The Pittsburgh Pirates are back in town and will be opening a week-long homestand tonight with the Toronto Blue Jays and the Colorado Rockies coming to PNC Park. 

For some time now, it’s been clear that the Pirates won’t be making the playoffs this season, but there are still nights when 30,000 fans show up at PNC Park.

KDKA’s John Shumway was in the crowd recently with a simple question. Everyone there knows how the season is going, so the question was — what brings you out to the ballpark? 

When you see PNC Park packed to the rafters, it would certainly appear that winning doesn’t matter. 

“It means something to me,” said Matthew White. “I mean, I’d like to see a winning team.” 

But not everyone seems to think that winning is the most important thing.

“It’s all about the game,” said Tim Morris. “All about the game. This is a great game, baseball. It’s our pastime. You know, it’s always great to be around the game.”

MLB: JUN 29 Mets at Pirates

PITTSBURGH, PA – JUNE 29: General view of the ballpark from the upper level during an MLB game between the New York Mets and the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 29, 2025 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

“Because I grew up on it and I’m a baseball player myself, so that’s why I really love it,” said Zion Scales.

And adding to the love of the game is a sense of history.

“My grandfather used to take me to the Three Rivers Stadium,” said Rogelio Garcia II. “He was just watching the Pirates. Whether they were good, whether they were bad, it didn’t matter.”

And there’s longevity pride in the names the fans proudly wear.

“Born and raised coming here, we used to have tickets,” White said. “So being here all the time, I just like coming out.”

For many fans, it’s all about the atmosphere and the environment of being at the ballpark.

“The atmosphere is just like, really fun and it’s like, exciting and it’s just happy,” said Kaylee Miller.

“The park is phenomenal,” said Cindy and Joe Marty. “It’s beautiful. We love the team. We love the players. So we support it all the time.” 

“It’s a great park,” said Mike Mitchum. “You know, I love taking in the game as well as the city to get people watching.”

“The atmosphere is great,” said Alicia Jordan. “We ate a lot of good food and it’s a great game.”

“I just love the atmosphere,” said Barry Jameson. “The hot dogs, the beer, and being with my wife.”

There’s no doubt PNC Park is a player in attracting fans to come back again and again. 

The team’s promotions probably help as an usher said that Hawaiian shirt nights and fireworks nights always help pack people into the ballpark. 

More from CBS News

John Shumway

John Shumway joined KDKA in October 1988 as a General Assignment Reporter. During his years at KDKA, he has anchored the morning and weekend news and is currently a featured General Assignment Reporter on the station’s 4, 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts.