PITTSBURGH — This article originally appeared on PGHBaseballNOW.com.
No Pirates player has hit 40 home runs in a season since Hall-of-Famer Willie Stargell led baseball with 44 blasts in 1973, a year he finished second behind the Reds’ Pete Rose in a close National League MVP race.
There have been a couple of close calls since. Brian Giles hit 39 in 1999, and had he not missed the final 11 games of the year, he probably would’ve gotten to 40. Giles hit 38 three years later, Josh Bell hit 37 in 2019, and Pedro Álvarez was tied for the National League lead with 36 in 2013. But no player since Stargell has been able to break the 30s.
Could this be the year a Pirate finally puts an end to the 40-home run drought?
Second baseman Brandon Lowe, acquired from the Rays in the offseason, knows what it’s like to flirt with 40 home runs in a season. As a 26-year-old with Tampa in 2021, Lowe ended the season with 39 home runs in 149 games.
With 20 home runs so far this year, with over a week until the All-Star break, Lowe is hoping this is the year he gets to 40.
“I would love 40. The 39 kind of leaves a sour taste in my mouth,” he said. “It’s not as sexy of a number.”
40 homers would be symbolic for multiple reasons, but the team-first Lowe would rather drive in 100 runs.
“(40 home runs) would be really cool. Eclipsing the 100-RBI mark would be a lot cooler,” he said. “That’s more of a team-oriented stat. You’re driving in a lot of runs; it’s usually going to lead your team to the win column.”
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