The day had finally come. Piratefest 2010 was upon us. Immediately after school i met up with my dad and brother and we were off to the convention center. However despite getting there nearly an hour before the 4 PM start time we were greated by this…

It was a line of 300 or so people that had already formed. They were here to see Bill Mazeroski who would be singing autographs for the early entry hour. In past years the crowd would be half the size.

Shortly after 4PM I had made my way into the Convention Center hall and in a short amount of time was waiting in another line to get my autograph. After what seemed like an eternity (but really one hour to be exact) I had made my way to the front of the line.

Here is the man himself signing my lithograph of his famous home run. On everything he signed, i noticed he put a little footnote like “HOF ’01″ or, in my case, he put “10-13-60″ which is the date he hit one of the greatest home runs in baseball history.

Along with Maz, Steve Pearce (red shirt) and Joel Hanrahan (black shirt) were signing.

I’ve always been a big fan of Steve Pearce. Maybe it’s the fact that he walks from his apartment on the North Side to PNC Park on gamedays, or that he got yelled at by a coach because he was talking to us rather than stretching with the team when we watched BP on the field last year. He’s a class act and it was a thrill to meet him. Im also a fan of Joel Hanrahan so getting both of their autographs was nice.

Soon after, I headed here…

The lost treasures area is chock full of game used jerseys, lineup cards, bats, and other miscellaneous things. I was determined to get a Pearce or Ohlendorf jersey but that hope came to an end with the price tags. All 2009 jerseys started at $200!! There was no way I would do that. Instead I found some other cheaper options including an Ian Snell Puerto Rico and John Grabow USA jerseys from the WBC last year. In the end I bought a 2008 Bryan Bullington jersey for $50.

The certificate certified that it was game issued rather than game used, meaning that he wore it while riding the pine in the bullpen. The fact he was taken over the likes of BJ Upton, Cole Hamles, Prince Fielder, and Ryan Howard in the 2002 draft have made him a symbol of all that has gone wrong the past 17 years. This jersey is my claim that I was around for the Dark Ages when the team finally turns things around.

Next I checked into the MVP zone. Since this was the early entry day for season ticket holders, it was packed. Charlie Morton, Daniel McCutchen, and Paul Maholm were inside signing. After getting them I heard a security person say Lastings Milledge was on his way. I immediately got back in line. After another 30 minutes….I made it

Andy LaRoche (who hasn’t met him?)….

And former Pirate (and pitt basketball broadcaster) Dick Groat accompanied him. The MVP Zone was much more crowded than in past years so the wait was long. My legs were tired so I stopped by the stage as the Q and A with the front office was about to begin. Unfortunately, the same old questions were asked and Neil and Frank were giving the same answers (Don’t these people read the news?) After hearing a question about missing out on Miguel Angel Sano for the fourth time I decided it was time to browse some more.

I came upon the radio booth and Extra Innings host Rocco DeMaro was preparing to do an interview with Andrew McCutchen.

Rocco is a great guy to listen to and hearing the interview was a real treat. After it was over, Cutch, along with security, was heading over to the MVP zone. I got back in line and after a 40 minute wait his signature was mine.

Ryan Doumit (who is probably my least favorite player) accompanied him. While waiting in line we got to meet Tim Nevrett. He is a great guy and we had a nice conversation with him. (Crappy pic quality courtesy of my cell phone).

The lines were dying down at the games so we did a full round in a short amount of time. We then left what was arguably the most productive day of Piratefest I ever had. Here are some other random pictures to leave you with.

The Maz Statue model

The site where it will be

The Cutch bobblehead (To be given out on August 8th)

The Garrett Jones Action Figure (Will be given out on May 22)

Not a giveaway but a ballin’ Barack Obama figure available for sale at one of the collector’s tables.

For golf, fans The US Womens Open trophy (the event is being held at Oakmont this year)

My pull for the day (not counting promo items).