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About WHYGAVS

Written by Pat Lackey

Monday, 01 December 2008 21:24

"Every season has its peaks and valleys.
What you have to try to do is eliminate the Grand Canyon."
--Andy Van Slyke
In the Canyon: 16 years and counting ...

In the spring of 2005, I was bored. As a sophomore at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, I knew several things. I knew that I didn't like studying for organic chemistry. I knew that liked talking about the Pittsburgh Pirates. And I knew that being a science major didn't give me nearly the outlet that I wanted to write.

On a whim one night shortly after the beginning of the 2005 season, I created a Pirate blog. I quickly named it after the player I idolized as a child, the player that made me love baseball as a kid: Andy Van Slyke. I initially intended to write for family and friends, though I slowly built up the nerve to push it out to a general audience on the internet. To my surprise, it found one.

That this blog still exists and has any audience at all is, as far as I can tell, a testament to Pirate fans. By any standard, the Pirates shouldn't have fans. If they complete another losing season in 2009, the Pirates will have put their fans through something that no fans in the history of American sports have ever had to endure: 17 losing season. Writing WHYGAVS quickly helped me realize that despite this, there are still many smart and passionate Pirate fans out there that care about the team and obsess over the Bucs every bit as much as I do.

Nearly four years later, I still study science but I no longer live in Pittsburgh. WHYGAVS is still here, because as long as the Pirates are playing baseball, I'm going to have an opinion about them.

Comments (12) add comment

Randy said:

	... Growing up in Pitsburgh and going to games at Forbes Field with my father, it saddens me that the Pirates seemingly will never be the team of bygone eras again.
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December 09, 2008
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Tony Ritchie said:

	... Pat- Like the new look of WHYGAVS. Keep posting and I'll keep reading.
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December 11, 2008
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Angelo said:

	... The page looks good. I'm looking forward to the Pirates/Tigers game this year. I'm going to get seats as close to first base as possible and wear my Van Slyke jersey.
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December 18, 2008
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Sabroso said:

	... Loved watching Van Slyke in the 80's patrol the fake grass at 3 Rivers. He had grace and style. I haven't seen another player like him since.
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January 14, 2009
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Greg said:

	... I too loved watching Andy Van Slyke. I miss the Pirates of the 90's. Great Blog!
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February 24, 2009
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ErinPatricia said:

	... I found your blog from a link at pensblog.com and im looking forward to your entries for the upcoming season. I love the name too, my father took me to games weekly at 3 rivers in the 90's when AVS and a dozens of other guys made it fun to be a Pirates fan.
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April 08, 2009
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Jack said:

...
I've been a Pirate fan for about 45 years now--first saw them play in San Francisco and I was hooked. Raised my oldest daughter, Ann, to be a die-hard. She is the Ann who attended WHYGAVS Day and burned with you all. Very proud of the class that she shows. 2nd daughter isn't the Pirate fan she was raised to be. Oldest son is a BLECH! Yankee fan (ptui!). Youngest son is a Bucco Backer like dad and big sister--he is then one of my favorite children! I take the boys on a baseball tour each year--we will have seen a game in every major league park by the time oldest son graduates from high school in two years. This year we will be in Pittsburgh for two games (we usually only do 1 game per park) and Ann will meet us there. Any way we can still get WHYGAVS shirts?

June 25, 2009
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Hokie Steve said:

	AVS Stumbled across this blog today; keep up the good work. Not a Pirates' fan, but a Cardinals' fan and have been a fan of Andy's since 1982. The trade on 4/1/87 will always hurt me. Would have loved to have seen Andy patrolling center field in Busch Stadium for all of those years, but am glad he had a good career. Will be back from time to time to see what you're writing about.
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August 29, 2009
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Ugo said:

	Blame Bud. I'm not a Pirates fan(Blue Jays), but loved Andy Van Slyke growing up. I am really glad the Braves team beat the pirates in 1992, not sure the Jays could have beaten that team. Saw a game at PNC in 2005. Loved that stadium, hope to take my son one day. Cheers, UGO
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September 15, 2009
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Missy said:

	Thank you! I stumbled across this blog today, searching for where AJVS has gone now that he left the Tigers. I idolized him as a child, too - my favorite player of all time. I am thrilled to find this site and will read as long as you continue to write.
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December 18, 2009
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