First of the lasts for McCutchen?
Home opener could be final one for former MVP in Pittsburgh
The snow and wind swirled around Andrew McCutchen as he trotted to right field Friday, shortly before the first inning in the Pirates’ home opener. He slowed in front of the Clemente Wall, held his cap over his heart for a beat and then pointed it to the cheering crowd in the bleachers.
McCutchen spotted his wife, Maria, near the right-field corner and waved. He settled in.
“We only get one of these,” he said later. “Every home opener is special."
For McCutchen, the Pirates’ 5-4 win against the Atlanta Braves marked his 589th start at PNC Park. This was his first time playing right field, not center, in Pittsburgh. The Pirates shifted their outfield this winter and moved McCutchen, a former Gold Glove winner, to the corner.
So there he was, doffing his cap the way he once saw Roberto Clemente do in an old photograph. Some fans stood and applauded. One waved a Jolly Roger flag. Many understood they could be watching McCutchen’s last home opener with the Pirates. If he is to be traded this summer or next offseason, this frigid game was among the first of his lasts in Pittsburgh. Last opener. Last homer. Last game.
Maybe the last snowfall, too. The announced attendance was 36,484, a sellout, but because of the weather, far fewer actually occupied seats. PNC Park’s patrons shivered through 3 hours, 18 minutes in rain, snow and near-freezing temperatures on the North Shore, and McCutchen made it worth their while. He smacked three singles, his first hits of the season, and also walked.
“Good day in the box for him,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “He helped us.”
McCutchen’s performance in right field had mixed results. He made a sliding catch in the fifth inning, preventing a run from scoring. In the eighth, he whiffed on a line drive. Ultimately, he said, whether right field or center, “it’s just another day in Pittsburgh. … It’s really no different.”
Asked about the fact that his
teammates still consider him the go-to guy despite the new position, McCutchen replied, “Just because I’m playing right field doesn’t mean that changes. I’m still me. I’m still Andrew McCutchen. No one’s theory of me on this team has changed. They know me as me.”
As for the weather, he said, it was “cold from the beginning, and cold at the end.”
When broadcaster Greg Brown began introducing the Pirates roster before the game, the crowd’s claps were the empty thuds of mittens and gloves. When McCutchen reached the bottom dugout step, however, a roar emerged from the right-field bleachers.
Brown belted out the intro: “Batting third, the alltime leader in home runs, RBIs and hits at PNC Park. Playing right field, No. 22, Andrew McCutchen.” McCutchen scampered up the steps, and a fan down the first base line remarked, “Right field. That still sounds strange.”
Scott Chichy, of Beaver Falls, may have had the perfect ticket Friday. He was seated in the front row in Section 144, directly above the Clemente Wall, with his uncle, Joe Peightal, of Irwin.
When McCutchen finished playing catch with Starling Marte, the new center fielder, before the first inning, he scanned the grandstands and lofted the baseball over the 21-foot wall. Chichy caught it. He placed the ball in a cup holder, and it sat there through the snow squalls.
Listening to sports-talk radio on the way to the ballpark, Chichy wondered whether he was about to witness McCutchen’s final home opener with the Pirates. He hoped not. He said he met McCutchen at PirateFest several years ago and appreciated how he tried to accommodate fans.
“I'd hate to see him go,” Chichy said.
“Anybody that takes this spot over here has big shoes to fill,” Peightal added with a grin, pointing to the No. 21 patch on the Clemente Wall. “I think it’s great he’s back. I hope he stays.”