Pirates' Paul Skenes bobblehead giveaway creates chaos at PNC Park
By Josh Sanchez
It was a chaotic scene outside of PNC Park on Saturday afternoon ahead of an MLB showdown between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cleveland Guardians.
Pittsburgh was holding a Paul Skenes bobblehead giveaway and underestimated the excitement from the fanbase.
Pirates fans found themselves in unprecedented lines outside of the ballpark hours before the first pitch as everyone wanted to get their hands of the first bobblehead for the 2024 NL Rookie of the Year.
MORE: Sidney Crosby shows up Paul Skenes in skills competition at Pat McAfee's live show
Videos on social media highlighted the high demand by showing lines that extended across the Roberto Clemente Bridge.
There was such a high demand that the Pirates announced anyone who attended Saturday's game will receive a voucher for the Skenes bobblehead, even if they were not among the first 20,000 fans in attendance.
MORE: Pirates' 'Bucco Bricks' debacle the latest sign they're MLB's most incompetent team
"We all saw the lines and unprecedented response for this unique giveaway," Pirates team president Travis Williams said in a statement, per MLB.com. "Bob [Nutting] called me, and we discussed how we can ensure every fan coming to today’s game received one. I give a lot of credit to our internal team for the quick response to make that happen. More details to come."
We know how unique today’s Paul Skenes Rookie of the Year bobblehead giveaway is and how popular it is for our fans. We don’t want any fan who attended today’s game to not receive one.
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) April 19, 2025
Any fan who scanned into today’s game after the first 20,000 bobbleheads were given away… pic.twitter.com/e1lZNIEJBL
Unfortunately for the Buccos fans in attendance, the team failed to score a run and fell to Guardians, 3-0.
Up next for the Pirates is an Easter Sunday showdown to wrap up the series against Cleveland. The first pitch at PNC Park is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. ET.
MORE TOP STORIES from The Big Lead
CFB: Lane Kiffin has hilarious reaction to Carson Beck's potential NIL deal with Miami
NBA: Gregg Popovich taken in ambulance after 'medical emergency'
NFL: Super Bowl champion goes viral after forgetting which NFL team he plays on
SPORTS MEDIA: WWE WrestleMania 41 Night 1 live stream, start time, match card & more
VIRAL: LSU superstar Livvy Dunne bids farewell to college gymnastics