The Pittsburgh Pirates are a major part of the National League (NL) in Major League Baseball (MLB). Also known as “Bucs”, the team is a five time MLB World Series Champion. Moreover, they have also been the NL East Division champions nine times and also gained the NL pennants nine times so far. They are rivals of the Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Brewers and Detroit Tigers.
The Pittsburgh Pirates are currently owned by Bob Nutting. The President of the team is Travis Williams while Ben Cherrington serves as the General Manager. Derek Shelton is continuing his role as the team manager. In the 2023 MLB season, the team ranked #4 in the NL East Division while getting a record of 76-86-0.
What is the name of the Pittsburgh Pirates Stadium?
PNC Park is the official stadium for the Pittsburgh Pirates in Major League Baseball (MLB). Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, it is the 6th home stadium for the team. It is also the 7th smallest baseball stadium in MLB and 2nd smallest stadium in the National League (NL). The team has been using this stadium for home games since 2001.
PNC Park’s History/ PNC Park Construction and Cost
The foundation for the creation of the PNC Park started in 1991 after Sophie Masloff, then city mayor, declared her support towards building a baseball stadium of 44,000 seats. The Three Rivers Stadium, the former home of the Pittsburgh Pirates was no longer suitable for them as it lacked proper architecture, aesthetics and access. Therefore, a public funding of $228 million was announced in 1998 while the team provided $40 million for the construction of the stadium. They also agreed to remain in the city until 2031. The construction of the stadium commenced on April 7, 1999 and it was completed after 24 months. Despite fans wanting to name the stadium after Roberto Clemente, a former star from the team, PNC Financial Services purchased the naming rights in 1998 for 20 years for $30 million. Accordingly, the stadium was named PNC Park. After that deal expired, they again purchased the naming rights until 2031 for $2 million a year. The park was opened to the public with an exhibition game March 31, 2001.
PNC Park is a retro classic baseball stadium. Its construction added several unique features to make it more attractive to the public. These include a a riverside concourse overlooking the Allegheny River, facades made up of Kasota limestone, and various notable restaurants of Pittsburgh. The stadium also allows the fans to have an excellent view of the Downtown skyline. The area around the stadium has become an important center of entertainment in the city due to the increasing number of hotels, restaurants and pubs around it. The stadium has a Sony Jumbotron of 1,008 square feet. There are also LED video screens and “out of town scoreboard”. There is also the Pirates’ Hall, which has statues of legends of the team including Roberto Clemete. The stadium can be easily accessible through car, boat or just by walking.
The field surface has been created by using Kentucky Bluegrass. The left field is 325 feet, the left center field is 383 feet and the deep end of the left center field is 410 feet. The right field is 320 feet and the right center field is 375 feet. The center field is 399 feet while the backstop is 51 feet. The construction of PNC Park cost $216 million in 2001, which was equal to $357 million as of 2022. The stadium was constructed by Populous and L.D. Astorino & Associates.
PNC Park’s Capacity
PNC Park has the capacity to support 38,747 fans as of 2024. However, it saw record attendance of 40,889 fans on October 7, 2015 during the NL Wild Card game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs. Unfortunately, the Pittsburgh Pirates lost the game to the Chicago Cubs 0-4.
This is a look at the capacity of PNC Park from the beginning till now:
| Years | Capacity |
| 2001-2003 | 37,898 |
| 2004-2007 | 38,496 |
| 2008-2017 | 38,362 |
| 2018-Present | 38,747 |
PNC Park Seating Chart
The following is the seating chart for the fans for a baseball game at PNC Park:
The seats at PNC Park are divided into sections 1 to 333. Each tier starts over at 1, so that field level sections go from 1 to 32, and from sections 101 to 147. The bleacher seats consist of small sections beneath the scoreboard, numbered 133 to 138 and 235 to 238. The grandstand level seats comprise sections 301 to 333, with variable numbers of rows.
What is the parking cost at PNC Park? Parking Map
The following is the parking map available for fans for a baseball game PNC Park:
The Pittsburgh Pirates have informed their fans that parking prices at any of the Pittsburgh Parking Authority Garages will range from $5 to $8. For Grand Street Transportation Center (GSTC) and Oliver, the parking cost is $5.
For parking at Third Avenue, Mellon Square, Wood Allies, Smithfield Liberty and First Avenue, the price is $6.
For parking at Ft. Duquesne & Sixth Garage, the cost is between $8-$15.
For purchasing parking lots in advance, fans should use the Red 5A and Red 6 parking lots which are adjacent to PNC Park. They can use the Waze Navigation and Live Traffic app to get proper directions to their parking lots.
PNC Park’s Notable Events
Like all other MLB baseball stadiums, PNC Park also has had its fair share of notable events regarding the game. Some of them are listed below:
| Dates | Events |
| March 31, 2001 | First exhibition baseball game was hosted at the stadium. The Pittsburgh Pirates lost to the New York Mets 3-4 |
| April 9, 2001 | First MLB game was played at the stadium. The Pittsburgh Pirates lost to the Cincinnati Reds 2-8. Kevin McClatchy threw the first ceremonial pitch |
| July 11, 2006 | The first MLB All-Star game was hosted at the stadium (77th MLB All-Star game) |
| June 2 , 2013 | Garrett Jones was the first Pittsburgh Pirates player to hit the ball into the Allegheny River |
| October 1, 2013 | The Pittsburgh Pirates won their first postseason series in the stadium. They defeated the Cincinnati Reds 6-2 |
| September 28, 2016 | John Jaso of the Pittsburgh Pirates had a hit for the cycle against the Chicago Cubs |
Other Sports
Collegiate Baseball
The City Game, a collegiate baseball game between the Pittsburgh Panthers and the Duquesne Dukes was hosted at the PNC Park from May 6, 2003 to 2010. During the first game, the Duquesne Dukes defeated the Pittsburgh Panthers 2-1. However, up until 2010, the Pittsburgh Panthers had won 4 games while the Duquesne Dukes won 2 games. It was disbanded after Duquesne University of Pittsburgh canceled their baseball program in 2010.
Music Concerts
Notable artists like Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Billy Joel, Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Pearl Jam, Ed Sheeran, Green Day, Metallica, Def Leppard and Motley Crue have all performed at PNC Park.
The Bruce Springsteen concert on August 6, 2003 was attended by a record number of 48,074 fans.
Movies
PNC Park was featured in notable action movies like Abduction (2011), Jack Reacher (2012), and Sweet Girl (2021).
FAQ's On Pittsburgh Pirates Stadium
A. The official stadium for the Pittsburgh Pirates is PNC Park.
A. The construction of PNC Park cost $216 million in 2001.
A. PNC Park can support 38,747 fans (as of March 2024).
A. April 9, 2001 was the date of the first MLB game at PNC Park.
A. PNC Park hosted the MLB All-Star game on July 11, 2006.
