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In the collection is this 3×5 index card signed by one of the greatest Pirates pitchers of all time, Charles “Babe” Adams. The franchise leader in shutouts, Adams also shares the team mark for wins by a right-handed pitcher.

Since 1900 only Deacon Phillippe has allowed fewer walks per nine innings. To put that into perspective, Greg Maddux one of the most proficient strike throwers of the modern era would have to pitch another 217 consecutive nine-inning games without a walk to lower his lifetime walks per nine innings to Adams’ level.

Babe was also a two-time World Series champion. In post season play he posted a spotless 3-0 record with a 1.33 earned run average. Many believe Adams belongs in the Cooperstown conversation.

Perhaps if Adams had reached the 200-win plateau, he’d have a plaque in the Hall of Fame. His career ended just six wins shy of the mark. Overall Adams went 194-140 with a 2.76 earned run average.

A solid hitter for a pitcher, Adams finished with a .212 lifetime batting average, with three homers and 79 runs batted in. Defensively his .976 fielding percentage was 24 points higher than the league average for pitchers when he played.

Adams’ final game came on August 11, 1926. Two days after that contest, Babe was released, caught in the middle of team friction between manager Bill McKechnie and former Pittsburgh skipper Fred Clarke.

A group of players requested that Clarke, then the team Vice President, not be allowed to sit on the team bench after he openly criticized McKechnie. Adams joined in the chorus in backing their current manager and was released, never to pitch in the big leagues again.

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Though they debuted more than a century ago, Wilbur Cooper and Babe Adams remain among the greatest pitchers in Pirates history. Teammates from 1912-1924, the duo combined for 396 wins in Pittsburgh.

Adams threw right-handed and batted from the left side. Cooper was a southpaw yet batted righty. Together they provided a potent left-right tandem.

A quick glance at the franchise leaderboard shows the men prominently represented. Each pitcher remains in Pittsburgh’s top 6 in games, innings, starts, wins, shutouts, complete games, shutouts, and pitchers’ WAR.

Adams is the winningest right-hander in Pirates history and second overall to the southpaw Cooper. The top two spots in pitchers’ WAR go to Adams (50.5) and Cooper (48.1) as well. It’s the lety Cooper who leads the franchise in complete games (263) while Adams tops the list in shutouts (44).

The two men had fine careers. Cooper is the first National League lefty to win 200 games. He remains the only southpaw outside of Cooperstown to log 3,000 innings with a sub-3.00 ERA.

Adams is one of baseball’s greatest control-artists. He led the league in walks per 9 innings pitched four straight seasons. To illustrate his stinginess in giving up free passes, one must look to Greg Maddux. The 355-game winner would have to pitch 217 more 9-inning games without a walk to lower his BB/9 rate to the same level as Adams.

Despite their greatness, Cooper and Adams are mostly forgotten today, even in Pittsburgh.

In the collection is this government postcard signed by Cooper with a post mark from 1953, 26 years after the conclusion of his playing career. For more on Cooper, click here.