1903 with an all-time record of 1,339-1,372, and in the midst of winning an NL pennant and making a World Series appearance, the franchise finally got back above the .500 line with a win on August 21st, 1903.
Now, when exactly the Pirates officially went over the cliff this week differ. Record-keeping sources clash on what the exact record of the organization is.
Baseball Reference, for example, has the Pirates now two games under .500 as a franchise, at 10,878-10,880. But a few other sources, like baseball author and historian John Dreker, have pointed to a mysteriously missing game that gives the Pirates an extra win.
Dreker has reminded us of an August 15th, 1884 game between the Alleghenys against the Baltimore Orioles, though not the current Orioles franchise we know today. Allegheny City (as many sources referred to them at the time) won, which stands as their only win over Baltimore that season.
The reason for why this game is missing on so many sites is unknown; it’s likely just a simple error or oversight in the season-wide schedule, but I welcome your conspiracy theories as well.
The unfortunate thing is, regardless of what source you were looking at before, it no longer matters. The franchise is now officially, officially below .500.
The Pirates’ first series out of the All Star break saw them host the lowly Chicago White Sox during their annual Yinzerpalooza weekend-long event. But the Pirates found a way to make the 35-65 White Sox look like World Series contenders in Pittsburgh.
Chicago hung ten-spots on the Pirates in each of the first two games, and then scored seven more against them to give the Pirates a historic, soul-crushing loss.
It was just the finale on a nightmare weekend for the organization. “Sell The Team” banners flying over PNC Park, an upset and irate fan base chanting that same slogan, and some bad, bad baseball being played on the field were all capped off by historically bad showing.
Regardless of if the Pirates can find a way to get their collective record back above water before the year is over is already demoralizing enough. Something that has not happened in well over a century years has now occurred under the watch of general manager Ben Cherington and this current regime.
Despite netting two first overall picks, including phenom ace Paul Skenes, since taking over, they have found a way to torpedo the standard that has existed with this franchise since Teddy Roosevelt was in office.
The vibes around this team could not be worse right now. Even during the 100-loss seasons of 2021 and 2022, and the collapses of 2023 and 2024, it’s been a long, long time since fans have been this irate with the team, and it’s all deserved.
From top to bottom, this is an abject failure.
(Featured photo of the 1903 Pittsburgh Pirates, from the Boston Public Library)
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