There are many ways for a fan to show love of a player. They can regale someone with a story, rattle off stats, wear their jersey or they can drop their nickname into the conversation.
Whether it is the 19th century or today, there’s always a healthy batch of nicknames to pull from. When looking at the best in Pirates history, it almost seems unfair to compare the players who have great nicknames with those who are best known by their nicknames. So with apologies to players like Harold Traynor, Rich Gossage and Charles Adams (Pie, Goose and Babe, colloquially), they are in a category all their own. These are the best nicknames in franchise history.
10. Andrew McCutchen, “Cutch”
Of all the entries on this list, Cutch is probably the least creative. (Sorry, Uncle Larry.) It is just the middle of his last name after all, but it is ruthlessly efficient. You don’t need the extra syllables. It’s just, “Cutch,” and it can fit perfectly in a chant or cheer. Or hey, it even fits perfectly for a newborn, like Cutch Lindquist, born 2024.
9. Al Oliver, “Scoop”
Oliver batted .303 with 2,743 hits and 219 home runs over his 18-year Major League career and was one of the greatest hitters of those Pirates teams in the 1970s. So naturally, his nickname came from his ability to pick a throw at first base.
“You could not get a ball past me if you tried,” Oliver said ahead of his induction into the Pirates Hall of Fame in 2025. “And so ‘Scoop’ stuck with me from the owner on down to the manager.”
8. Kent Tekulve, “The Rubber Band Man”
Tekulve was incredibly durable as a pitcher, finishing 67 games and amassing 134 1/3 innings for the World Series champion 1979 Pirates, but that was only part of the reason for the nickname. The tall, lanky pitcher was also a premier submarine pitcher, delivering one of the most unique pitching motions in Pirates history while always snapping back.
7. A.J. Burnett, “Batman”
The Pirates needed a gritty hero to help them break a losing-season streak that was two decades long. Burnett was that guy. He provided the edge and fire a young Pirates team needed, and he was the team’s ace in 2013 and an All-Star in ‘15. Pittsburgh was all-in on the nickname too, welcoming him back from the injured list in ‘15 by flashing the Bat Signal in the city’s skyline.
6. John Candelaria, “The Candy Man”
It’s easy to see how Candelaria’s surname can be changed into his nickname, but he really cemented its legacy on Aug. 9, 1976. It was on “Candy Night” at Three Rivers Stadium that Candelaria spun the best outing of his career, a no-hitter to beat the Dodgers. Talk about your childhood wishes.
5. Paul and Lloyd Waner, “Big Poison” and “Little Poison”
Two Hall of Fame brothers deserve to have similar nicknames, right? The story goes that during a game in the Polo Grounds in 1927, a fan with a thick accent referred to the two Waners, who were on base, as the “big person” and the “little person.” Said through a thick enough accent, sportswriters adopted it as big and little “poison.” While Paul had a higher career batting average, more hits and more home runs, Lloyd’s listed height was taller (Paul was 5’8”, Lloyd 5’9”).
4. Honus Wagner, “The Flying Dutchman”
One of the game’s first true superstars, Wagner was a menace on the basepaths, stealing 723 bases in his career. Mix in his German heritage (well, it needed to be stretched to “Dutch”) and Wagner’s prowess was well known with a haunting nickname. One has to imagine this is the only time any Pirate has liked being linked to The Flying Dutchman.
3. Dave Parker, “The Cobra”
Parker had a bigger-than-life personality, so it’s only fitting that he has one of the greatest nicknames in team history. Longtime broadcaster Bob Prince came up with the moniker, inspired by Parker’s intimidating nature inside the batter’s box and his bat wiggle, which resembled the snake. And like the animal he is named for, when Parker swung the bat, it was a rapid attack.
2. Willie Stargell, “Pops”
The 1979 Pirates are forever known as the “Fam-A-Lee,” and Stargell was their leader, their “Pops.” The nickname was the brainchild of Parker, and the Cobra explained during Pittsburgh’s playoff run that “like a father, he taught us how to take what comes and then come back.” That team would go on to erase a 3-1 deficit in the World Series to win it all, a showing that proved the team listened to their Pops.
1. Roberto Clemente, “The Great One”
Was there any question who was going to top this list? The greatest player in franchise history has the greatest nickname, centered around him being, well, great. The name was bestowed upon him by Prince (whose own nickname, “The Gunner,” easily could have made the list as well), a sign of mutual respect between not only the play-by-play man and the Hall of Famer, but Clemente and Pittsburgh.
Some honorable mentions: Vern Law, “The Deacon”; Mike Easler, “The Hit Man”; Bill Madlock, “Mad Dog”; Phil Garner, “Scrap Iron”; Dick Stuart, “Dr. Strangeglove”; the lineups of the 70s, “The Lumber Company.”