by Casey Mensing

Created on: April 06, 2011   Last Updated: April 07, 2011

The Pittsburgh Pirates were once one of the top teams in Major League Baseball. But the last two decades have seen them become little more than a basement dwelling Triple A team in need of new ownership. Throughout their history the Pirates have had some great players, including Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, and Barry Bonds. The organization hasn't had as much luck with their pitching, not that they haven't had talented ones, it's just that they either flame out or leave the organization before they can have a great impact. This is evident by the fact that only one pitcher of the teams top five all-time wins leaders played after the Dead Ball Era, and he was a star in the post war years.

Wilbur Cooper is the pitcher with the most wins in Pittsburgh Pirates history with 202. The tough southpaw played with Pittsburgh from 1912 to 1924 and also holds the team record for complete games with 263. Cooper finished his career with a 216-178 record, a 2.89 ERA, and 1,252 strikeouts.

Copper's teammate, Babe Adams is tied for second on the franchises all-time wins list with 194. Adams had three stints with the Pirates; the first was in 1907, then from 1909-1916, and finally 1918-1926. Adams is the franchises career leader in shutouts with 47. Babe Adams was a tough control style pitcher who finished his career with a 194-140 record, a 2.76 ERA, and 1036 strikeouts.

Tied with Adams is another rightly, Sam Leever. Leever spent his entire career with Pittsburgh which lasted from 1898 to 1910. Along with Adams, Leever was a member of the Pirates first World Championship team in 1909. For his career he posted a record of 194-100, a 2.47 ERA, and 847 strikeouts.

Bob Friend is the only player in this list to pitch after the Dead Ball Era. Friend pitched for the Pirates from 1951 to 1965, finishing with 191 wins. Friend also hold the distinction of being the first pitcher to lead the league in ERA while pitching for a last place team, which occurred in 1955 when he posted a 2.83 ERA. Despite finishing his career with a 3.58 ERA and 1,734 strikeouts, Friend posted a 197-230 record which is a testament to how bad the Pirates teams he played for were.

Deacon Phillippe played for Pittsburgh from 1900 to 1911, finishing with 168 wins. Deacon also started the first World Series game in 1903 going up against Cy Young and the Boston Americans. Phillippe managed to lead Pittsburgh to a win while striking out ten. Phillippe also played along with Adams and Leever on the Pirates Championship team in 1909.

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