Matt Freed, Post-Gazette
Pirates' Freddy Sanchez stands along side former players Bill Madlock, Dave Parker adn Dick Groat as they unveil Paul Warner's uniform before last night's game. The Pirates will retire the number on July 21.
By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Jim Knight and his daughter visited PNC Park two years ago and asked a stadium worker, "Where can we find the Paul Waner stuff? We're relatives, and we'd like to get some pictures."
No Waner stuff, came the reply.
They went to the souvenir shop, looked around for banners, plaques, a statue, anything.
Nothing.
Paul Waner
"One lady told us, 'Well, he was part of the old Pirates," Knight recalled by phone from Tulsa, Okla. "That's when we realized that, because Paul wasn't part of the TV generation, his legacy was getting lost. We had to do something."
Knight, Waner's grand-nephew, and other descendants contacted the Pirates' front office soon afterward, and the reward came yesterday when chief executive officer Kevin McClatchy announced that Waner's No. 11 will join nine others on the franchise's retired list.
The team had a pregame ceremony last night -- on the 81st anniversary of Waner's debut -- that included four other Pirates batting champions: Dick Groat, Dave Parker, Bill Madlock and Freddy Sanchez. The formal retirement ceremony will come before the game July 21, the date upon which Waner was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1952.
"It's wonderful," Knight said. "And it's long overdue."
McClatchy agreed.
"Yeah, it was," he said. "You look at Paul Waner's numbers and where they rank, not just with the Pirates but also with Major League Baseball, and it's clear he's deserving. And you could say he's one of the top three or four players to play for the Pirates."
Few would dispute it.
Waner starred in Pittsburgh in 1926-40 as a sweet-swinging, left-handed outfielder whose .340 average in that span remains highest for any career in franchise history. Over 20 total seasons, he batted .333 with 3,152 hits and was National League MVP in 1927, a three-time batting champion and four-time All-Star.
Known as "Big Poison," he and younger brother Lloyd -- "Little Poison" -- remain the only brothers in the Hall selected because of their playing careers.
What took so long for the Pirates to observe Paul Waner?
The Galbreath family owned the team for half a century, during which most of the retired numbers were awarded, but left him out. McClatchy, whose group bought the team in 1996, said he considered the matter early in his tenure, then let it "fall to the back burner."
But the contact with Waner's family, as well as numerous e-mails, letters and discussions with baseball people convinced him before last season.
"We just didn't want to do it last year because we didn't want it to get lost in the All-Star Game," McClatchy said.
He stressed the importance of being cautious in retiring numbers.
"With 121 years, you obviously have a lot of great history, so you have to be selective. But in this case ... Paul Waner's numbers were mind-boggling. That .340 lifetime average with the Pirates ... I mean, that's doing what Freddy did last year for an entire career."
The Pirates' previously retired numbers: Billy Meyer (1), Ralph Kiner (4), Willie Stargell (8), Bill Mazeroski (9), Pie Traynor (20), Roberto Clemente (21), Honus Wagner (33) and Danny Murtaugh (40). Also, Jackie Robinson's No. 42 was retired by all major-league teams.
Catcher Humberto Cota, currently wearing No. 11, will have to switch.
Waner died at age 62 in 1965.
Armas seeks redemption
Tony Armas, making just his second start tonight, sounded confident he could improve upon his first. He was chased after four innings last Saturday in Cincinnati, giving up six runs, eight hits and five walks.
"I got away from some things I was doing well in the spring," Armas said. "But the Reds laid off what I thought were some really good pitches."
Buried treasure
* Utilityman Don Kelly, a Mt. Lebanon High School graduate, got his first major-league hit with a liner up the middle pinch-hitting in the second.
* Reliever John Grabow is scheduled to pitch today, Monday and Wednesday for Class AAA Indianapolis for his rehabilitation stint.
* Utilityman Jose Hernandez joined Indianapolis after signing a minor-league contract.
* Outfielder Nate McLouth switched his uniform number from 59 to 3.
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