4/5 From 2000: Gregory, Pablo Sign; Garrett Gets Two; Opening Day Gems; RIP Larry

• 2003 - John Candelaria gave up just four hits and struck out 10 in a 7-1 Opening Day win over the Cards at Busch Stadium. Lee Lacy led off with a homer, Jason Thompson iced it with a three-run blast in the ninth and Dale Berra and Lee Mazzilli went long in between.For Mazzilli, it was a strong intro to his new team as he went 2-for-2 with two walks in his first game as a Pirate. It was a welcome sign for The Candy Man, too, whom nerve damage to his arm had turned from a workhorse into a guy with just one complete game in 1981-82, although he never tossed 200 IP or had more than three CG in a season after 1980.

Kip Wells 2004 Topps Heritage

• 2004 - Kip Wells scattered five hits and struck out seven over six scoreless innings as the Pirates beat the Phillies, 2-1, on Opening Day at PNC Park. Jose Mesa earned his 250th career save while Craig Wilson hit the first home run of the year for the Pirates. 
• 2010 - Garrett Jones homered in his first two at-bats (one a splash-down in the Allegheny and the other an oppo field blast) against the Los Angeles Dodgers during an 11-5 win, becoming the sixth Pirate to hit two home runs on Opening Day. The game was at PNC Park and played in front of 39,024 fans. The Ryan’s had a big outing too, as Doumit and Church added three RBIs each. Zach Duke got the win with five relievers coming on to get the final 12 outs. 
• 2011 - Ex-Bucco manager Larry Shepard passed away in Lincoln, Nebraska at age 92. A minor league pitcher, he joined the Bucs in 1953 as a farm coach, topping out with a six-year run at AAA Columbus. He left to join the Phils in 1967 before returning to the Pirates as skipper from 1968-69 (he went 164-155, finishing 6th and 4th) before being replaced by Alex Grammas late in 1969. He was then the pitching coach for the Big Red Machine from 1970-78 and the Giants in 1979. After Shepard retired, he served as an unofficial pitching mentor for the Nebraska Cornhusker nine. 
• 2012 - Opening Day drew the largest crowd to date in PNC Park history, 39,585, as the Bucs Erik Bedard lost a classic pitching duel to the Phil’s Roy Halladay 1-0. The Bucs threatened in the first, but a Cutch 6-4-3 DP short-circuited the frame. Neil Walker took it to the track twice, but both balls died at the fence as Halladay tossed a two-hitter. 
• 2012 - The Pirates signed Pablo Reyes, 18, of the Dominican as an amateur free agent for $90K. After two strong DSL campaigns, he was sent stateside in 2014 and continued to improve his game although often lost in the shuffle of more highly-projected prospects. The play-where-there’s-room dynamic worked to his advantage as he made the 40-man roster and debuted in the majors in 2018, and made the Opening Day roster in 2019 as a utility guy.

Gregory Polanco 2019 Topps

• 2016 - The Pirates officially announced they had signed RF Gregory Polanco to a contract extension that would carry him through arbitration and a year of free agency (2017-2021) worth $35M guaranteed with two team options, bringing the total contract value up to $58M. The particulars: $3M signing bonus, $1M - '17, $3.5M - '18, $5.5M - '19, $8M - '20, $11M - '21. $12.5M option/$3M buyout - '22, $13.5M option/$1M buyout - '22. The 24-year-old Polanco’s first full MLB campaign was 2015 when he hit .256 with nine home runs, 52 RBIs, 35 doubles, six triples and 27 stolen bases in 153 games. He also ranked second among all NL outfielders with 13 assists, trailing only teammate Starling Marte’s 16 throw-outs. Since then, he’s shown flashes and hit bumps with a .252 BA/100 OPS+; he's still rehabbing a bum shoulder this season.