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Gabe Mazefsky watched in horror as his favorite team blew another late-game victory in PNC Park. Losing is not uncommon for the Pirates, but after decades of playoff hopes and World Series dreams waning as frequently as sunsets, Mazefsky was done.
“That was the first time I snapped,” Mazefsky said.
As the Pirates threw away run after run, Mazefsky rose from his seat, turned to the owner’s box and, stone-cold sober, shouted “Sell the team, Bob!”
His chant received a wave of cheers from the surrounding crowd, recalled the Forest Hills resident.
In that moment, Mazefsky conceived a war against longtime Pirates owner Bob Nutting, and he has no intention of losing.
“I know most people laugh at me, even some of the folks helping to organize laugh at me,” Mazefsky said, but he remains devoted to his cause.
The team did not respond to a request for comment from Nutting.
“We appreciate the passion of all our fans. In the end, we all want the same thing…to win. We are focusing all of our energy on building a team that can compete for the Postseason in 2025 and beyond. We know that our fans want and deserve that,” said Pirates President Travis Williams in a statement.
Mazefsky said he is a lifelong Pirates fan with happy memories of going to watch games with his father as a child. As a former policy manager for Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, he wants to see winning baseball, and the economic boom that comes with it, return to the city.
On Nov. 12, four billboards reading “Abandon ship, Bob. Sell the team,” were erected across the city by Mazefsky’s comrade Zachary King.
King said he initially started fundraising for the billboards as a joke among friends, but as it caught fire on social media, he realized the effort was no laughing matter.
“We want more for the team. The city’s starved for that,” King said.
In the past five weeks, King has raised nearly $25,000 to rally against Nutting with the help of locals like Mazefsky, enough to renew the billboards through Jan. 5.
Since King, an Armstrong County native, lives in New York City, the day-to-day operations of the campaign fall on Mazefsky’s shoulders.
Both men agree on their dream owner: billionaire and Pittsburgh native, Mark Cuban.
Cuban has no interest in purchasing the pirates, he said via email.
Mazefsky recently pleaded his case to PNC Park’s owner: The Sports & Exhibition Authority, which meets monthly at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.
Decked out in black and gold, Mazefsky strode to the podium at the Convention Center during the SEA's board’s Nov. 7 meeting with a simple message: “Sell the team, Bob.”
“I love the Pirates. I would argue you should care about the money we invested and the returns we aren’t getting,” Mazefsky said.
After millions in taxpayer money poured into the construction of PNC Park more than two decades ago, Rep. Tim Bonner (R-17th) said he is “disappointed” with Nutting’s leadership of the Pirates.
“The Pirates are a community asset. The community paid for that park far more than Mr. Nutting ever did,” Bonner said.
Bonner recounted how the state and county contributed more than $150 million to the construction of PNC Park, while the Pirates only contributed $40 million to the project.
“The on-field performance of the team affects the financial return to the taxpayers. A perpetually tanking team doesn’t generate the economic activity and revenue that a winner would,” Mazefsky said in an open letter to Nutting that appeared in PublicSource.
In July, the state’s Independent Fiscal Office released a report detailing the correlation between attendance rates and economic impact on the park and surrounding area.
The report from the IFO, called for by Bonner, stated that the Pirates could increase spending by $76 million if the team won only three more games each year.
“When Bob fields a winner, the public responds,” Mazefsky said.
But that hasn’t happened in nearly a decade. The Pirates have not made the MLB playoffs since 2015 and haven’t made a World Series appearance since 1979.
Given the relationship between on-field and economic success, Mazefsky and King said they view the team as a public asset that needs to be cared for properly – by anyone other than Nutting.
“You’re not the right steward,” Mazefsky said, calling out Nutting.
And Mazefsky is confident he isn’t alone in his thinking.
“Hey, are you a Pirates fan?” Mazefsky asked a random coffee shop patron mid-interview.
“Yes, I am,” said the stranger, later identified as Mark Rubenstein of Swisshelm Park.
“What do you think of Bob Nutting?” Mazefsky asked.
“Bob Nutting is the absolute worst!” Rubenstein bellowed.
“Case and point right there,” Mazefsky said, grinning with delight.
To pressure Nutting to sell, Mazefsky suggested the base rent for PNC Park should be raised from $100,000 per year to at least $30 million per year, to fully capture the venue’s profits.
Rent is determined by the SEA executive director and the legal team, said Keith Wehner, a spokesperson for SEA Chairman Sen. Wayne Fontana (D-Beechview).
The Pirates would not address questions regarding whether they would be amenable to changes in the lease when it goes up for renewal.
Although the lease is set to expire in 2030, Mazefsky wants to pressure Nutting before spring training starts. He encourages fellow disgruntled fans to join him at the Dec. 12 SEA meeting and PiratesFest on Jan. 25.
With enough public pressure, Mazefsky said he believes Nutting will sell.
He is also prepared to take on the owner with a “nuclear approach.” Mazefsky said he is ready to run for public office in the next election cycle, should current elected officials not take his concerns about taxpayer spending on sports seriously.
He did not specify which position he would run for.
“This doesn’t end until he sells,” he said.
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