McCutchen honors Clemente with T-shirt

'RETIRE 21 RC' a rememberance of the Pirates legend

February 22nd, 2016

BRADENTON, Fla. -- It's hard not to notice the T-shirt Andrew McCutchen has been wearing lately around the Pirate City complex. It carries not only a message, but also a reminder.
The shirt is black with a baseball on the chest, and on that baseball reads, "RETIRE 21 RC." On the back is the No. 21, the number worn by Pirates legend Roberto Clemente throughout his career.

McCutchen is an admirer of Clemente in every way, from his ability on the field to his humanitarian reputation. McCutchen has said he hopes to one day be remembered like Clemente, and he was incredibly honored to receive the prestigious award named after Clemente earlier this offseason.
The Pirates retired Clemente's number in 1973. Would McCutchen, No. 22, like to see No. 21 retired throughout Major League Baseball?
"Everyone knows who he is," McCutchen said. "Everyone knows what he stood for, the type of player he was. If they were to do something like that, retire 21, it'd be awesome. They see what he stands for. That's why we have an award named after him now. That'd be cool if they did something like that. It'd be really cool."
McCutchen stressed that he wasn't necessarily campaigning for or demanding such a decision. If nothing else, the new addition to his wardrobe helps him remember the player he has always hoped to emulate.
"I'm not telling them to do it," McCutchen said. "It's just a really cool thought, more of a remembrance to basically remember who he was, remember what he stands for. That's who I try to mold my game after and my personality on and off the field. It's more of a reminder to myself."
Around the horn
• The Pirates are eight days away from playing their Grapefruit League opener against the Tigers in Lakeland, Fla. One position to watch: first base, where the Bucs will have a number of players in need of game action.
Manager Clint Hurdle said on Monday the Pirates already mapped out their schedule, looking at which potential first basemen they need to prioritize. John Jaso, who's still learning the position, likely tops that list and will continue to work on the back fields when he's not playing.
Along with Jaso, the Pirates must find playing time at first for Michael Morse, Jason Rogers, Jake Goebbert and prospect Josh Bell.

• Monday was the Pirates' full-squad report date, and all 63 players in camp were accounted for by 10 a.m. ET. The first full-squad workout will take place on Tuesday morning and will include live batting practice.
Most players had already stopped by the Pirate City clubhouse at some point over the last week. A few, like Jaso and rehabbing third baseman Jung Ho Kang, have been working out here for a month or more.