The Pittsburgh Pirates have replaced a once-famous Roberto Clemente wall graphic with a Surfside advertisement, a sentence we ought to not type in 2025. Clemente is an iconic Pirates player, and his family remains a critical part of Pittsburgh's history and, frankly, the team's brand. The Pirates still sell Clemente jerseys and apparel in their stories, and such merch is surprisingly popular almost 50 years after the star outfielder's death.
The Pirates don't use the vast majority of their yearly revenue on payroll. Via a financial audit by DK Pittsburgh Sports, the team is barely breaking even. That says a lot about ownership and the front office. As much as fans are frustrated about the lack of on-field investment, somehow there isn't money to spend. I don't have the answers, but something doesn't add up given the luxury tax capital and TV revenue coming their way on a yearly basis.
Rather than reversing course immediately and taking whatever loss was necessary via Surfside, the Pirates doubled down. The team released a statement via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette which detailed all the other ways they honor Clemente. Of course, this does not absolve them of blame. Given the amount of money the Pirates make off of Clemente annually, there's a serious argument to be made that the stadium ought to be named after him. Latin players identify Clemente as their Jackie Robinson. While Robinson was the first person of color to play in MLB, Clemente was the first Latin-American to be elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
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Pirates refuse to do the bare minimum for Roberto Clemente's family
The Clemente family released their own statement in response to the Pirates, which expressed regret they did not communicate the change to Roberto's family prior to the home opener. However, the Pirates statement did not suggest a change was looming, or that more PNC Park elements devoted to franchise greats couldn't be auctioned off to the highest bidder.
“The 21-foot-high wall that officially bears Roberto Clemente’s name continues to, and will forever, display his No. 21 in two separate locations. The temporary wall sign in question was put in place prior to the 2022 season and was never meant to be a permanent tribute, simply another cap tip to “The Great One.” We apologize that we didn’t directly communicate that fact to the Clemente family and our fans," the Pirates wrote to Noah Hiles of the Post-Gazette.
The Pirates tried to explain their way out of a problem, rather than merely correcting it. Bob Nutting could've taken a financial loss and found a way out of the Surfside contract. Instead, he wants to keep the money. The Clemente Family will suffer as a result.