Better Late Than Never — Bucs Retire Waner’s Number
July 23, 2007 by Geoff Young
Filed under Hall of Fame, History, Personalities
Paul Waner’s accomplishments as a member of the Pirates from 1926 to 1940 go well beyond impressive. By the time he left Pittsburgh, he’d compiled numbers that stack up well with more recent stars such as Rod Carew and Tony Gwynn. For his career, which included brief stops in Brooklyn and Boston (and 10 games with the Yankees), Waner ranks among the top 50 all-time in batting average, on-base percentage, games, runs, hits, doubles, and triples.
And yet, the Pirates somehow never got around to retiring his number 11 until this past weekend. That’s 55 years after Waner was inducted into the Hall of Fame if you’re scoring at home.
I guess Sid Bream’s #5 won’t be retired anytime soon…
